My Singapore Holiday !

Exotic. Simply , 'Zimbly' ( remember Tamil is official! ) exotic.
That's how I would describe Singapore.

Our tour began upon landing at Changi on June 12th after which we headed straight to Little India - the township where our hotel was located. The drive was superb. Clean roads, beautiful cars , green trees and super sexy bikes ! Seeing Chinese people ride them reminded me of Police Story ( Jackie Chan ) ! There are some really cool models in China/Singapore ( most of them come with a front glass ) .
The city is very well planned and structured. Quite literally so ; for, we came across a truck carrying labourers and even the labourers were seated in an orderly fashion ! There were exactly 3 striaght rows with 8 people each ! :-)

Day 1 was the Night Safari trip. A lot of work has gone into simulating the real jungle experience and it is by no means wasted. You are taken on a long tour on a tram into a forest where you see wild animals on either side and very close to you . As you move along, the announcer gives you very interesting information about the animals you see and she makes it so exciting ! The quiet atmosphere and flawless rendition reminds you National Geographic ( only , this time you are inside the TV ). Great Experience.

On the side of the entrance , there is an Animal show every 1 hour called Creatures of the Night. We sit around in an open Amphitheatre and the host brings animals to the stage and makes them do interesting things. I am amazed by how they make it not only entertaining but also educational. Most importantly, they spell out a hidden message on Environment And Conservation. Like the mongoose in the show which picked up plastic bags and neatly dropped them into the waste bin !



Day 2 was the visit to Jurong Bird Park and Sentosa Island. The bird park is so big , it will probably take you two full days to see all of it. It is as exciting as the Night Safari , there are two interesting shows with birds ( Hawks , eagles and other birds of prey go wizzing above your heads !) . We went around on a mini-train and stopped midway at a place called the Lory Loft where you have a huge netted enclosure of lories. You can move around with a small cup of bird seed and feed these birds .They coolly perch on your hands - but if you try to touch them , they'll fly away !

Sentosa Island is a beautiful place. The underwater world is one of the best attractions there. You walk through a transparent glass tunnel where you see exotic fish and shark swim all around you. Other attractions are the Dolphin show ( which , surprisingly - is not very great. My parents tell me the one in San Diego is much better ) , and the Merlion . The cable car ride where you cross the sea is fantastic . The tour ends with a laser show called 'Songs of the Sea' where they use water , lights , music and fire(!) to construct an amazing visual experience lasting half-an-hour.


Day 3 was a tour of the city. Did you know that Subhash Chandra Bose formed the Indian National Army in front of the City Hall at Singapore ? The Supreme Court of Singapore is located on top of the City Hall. I must admit I was amused when the tour guide called it the 'supreme' Court - I mean, it is serves only a small city of 4 million people ! However, it is by no means taken lightly by the people there . The law is very very strict in Singapore. For example, drug trafficking invokes a mandatory death penalty. And corruption attracts rigorous imprisonment and caning on the seat of your pants ! In fact, the court is in the shape of a flying saucer. Supposed to be symbolic of a gateway to hell for the wrong-doers !
If you drive around in Singapore, you can't miss the skyscrapers. ( You could have a panoramic view if you take the special sky ride at Sentosa ). Some of them have lovely shapes - there is one which looks like a slice of cake, one which is a chocolate and one which...was meant to be a mike ( stage microphone ) but looks like a jackfruit ! ( This building is where plays/operas are held ).

Out tour came to end on Day3 and we reached Changi Airport four hours early for our 20:15 flight back to India. The airport is simply mind-blowing !! If you go to Singapore budget some time specifically to go around the airport . For those familiar with Bangalore, imagine a super-mall comprising The Forum + Garuda + Bangalore Central. Multiply the size of this mall by a factor of 20. Now , you might get something close to Changi. You get the idea.
Seriously - its incredible. After security check, you can catch a free movie or work out at the Gym. Or , you could sit around in the Lounge and watch TV. Or, you could go back and forth in the Travellator ( the 'horizontal' escalator ) :-)
Well, you begin to wonder if Changi is primarily an entertainment super-mall which , INCIDENTALLY, manages to land planes !


Ah, that brings me to the end of this travelogue. I must not forget to narrate that funny incident at the Mustafa Center ( Singapore's 24/7 shopping mall ). I was wandering around when three burly policemen came out of nowhere , gave me a handout and walked away. The handout said, " Beware of pickpockets and shop-lifters ". I felt good ( thank-you- that- was-very-kind ). I turned over the page and saw - " Shop Theft is a crime ! If caught ......." . Oops . Now, why the handout ? Was I a potential victim or the thief himself ! LOL.

The Pompous Autowallah of BengaLooru

Bangalore's Auto Rikshaw drivers never cease to annoy and irritate me. Especially the ones who park their vehicles at the auto stand near my place.

If you walk up to them and politely tell them you need to go to place A , they do either of two things : Look away from you and pretend they didn't hear you. Or, give you a nasty look ( as if I asked to be chauffeured to the neighbouring galaxy! ) and shake their heads.

Sheesh! What is wrong with these people ? Am I not paying for the service ??

Hmm, makes me wonder where this arrogance comes from. My first thought is the Demand - Supply Dynamic , there are probably way too many people who want to travel via autos.

Or, say I am an Autowallah. I probably make too much money already ! So, I don't have an ECONOMIC INCENTIVE to strain myself doing that extra trip to place A. The gain from that extra trip is at best marginal. So, why should I care ? ( Call it 'Freakonomic incentive' if you have read that amazing book )

An autowallah is a self-employed person. What can incentivise him to do more ( or better ) ? Well, if you were a Company or an Institution , you would easily answer that question. There are SO MANY things you could do : Expand your business, diversify into different products, produce more , improve quality and so on.

But what should an Auto driver do ? If there were a private agency running these autos , you can rest assured the driver's manager would stretch him, push him harder. ( Ah, we all have personal experience , don't we :D ) At least, you are assured of a commutation facility to place A. But, with a self-employed auto driver who is answerable/accountable to NOBODY, you have a very difficult problem on your hands.

Yes, probably the Government could intervene and make those meters tick slower. In fact, the Government is probably the source of all trouble ( heh! ) , why did they fix the pulse rate so high ?

I will end by making a comparison with Hyderabad where I lived for nearly two years. Most places in Hyderabad are connected by "Shared Autos". Now, shared autos are a very interesting concept. To put in software parlance, they are highly customizable :-) . Which means, if Person A is going from X to Z, and you are person B - you can get into the Auto by stopping it at some place Y ( between X and Z ) , and get down at ANY place W ( again between X and Z ). Amazing ! So, you must have guessed that - it is not 1 or 2 people travelling in these autos - they are literally bursting with people ! Commuters can just drop off where they want , and new ones get in. Yeah, very similar to a bus service. Of course, you pay only for that fraction of distance you have travelled. Oh yeah - those auto wallahs can quickly proportion the money you need to pay. All this basically implies that people get to quickly travel short distances by paying small amounts - 3 to 4 Rs. It really helps them do a lot of things in a day, travel is no longer a constraint, unlike Bangalore.

From the economics perspective, Auto Drivers in Hyderabad end up COMPETING to get customers by stopping at various points. Naturally, competition drives prices downwards. Also, they are cordial and well-behaved , after all they want you to be their guest :-)

To summarize, it is not self-employment that is the fundamental problem - but, the ECONOMIC ENVIRONMENT where self-employment is practised.