Monday, February 15, 2010

Thoughts about home

In the 2-ish years that I've been out of Singapore, I've had to experience the recent transformations of the land of my birthplace.

The most obvious being the people of Singapore. We've gone back to our immigrant roots!
Our malls/stores are now mostly Filippino service staff.
India nationals are in our offices.
China nationals are everywhere else, from our hawker center stalls to petrol kiosks.
Even my church has turned Indonesian - both pastors and church members!

The positives of this transformation are visible: higher service levels with a smile, a genuine diversity and a thumb's up that our multi-ethnic/multi-language society is a success.

Economically, we now have 3 new gleaming malls in Orchard, casinos about ready to open and an optimism in the air that is undeniable.

To the new Singapore, gong xi fa cai! And please do not change too much...

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