Mobile Power.

These days, passengers are all accompanied by their faithful Smart phones and iPhones and as soon as they board or even whilst boarding my cab, their mobile is glued to their ears and chatting away continuously. Nestled comfortably in their seat and you notice them staring into their beloved gadget, reading emails, into Facebook or chatting and most of all, playing their favourite online games quietly throughout the entire journey to their destinations.
Times have changed when handphones were just communication tools where we use them as and when we need them to convey and receive calls only. Today, practically everyone owns a mobile, its like a part of our body and you will definitely feel very naked and lost when you are without one. Most passengers no longer watch where they are going, know immediately where they are, how the driver drives or even notice whatever is going on along the routes and surroundings after giving instructions to the taxi driver where they wish to go whilst boarding the taxi. Those were the days when you have passengers telling you which road to take, turn left or right or teach you how to drive, grumbles all the way or sometimes even scolds, but today, the whole scenario has changed because everyone minds their own business all because their beloved mobile companion is with them.

Friendly And Generous Passenger.

Around 11.00pm on Wednesday night, two young men, cousins, flagged me along North Bridge Road just after Jalan Sultan and they wanted to go to Jalan Rumah Tinggi and then to Woodlands. They asked me to wait awhile when we reached the first stop to allow one of them to collect and hand over something to the other. Meanwhile, the other cousin and I alighted to have a smoke as we waited. We started chatting. He is a final year Polytechnic student in Design and when I gave him my card, he was very impressed and offered to design a new card for me free of charge and will call me when he is done in about two weeks time. I thanked him and he told me that he is at present helping out in his mother's Italian restaurant. He is a very pleasant young man and we spoke quite a bit as we continued again on our journey to Woodlands.
When we reached his destination and after paying me the metered fare which was $30.00, he insisted on tipping me an extra $5.00 which I refused and told him "You don't need to give any tips in Singapore you know". He said he knows, but he wants to and insisted that I accept. "We will meet again soon" he said as we wished each other goodnight.

Unlikely Passengers.

It was about 8.30pm last night and I was first in line at the Novena Taxi Stand. There were a few commuters waiting to board my cab. First in the queue was a young man with two lady friends and they were about to board my cab, opened the left rear door, started talking among themselves a bit, hesitated a moment, shut the door and without giving any apologies at all, they just simply walked away in the direction of the Shopping Mall's entrance. Meanwhile 3 other Taxis, lined up just behind me had passengers from the queue started boarding their cabs at the same time, they became hired and drove off, leaving me still first in the taxi queue, vacant and with no other potential passengers in sight. It was most unlucky for me because of the original threesome's last minute decision to walk away from my cab thus giving wrong signals to other commuters behind them thinking I'm already hired and they eventually boarded the other taxis. This sort of unfortunate actions by unintentional commuters caused me to wait a longer time for the next available passenger.

This is not the first time that I am placed in such an annoying situation. I have to accept the fact that these unfortunate actions are always unpredictable and I happen to be on the receiving end. Anyway, the rest of my working day was not too bad as I had my fair share of ferrying many eager passengers until my shift ended.

Unforgettable Lovely Lady Passengers.

Yesterday evening, I had the pleasure of ferrying two kind and lovely ladies to their residences. The first one that I fetched was from Takashimaya and she wanted to go to Shunfu Road where she lived. She was from Indonesia where she was born but grew up in Melbourne and Brisbane where she also met and married her husband, a Singaporean. She has been living here for the past 12 years and still loving it. I detected a bit of accent when she spoke and thats how we came about chatting and laughing throughout the journey to her destination. After she paid the metered fare of $12.00, we thanked and wished each other Happy New Year but just before alighting, she handed me a paperbag containing two pieces of chocolate cakes, my favourites, at first I refused to accept but she was persistent and kept insisting, saying "I have a few more in my other bag, please, please I want you to have them". I finally relented, "Thank you so much, you are very kind". Later during my break, I ate the two pieces of cakes and I tell you, it was really good and I really enjoyed them.

The second pretty lady whom I fetched was from Novena Taxi stand and she was going home to her apartment at Fernvale near Jalan Kayu Road. Coincidentally, she too was from Indonesia, also married to a Singaporean and has been living here for the past 10 years. She spoke in flawless English, telling me that she had recently tendered her resignation from her job. I asked why she did that and she told me, she has two lovely children, a daughter who is 5 years old and a 1 year old son. Her son has a slight medical problem and she wants to personally care for him till he is well. We were chatting away along the CTE and to my horror, I missed the left turn into Yio Chu Kang Road, that means I had to take a big round, exit into the SLE and into Jalan Kayu. I kept apoligizing and promised to deduct whatever additions incurred. She was not at all angry nor annoyed and said "Not to worry, its alright". I felt very bad and so when we reach her destination, the metered fare showed $20.50, inclusive of the surcharge of $4.00, I immediately said "Just pay me less the surcharge amount which is $16.00 will do, its my mistake, I'm so sorry". She answered, "No, no its was just an honest mistake, no,cannot" She then paid me exactly the metered fare of $20.50 no less and insisted she wants no change at all from me. She thanked me for having such a pleasant and enjoyable ride home and I did the same. We wished each other Happy New Year as she happily alighted.

What sweet and delightful journeys they had been with such excellent, kind and caring passengers.

Eavesdropping.

I must admit, Taxi Drivers are truly unavoidable legal eavesdroppers. When my passengers start to quarrel among themselves, I have totally no control and no choice whatsoever but to remain quiet, with a listening ear and become a third party witness to the many different types of quarrels imaginable over the years. Quarrels that happen in my cab are usually between husbands and wives, boyfriends and girlfriends, lovers and also among siblings. Most quarrels are the subdued types, it starts with short aggressive remarks with harsh words, retorts, blurted out in stern but sober tones, sometimes they may sound as though they were whispering yet loud enough, very audible over very small petty issues.
In some cases, angry and ugly arguments over infidelity are spewed out unashamedly, exposing the actions of the guilty party concerned, exactly like happenings in True Life stories that we might have read or have come across in our lives before, and they can be quite interesting listening to the facts and details of infidelities.
As a cab driver, I have always maintained a 'mind your own business' attitude, but sometimes when I feel things are getting a bit out of hand, I would gently ask them if I should make a left or right turn or if I should take this or that road which usually puts a sudden halt to their heated arguments and it does help to cool down the heat somewhat.
Quarrels between boyfriends, girlfriends and lovers are slightly different. They would start by speaking angry words and then stop, a short while later, a few more unhappy words and then silence. I can sometimes sense the kind of miserable feelings the couples maybe going through with a few spoken words off and on followed by total silence till they reach their destinations.

An 'Invincible' Passenger.

There is always a first time as I led this 'passenger' not going to be on board my cab at all, but driving in his own vehicle, following closely behind me as I guided him to Kranji Camp along Chua Chu Kang Way.
You see, I was flagged by this 'passenger' after the traffic lights at the junction of Bukit Gombak Military Camp along upp. Bukit Timah Road around 9.30pm last night. He was standing behind his parked car when he flagged me. He walked up to me on my driver's side as soon as I pulled up and asked if I could show him the way to Kranji Military Camp. He offered to pay me for my services and immediately handed me a $10 bill to mean that he was being genuine and needed me to guide him to the Camp. I straightaway took out my Directory to show him the map but he just waved and said "No, no, I am not good at directions, I just need you to lead me to Kranji Military Camp please".
Well, I thought, its still providing a service and agreed. Before he returned to his own vehicle, he told me to try not to go too fast. I said "Okay" and drove at a moderate pace, looking through my rear mirror most of the time to make sure that he is 'tailing' me all the way. When we arrived at the Camp, the metered fare showed $7.60 but I only charged him $7.00. He thanked me for my patience and help as he collected back his change of $3.00. I said "You are still my 'passenger' just the same and thank you".
This trip was a first of its kind for me and I thought it funny having a 'passenger' who is not even on board my cab as I continued cruising around.

Performed "angioplasty" in the kitchen......

Picked up this American expat and on the way to his hotel, The Ritz Carlton, he was saying that most people in his country are handy-men. He related that one day, in the kitchen with his wife, she noticed gargling sounds, bubbles and liquid was stucked and so he performed a simple angioplasty. "You mean, you are a surgeon, and you performed angioplasty on your wife, in the kitchen?" I asked.

"Oh, no, no, no," he explained, "My wife noticed that the water in the kitchen sink had refused to go down the drainage opening... obviously there was a blockage in the drainage system and so I performed something similar to angioplasty, clearing the blockage was very similar to angioplasty, you know what I mean, simply pushing down an auger and the clogged pipe (blocked artery) was then free of grease (cholesterol plague) which finally allowed water (blood) to flow freely in the system, got it?"

I laughed and said, "Interesting, comparing our blood arteries to our house drainage pipes!! For a moment I thought ..."

"Yeah, yeah, I knew it!" he chuckled.

This guy then recommended using a cup of bio-degradable degreaser monthly for my sink, its just like drinking warm Chinese tea after dinner to act as a degreaser for all the fatty foods that we eat.

"Hmmm, sounds sensible!!! Thank you." I said, as we arrived at the hotel. He paid the fare plus a little bit extra and said, "Goodnight, drive carefully."

I replied "I will, thank you and goodnight."

As I drove off, I thought he was chatty, interesting and a witty American, nice guy.

the difference between weekdays and weekends....

Picked up this guy along Newton Road outside Goldhill Plaza. His destination is Yishun Street 81 and he seem a little bit high, maybe had too much to drink. It was about 10.45pm and he was in high spirits and chatty. He told me why pubs and lounges with hostesses do very good business during week-days but not so good during weekends. This is why, he said,

"We guys, most of us are usually family men and you know, we need to spend time with the family during weekends, go to country clubs, our children go swimming or bowling, wives pull jackpot machines or chit chat with other members' wives and the men maybe do a bit of golfing or have some drinks at the club and in the evenings bring the family for dinner at eating houses, food centres or restaurants and therefore we are tied up and cannot escape from the family, practically the whole day have to be with them, so how to go spend time and enjoy ourselves in pubs and lounges? But come weekdays, thats when the children have to be at home doing their school work and most wives supervising them, and for us, yes man, our turn, we need to take a break from our daily busy work routine and relax, and that's where we go to hang out and have fun. See, thats why clubs, pubs and lounges continuously do good business, because of us married men. Unmarried men and women would prefer to spend their time together, locked in a private world of their own, why go spend money in those places. Am I right?"

"Very true, very true! And how often and how much money do you normally spend in these places?" I asked. He replied "Oh, sometimes two or three times a week, maybe spend around two to three hundred dollars each time, okay lah, I work hard, I earn good money, no problem man. Uncle, Uncle just drop me at the bus stop in front will do, thanks."

He paid me $15/- "Keep the change, Good night." Before I can even say thank you and goodnight, he already disappeared from behind the bus stop. Well, what do you know, he must have had a good time and enjoyed himself thoroughly.

Its about 11.15pm now, and I think I am also going to have a good time with a puff and a cup of coffee at the local 24 hour coffee "Club" at Chong Pang...........

who's right, who's wrong..........

Imagine leaving your only child, 15 years of age, who is down with H1N1 to fend for herself, I would definitely not! The parents should have gone for H1N1 innoculation in the first place if they are fearful of being infected by their daughter and stay by her, instead of, I would call it 'abandoning' and running away from their responsibilities. It is like watching your loved one drowning right in front of your eyes and you just watch because you're afraid you might drown too if you try to rescue, unless of course if you are very old and sick or too weak to even try to help, then it's a different story. I feel sad to even think that parents can do such when their child needs them most.

Then again, I come across this common everyday fickle quarrel over small change, in this case over two 5 cent coins at El Ameen Eating House opposite Beauty World, there is totally no give or take attitudes and not even trying to understand or be considerate instead of being arrogant and showing off by paying with a piece of thousand dollar note for a $1.20 packet of tea "Teh Tarik".

In my line of work, I have also been involved, occasionally with small change difficulties. Such as being paid with a $100 piece of note for a small fare of $4 and once $3.20. Passengers have to try to understand that we, taxi drivers are not money-changers and we dare not hold too much cash for security reasons. Therefore, we would most appreciate it if passengers can prepare or be ready with small change for short trips, of course we try to accomodate as much as possible.

state of affairs of Churches and Churchgoers......

Picked up a Canadian gentleman from Hyatt Hotel who wanted to go to Costa Rhu (Tanjong Rhu) at about 11pm. Along the way, he told me that he noticed great numbers of churchgoers, young and old, attending churches here, unlike in Canada where only senior citizens and maybe a handful of grandchildren attend churches. Nowadays, many Canadians are just not attending churches there. Most Anglican church members are against their church giving blessings to 'gay' marriages which is legal in Canada and this has caused breaking up from 'mother' church into starting their own new Anglican Church of Canada. 
He told me that there are about 300,000 Anglicans presently in Canada but due to dwindling membership, he thinks in about 30 years, the Anglican Church will become obsolete. He said, as it is, many churches have gone bankrupt or had to be disbanded as attendances keep falling. The Catholic Church has its share of problems with child molestations and child pornography and is losing many church members. Its Church has paid millions in cover-ups, denials and settlements and, imagine, only last month a Roman Catholic Bishop was arrested for illegal possession of child pornographic materials, this Bishop travels frequently to Vietnam and Thailand in search of children, how sick can he be. 
Many churches have gone bankrupt because it cannot keep going without enough churchgoers and some had to be sold off to become restaurants, hardware stores or even converted into nightclubs with strippers performing at the altar.

"Good Lord!" he exclaimed, and continued, "Sad, very sad" he said, the state of affairs of churches in Canada with its dwindling and continuous loss of followers have caused great concern in the country. He said he has been here for almost two months now and will be going home next weekend, he added that Singapore churchgoers are very staunch, active, vibrant, and most times the churches here are packed and crowded unlike back home in his country. 
All the way to Costa Rhu, I just listened quietly and when we reached his destination, he paid the metered fare and said "Thank you for listening to my talk, take care and God bless" I thanked him at the same time as we bade farewell....

Phew!!.....that was indeed a long "talk" and now, its time for my favourite "Teh Tarik" at Geylang, Lorong one......

amazing stories.........

Last Friday night, I picked up two women passengers at Harbour Front taxi stand and they both wanted to go to Ang Moh Kio Avenues 8 and 10. Along the way, I could not help but listened to their conversation which was rather interesting. One woman was telling the other that she lived together with her younger sister and brother in their flat in Ang Mo Kio and they employed a Phillipina maid to do their housework as all of them were working. In the meantime, they also employed another Phillipina maid to look after their mother and an aunty, both in their senior years, living in another flat nearby. Late one night, she was surprised and shocked when she received a call from the police informing her about the arrests of both her Phillipina maids, who upon investigations gave them details of the whereabouts of their employers. Apparently the two maids were able to leave their flats unnoticed whilst they were all asleep during the night and were caught moonlighting as prostitutes at Orchard Towers. Both maids were of course immediately sacked and until this day she said she still cannot believe that it happened. After sending my passengers home, I continued cruising around in that area and at the same time feeling rather amused everytime I recall what I had heard, simply amazing what stories we can hear whilst we work.........

Alarming Masquerade..

One day, around 11pm, I picked up a pretty young Malay lady in her late twenties, dressed very sexy and kinky and carrying a traveling bag along Geylang Road just after Lorong 16. She told me to send her to Woodlands Check-point as she settled herself in the back seat of my cab. I acknowledged her request and started driving off. As I made the turn to travel by the CTE link road into the PIE, I heard sounds of 'shuffling' unmistakebly of clothing material, like when you rummage through your pile of shirts to look for something left in one of the pockets. I casually peeked through the rear view mirror and saw this lady taking out some clothing materials from her travelling bag which I thought is nothing unusual and so I just concentrated on my driving towards Woodlands. The journey was quite a distance and whilst driving past certain parts of the highway which seemed quieter, I could just sense that kind of feeling like some sort of movements was going on made by this young lady seated at the back, but I simply dismissed my thoughts and did not bother to peek behind a second time as I kept my eyes trained more importantly on the road ahead of me. 
All in all, about 20 minutes later we arrived at the Woodlands Check-point taxi stand, stopped my cab, pulled up my handbrakes and then looked behind me to tell the lady the metered fare and guess what I saw, I was so shocked, momentarily shakened to see a totally transformed Malay looking 'religious' lady in a different outfit, together with her 'tudung' displayed on her head. Yes, she had the same goodlooking face and was smiling when she handed me the fare which I took and thanked her with me staring at her with my stupified and bewildered look. After she alighted, I still had my eyes following her till she was out of sight, only then did I drove off. 
Wow, what a perfect transformation, what do you know, a hooker away from home and returning as a solemn, respectful looking 'religious' personality. Indeed, this could well be from a perfect movie script. As I write this post, I can't help but kept recalling the whole incident over and over again.

Lively encounters

Everytime I fetch mothers with their young children I get to hear famous diciplining phrases like "Uncle is getting angry", "Uncle going to throw you out of the taxi", "Uncle going to scold you already" and even "Uncle going to beat you if you don't stop it"... "Stop it, stop it, look, Uncle is staring at you now". All these threats blurted out by the mothers at their children will, hopefully not, create a 'fear' phobia when they grow up and that might cause taxi drivers to lose future generation of taxi commuters.

One day, I picked up this lady passenger who had her mobile handphone in silent mode. Now, this was what happened... "Hello?, have you had your dinner yet?" she said and I answered "No,not yet, maybe in an hour's time thank you" Imagine how embarrassed I was when I turned around to acknowledge her that I found out she was actually on her handphone asking her boyfriend or husband the question! Next time I better make sure to speak when I am actually the one spoken to. And there was this guy who boarded my cab and sat beside me, looked at me from an angle and then suddenly slapped me on my left shoulder, "Hey, Albert ! Long time no see man! Since when you started driving taxi?" I was a bit shaken and said, "Bro. my name is not Albert, I think you got the wrong person."

"Ah, so sorry, so sorry, but you look like him, not twins hoh?"

"No, I don't have a twin brother" I started laughing... this was a case of positive mistaken identity and anyway, we continued chatting and laughing all the same throughout the journey.

Then I had another passenger who sat behind and throughout the trip he was talking and laughing to himself. I peered at him through the rear mirror and prayed he was not one who flew over the cuckoo's nest and luckily for me he turned out to be a decent guy and even left me a small tip when we reached his destination. It's unbelievable but it keeps my mind alert and looking for more as I drive on.....

Half-hearted sportsman...

Picked up this young man from Changi Airport T2 with a sling bag and carrying a golf set. "Hello, where to?"

"Hi Uncle, please go to West Coast Road near Esso Petrol station"

"Okay. Wow, you must be back from overseas golf competition?"

"No lah, just to Bangkok to play golf for relaxation"

"You must love playing golf very much, and by the way, what would your handicap be?"

"No lah, no handicap, just started learning to play the game.."

"It must be quite boring hitting a small ball and walking at least 400 yards to search for the ball and hitting it again and then walk, search and..."

"You are quite right Uncle, after playing a while I'm now losing a bit of interest because of inconsistencies and the irregular moods of the weather. Just when you are eager and ready to play, heavy rain falls and you get wet and messy and got to walk back quite far to the clubhouse, I am getting fed up and thinking of giving up golf"

"Do you think its a boring and stupid game then?"

"I'm inclined to think so, and its not cheap you know. I think maybe I'll just quit."

Before I could reply, we reached his destination. As I drove away, I was thinking this young man must have chosen a wrong sport, he looks frustrated and from what I gathered he might really quit the game. Not everyone can be a Tiger Woods, and in any sports, you must first love it, enjoy it, be good and try to excel in it and most of all be very passionate to really succeed at all. This young man don't seem to have it in him, I don't blame him, most probably he is more afraid that lightning might strike just like it struck and recently killed a businessman whilst playing golf in Singapore.

Latest Blockbuster!

Another mobile handphone-glued-to-ear passenger boarded my cab from Paragon taxi stand.

"Hello.... hello? Hello? where would you like to go?" No instructions from her as I drove out from the taxi stand.

I turned around to look at her and again I asked, "Hello? Miss, where to?"

She quickly looked up and said "Sorry, Choa Chu Kang North 5 please."

It was 7pm and as usual, slow heavy traffic flow all the way to her destination. I couldn't help but listened to her continuous conversation with her girlfriend, it must be, because she kept calling her Kelly a few times. She was giggling and laughing and at times spoke about intimacies she shared with her boyfriend on their holidays abroad, if I am not wrong, in Phuket. She was apparently telling stories to her girlfriend about her boyfriend, and was quite elaborate in her details, which I think should only be heard under covers. Anyway, her excited, exhuberant descriptions about her adventures shows that she couldn't care less who's listening because she is deeply in love, and for her, love knows no boundaries.

It seemed like an extremely long journey and I was the patron, 'hearing' not 'watching' a non-visual love picture in motion, but alas, I was not to know its ending because we arrived at her place too soon. She looked at the meter and simply gave me $20/-, smiling and gesturing, keep it, as she alighted with her HP still glued to her ear. I could only call out "Thank you" as she she closed the door behind her and walked briskly towards her block. The End.

Well, this got me imagining and putting all data compiled into a Blockbuster flick as I head towards the nearest coffee shop, with my "On Call" sign displayed.........

My taxi is not Raffles Hotel Long Bar

Another time, I fetched this English lady, I think in her mid thirties, who wanted to go from Bugis taxi stand to Pandan Valley. From the start of the journey she kept eating peanuts after breaking the shells and at first I did not know where she threw the husks, I presumed in a paperbag. I told her please not to eat in the taxi. She kept quiet for a while and then said "Its only peanuts!" sounding annoyed. Another one of those unreasonable things. I told her "Ok, make sure you don't dirty my cab" 
She just ignored what I said and looked the other way. Arrived just outside Pandan Valley Condo she asked to stop, paid the fare and walked off quickly before I can even say thanks. Anyway, I started driving away, just then I thought, have a quick look at the backseat and to my horror and dismay, I saw peanut husks strewn all over the seat and on the floor. What a lousy thing to do. If she was still around, I could have told her that my Cab is not Raffles Hotel's Long Bar. Had to stop by the roadside to clean up the mess she left in the cab feeling rather sore about it. Next time, I will learn how to say "NO" politely and promptly......

Still my duty to inform...

One day, I picked up this passenger along River Valley Road, near Mohd. Sultan and he wanted to go to Sim's Drive. As I began driving, I reminded him to put on the seat belt. He could not be bothered and said "Ah...nevermind lah" I told him that if he is caught without the safety seat belt on, it is an offence and he can be fined. He replied "When I am caught then talk", I said "Let me remind you that I have requested you to put on your seat belt in case you are caught, it is my duty to let you know ok?" Again he brushed me off saying "Just drive me there and if I get caught its my own business!" I knew we'll get no where with his kind of attitude so I just kept quiet and drove him to his destination. He paid the fare and said "See? No problem".

a woman full of "zest"

While cruising along Hougang Ave 8, at about 10pm, I picked up this elderly woman in her 70's near Street 61. "Hello" and she nodded her head as she got into my cab, seated herself, then shut the door very slowly and asked me to send her to Jurong East Street 13 in Hokkien.

"Ho" I replied also in Hokkien (meaning yes or ok) and started driving. I asked if she was going home and she said "Si-ah" (yes). Its so late, I exclaimed, and she told me that she had been playing 'mahjong' with her friends since 1.00pm that afternoon. I asked if she won some money and she said "Boh lah, tah pai su" (No lah, always lose) like today she lost nearly $400/- dollars, and from then on, she kept talking non-stop all the way without me having to ask her further questions. She sat up and spoke very steadily, about her adventures on board casino ships, Genting Highlands casino and also in gambling dens, other than that, her friends would always invite her for 'mahjong' sessions in their homes. She told me that she is very lucky to have very filial and good children, all 6 of them married, (3 boys and 3 girls), and all of them earn very high salaries. Every month, her children would give her so much money, thousands of dollars, and allowed her to do whatever she likes to do as she pleases. She says she is still fit and strong, and lucky not to have old age illnesses, so just carry on and enjoy what she likes to do, gambling.

"Aiyoh" and heaved a big sigh, only one regret, I don't know how to save money, how to? I am simply addicted to all kinds of gambling. I always lie to my children that I usually go visit my friends for tea, for chit chats or go for short sightseeing trips, but I think they know I try to hide what I do. Still, my children don't question me, but tell me to take care and go ahead enjoy myself.

I told her that she is indeed very lucky and truly blessed to have good children and can lead such a lifestyle and how I wish I can be in her shoes. She smiled and said, "My lah, my lah, boh ho lah, mm tung teh!" (Don't, don't follow, no good) and we both started laughing away as we arrived at her destination. She gave me $20/- "SSHHhh...Gia lah, gia lah!" (Take, take!) as she started to alight.

I said "Kum siah, kum siah, sio sim, sio sim!" (thank you, thank you and careful, careful!)

We waved and I made sure she walked safely to her lift landing before I drove off. Wow!! what a spritely and energetic woman she is, as I drove off, still thinking of what she told me........... I think the best classroom in the world is at the feet of an elderly person.

More Caucasian missions accomplished.

I was still thinking of the incident with the previous caucasian while driving off from Tanglin Mall when a fat looking, also caucasion man knocked on my door. I wound down the door window and he said, "Could you fetch me to Four Seasons Hotel?" I said "Sure, hop in".

"Thanks, please open the boot, my bags?" I immediately released the boot catch, came down and assisted him with 3 of his bags into the boot. He then got into my cab together with his wife, who is also as plumb as him. 
As I started to drive, he said "Wow, Singapore has changed so much since the last time I was here, about 12 years ago. I was living at Upper Thomson Road and those days, it was not as crowded and the pace was very much slower and the people then were more of locals and much more helpful and friendlier than now."

"Yes, but now the population has grown to 5 million with more mixture of foreign expats and new citizens. See, the roads now so congested and look at the people walking around, so crowded. Yes, yes Singapore has changed quite a bit, where do you live now?"

"I am at present working in Kuala Lumpur and back here to do a bit of shopping and now I find goods here more expensive."

We soon reached his hotel, the metered fare was $5.15. "Oh, just give me $5 will do."

"No, no, no here's $6.00 thank you" said the wife.

I thanked her and got down to help unload their bags from the boot. The man shook hands with me and said "Thank you again".

I thanked him too, then got into my cab when the hotel doorman asked if I wanted to fetch some passengers to the Night Safari. I said "Sure, ok." and this family, the father from Kenya, the mother from Canada with their 3 young daughters then boarded my taxi. It was around 7.20pm when we left the Hotel lobby heading towards the Zoo. This trip with the family was pleasant and most interesting as I repeatedly joked with them that they were indeed an international as well as nomadic family, we were all laughing. We continued chatting and I learned that the father and mother used to live here for 1 1/2 years, and before that in many other countries and currently living in Sydney, Australia since 2003. We arrived at the Night Safari at 7.45pm the metered fare was $20.40 and I just asked for $20/-. We waved goodbye as I continued driving away from the Zoo... What a satisfying and spectacular day it was for me as I sped off towards Bukit Panjang to 'seek' my well deserved coffee break and maybe dinner?........

The Caucasian mission accomplished.

I had just dropped a passenger at Bugis Village when I spotted another waving to me near junction of Rochor Road and Queens Street, I immediately stopped to pick him up. He was a caucasian and looked to be in his late forties.

"Hello" I said as he boarded my cab.

"Hi, could you please bring me to Tanglin Mall by the quickest route possible, I need to get there by 7pm".

"OK, I'll try my best, if I were to turn left and go by Bencoolen Street, there is the ERP charge of $2.00 at this time but then it may be faster to get you there by 7pm."

"Oh, its alright, ERP charge no problem, just go by the fastest way, I have a very urgent and important appointment with my wife."

As I looked at my watch, it was exactly 6.45pm, I said "Meeting the wife for dinner?"

"No, an important meeting".

I then drove steadily through Bencoolen Street towards Orchard Boulevard amidst tight traffic conditions and finally reached the taxi stand at Tanglin Mall.

"We're here, and you still have 5 minutes to spare, time now is 6.55pm."

The metered fare was $10.30 and he straightaway handed me $12.00 and said "Keep the change, thank you, thank you so much, that was great driving, you just saved me from a possible ugly 'TIFF" with my wife. Thank you, great driving!" and gave me a 'thumbs up' sign.

"Its my pleasure, take care and good luck!" as he rushed off. I then proceeded towards the taxi stand at Orchard Towers feeling very good and happy that I've helped someone in a small way. Mission accomplished.