World's End Cafe

In case you haven't already heard, I went to Singapore to see Jingna's exhibition.



It was an amazing experience. The exhibition was simply beautiful.
Seeing her works fully realized and on display was really inspiring.

I had a lot of good conversations at the opening party. Jingna has a really good social circle, and I felt really honored by the way she enthusiastically introduced me to them.

In honesty I've been to a lot of parties where I enjoyed conversations with people that were basically just a means of keeping entertained during the duration of the party but not really people I'd feel particularly compelled to keep in contact with afterward.
But I think I can honestly say that the people I met in Singapore are people I'd love to hang out with again if I should ever get the chance.





I don't think Singapore was ever on my list of places to go before I die, but now having been there, I think I might be putting it on my places to go again before I die.

It was unexpectedly comfortable. I mean I really don't recall any particular culture shock.
The closest thing would have to be the surprise I felt when I came off the plane and went through customs, where I was greeted in very polite English.
It wasn't that I was surprised they spoke English. What surprised me was how pleasant they were. I mean I'm used to leaving the super polite atmosphere of Japan to step out of a plane in Chicago where I'm jerked into reality by the flippant attitudes of U.S. customs and security and what not, that basically treat you like a big herd of cattle.

Ok sorry for the rant. I still love America... Really.

Anyway back to Singapore. I think the best way to describe it would be to use the metaphore I heard while at Jingna's Opening.

Ren, one of the great people I met, said that Singapore is basically like "the World's End Cafe" from the "Sandman" comics.
Now I haven't read Sandman (although now I think I kinda want to), but I could more or less visualize what he was describing, because I remembered a similar place that came up in the old Chrono Trigger RPG.

It's like a place outside of time (at least in Chrono Trigger it was) where people from all sorts of worlds would stop in the midst of their travels and sit and share their stories before heading on to somewhere else.

You may be wondering what in the world that could have to do with Singapore, but in the short time I was there it felt to me like that was an adequate metaphore.

I felt like Singapore was a amalgamation of all the different places I'd been before.
It was like a wider more spacious Tokyo,
a safer more laid back Chicago,
a cleaner more organized Manila,
and probably numerous other places all rolled together into one neat package.

Maybe that's why it felt so homely (did I just say homely. There's probably a better word that could go there. meh whatever).

So yeah I think I'd be down with another visit sometime. Maybe when I need a break from all the busy-ness that is Tokyo.

The food was great. I wanted to take a picture of it, but I was too busy eating.
Here's a picture of the aftermath.



It was mostly spicy food. uberly delicious spicy food.

And then there were a lot of fruit drinks, shakes, sherberts, ice cream, and what not. Here's something called halu halu.


there wasn't any picture on the menue, but I figured, "it sounds like halo halo (the Filipino desert) so it's probably good."

...it was.

Oh I also had a gigantuan sized mug of sugar cane drink.



This is Zeng, posing as a size reference.




More photos...

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Gothic Loli in Singapore


A hecka large stairway we went up on our way to a movie screening


Night Safari


K well I'm getting tired of writing. I have a detailed account of my trip written in my Japanese journal. But for the time being that'll only be seen by myself and my Japanese tutor.

Sorry for the long post. I'll have to start writing regular bite sized posts instead of the occasional short novel.