Singapore Again (Part 7)
I woke up late again today, probably around 12. Bathed, got dressed, headed to the bus stop.
Took bus alll the way to Suntec, and had BBQ Pork Buns and Siu Mai for lunch.
I noticed this sign while I was there.. How exactly were these prawns fortunate? They got caught and made into dumplings! That’s not fortunate!
Then instead of catching the MRT, I decided to walk to Bugis Junction. I figured it wasn’t so far, as I thought I passed nearby on the bus on my way here. So I walked back the way the bus came. And walked and walked and walked, then turned right and walked some more… and as I walked past a white building, I saw a sign on the side. Sim Lim Square! This is where you come in Singapore to buy tech stuff.
I went inside and wandered around all the shops, one level after another. At about level 4 the call of nature came upon me, so I went to visit the loo. There were two stalls, one western and one squat. And luckily I checked if there was toilet paper, because there wasn’t. You had to take what you needed from the big roll near the sink.
While I was getting the paper, someone came in and went straight into the stall. Hmph! But at least he went in without any toilet paper, so serves himself right. I took the stairs to level 5, and used the toilet there. It smelt like it was backed up.. ie SHIT. Then the cleaner came in and sprayed, so it smelt like ’summer breeze’ for all of 2 minutes, then shit again.
I’m glad I missed these ones in my toilet review that I did last time, because these would have to be the worst (apart from the roadside toilet) toilets i’ve come across in Singapore, and Malaysia. Now that’s pretty poor.
Back to looking at nerdy stuff. I wandered into one shop which was selling NAS (Network Attached Storage), and noticed they were selling a model of NAS that I was toying with the idea of getting back in Oz. My jaw almost hit the floor when he told me the price.. $360 cheaper than buying it back home. And that was a wholesale price I was comparing this to as well!
I pretty much made up my mind that I was going to buy it, I just had to figure out how to transport it back home. I told him i’d be back tomorrow, as I didn’t have my passport (for GST refund) nor my Credit Card.
I continued on, and found the server shop which had rackmount stuff – the stuff Gerard needed to put his desktop server into the Rack Cabinet at work. Most of the enclosures were expensive, but they had one which was surprisingly cheap ($280) – ‘barebones’, but not nasty. Theoretically I could just gut the desktop, put all the contents into the rack case, and mount it in the rack. Simple!
I got the guy to print a specs sheet, and put it in my bag to show Gerard later on.
I walked out the front of Sim Lim, and opposite I recognised the OG store Gage had showed me through the other day. I was kind of getting my bearings now, but still had no idea where Bugis was hiding.
I took out my iPhone, and loaded up Maps. I pushed the “Locate Me” button, and voila! I was… A BLOODY BLOCK AWAY from Bugis. Damnit, so close and I totally missed it.
I walked back in the direction of Bugis, and took a turn which would lead me to it.
I noticed these apartments down an alleyway, and each one had a stairwell painted a different colour. That’d be good if you lived there and came home drunk! 
Then I entered the Bugis Marketplace, with all its stalls and semi-permanent shops. I looked in one called Spades, and saw a really fleecy hoodie that I liked. I tried it on (really quickly, 30 degree heat is not hoody-trying-on weather!) and it fitted well. The sales guy gave me a discount, though i’m sure they mark things up specifically so they can give every customer a ‘discount’.
As I came to the main road, there was another donut shop strategically placed near the bus stop, to entice people to buy while they’re waiting. Lots of different flavours, but strangely enough with my sweet tooth, I wasn’t even tempted. If that thin chic keeps buying up on the donuts though, she won’t be thin for long.
I crossed the road, then took a couple of photos again. I didn’t know Bugis Market was the largest in Singapore, but I guess it would be, because all the other places are classed as Shopping Malls.
I thought the name of this eatery was a bit unfortunate, I don’t know what it means in Cantonese/Mandarin, but in English, Yu-kee (yucky!) isn’t a good association to have with a restaurant.
Into Bugis Junction I went.
Singaporeans also have a dear love for their acronyms.
HDB, MRT, SMRT, NTUC, NS, SBS, LRT, ICE, PR, PIE, CBD, ATM, AYE, GST, AJ (Ok ok, that one’s rhyming slang), and a whole lot more, so it’s amusing to actually find a sign that’s stuffed them up. Shall we take a trip on the ATM today?
I wandered around all the levels of BJ (haha, see!), browsing in various stores, but didn’t really find anything I liked. Bossini still had a crap range, and Samuel & Kevin seem to have moved over from Gay to Grungy.
I looked at my watch, and it was almost time to meet another friend of mine, Aaron, for dinner. I asked the security guard how to get to the MRT, as I didn’t quite trust the ATM sign to be truthful. Then I followed his directions, and I was soon on the train. One stop and 10 minutes later, I was right on time. I stood near the steps at City Hall, and waited.
Then I got an SMS. He was going to be at least an hour late… what to do, what to do. To kill some time, I walked along the entire length of CityLink Mall a couple of times, then finally settled down in Gelare, with an (expensive) ice cream. Quite creamy, and tasty too, but still overpriced.
Finally it was time to meet Aaron, so I headed back to City Hall. After waiting some more, he arrived. He’s quitting his work (already given notice) but still seems to be working very hard. Back in Australia, once you give notice, it’s pretty much slack-off month, because what are they going to do, sack you? But here in Singapore, evidently the employer can pull some nasty shit on you, and withhold your entitlements unless you work hard until quitting day.
Aaron had to do one last thing, so we walked to some office where he had to choose some invitation designs. That over, then we were free to have dinner. We dropped past a bus stop where his bf was waiting, so I got to meet him – even though he had stuff to do, so could not join us for dinner.
We ended up at Thai Express in Raffles City for dinner. There was a bit of a queue, so they were getting everyone to order while still waiting for a table.
I had a quick flick through the menu, and settled on something that sounded quite decent – “Yellow Ginger Chicken”. Sounded exotic, but yummy. Aaron ordered his ‘usual’, I can’t quite remember the name of it.
Then we were shown to our seats, and we waited.
Not too long later our meals arrived, and mine was… covered… in chilli. I thought “This is going to be interesting..”. I tried it. Zinggg! It was spicy, but good. I could handle it. A few mouthfuls later, I started going for the water. Halfway through, I asked for another glass of water, at which time the waitress told me that i’d ordered the hottest thing on their menu. Thanks for the warning! Bah. Another glass of water, and I managed to get through it. Really tasty, but damn hot. I’d order it again though. 
Aaron also ordered a dessert (which took ages to arrive), but I was happy sipping my Lime Juice that i’d ordered to put out the fire.
I wondered how long it’d be until I was running for the nearest toilet, but surprisingly we walked around for ages afterward, and I never needed to go. I figured if I could handle that and not have any ill effects, I think i’m ready for a trip to Thailand.
During the flow of conversation over dinner, I told Aaron about my clubbing experiences. Surprisingly, he said I should have invited him out on Saturday night. I didn’t ask because I knew he wasn’t a clubber, so.. *slap*. Haha.
At about 10.00, it was time for him to head home, so I did the same. Watched some TV with G1 & G2, and also told G2 about the server stuff. He decided to do it, so we’d scoot off to Sim Lim first thing in the morning.
I headed off to bed, and talked to Louis on MSN for awhile before I fell asleep.
12.May.08 
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