Lack of Sleep
It turns out that 2 hours sleep isn’t enough to feel that a champagne brunch is a perfectly normal thing to be doing upon landing in a foreign country.
It had all been going so well, six hours (and three films) into the flight the lights came down and I prepared to get some shut eye. However a large storm over India caused some turbulence issues which shook me and the rest of the plane from our uncomfortable slumber. Amongst the passengers was a baby, with a propensity to complain, loudly, when awakened. Bang went any further chance of sleep.
On arrival I fetched my extremely heavy iMac from the conveyor and my featherweight suitcase also. Due to a combination of a 25kg baggage limit and the need to have the computer to work on, my suitcase contained three pairs of pants and half a T-shirt. Allegedly the remainder of my clothing is winging its way, via Airmail, from the kitchen floor of my parent’s house where I discarded them in frustration on Friday afternoon.
I unpacked into our little flat on the sixth floor of Fraser Place, one of the many serviced flats in the expat-ghetto area of Singapore. Of a Sunday morning there are hundreds of westerners and their offspring in the variety of cafes along the river-front. I feel quite barren – I’m pretty sure you could just steal one, and they wouldn’t even look up from their latte.
When lunch rolled around we headed off to another Expat hangout, the Ritz Carlton Hotel, for birthday Champagne brunch with Jo’s boss. The brunch consisted of a variety of food from Sushi to Crab to Souffle to Pasta to a fine selection of cheese. All while the glass in front of you remains terrifyingly bottomless and a four piece classical outfit play easy listening classics.
During the festivities I was reassured that this was ‘what we do every Sunday’, I even believed it for a moment. Although I’m not sure it’s possible to conspicuously consume in those proportions on a weekly basis. Although looking at those waddling around the buffet it seemed that some people had previously had no problems at least consuming the quantity, if not the quality.
After three hours fairly steady eating and drinking, it was mooted that we head off to the expat-flat of one of the diners to continue our revelry. Initially I declined as I was unable to remember my own name through the bubbly filter, however the gentle push of peer pressure though the same filter encouraged me to suggest to Jo that we go for ‘just the one’.
I’m not entirely sure how we ended up watching, and in Jo’s case, shaking our money maker to, a Tina Turner live DVD. I suspect the ongoing presence of wine and a generous selection of bar snacks can only have pushed us in that direction. It’s how most evenings end up. Isn’t it?
Andy 25 January 2007
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Very impressive mate, sounds like your settling into the ex-pat life just fine! Glad that you guys have arrived safe and well and i look forward to hearing more about your east Asian adventures. Sorry i couldn’t make your leaving drinks, i ended up getting belted the night before at Anna’s leaving party and then falling asleep on my sofa at 5 in the afternoon and woke up at half 9, confused. So didn’t make it to anyone’s drinks in the end.
Take it easy mate.
Jon
Harley # Jan 26