Pete Otaqui’s blog about web development and everything else
We’re off to the Marina Bay Countdown tonight. Being old (in my case) and pregnant (in Laura’s) we opted to buy tickets for reserved seats rather than the free standing-room that is also apprently plentiful.
Will be taking a camcorder, so hopefully will have some nice stuff to post in 2009!
[Update 01-01-2009: Here's the Video!
There’s a really obvious difference between discussing money here and in the UK. We Britons, and in my experience most Europeans, won’t ask someone how much they paid for something except in somewhat limited circumstances – they might be a good friend or when the question is purely informative and the product is commodotized (e.g. “How much do you pay for bread in Tescos?”).
In Singapore, it’s perfectly acceptable for *anyone* to ask how much you paid for *anything*, including quite large things like your apartment. Given that rent is always a negotiation, this is somewhat embarrassing to my temperament since it would seem to be a reflection of one’s ability to haggle.
Perhaps I’m just oversensitive :)
This might sounds ridiculous, but we were cold for the first time since we arrived (3 weeks ago) last night.
We went to the Cinema – The Picture House, which is part of the Cathay Cineplex – and the air conditioning was so strong, coupled with sitting still for two hours, that we relished the baking 11pm heat as we left. This pleasure was soon curtailed by another freakishly-strong-ac-setup in the taxi on the way home, but I guess since it makes you appreciate the heat which sometimes feels stifling it’s no bad thing.
We went to see “Welcome to the Sticks” (Bienvenue Chez les Ch’tis) a not-too-taxing french comedy about a confirmed southerner having to move to … “The North”. Given that Les Ch’tis (the name of the people and the language from the region) are thought to be rough, uncultured, french-fry-eating, alcoholic simpletons who exist in a near-frozen wasteland I sort of felt like the protagonist had in fact landed himself in the UK, and felt right at home.
