My first few months in Singapore

I landed in the land of opportunities with my current assignment on 26th July 2006. My first memorable experience that I will carry to my grave was while loitering the streets of the city. I was waiting at the free left signal for a bus to pass by and to my surprise the bus driver stopped, smiled and waved at me to go on first. I was astonished since this does not happen from where I come. We savour the pleasure of battling the traffic as pedestrians and battling the traffic while in a vehicle.

I have been on my own for about 13 years since I left home for Delhi to pursue my under graduate studies and it was very surprising to find myself feeling lonely. I have felt lonely sometimes but this was like I had moved away from home for the first time.

For an entire day, the only people I had spoken to were these people working in the hotel and it was excrutiating. My tone of voice was signal enough for family and friends to get alarmed that something was not so right. As I began work, everything seemed so different and I would have never appreicated my country as much as I did now.

I think this emnates from the cultural difference of both the countries but it certainly was tough, extremely tough to get by each day. I always believed that I was a good actor given the acting skills to call sick but I could not hide the sadness and my peers could notice it rather clear. It was embarrasing to hear a colleague ask if I was doing alright since it seemed I had not been sleeping too well. Actually, I wasn't sleeping too well given that I was home sick. I would treat every passing day as an accomplishment and never really bothered to explore the city.

I lingered over moving back but was reminded in time that I had to survive it and it can't be so tough to just hold ones barrels for a while. I decided to begin making friends. I had lost the habit of seeking friends and suddenly felt like I was back in school trying to begin the social conditioning.

What followed was a spate of interactions and great disappoints given while it was fun to be around people, I could not find a single soul I would not mind being around anytime. You know one of those things, I could not particularly click!

I met Arun after having spent about a month and I think we just clicked. Over a few meetings we became buddies and suddenly we were getting drunk on Monday nights till about 3AM and headed to work the next morning. I began enjoying the city. It brought me closer to a life I had left about 4 years ago to be more engrossed in work and not particularly a fun person.

It is only about 3 months in Singapore and I would not say I have begun to love the city yet but I certainly have begun to enjoy it here. It may take a little more time for me to be able to use 'la' and 'can' like verbs, adverbs, cunjunctions at anytime and may take eternity for me to be able to pronounce 'already' as 'oready' but one realisation is daunting - It is not about the place ever, it is mostly about the people that makes a place. Thanks Arun!