A wave of nostalgia swept past me the very moment the airplane touched down on to Singapore. The feeling of being back in Singapore, brought back fond memories and reminded me of the good old times that I experienced while I was living here. Finally, I have returned to my home country. There is nothing better than being back in your homeland. I still recall that Singapore of the past was all but just a fishing village. But who would have known that in a span of time, a mere 46 years after gaining independence that Singapore has completely transformed. Now this island is a modern and industrialized location that has survived and proven to be able to thrive when face with difficult circumstances. It feels great to be able to live in the beautiful metropolis where everything is peaceful, no war and no natural disasters and that is exactly what Singapore is today.
The minute I got out of the airport, I instantly flagged for a taxi. In a jiffy, I reached the Ang Mo Kio hawker centre. I smiled, relishing the thought of the delectable food and the smell was so strong that I could scent it from a mile away. That made my tummy rumble and I quickened my steps anticipating the scrumptious Singaporean breakfast that I had been waiting for so long. At the hawker centre, I was spoilt for choice, there was chicken rice, fried noodles, carrot cake and many other excellent food. The hawker centre is indeed a utopia for classic, delicious food. After considering for some time, I decided to go with a plate of fishball noodles and a glass of sugarcane. In less than ten minutes, the entire bowl had been wiped clean and I was slurping on the last drops of sugarcane juice. The pleasant tasting food made my day and immediately lifted my spirits.
As the wet market is just a stone’s throw away from the hawker centre, I came to a decision whereby I would make a detour down to see the current condition of the wet market. At the juncture I arrived at my destination, the wet market was just as I remembered, the place was thronged with hordes of people purchasing their groceries, the stall vendors were amplifying their vices to attract customer to their stalls. “ Come now, one kilogram fish selling at only ten dollars, a must buy, you will find no better deal anywhere else.” At that moment, my eyes scanned the surroundings and instantaneously my eyes riveted at the common scene commonly found in a wet market. “Aiyah, uncle, why you sell these vegetables so expensive, cheaper by one dollar lah, don’t like that leh. Oh yah, can throw in some free chilies also, thank you ah uncle.” Ah, the sight of an auntie negotiating over the price of vegetables and being thick-skinned and asking for freebies , Singaporeans are just so calculative.
However, during the auntie’s conversation with the stall vendor, it triggered something, a quality that every Singaporean possesses. “Arh, lor, eh, lah, aiyoh.” The Singlish has no disappeared after what seemed like an eternity. It is obvious that the government’s “Speak Good English Campaign” has not been very successful. Due to the fact that Singapore is a multi-racial society. Naturally the presence of other races and their languages, especially various varieties of Malay, Chinese and dialects have immensely influenced the course of nature. In this case, causing a great impact towards the English of Singapore. The influence is peculiarly apparent in the kind of English that is used informally, which is popularly called Singlish by the locals, was born. Singlish is addictive, just like drugs. Once you get hooked on to speaking the language of Singlish, it will take a great amount of willpower and control in order to eradicate the habit. This is just the typical language used in Singapore. Furthermore, Singlish is more commonly used than Queen’s english. To many individuals living in Singapore, Singlish is a part of our very being. It is just like a badge of identity for us, a part of our soul.
Simultaneously, there was a pair of middle-aged aunties having a discussion about what their son’s future would be like. They were oblivious to they fact that I was eavesdropping on to their exchange of words. They said something about sending their child to the most prestigious school in Singapore and give them the best tuition, no matter the cost as long as their child is able to gain precious knowledge. This is another quality that Singaporeans own and it is inside their blood, flowing through their entire being. This quality is known as being “Kiasu” meaning Singaporeans are overaggressive in the bid to "win" to get what you want. To put it descriptively, you have an impulsive desire to get what you want even at the expense of doing silly things. Kiasuism has its good side and bad side. The positive side is that if you are Kiasu, it means you are serious and intended on getting something and willing to overcome all diificulties in order of getting it. The negative part is that it brings out the ugly side of human nature, Kiasuism can easily turned into selfishness and anti social behaviors.
In Singapore, there is finger-licking good food almost in every corner of the nation, the locals have the aspects of being Kiasu, speaking Singlish and some are calculative. Not to mention, some would go to extremes just for some freebies. In actual fact, these are the very attributes that make us stand out among the crowd, makes us unique as an individual and what is means to be a Singaporean lor.
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