Thaipusam in Singapore

"Thaipusam is a highly symbolic Hindu festival celebrated by Singapore’s Tamil community. It is an annual procession by Hindu devotees seeking blessings, fulfilling vows and offering thanks. Celebrated in honour of Lord Subrahmanya (also known as Lord Murugan), who represents virtue, youth and power to Hindus and is the destroyer of evil, it is held during the full moon in the 10th Tamil month, called Thai, which falls in mid-January each year."
Source: http://www.yoursingapore.com/content/traveller/en/browse/whats-on/festivals-and-events/thaipusam.html

Sounds pretty tame doesn't it? Well it's a little more than just a procession. Devotees to the faith walk to the temple with elaborate and symbolic things attached to their bodies with temporary piercing. It's a walk of pain and totally fascinating to see. This year Joel went down to little India to photograph the colourful procession.

Warning: The photos do show a lot of skin piercing  If you are faint of heart this might be a good time to go look at something else.

See all our photos here

Reverse Culture Shock

I’ve never had reverse culture shock before but I think I can say I’ve finally experienced a bit of it on this trip we are on. In my first week I was in a state of cultural relief. I think it was mostly the joy of having all these conversations with people who could understand everything I was saying. Apart from some of our expat friends, most of the conversing I do in Singapore is with people who speak either English as a second language or they are are more used to speaking Singlish. I am constantly substituting words to keep within a common area of vocabulary. It sometimes makes conversations short and often a bit taxing as I search for the right way to communicate an idea. I like the multiculturalism and the fact that everyone around me is from somewhere else but there is a comfort when you get back to a place where you can make a play on words and people actually laugh.

Art in Singapore

Most people who just visit Singapore report that it's a sterile place, with more sky-rises than soul, with no independence from simply consuming and regurgitating art and design from other places. There are art galleries but it's true, you don't see alleyways of graffiti or hear independent artists playing music at bars in the evenings. It's hard to find the boutiques with hand made things and independent clothing labels. That said, Singapore's art scene is there, it's underground and it's popping up every now and then if you know where to look.

We went to check out a Flea Market this past Saturday called Pubic Garden. The market was a small collection of tables at a venue known as the Old School.  About half the vendors were girls clearing out their closets (hey at least they supported something good with those knock off handbags) and the other half were independent artists with their handmade goods. The artists represented a little group spanning the underground network of art here in the city and I wanted to show off a few that I thought were quite remarkable. The first was an Illustrator, a young woman who in known as MessyMsxi. Her work was a brilliant narrative about the human experience. The two books I looked at were her view into our world of waste and pollution.

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I also found the table for Books Actually. They have an independent book store in Singapore and showcased chapbooks and notebooks with local talent and some interesting typography.

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There was also a table with a collaboration of graphic designers and artisans. Check out Session and Pupil People.

So that's the tip of the iceberg. I'm looking forward to checking out some cafes and galleries off the beaten path in the next little while. Art is here in Singapore but you need to look for it and sometimes I think that hidden or underground nature is something we reminisce about it the West. How many times have you seen a sullen hipster complaining that everything is mainstream? How many artists have you known who are constantly in the swamp of post-modernism complaining that it's all been done before? Cheers to emerging.

More from Ubud, Bali

The three visit rule

One of the many things our teacher in cultural sensitivity training tried to drill into our heads was that Singaporeans prefer indirect communication to direct communication. How does this look? Well, it's typical to have a very chatty and off-topic meeting with someone who you are trying to do business with. To us, it feels like they aren't taking our business seriously but really they are trying to see if we are serious enough to build a relationship with them.

After some frustrating experiences I figured out that there is a "three visits rule." If I chill out and just trust this process I can get things done and enjoy the indirect quirkiness of Singaporean business customs.

So this is my three visits rule which I have just applied to several things, including signing a lease, getting insurance, doing anything at the bank etc.

Egalitarian mistakes

Cultural sensitivity lesson number 1. When we first arrived in Singapore we stayed in a serviced suite as many people do. Four weeks in a little furnished flat with a maid coming in every day to clean. Mine arrived around 10am, barefoot and oddly submissive. It seemed excessive for her to be washing our tiny floors 6 days a week and I became very aware of my things being in her way. When she'd arrive I'd feel guilty about my dishes and quickly leap up to speed-wash them while she tackled the bathroom. I noticed that she seemed to avoid me if possible and gave me the stink-eye when we made eye contact. Oh my god she hates me, I thought. I must have insulted her or maybe she hates white people. I get it, white people suck. I'll try to smile more or maybe do the dishes earlier and not be still in my PJs when she gets here.

I shared my feelings with Joel who thought my maid issue was amusing but had no idea what to do. I started to greet her at the door with a big smile and would say "hey it's OK, I you don't need to clean up today" hoping she'd be thrilled to have a shorter shift.  I was met with dagger eyes. I just made it worse.