After 2 weeks, let me summarize abit of my daily activities other than the heavy rains and floods. By the way, the weather is very clear right now, afternoons are hot and sunny as how Chennai should be. I think I'm getting a tan because of the sunlight here :S
Anyway, every night for the past week, my friends and I have upgraded from normal non-vegetarian restaurants to high-class restaurants for dinner. We are living an expats life here in Chennai. Like how the expats in S'pore are, this is how we are treating ourselves as well. Lunch at the food courts and canteens at our work place costs about Rs.30-40. Dinner starts at Rs.100 and averages around Rs200-Rs250. The most expensive meal I've had so far is today's buffet lunch at a 5-star hotel. It cost me Rs350 (abt $12) but quite cheap I think when one compares it with the buffet offers in Singapore hotels ($25?). However, most reasonable price is when we had lunch at Zara, a Spanish restaurant (not the clothes shop). A full set meal that costs only Rs209 (about $8) which would've cost $12-$15 in Singapore. The place is also very nice and posh. The only downside is that some of the customers smoke.
I have also been trying to contact people from AIESEC in Chennai. So far, I've only managed to sms Vikas, LCP of @Chennai. He gave me one guy's contact who called me once and that's it. I tried calling him back but I think he changed phone number liao. So, Vikas gave me another number. This guy called me today and promised to meet me tomorrow or at least Friday. They are quite busy these days because of Diwali celebrations. Friday is gathering for trainees to explain/expose them to Diwali and what it is about. I can't wait to meet up with them. At the moment, it is very boring here in Chennai because my friends and I don't know where to go. We don't know any local people here.
Marina Beach
I think I talked about Marina beach in a previous post. This is one of the longest beach in the world. It is just a ten minute walk from where I stay. This morning, my friends and I got up early to catch the SUNRISE!! ..... Unfortunately....... we were 15minutes too late and the clouds were very thick. See no sun .. hai~ ...We were there at about 610am. The surprise I got was that there were so many people at the beach at that time. In fact, I found out that people start going to the beach at 430am. This is because they are there for their morning exercises. So many people jogging, a group of people playing soccer (finally found football in India!), a group of people doing laughter exercise??, etc. The laughter exercise group is weird. They bend to their left, stretch their arms and start giving out a mild laugh. Repeat on the right. Repeat a few times. Then they move on to "heavier" exercise. Laugh loudly and in a deep voice like santa claus.
Anyway, my friends and I had a morning jog on the beach then played soccer with the bunch of people. There was this 89year old man who I think is the coach of these people. He has an album that collects newspaper clippings of him during his younger years I think in the Indian national team back in the 50s?? This guy is still very active. It shames me that at my age, I am not as fit as this 89 year old guy. He may not run as fast as I can but he definitely can jog a longer distance. His footwork on the ball is quite good. If I do reach 89years old, I would want to be as fit as he is... but before that, I need to work on how I am now. Shame CY, shame... in this 6months here in India, I will try to build up my stamina and football skills by playing with these people. Hahaha.... .. hopefully. Will come back here more often. Next time MUST see sun rise from the horizon. :P
Btw, "football in Chennai is for 'poor' people and cricket which is a religion in India is for the better off" quote from the people I met at the beach. We found out about this because my friends and I are looking for places to watch football on tv. Unfortunately, there isn't any place to watch football. Football is cheap and you can share the ball with everyone. Cricket is expensive because of the equipment. Oh yes, talking about expensive. I was expecting Chennai to have plenty of cheap stuff like cheap Nike shoes, cheap clothings, etc... Ended up the prices are no different from S'pore and there are also many which are more expensive. I guess I assume Chennai to be similar to China. Of course, cheapest thing here is food.
Work
So far, I've yet to receive official training. Training only starts on Nov 2nd. At the moment, my friends and I are just slacking in the office. Read abit on OS, read abit on Assembly language, program abit on the Intel 8086 emulator (hear of Intel 486? This is the predecessor.. ancient dinosaur.) Hopefully when training starts, it will be interesting and I can feel useful. I've just found out the price of the place I'm staying at as well. TCS is paying Rs800/night (about $32) for each room. No wonder we are getting such good service and complimentary breakfast... Of course, they're still trying to move us out but they've yet to find an apartment for us.
Sunday, October 30, 2005
Friday, October 28, 2005
Heavy Rains in Chennai
It was raining heavily continously in Chennai for the past few days. This was due to the high concentration of low pressures off the Bay of Bengal (east of Chennai). The news reported that a cyclone was forming. Winds of up to 60km/h were expected to hit Chennai. I didn't really know whether it is considered serious or not except that due to this heavy rain, I caught a cold because I was always under the rain. I do have umbrella but what's the use in Chennai where there are so many low electric cables around. I could easily grab one of the power cables and *bzzzt* ....Fried CY.
Previously I said that monsoon season is over but I realise that the information is not correct for Chennai. Chennai will experience monsoon till end of this month. Also, this heavy rain has not occured for more than 3years. It flooded most of the outskirts of the city. Between where I stay and my place of work, it is relatively dry but there are some areas which is heavily flooded. People have to wade through waters that are at waist level. Gov't officials are concerned of the diseases that might spread because the water is mixed with drainage water. *Eeew*... but what to do? On Thursday, my friends and I went to work quite late because we were stuck as the road to the train station was flooded till waist level. We took an auto (the yellow tuk-tuk as they are called in Thailand) who has strong bargaining power due to the floods around. A ride that would normally cost Rs10, he charged us Rs30. No choice but to pay because we still have to go to work right?
The interesting thing was that due to the heavy rains, the train station's counter was not open so we had FREE train ride. hahaha.... to make up for the expensive auto. When we reached our office, the main road to the office was flooded as well. We had to take off our shoes to get in. It was very 'jialat'... Umbrellas don't really work in this kind of situation. It would've been better if we had raincoats and PCK boots. Reaching the office, we found out that many others have not arrived despite us being 2hours late. The director was so happy to see us in office that he wrote an email to show off the quality of his S'pore recruited trainees. The rain continued to pour heavily and we started to wonder what would happen when the cyclone hits Chennai.
Abuthen, we should've just stayed at home that day because at 3pm, the director declared that everyone can leave. This was because Tamil Nadu was in a state of emergency, 550 bus routes were stranded due to the floods, power was cut in many parts of Chennai and the trains were not operational. Because we could not take the train back, my friends and I boarded the company van to a nearby public bus stop. Winds were blowing strongly and the rain was torturous. We were all freezing cold because of the rain. The once traffic jam prone street has a few cars on the road. We witnessed a tree branch break and falling on the car. Fortunately, the branch was not heavy enough to damage the car. The driver drove off as if nothing happened. Lucky him...
After we managed to take the bus, we were only able to alight at a stop about 2km from where we stay because of the route. We tried to walk back to our place of stay until we reached a "dead end"... Floods that were up to waist level on the main road. Autos could not pass. We tried to flag down an auto to get us back. It took us about 1/2 hr before we managed to get a guy. In such a situation, he tried to get us to pay Rs30. We agreed if he brought us across the flood. When he reached, he realised that he can't drive his auto across and apologized. Told us that he can bring us if we pay Rs50. We tried to bargain for Rs40 because it was way too expensive. He was reluctant. He stared at my friend who was doing all the bargaining. My friend stared back hard. The situation felt abit tense. Ended up, we tried to get off his auto, he demanded for us to pay Rs10 for the short distance. My friend was pissed and did not want to pay. An argument broke out and lasted for about 10mins I suppose before the autodriver finally agreed to Rs40.
Once back in VR Home, we quickly took a shower and enjoyed the comfort of the place. For dinner, because of the heavy rain, we ordered pizza from Dominos. It was super cheap Rs117 (about $5) for 2 personal pizza and free delivery. When the pizza guy arrived, he was shivering because of the heavy rain. I pity him but didn't think of tipping him... which I think I should've because he battled through the cyclonic rains to bring our pizza. That night, we just glued to the TV news channel getting updates on the cyclone's situation. It was reported that the cyclone was suppose to hit early Friday morning. The winds were still blowing very strongly that night.
However, when day broke, it was strange... No strong winds, no rains. The sun was bright and sunny. My friends and I stayed... ponteng work until about 10am. Realising that no cyclone will hit today, we left for work and reached at 12pm... Just in time for lunch. Hahaha....
Previously I said that monsoon season is over but I realise that the information is not correct for Chennai. Chennai will experience monsoon till end of this month. Also, this heavy rain has not occured for more than 3years. It flooded most of the outskirts of the city. Between where I stay and my place of work, it is relatively dry but there are some areas which is heavily flooded. People have to wade through waters that are at waist level. Gov't officials are concerned of the diseases that might spread because the water is mixed with drainage water. *Eeew*... but what to do? On Thursday, my friends and I went to work quite late because we were stuck as the road to the train station was flooded till waist level. We took an auto (the yellow tuk-tuk as they are called in Thailand) who has strong bargaining power due to the floods around. A ride that would normally cost Rs10, he charged us Rs30. No choice but to pay because we still have to go to work right?
The interesting thing was that due to the heavy rains, the train station's counter was not open so we had FREE train ride. hahaha.... to make up for the expensive auto. When we reached our office, the main road to the office was flooded as well. We had to take off our shoes to get in. It was very 'jialat'... Umbrellas don't really work in this kind of situation. It would've been better if we had raincoats and PCK boots. Reaching the office, we found out that many others have not arrived despite us being 2hours late. The director was so happy to see us in office that he wrote an email to show off the quality of his S'pore recruited trainees. The rain continued to pour heavily and we started to wonder what would happen when the cyclone hits Chennai.
Abuthen, we should've just stayed at home that day because at 3pm, the director declared that everyone can leave. This was because Tamil Nadu was in a state of emergency, 550 bus routes were stranded due to the floods, power was cut in many parts of Chennai and the trains were not operational. Because we could not take the train back, my friends and I boarded the company van to a nearby public bus stop. Winds were blowing strongly and the rain was torturous. We were all freezing cold because of the rain. The once traffic jam prone street has a few cars on the road. We witnessed a tree branch break and falling on the car. Fortunately, the branch was not heavy enough to damage the car. The driver drove off as if nothing happened. Lucky him...
After we managed to take the bus, we were only able to alight at a stop about 2km from where we stay because of the route. We tried to walk back to our place of stay until we reached a "dead end"... Floods that were up to waist level on the main road. Autos could not pass. We tried to flag down an auto to get us back. It took us about 1/2 hr before we managed to get a guy. In such a situation, he tried to get us to pay Rs30. We agreed if he brought us across the flood. When he reached, he realised that he can't drive his auto across and apologized. Told us that he can bring us if we pay Rs50. We tried to bargain for Rs40 because it was way too expensive. He was reluctant. He stared at my friend who was doing all the bargaining. My friend stared back hard. The situation felt abit tense. Ended up, we tried to get off his auto, he demanded for us to pay Rs10 for the short distance. My friend was pissed and did not want to pay. An argument broke out and lasted for about 10mins I suppose before the autodriver finally agreed to Rs40.
Once back in VR Home, we quickly took a shower and enjoyed the comfort of the place. For dinner, because of the heavy rain, we ordered pizza from Dominos. It was super cheap Rs117 (about $5) for 2 personal pizza and free delivery. When the pizza guy arrived, he was shivering because of the heavy rain. I pity him but didn't think of tipping him... which I think I should've because he battled through the cyclonic rains to bring our pizza. That night, we just glued to the TV news channel getting updates on the cyclone's situation. It was reported that the cyclone was suppose to hit early Friday morning. The winds were still blowing very strongly that night.
However, when day broke, it was strange... No strong winds, no rains. The sun was bright and sunny. My friends and I stayed... ponteng work until about 10am. Realising that no cyclone will hit today, we left for work and reached at 12pm... Just in time for lunch. Hahaha....
Monday, October 24, 2005
Pondicherry
Pondicherry is the name of the former French Colony town situated about 130km South of Chennai. My friends and I went to Pondicherry on Sunday. We were actually planning to go there on Saturday but was not very sure how to go or whether we should or not. So, Saturday we ended up shopping at Spencer Plaza all afternoon (doesn't it sound like expensive plaza as in x-spencer to you? coz one of my friend heard it as expensive plaza instead of Spencers).
We took a bus at 8am yesterday morning. It was raining quite heavily but when compared to SEA, the "heavy" rain are just mild. Weather these days have been quite unpredictable. Chennai is suppose to be hot all year round but we are experiencing rain every day eventhough monsoon season is over. I don't really like the rain in Chennai eventhough it is considered a blessing here as Chennai has been experiencing drought for the past 3 years. The rain makes the road very difficult to walk and it damages my shoes. Some of the roads are very muddy and puddles are everywhere. So... we took the public bus near our place of stay. Strangely, whenever we try to flag down the bus we want to take, the bus driver ignores us and drive off. Due to this, there was one Indian guy running after the bus. My friends and I were in awe seeing how fast he could run and he grabbed the rails on the bus climbing as the bus moved. We continued to wait patiently before a bus finally stopped for us.
Buses here are interesting. The conductor always sits 2nd from the back and by the window. This is so that he could see whoever boards the bus and ensures that he collects the fares from them. He has a whistle - 1 blow means stop, 2 blows on the whistle means go. I also had the experience of seeing the conductor chasing a guy out of the bus because he couldn't pay the fare. They argued and the conductor of course managed to get him off.
Ok.. sidetracked a little from the main points of my trip. The bus ride to Pondicherry was 3 hours. We changed bus to an ECR (East Coast Road) bus. The bus was full and we had to stand. We stood for about an hour before we managed to get seats. My legs were already feeling very tired. Upon reaching Pondicherry, we realised that we don't know where we are supposed to go. We don't actually know where the remains of the French Colony was located. All we knew was that we wanted to go see the beach. We didn't want to take the auto because we know we'll be cheated as we are not familiar with the prices.
We asked around and found out that the beach was 2km from where we were. As we walked along the road, the scenery became more and more "organized". Suddenly, we saw a French lady (or maybe just another ang moh). My friend Benny got more and more excited. Moving on, French schools (mostly Catholic? All of them had the Virgin Mary statue situated just below the roof of the main building.), French library, police post with a French sign, etc. It was almost as good as being in France... almost. The roads were very straight and traffic was low. There is also a heritage walk where the path is paved with stones. This place is more suitable for tourist. There are many foreigners around here. Many of those street pedlars selling 'exotic' stuff like sandalwood necklaces, drums, etc.. I didn't buy any because of phobia. I have enough of being cheated.. Buy only next time if I do go back :P
The beach, well, wasn't really a beach. The sandy beach was 10km away (according to one of the auto guys). We settled for the dangerous rocky beach. Of course, I didn't went into the water. Only our friend, the Indian girl went in. Along the beach was a giant statue of Gandhi and a small Nehru statue opposite it. I realise that there are many statues along Marina beach in Chennai and Pondicherry. Oh yes, there was also Notre Dame here but we didn't have the time to visit it. There is also a very famous and big Hindu temple but due to lack of time.... And not forgeting, we saw the Joan of Arc statue but only her back because it was fenced up and we can get to it unless we walk a long way round to enter from the church. But we went to the house of one of the famous Indian Philosopher, Sri Aurobindo. We had to take off our shoes and walk in. There was a tomb with flowers over it and people meditating beside it. No one was allowed to talk. The place was sacred. I didn't really understand who he was so just walk walk, see see inside. All I know from that trip was that his wife was called "The Mother" and she played tennis.
Oh ya, FINALLY SAW AN ELEPHANT IN INDIA :P ... India is supposedly the land of the elephants and they are sacred creatures here. Hahaha.. I've seen elephants before but that was so loooong ago. Also, at Pondicherry, I had my first 'Banana Flambe'. It was too sweet but quite interesting. I mean.. ice-cream on top of a hotsauce with some liqour - new experience.
So far I've been blogging about my good experiences at Pondicherry but it also left me with some 'bad'/sad experience. It is here that I saw a man foraging for food from the garbage. Beggars came up to me, one even had a baby on her arms. Although I was very sympathetic of them but I did not give them any. I felt bad but it can't be helped because if I were to help one, the rest will come chasing. After this experience when I returned to Chennai, I got abit of phobia when I see kids running up to me. I have this anticipating feeling they'll extend their hand and ask me for something then I realise they ran past me and they are dressed quite well. I am abit lost when I see these people... makes me feel really appreciative of what I have.
Anyway, last night reached Chennai at about 9am. Quickly showered and went to sleep because of work today. It didn't really feel like a vacation. I would love to go back to Pondicherry next time but will stay there overnight. 1 day is definitely not enough to enjoy.
We took a bus at 8am yesterday morning. It was raining quite heavily but when compared to SEA, the "heavy" rain are just mild. Weather these days have been quite unpredictable. Chennai is suppose to be hot all year round but we are experiencing rain every day eventhough monsoon season is over. I don't really like the rain in Chennai eventhough it is considered a blessing here as Chennai has been experiencing drought for the past 3 years. The rain makes the road very difficult to walk and it damages my shoes. Some of the roads are very muddy and puddles are everywhere. So... we took the public bus near our place of stay. Strangely, whenever we try to flag down the bus we want to take, the bus driver ignores us and drive off. Due to this, there was one Indian guy running after the bus. My friends and I were in awe seeing how fast he could run and he grabbed the rails on the bus climbing as the bus moved. We continued to wait patiently before a bus finally stopped for us.
Buses here are interesting. The conductor always sits 2nd from the back and by the window. This is so that he could see whoever boards the bus and ensures that he collects the fares from them. He has a whistle - 1 blow means stop, 2 blows on the whistle means go. I also had the experience of seeing the conductor chasing a guy out of the bus because he couldn't pay the fare. They argued and the conductor of course managed to get him off.
Ok.. sidetracked a little from the main points of my trip. The bus ride to Pondicherry was 3 hours. We changed bus to an ECR (East Coast Road) bus. The bus was full and we had to stand. We stood for about an hour before we managed to get seats. My legs were already feeling very tired. Upon reaching Pondicherry, we realised that we don't know where we are supposed to go. We don't actually know where the remains of the French Colony was located. All we knew was that we wanted to go see the beach. We didn't want to take the auto because we know we'll be cheated as we are not familiar with the prices.
We asked around and found out that the beach was 2km from where we were. As we walked along the road, the scenery became more and more "organized". Suddenly, we saw a French lady (or maybe just another ang moh). My friend Benny got more and more excited. Moving on, French schools (mostly Catholic? All of them had the Virgin Mary statue situated just below the roof of the main building.), French library, police post with a French sign, etc. It was almost as good as being in France... almost. The roads were very straight and traffic was low. There is also a heritage walk where the path is paved with stones. This place is more suitable for tourist. There are many foreigners around here. Many of those street pedlars selling 'exotic' stuff like sandalwood necklaces, drums, etc.. I didn't buy any because of phobia. I have enough of being cheated.. Buy only next time if I do go back :P
The beach, well, wasn't really a beach. The sandy beach was 10km away (according to one of the auto guys). We settled for the dangerous rocky beach. Of course, I didn't went into the water. Only our friend, the Indian girl went in. Along the beach was a giant statue of Gandhi and a small Nehru statue opposite it. I realise that there are many statues along Marina beach in Chennai and Pondicherry. Oh yes, there was also Notre Dame here but we didn't have the time to visit it. There is also a very famous and big Hindu temple but due to lack of time.... And not forgeting, we saw the Joan of Arc statue but only her back because it was fenced up and we can get to it unless we walk a long way round to enter from the church. But we went to the house of one of the famous Indian Philosopher, Sri Aurobindo. We had to take off our shoes and walk in. There was a tomb with flowers over it and people meditating beside it. No one was allowed to talk. The place was sacred. I didn't really understand who he was so just walk walk, see see inside. All I know from that trip was that his wife was called "The Mother" and she played tennis.
Oh ya, FINALLY SAW AN ELEPHANT IN INDIA :P ... India is supposedly the land of the elephants and they are sacred creatures here. Hahaha.. I've seen elephants before but that was so loooong ago. Also, at Pondicherry, I had my first 'Banana Flambe'. It was too sweet but quite interesting. I mean.. ice-cream on top of a hotsauce with some liqour - new experience.
So far I've been blogging about my good experiences at Pondicherry but it also left me with some 'bad'/sad experience. It is here that I saw a man foraging for food from the garbage. Beggars came up to me, one even had a baby on her arms. Although I was very sympathetic of them but I did not give them any. I felt bad but it can't be helped because if I were to help one, the rest will come chasing. After this experience when I returned to Chennai, I got abit of phobia when I see kids running up to me. I have this anticipating feeling they'll extend their hand and ask me for something then I realise they ran past me and they are dressed quite well. I am abit lost when I see these people... makes me feel really appreciative of what I have.
Anyway, last night reached Chennai at about 9am. Quickly showered and went to sleep because of work today. It didn't really feel like a vacation. I would love to go back to Pondicherry next time but will stay there overnight. 1 day is definitely not enough to enjoy.
Saturday, October 22, 2005
Summary of what has happened so far
I find myself very tempted to blog ALL of my daily activities. It is so good that I wanted to share with everyone. BUT of course, this is not feasible and damn boring. Hahaha... Anyway, things are starting to slow down for me (so fast u might ask? I don't know :P). Let me describe abit of my experience in Chennai in the sections below.
People
I think more than 98% of the population here are Indians if not all! The Indians I met so far in restaurants, VR Home, at office are extremely friendly and "trustworthy". As in I don't get the feeling that they want to eat me up. Very different from what I would find in KL. During my KL trip, that was horrible! Everyone looked dangerous and ready to pounce on you. I would prefer to walk alone at night in Chennai than in KL. There seem to be also some form of mutual understanding and respect between people here especially when driving.
Traffic
Ironically, on the way to Changi that day, the taxi driver who drove me was having a fight with another taxi driver. This was because the other driver was flashing his headlights at him for no reason. He drove dangerously to show his anger at that guy. I was abit frigthened by it... 6hrs later in Chennai.... heh... EVEN WORSE! But the driver was not in a rage. He was just going around as if normal. Everyone sound their horns, everyone flashes their headlights. It is very important to sound your horn in Chennai as traffic is damn messy. But then again, I find that despite the messy traffic, people seem to know when to let others pass and when not to. It is weird. I would be stuck in a junction if you ask me to drive here.
In addition, trucks have "Sound Horn" notices written at the back to warn drivers to sound horn if they can read. An interesting fact is that during normal hours, one can hardly shift into 4th gear on the street. At most, just 3rd gear and you might have to start shifting down to 2nd liao.
Food
Idly, poori, sumber, chutney, chappati, dosa, uttapam, lassi, and so on.... are well... acceptable. Some are delicious while others are just plain not suitable for me to eat. The worst was the sour pickle. It was way too sour. The food overall was not as bad as how the reception package I read described it. I suppose it is only relevant to people who can't handle spicy food. A meal in TCS caffeteria for worth Rs30 would leave me so full that I could barely move. Restaurants however are abit costlier. Minimum of Rs100 for a complete meal. Quite worth it though.
Although..... I would like to note that it is quite hard to find a restaurant selling meat here. The other day, my friends and I were hunting for chicken at restaurants near our place of stay. We walked for quite a distance.. like pgp to bizad canteen before we finally found a "KFC" like fast food restaurant which is situated in the middle of nowhere. The shops beside it was all closed. If I was alone, I would NOT go there. Quite scary...
Last night, we went to a restaurant in the hotel near VR Home. The chef was so delighted to see us because we were "different". First he asked where we were from and of course we said Singapore. He immediately boasted his culinary skills which were not included in the menu. Singapore fried rice, ee mian, etc... He was like "You want S'pore food? I can cook for you. Make you feel at home."
Shopping
Ok.. First of all, I'll have to admit I have poor bargaining skills. Full stop. I shall not elaborate further as my friends here have been reminding me over and over on something I've bought. Other than that, I went to this place called Spencer's Plaza, supposedly the biggest shopping center here in Chennai. Here, we are able to see various types of people... as more like S'pore except with majority Indians rather than Chinese.. Hahaha.. I'll continue to say that I've spent quite heavily recently and will eat idly and dosa (maybe vada once in a while) for the next few months to save up.
Autorickshaw (just 'auto')
Today just had the experience of bargaining hard with an auto driver. These drivers would drive up prices so high to cheat us. I mean .. a short trip which was suppose to cost Rs40, they tried to charge Rs120 for the ride. Fortunately, there was another auto driver who came a little later, offered to give us the ride at that cost. The first auto driver was abit unhappy because the other guy wanted to try and take his business. They were arguing abit in Tamil. We were bargaining with the first guy. So when we requested the price, the 2nd driver laughed at the first guy and would gladly accept our offer. Unwillingly, the first guy accepted our offer, the 2nd guy just laughed and drove off. We were also smiling at this incident. :P
People
I think more than 98% of the population here are Indians if not all! The Indians I met so far in restaurants, VR Home, at office are extremely friendly and "trustworthy". As in I don't get the feeling that they want to eat me up. Very different from what I would find in KL. During my KL trip, that was horrible! Everyone looked dangerous and ready to pounce on you. I would prefer to walk alone at night in Chennai than in KL. There seem to be also some form of mutual understanding and respect between people here especially when driving.
Traffic
Ironically, on the way to Changi that day, the taxi driver who drove me was having a fight with another taxi driver. This was because the other driver was flashing his headlights at him for no reason. He drove dangerously to show his anger at that guy. I was abit frigthened by it... 6hrs later in Chennai.... heh... EVEN WORSE! But the driver was not in a rage. He was just going around as if normal. Everyone sound their horns, everyone flashes their headlights. It is very important to sound your horn in Chennai as traffic is damn messy. But then again, I find that despite the messy traffic, people seem to know when to let others pass and when not to. It is weird. I would be stuck in a junction if you ask me to drive here.
In addition, trucks have "Sound Horn" notices written at the back to warn drivers to sound horn if they can read. An interesting fact is that during normal hours, one can hardly shift into 4th gear on the street. At most, just 3rd gear and you might have to start shifting down to 2nd liao.
Food
Idly, poori, sumber, chutney, chappati, dosa, uttapam, lassi, and so on.... are well... acceptable. Some are delicious while others are just plain not suitable for me to eat. The worst was the sour pickle. It was way too sour. The food overall was not as bad as how the reception package I read described it. I suppose it is only relevant to people who can't handle spicy food. A meal in TCS caffeteria for worth Rs30 would leave me so full that I could barely move. Restaurants however are abit costlier. Minimum of Rs100 for a complete meal. Quite worth it though.
Although..... I would like to note that it is quite hard to find a restaurant selling meat here. The other day, my friends and I were hunting for chicken at restaurants near our place of stay. We walked for quite a distance.. like pgp to bizad canteen before we finally found a "KFC" like fast food restaurant which is situated in the middle of nowhere. The shops beside it was all closed. If I was alone, I would NOT go there. Quite scary...
Last night, we went to a restaurant in the hotel near VR Home. The chef was so delighted to see us because we were "different". First he asked where we were from and of course we said Singapore. He immediately boasted his culinary skills which were not included in the menu. Singapore fried rice, ee mian, etc... He was like "You want S'pore food? I can cook for you. Make you feel at home."
Shopping
Ok.. First of all, I'll have to admit I have poor bargaining skills. Full stop. I shall not elaborate further as my friends here have been reminding me over and over on something I've bought. Other than that, I went to this place called Spencer's Plaza, supposedly the biggest shopping center here in Chennai. Here, we are able to see various types of people... as more like S'pore except with majority Indians rather than Chinese.. Hahaha.. I'll continue to say that I've spent quite heavily recently and will eat idly and dosa (maybe vada once in a while) for the next few months to save up.
Autorickshaw (just 'auto')
Today just had the experience of bargaining hard with an auto driver. These drivers would drive up prices so high to cheat us. I mean .. a short trip which was suppose to cost Rs40, they tried to charge Rs120 for the ride. Fortunately, there was another auto driver who came a little later, offered to give us the ride at that cost. The first auto driver was abit unhappy because the other guy wanted to try and take his business. They were arguing abit in Tamil. We were bargaining with the first guy. So when we requested the price, the 2nd driver laughed at the first guy and would gladly accept our offer. Unwillingly, the first guy accepted our offer, the 2nd guy just laughed and drove off. We were also smiling at this incident. :P
Friday, October 21, 2005
Airline adventure
It has been quite some time since I last blogged. It is not easy to find time to come out to this internet cafe to blog because I get off quite late from work and my friends aren't keen on going online.
To the topic! -> to continue from where I left off previously, Changi Airport is marvelous. It has proper airconditioning and very clean... all very comfortable. When my friend and I boarded the plane, the first thing we noticed was how "un-SIA girls" they were. ^_^ ... Next, the interior of the plane was abit warm and stuffy. I was getting abit nervous because I fear that would be the condition all throughout the flight. The size of the plane was also very small - an Airbus A320. Only 2 toilets for the 4hr flight with 150ppl sitting. When we boarded, everyone inside was staring at us curiously. There were only 3 Chinese man on the flight and we are 2 of them! Next problem I faced on the flight was the storage of my hand luggage. Most of the compartments were already packed. It was here that I realised the need to go through Channel B(read below). These people bring a lot of stuff! In the end, my luggage was stowed away in a compartment a little further from where I sat.
During the flight, I noticed that the passengers like to walk around the plane often. It was very busy. People would walk from the front to the back, back to the front and chat around. It feels as if they do know each other that well. However, I don't know if they do or not. But then ar..... the aisle is so sempit! that they are blocking the path. At one point, the air-stewardess was pissed and she firmly requested that they be seated down. (yah! coz they were blocking our food!!!)
On arrival at Chennai Airport, I was already prepared for how it would be like. As expected but also not as expected.... very much the opposite of Changi..... of course, this is a bad comparison. I mean, Changi is the world's top 3. Oh ya..... at immigrations, I was held up awhile because I was.........*TADA*.... STATELESS! (Why am I not surprised?) I was just sniggering all the way at the poor officer who looked stunned and wanting to throw me out of India. I smiled as the poor guy had to walk over to his colleague to seek advice on what to do with me. Well, of course at the end, I was allowed to pass.
At baggage claims, I had the "wonderful" opportunity to experience power trips at the airport. The whole airport power was cut suddenly when the luggage conveyor belt was running. The belt operated smoothly for awhile before it tripped again. They had to manually switch on the belt each time. This occured 3-4 times before I finally manage to get my luggage. My first feeling as I stepped out of the aiport was "WAH! So many people! Why is it also very humid!?" When I rubbed my palms, I can feel some sort of wet and yet dry sensation. This is not the same as sweat. I began to fear what it would be like everyday here in Chennai. Anyway, after our contact person picked us, we were brought to our accomodation at VR home. It is situated very near the world's 2nd longest beach! Also... where the tsunami hit India last year. The house was better than expected -> Friendly service, personal double room, ac, clean water, hot water... It was magnificient! I took a shower and went to bed straight.. very tiring day....
Update: This place I'm staying at the moment is suppose to be for associate consultants/clients/big shot people. As accomodation was not properly settled, they chucked us in there. Next week I might be staying in some run down apartment :( ... Hopefully they settle something good for us...
To the topic! -> to continue from where I left off previously, Changi Airport is marvelous. It has proper airconditioning and very clean... all very comfortable. When my friend and I boarded the plane, the first thing we noticed was how "un-SIA girls" they were. ^_^ ... Next, the interior of the plane was abit warm and stuffy. I was getting abit nervous because I fear that would be the condition all throughout the flight. The size of the plane was also very small - an Airbus A320. Only 2 toilets for the 4hr flight with 150ppl sitting. When we boarded, everyone inside was staring at us curiously. There were only 3 Chinese man on the flight and we are 2 of them! Next problem I faced on the flight was the storage of my hand luggage. Most of the compartments were already packed. It was here that I realised the need to go through Channel B(read below). These people bring a lot of stuff! In the end, my luggage was stowed away in a compartment a little further from where I sat.
During the flight, I noticed that the passengers like to walk around the plane often. It was very busy. People would walk from the front to the back, back to the front and chat around. It feels as if they do know each other that well. However, I don't know if they do or not. But then ar..... the aisle is so sempit! that they are blocking the path. At one point, the air-stewardess was pissed and she firmly requested that they be seated down. (yah! coz they were blocking our food!!!)
On arrival at Chennai Airport, I was already prepared for how it would be like. As expected but also not as expected.... very much the opposite of Changi..... of course, this is a bad comparison. I mean, Changi is the world's top 3. Oh ya..... at immigrations, I was held up awhile because I was.........*TADA*.... STATELESS! (Why am I not surprised?) I was just sniggering all the way at the poor officer who looked stunned and wanting to throw me out of India. I smiled as the poor guy had to walk over to his colleague to seek advice on what to do with me. Well, of course at the end, I was allowed to pass.
At baggage claims, I had the "wonderful" opportunity to experience power trips at the airport. The whole airport power was cut suddenly when the luggage conveyor belt was running. The belt operated smoothly for awhile before it tripped again. They had to manually switch on the belt each time. This occured 3-4 times before I finally manage to get my luggage. My first feeling as I stepped out of the aiport was "WAH! So many people! Why is it also very humid!?" When I rubbed my palms, I can feel some sort of wet and yet dry sensation. This is not the same as sweat. I began to fear what it would be like everyday here in Chennai. Anyway, after our contact person picked us, we were brought to our accomodation at VR home. It is situated very near the world's 2nd longest beach! Also... where the tsunami hit India last year. The house was better than expected -> Friendly service, personal double room, ac, clean water, hot water... It was magnificient! I took a shower and went to bed straight.. very tiring day....
Update: This place I'm staying at the moment is suppose to be for associate consultants/clients/big shot people. As accomodation was not properly settled, they chucked us in there. Next week I might be staying in some run down apartment :( ... Hopefully they settle something good for us...
Monday, October 17, 2005
Airport Adventure
Changi Airport was filled with Indians the day I was flying off to Chennai. It was not because they were there to fly to Chennai. They were there to send off their friends/relatives. When I arrived at the airport, I was quite shocked. In addition, at the immigrations section, there was a special section for those flying to India to be cleared first. I was directed to "Channel B" where the authorities there weigh my hand luggage. I didn't understand why they needed to do that until much later.
I was actually quite late when I started to queue at the immigrations. My flight was supposed to be 9:05pm but I entered the immigrations at only 840pm. Queue was super long and I started to feel panic. Various thoughts ran through my mind like "Oh no.. miss flight...Benny is going to fly to India without me." "Doris is gonna kill me." "My friends are gonna laugh at me." ... Before my queue was over, I saw my friend just coming in to join the queue. I was like "WOAH!" and felt reliefed. I'm not going to be the only one left out... hahaha... if anything goes wrong, both of us will just get it from Doris or our HR manager... Hehehe...
Anyway, when we cleared immigrations, we both ran like mad to the gates. I was carrying a 11kg bag and boy it was damn heavy. I ran out of breath before I even reached C Gates. My friend was already far ahead of me. I couldn't see where he was. All I know was that I have to reach Gate C21. When I arrived at C21, I was so shocked to see that the lights were all off and there was not even a single soul there. I started to swear and ran around panicking even more. When my fear started to subside a little, I remembered and checked my ticket. The gate is NOT C21 but actually C15. WAH!!! THen I continued to run a little further to the gate. I arrived at the gate at about 9pm which is 5mins before the actual flight time. The gate was supposed to be closed 10mins before boarding but it didn't. Lucky man.... Anyway, I want to blog a little more on why this is.... But i guess my prepaid limit is out... will blog again another day.
I was actually quite late when I started to queue at the immigrations. My flight was supposed to be 9:05pm but I entered the immigrations at only 840pm. Queue was super long and I started to feel panic. Various thoughts ran through my mind like "Oh no.. miss flight...Benny is going to fly to India without me." "Doris is gonna kill me." "My friends are gonna laugh at me." ... Before my queue was over, I saw my friend just coming in to join the queue. I was like "WOAH!" and felt reliefed. I'm not going to be the only one left out... hahaha... if anything goes wrong, both of us will just get it from Doris or our HR manager... Hehehe...
Anyway, when we cleared immigrations, we both ran like mad to the gates. I was carrying a 11kg bag and boy it was damn heavy. I ran out of breath before I even reached C Gates. My friend was already far ahead of me. I couldn't see where he was. All I know was that I have to reach Gate C21. When I arrived at C21, I was so shocked to see that the lights were all off and there was not even a single soul there. I started to swear and ran around panicking even more. When my fear started to subside a little, I remembered and checked my ticket. The gate is NOT C21 but actually C15. WAH!!! THen I continued to run a little further to the gate. I arrived at the gate at about 9pm which is 5mins before the actual flight time. The gate was supposed to be closed 10mins before boarding but it didn't. Lucky man.... Anyway, I want to blog a little more on why this is.... But i guess my prepaid limit is out... will blog again another day.
Thursday, October 13, 2005
Chennai Trip Postponed Again
My trip to Chennai is now postponed to 15th October instead of this Friday 14th. So, 1 extra day for me to spend in Singapore. My friends are already 'bu2 nai4 fan3', all ready to kick me out of this country. This is for the crime of DoTAing daily and sleeping like a pig. Sorry lah ppl, I have no choice but to hang around a little longer. LOL!
Also, initially there was some problem with my Indian visa application. My visa took quite a long time to be approved. I suppose it was because I'm stateless. It is so difficult to travel with a passport like mine. I can only travel to East Malaysia and Singapore without the need of a visa. Anyway, fortunately visa application is handled by my company's admin officer. I didn't know that there was such a problem until my colleagues told me. Also, not a problem for me as long as I don't get fired because I can't fly to India :P
Chennai in 2 days (for sure this time)~
Also, initially there was some problem with my Indian visa application. My visa took quite a long time to be approved. I suppose it was because I'm stateless. It is so difficult to travel with a passport like mine. I can only travel to East Malaysia and Singapore without the need of a visa. Anyway, fortunately visa application is handled by my company's admin officer. I didn't know that there was such a problem until my colleagues told me. Also, not a problem for me as long as I don't get fired because I can't fly to India :P
Chennai in 2 days (for sure this time)~
Tuesday, October 11, 2005
Packing Up = Thrashing Out
It is weird that when I pack up stuff, I find a lot of unwanted stuff as well. I kept some of the stuff in the box previously because I thought that it still had some value in the future. When I look at these stuffs again, I realise that it was just thrash. I should've cleared all these loooong time ago. Hahaha... But I suppose it was because I spent so much time reading and studying those lecture notes and tutorials that I very 'bu4 se3 de diu1'. Now.... just anyhow lar.... into the bin. Halfway through packing up. Another half to go. Furthermore, I've settled most of my other stuffs as well. Hahaha... Lighter responsibility liao (I've just been questioned by my colleagues why I'm still so involved in student societies. Who knows?)
3 days to Chennai~ I've just got news from my friend who already in Chennai that the lodging is quite good.
3 days to Chennai~ I've just got news from my friend who already in Chennai that the lodging is quite good.
Monday, October 10, 2005
Luggage Bag Shopping Experience
Yesterday I went out hunting for a good and cheap luggage trolley bag. I know that Mustafa Center is selling relatively good quality bags at cheap prices of $20-$30 for a 25" to 28" bag. However, the prices are too cheap to convince me that they would last wear and tear. This is weird but quite true. Anyway, I saw in the newspaper Robinsons having a sales for travellers bag few days ago. I went out straight to Centrepoint Atrium at Somerset to have a look at the sales. When I saw the prices of the bag, I was abit shocked. The luggage bags were very expensive. I hesistated whether to buy or not. Since it was still early, I decided to go down to Orchard and walk around first. At Orchard, I went to check out the prices of the bags as well, still quite expensive. I then remembered that Seiyu and Carrefour had better offers. So I thought, "Oklah.... don't want buy from here liao. Too expensive."
I went to the nearest Carrefour which is located at Dhoby Ghaut. When I arrived, I found out that Carrefour was also having a luggage bag exhibition at the open space in Plaza Singapura. Furthermore, the prices of the bags was what I was looking for. I got a 3-in-1 bag for just $49.90. Lucky I didn't go get that $89 bag at Robinsons. Feeling satisfied that I have achieved my target, I went back. Now, it is time to start packing up. 4 Days To Chennai~.
I went to the nearest Carrefour which is located at Dhoby Ghaut. When I arrived, I found out that Carrefour was also having a luggage bag exhibition at the open space in Plaza Singapura. Furthermore, the prices of the bags was what I was looking for. I got a 3-in-1 bag for just $49.90. Lucky I didn't go get that $89 bag at Robinsons. Feeling satisfied that I have achieved my target, I went back. Now, it is time to start packing up. 4 Days To Chennai~.
Sunday, October 09, 2005
A little limerick
There was a young man named Chin Yun,
Who got bored gaming ev'ry noon,
He told the interviewer:
"I am a fast learner!"
And they'll ship him off to India quite soon.
By Hooi Ying (posted with permission)
My comments:
Very power... I don't think I could come out with that rhymes like this. Thanks HY for this cool limerick.
Who got bored gaming ev'ry noon,
He told the interviewer:
"I am a fast learner!"
And they'll ship him off to India quite soon.
By Hooi Ying (posted with permission)
My comments:
Very power... I don't think I could come out with that rhymes like this. Thanks HY for this cool limerick.
Thursday, October 06, 2005
... and some more to add on...
Actually, I didn't expect my title when I first posted that I would be confirmed to leave for India. However, I did remember previously that the HR manager wanted us to be there on the 15th October. Now I know why it was postponed. The formal training starts on Nov 1st. My colleagues and I are sent 2 weeks earlier supposedly to allow us to spend some time to get use to life in Chennai. However, the main objective though is actually the resources are in Chennai and we have 2 weeks to self-study and ensuring that our Assembly Language are on-par with the 20 other recruits from India. (unrealistic though...I feel very scared... will be an embarassment if I can't learn fast enough... I'm pitting myself against the best of the best from India.. a scary thought.... I think expectations from NUS would be quite high also since NUS is 18th in the world....)
In addition, as my other colleagues put it, we received another bomb today. Training is for 3 months but actually there's another 3-5 months work on a smaller scale project before we are shifted to the more critical project in Taiwan's ASDC or Singapore's SIA. So... instead of being away for 3 months, it will now be 6 to 9months. My colleagues being abit "pessimistic" set it as 1year in India. Anyway, we are already starting to plan our trips around India - Plan to leave as soon as work is off at Friday then come back only on Monday morning (Travelling in India takes a loooooong time. Chennai is nearer to Singapore than to New Delhi in terms of travelling time). Then can blame all on Monday Blues for our lack of productivity on Monday. Hahaha.....
In addition, as my other colleagues put it, we received another bomb today. Training is for 3 months but actually there's another 3-5 months work on a smaller scale project before we are shifted to the more critical project in Taiwan's ASDC or Singapore's SIA. So... instead of being away for 3 months, it will now be 6 to 9months. My colleagues being abit "pessimistic" set it as 1year in India. Anyway, we are already starting to plan our trips around India - Plan to leave as soon as work is off at Friday then come back only on Monday morning (Travelling in India takes a loooooong time. Chennai is nearer to Singapore than to New Delhi in terms of travelling time). Then can blame all on Monday Blues for our lack of productivity on Monday. Hahaha.....
Wednesday, October 05, 2005
........or maybe not....
Today I've just received an email from the HR manager saying that I won't be flying this Sunday. Instead, the date has been postponed to 14th October. So, I have another 5 days of slacking before I fly off. *phew* I was panicking as I start to pack my stuff today. There seemed to be a lot and I don't know where to start. Now that it has been postponed, I'm relieved. I have more time to settle some of the unfinished stuff else ar..... I'll be constantly sneezing in India just because people would be scolding me for tossing all the work down. hahaha....
Tuesday, October 04, 2005
And so it is confirmed....
I have just received an email from the admin officer announcing that the flight has been booked. My flight will be this coming Sunday at 9pm. I'll be flying together with 2 others. Another colleague will be leaving for India earlier on the 7th because her mom will be travelling from North India to meet her. I'm in a really excited mood now. Abuthen ar, there's quite a number of issues that I have to settle before leaving Singapore. Don't think I have enought time to finish all of them though...
Anyway, gotta start packing and preparing for my journey. My next phase in life is about to start - The Working Life. Chennai in 5 days.
Anyway, gotta start packing and preparing for my journey. My next phase in life is about to start - The Working Life. Chennai in 5 days.
Monday, October 03, 2005
Countdown to India
Although the exact date that my colleagues and I will be leaving for India is yet to be confirmed, the HR manager has said that we will start our orientation in India on 10th October. According to our admin officer, she said she would be booking for 9th October as soon as our visas have been approved. I am feeling very excited. After 5 months of idling, finally I have something to do again.
For the past week, I was virtually gaming every day. Some of my friends were boiling when they found out that I was on "gaji buta". Well, I did receive my pay slip for the 5 days I "worked" last month. It is equivalent to what one would earn during internships for a month. They were mainly boiling because as one friend puts it - "Melampau! I suffer for 2 months get $500 only. You play DoTA for 5 days and get the same amount!" To add to this friend's anger, I replied "It was very tiring. I have to study the strategies and put up with all the lagging problems. My my... *sigh*... so shiong eh~" Of course, with this reply, I should expect a beating which I did receive. :S .. Abuthen har... payslip have but money haven't receive... I think must be my bank account number error. Well, I'll check it out with the admin officer when I see her again.
Other than DoTA-ing, I've been reading up on India and especially on Chennai. Check out Wikipedia's Chennai facts. In addition to this from Wikipedia, I've also been reading the Chennai SN package (Student Nominee package - AIESEC reading materials for incoming trainees to the place) that EL borrowed me. This is what makes AIESEC trainees having an edge over others. It helped me understand abit more on the local setting. Wikipedia provided facts but not how to handle the culture change and other issues. I learnt some survival tips for when being in Chennai and had set some expectations straight. One interesting fact is that one can live quite well (better than most there) on about 7000Rs (approx. S$270) per month with food and accommodation included. Most importantly, I have to be culturally sensitive and open minded. Ooo... I can't wait, Chennai in 6 days.
For the past week, I was virtually gaming every day. Some of my friends were boiling when they found out that I was on "gaji buta". Well, I did receive my pay slip for the 5 days I "worked" last month. It is equivalent to what one would earn during internships for a month. They were mainly boiling because as one friend puts it - "Melampau! I suffer for 2 months get $500 only. You play DoTA for 5 days and get the same amount!" To add to this friend's anger, I replied "It was very tiring. I have to study the strategies and put up with all the lagging problems. My my... *sigh*... so shiong eh~" Of course, with this reply, I should expect a beating which I did receive. :S .. Abuthen har... payslip have but money haven't receive... I think must be my bank account number error. Well, I'll check it out with the admin officer when I see her again.
Other than DoTA-ing, I've been reading up on India and especially on Chennai. Check out Wikipedia's Chennai facts. In addition to this from Wikipedia, I've also been reading the Chennai SN package (Student Nominee package - AIESEC reading materials for incoming trainees to the place) that EL borrowed me. This is what makes AIESEC trainees having an edge over others. It helped me understand abit more on the local setting. Wikipedia provided facts but not how to handle the culture change and other issues. I learnt some survival tips for when being in Chennai and had set some expectations straight. One interesting fact is that one can live quite well (better than most there) on about 7000Rs (approx. S$270) per month with food and accommodation included. Most importantly, I have to be culturally sensitive and open minded. Ooo... I can't wait, Chennai in 6 days.
Thursday, September 29, 2005
Very proud Chinese lady at the bank
Today I went out to the DBS bank at Clementi to bank my cheque. After I had filled up the forms, I joined the queue. In front of me was this Chinese aunty who I assume to be in her early 50s. She turned around, saw me and exclaimed "Wah, so tall ah you!". As usual, the expected question that comes after that is - "Do you play basketball?". Haha.. unfortunately, my height has nothing to do with me playing basketball. I didn't really play basketball until after I came to Singapore.
Anyway, back to the point. After asking about my height, she starts to talk about America - Las Vegas. She continued to critise Batam as stupid because they have just banned the casinos there. Her rational was that countries that have casinos prosper well and that casinos earn a lot of money. In my mind, I thought - "Wah, she very support S'pore gov't on the casino". Before long, she went to say - "S'pore now then start have casino. Way too late liao lah. How to compete. You see: Macau, KL (isn't it suppose to be Genting?) all so rich now". I just nodded and didn't really care what she said.
After she stopped talking about casinos, she started to rant about Chinese overseas - how united they were. The way she describe it, I think if I put it on this blog, you might see my name in the newspaper tomorrow for causing some discontent in racial harmony. I was shocked when she started to explain how in countries like America, Chinese overseas are very united and "white" people see color. She went on to explain that see color makes the Chinese people strong and that it forces them to stick together and earn a lot of money. Furthermore, she was virtually attacking any non-Chinese. Everyone in the bank could hear her. I looked around nervously and wondered if there would be someone to protest. People around didn't really bother or as how I would feel if I was one of them - "Seesh, who is this person talking a lot of crap". As she continued, I felt like saying "Lady, please stop. Keep the opinion to yourself."
After talking about "color", she went on to brag about overseas Chinese as super rich. Sugar King, Timber King, Flour King, etc. She said to me "You know Robert Kuok - Sugar King... you see so rich." In my mind I thought - "Heh...Lady, if I was still studying in NUS this year, I would take up the opportunity to have lunch with him in Hong Kong this December." The queue for the bank counter felt like eternity as she continued. It was torturous. I've never met someone who can say so much to a stranger other than the taxi drivers. Taxi driver coffee-shop talk I'm used to but bank customers having coffee-shop talk, this is my first experience. Anyone else had similar experiences before?
Anyway, back to the point. After asking about my height, she starts to talk about America - Las Vegas. She continued to critise Batam as stupid because they have just banned the casinos there. Her rational was that countries that have casinos prosper well and that casinos earn a lot of money. In my mind, I thought - "Wah, she very support S'pore gov't on the casino". Before long, she went to say - "S'pore now then start have casino. Way too late liao lah. How to compete. You see: Macau, KL (isn't it suppose to be Genting?) all so rich now". I just nodded and didn't really care what she said.
After she stopped talking about casinos, she started to rant about Chinese overseas - how united they were. The way she describe it, I think if I put it on this blog, you might see my name in the newspaper tomorrow for causing some discontent in racial harmony. I was shocked when she started to explain how in countries like America, Chinese overseas are very united and "white" people see color. She went on to explain that see color makes the Chinese people strong and that it forces them to stick together and earn a lot of money. Furthermore, she was virtually attacking any non-Chinese. Everyone in the bank could hear her. I looked around nervously and wondered if there would be someone to protest. People around didn't really bother or as how I would feel if I was one of them - "Seesh, who is this person talking a lot of crap". As she continued, I felt like saying "Lady, please stop. Keep the opinion to yourself."
After talking about "color", she went on to brag about overseas Chinese as super rich. Sugar King, Timber King, Flour King, etc. She said to me "You know Robert Kuok - Sugar King... you see so rich." In my mind I thought - "Heh...Lady, if I was still studying in NUS this year, I would take up the opportunity to have lunch with him in Hong Kong this December." The queue for the bank counter felt like eternity as she continued. It was torturous. I've never met someone who can say so much to a stranger other than the taxi drivers. Taxi driver coffee-shop talk I'm used to but bank customers having coffee-shop talk, this is my first experience. Anyone else had similar experiences before?
Monday, September 26, 2005
First Day of Work
This morning I went off to the company very early. First day mah, so wanna make a good impression. As expected when I arrived at the office at 850am, there were not many people around and the lights were not all switched on yet. I looked around to see if I can find someone to report myself. A moment later, one of the admin staff came and asked. I told her that it was my first day and waiting for the admin officer in-charge. She asked me to sit and wait. While waiting there, I found out that the office itself is separated into two sections. One is TCS and the other is Tata Technologies. TCS people come into the office only around 910~930.
During the wait, I met two others who would be going off to India with me. There's suppose to be another guy but he didn't go to the office today. Anyway, there wasn't much to do at the office today. It was mainly brief abit about when we might be leaving. The exact date I'll be leaveing for India is not yet known. According to the HR manager, we could be off this weekend or middle of next week. We were all abit shocked at the dates set although I was abit prepared as I knew we were suppose to be in India early October.
The best part of working for TCS at the moment is ~ we were all sent back home by 12pm after we settled the administrative stuff and need not report to the office till 30th Sept. This is because TCS Singapore is just a recruitment office/hub. The office here does not have servers or high-tech computer equipments. I suppose those based in Singapore are outsourced to work in projects of clients. My colleagues who would be going to India with me were bragging to their friends that they were on a "paid-leave". This is abit melampau but I suppose it is a good thing that I'm paid to stay at home and sleep till before I fly. =P
During the wait, I met two others who would be going off to India with me. There's suppose to be another guy but he didn't go to the office today. Anyway, there wasn't much to do at the office today. It was mainly brief abit about when we might be leaving. The exact date I'll be leaveing for India is not yet known. According to the HR manager, we could be off this weekend or middle of next week. We were all abit shocked at the dates set although I was abit prepared as I knew we were suppose to be in India early October.
The best part of working for TCS at the moment is ~ we were all sent back home by 12pm after we settled the administrative stuff and need not report to the office till 30th Sept. This is because TCS Singapore is just a recruitment office/hub. The office here does not have servers or high-tech computer equipments. I suppose those based in Singapore are outsourced to work in projects of clients. My colleagues who would be going to India with me were bragging to their friends that they were on a "paid-leave". This is abit melampau but I suppose it is a good thing that I'm paid to stay at home and sleep till before I fly. =P
Tuesday, September 20, 2005
Isolation stunts creativity
The more I stay in, the less I feel like blogging. These days I can't seem to think of a good topic to blog about. There are a few issues in my mind but I can't develop my thoughts into a blog post. What to do? I need inspiration! lol~
Monday, September 19, 2005
中秋节快乐
Today's moon was very beautiful. Here's some pics which I took with my new camera. Unfortunately, my camera does not do any justice to the actual view of the moon.
Blur Image of the moon - looks like a light bulb (Taken without flash - my hands are too shaky)
The moon (Taken with flash)
Moon with clouds on the side (not very clear ~ need better camera, SLR?)
I like this picture - looks as if a cosmic explosion just occured. Of course, it's only the moon's light through the clouds. (Again, the fault of my camera.. hahaha.... viewing it through our eyes is much much better than through the camera lens)
Blur Image of the moon - looks like a light bulb (Taken without flash - my hands are too shaky)
The moon (Taken with flash)
Moon with clouds on the side (not very clear ~ need better camera, SLR?)
I like this picture - looks as if a cosmic explosion just occured. Of course, it's only the moon's light through the clouds. (Again, the fault of my camera.. hahaha.... viewing it through our eyes is much much better than through the camera lens)My new camera!
After I found out that I would be having my job trainings in India, I realised that I needed a camera. To make things unfavourable, the COMEX held in Suntec City was over. I didn't know what to do as I am not a good shopper. I don't know how to compare prices and bargain. I ended up searching online on how to buy cameras from Sim Lim. Guess what! I found a wonderful site where tourist discuss in the forums on how to get the best camera deals from Sim Lim Square. These 'ang mohs' ah, you always think they go Sim Lim to be 'tang1' (Direct translation - Slaughtered). The forum teaches them how not to be fooled by the shopkeeper's 'special price only for you my fren'.
Step 1: Go Mustafa center check out the prices and the freebies
Step 2: Go Sim Lim check prices
Step 3: Negotiate for a price lower than Mustafa and get them to throw in freebies e.g. memory card.
So, I did follow those steps except for the bargaining part. I'm not very good at it. This is my experience:
1. Went into shop, ask about price for Panasonic & Canon camera. ~Get price liao~
2. Was hesitating as price was abit high so asked if have promotion. ~Salesman say no, over liao~
3. Turned around abit sad thinking "Oklah, maybe I don't really need a camera"
4. Salesman quickly say "What you like? I give you free memory card - 128Mb!"
5. My eyes glimmered. I think he sensed that. But I still hesitated, I was like "er... 128 ah.. too small ler..." Turned around again preparing to leave.
6. Salesman say "Ok ok! I give you 256! You like?" ~BINGO!
7. "Ok... I think I will wan to buy"
8. He then intro me his Konica Minolta camera (according to HF, this shop is the authorized dealer of KM cameras, so they'll hard sell it to you, anyway...)
9. I liked the camera, he gave an offer price of $599. I was like er... I must bargain but how? I am still very naive.. and nice to the salesman so I asked for $580. He was like "Hey.. $19, also wanna bargain meh? Ok lah.. I give u 590".. I accepted.
10. Then he suggested I get 2nd battery - special price for today is $55 compare to usual $75. So total is suppose to be $645. I bargain again.. ask for $640. He was again like "Hey... $5 also wanna bargain." I replied "Yah.. easy mah.. round off". Despite his reply, he gave me what I asked for. I suppose it was a small bargain. He must be laughing inside that he has a weak bargaining customer.
Anyway, overall, I am quite satisfied with the salesman's service. At least he was trying to service me and ensured that the camera was all in good order. I will look towards the positive side of this and prevent myself from suffering 'post-purchase dissonance' syndrome (Besides, this syndrome is common so no need to feel bad). Here's a pic of my camera :D
Step 1: Go Mustafa center check out the prices and the freebies
Step 2: Go Sim Lim check prices
Step 3: Negotiate for a price lower than Mustafa and get them to throw in freebies e.g. memory card.
So, I did follow those steps except for the bargaining part. I'm not very good at it. This is my experience:
1. Went into shop, ask about price for Panasonic & Canon camera. ~Get price liao~
2. Was hesitating as price was abit high so asked if have promotion. ~Salesman say no, over liao~
3. Turned around abit sad thinking "Oklah, maybe I don't really need a camera"
4. Salesman quickly say "What you like? I give you free memory card - 128Mb!"
5. My eyes glimmered. I think he sensed that. But I still hesitated, I was like "er... 128 ah.. too small ler..." Turned around again preparing to leave.
6. Salesman say "Ok ok! I give you 256! You like?" ~BINGO!
7. "Ok... I think I will wan to buy"
8. He then intro me his Konica Minolta camera (according to HF, this shop is the authorized dealer of KM cameras, so they'll hard sell it to you, anyway...)
9. I liked the camera, he gave an offer price of $599. I was like er... I must bargain but how? I am still very naive.. and nice to the salesman so I asked for $580. He was like "Hey.. $19, also wanna bargain meh? Ok lah.. I give u 590".. I accepted.
10. Then he suggested I get 2nd battery - special price for today is $55 compare to usual $75. So total is suppose to be $645. I bargain again.. ask for $640. He was again like "Hey... $5 also wanna bargain." I replied "Yah.. easy mah.. round off". Despite his reply, he gave me what I asked for. I suppose it was a small bargain. He must be laughing inside that he has a weak bargaining customer.
Anyway, overall, I am quite satisfied with the salesman's service. At least he was trying to service me and ensured that the camera was all in good order. I will look towards the positive side of this and prevent myself from suffering 'post-purchase dissonance' syndrome (Besides, this syndrome is common so no need to feel bad). Here's a pic of my camera :D
Thursday, September 15, 2005
Cool morning yesterday
Actually I wanted to blog this post yesterday night but was busy until quite late. Why was yesterday cool? Well, to start off, I actually forced myself into bed early the night before. This was to ensure that I could wake up early yesterday. I hate the feeling of getting up from bed tired and stretching all over. It spoils my mood. The best way to start of the day is when I get up feeling fresh and energetic. So... trying to lead a healthy lifestyle - Got up -> wash up. After that, turned on Channel News Asia to catch Prime Time Morning while drinking my cup of tomato juice (Vitamin C is good for body u noe?). Ah~ This is the life.
After that, I spent another hour watching the news. It got abit boring when the same news are repeated over and over again. I decided that I should get out of my chair and do some exercise. So.......... I prepared myself and went out to swim! This is my 2nd time in the pool after being here in S'pore for 3years. I didn't swim far as I got tired very easily. I can't swim 50m without resting. I remembered the first time I went to the pool here in S'pore, I was abit over-ambitious - recalling the days when I represented my district swimming team to compete in the nationals back home in Brunei (which was like 10years ago). I swam half-way realised that I was too tired to swim further, I struggled to the ledge at the side. I thought for a moment there I was going to drown. Scary... After that incident last year, I only swim near the sides. I dare not swim far from support liao. I suppose I need to swim more frequently to get my body used to the water as well as building up stamina. After the swim yesterday, I'm planning to go to the pool again soon.
After that, I spent another hour watching the news. It got abit boring when the same news are repeated over and over again. I decided that I should get out of my chair and do some exercise. So.......... I prepared myself and went out to swim! This is my 2nd time in the pool after being here in S'pore for 3years. I didn't swim far as I got tired very easily. I can't swim 50m without resting. I remembered the first time I went to the pool here in S'pore, I was abit over-ambitious - recalling the days when I represented my district swimming team to compete in the nationals back home in Brunei (which was like 10years ago). I swam half-way realised that I was too tired to swim further, I struggled to the ledge at the side. I thought for a moment there I was going to drown. Scary... After that incident last year, I only swim near the sides. I dare not swim far from support liao. I suppose I need to swim more frequently to get my body used to the water as well as building up stamina. After the swim yesterday, I'm planning to go to the pool again soon.
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