Planes, Trains, and Automobiles

The transit system here is excellent.  Cars are outrageously expensive, so it's bus, train and taxi for us for now.

The Massive Rapid Train (MRT) is straight forward.  Hop on, squish in, usually stand, hop off, possibly walk 5 minutes to transfer train, hop back on... it's relatively fast and you can take advantage of the time to read or figure out your new phone if it's not too squishy.  This is the place we get the most stares.

We are definitely in a minority group around here, but there are many minority groups.  Singapore is the most diverse place I've been.  Expats make up around 25% of the total population.  Many Singaporeans' roots are from China, Malaysia, Indonesia, and India, and it's a fairly new independent country.  Add Canadians, Americans, Europeans, and Australians to the mix and you have a pretty good picture of the people that live here.  It's really fantastic!  Several locals have thought we were Australian.

Anyway, staring... Westerners are accustomed to more personal space than Asians.  When standing on the train, holding a pole with five others in that vicinity, there is almost always one person right next to me staring into my eyes.  And they aren't checking me out because I'm cute!  (Especially since I cut my own bangs!!)  I'm getting used to it, though, and I try to switch my thought pattern to the fact that I'm giving this person an experience of their own.  Orrr... maybe they ARE checking me out because they are wondering who on earth wears these funky, badly cut bangs.

The bus is not as easy as the train.  It took an hour to figure out the bus route to my daugther's school - which is only one 10-15 minute bus ride wtih no transfers!  The first time I took it, I almost got on the one going in the opposite direction.  Driving on the opposite side of the road makes figuring out bus routes counter-intuitive.

Buses can be extended or double decker, have steps in the rear, or just standard - same as other big cities really.  One of my first days on the bus alone, I was feeling pretty proud for figuring out the overly complicated bus puzzle.  It was going pretty smoothly though and I was near the end of my ride... then I couldn't find the dinger thingy for the next stop!  Please let someone else ring the dinger thing.  Ding! Yes!  They have doorbell looking dingers, while I'm used to the string dinger.  So the bus stops and I stand and step away from my seat, while getting a few stares of course... and plop!  I fall about a foot south!  I'd forgotten that I'd stepped up into the seat.  I twisted my ankle but was otherwise fine and did the Bridget Jones walk away... smiling as if it didn't happen.

The taxi is the most efficient form of transport.  Of course, it's not a straight forward phone call with the response "right away!"  (If you're from Newfoundland you know what I mean.)  There are a few ways to get a taxi here...

1) The Singaporean Wave Down.  Stand on the side of the road.  Do not flounder.  Dip your hand towards the ground a couple of times while holding your arm out towards the street.  Wait.  Repeat.  Make sure you are in an area where taxis are allowed to pull over and stop - not sure yet how to find this out.  Think positive thoughts - this method could take a while.  If taxis are at shift end or on call, they will not stop.  It is also possible that when you do get a taxi, they turn down the fare because they don't want to go to that area or they don't know the directions, and, well, of course I don't know the directions (this actually happened only once).

2) The Taxi Stand.  This can be pretty fast and easy if there is not a long queue.  These taxi stands are located all over the place, especially near shopping areas (which are pretty much everywhere - Singapore is known for shopping).  Sometimes there can be a 10-20 minute wait at malls or if a section of the MRT is being serviced.  This is how I brought my daugther to and from school for the first week until I graduated to the bus (she now gets the school bus - yipee!).

3) Book a Taxi.  When you call to book a taxi, there is an extra fee.  There is also an extra fee during peak hours.  When you call, you give the address and then wait.  The call goes out to the all taxis in that company (there are two taxi companies here) and if/when someone wants to take the fare, they call it in and you get a 4-digit number to remember - the number of the taxi.  This is relatively easy, but can be an expensive way to get around if you use it all the time.

So getting around is similar to other places with little differences in the systems.  Of course, we also walk and run... yesterday I ran in the rain and it was absolutely awesome.