The Three Expats.

I had very pleasant conversations with three passengers last night whilst ferrying them to their destinations. The first one was a pretty Australian lass from Melbourne who has been living in Singapore for the past ten years. I asked her if she has ever heard about a Singapore Taxi Blogger and she said "Yes I did", she was taking a flight somewhere and bought Time Out Singapore magazine at the news stand, the May issue and came across the 'Orchard Tower' article which she found quite interesting and from then on we were laughing and chatting away. She told me she is looking forward to seeing her parents who will be coming to Singapore in two weeks time.

The second was a young handsome Japanese tourist who is born and raised in Sao Paolo, Brazil. I too asked him the same question and he straightaway told me about the 'Orchard Tower' article and found it most amusing and funny and he liked it very much. We started talking about the Tower, chatted, joked and laughed about it. Asked about his hometown and he told me that the biggest Japanese community outside of Japan lives in Sao Paolo.

The third passenger was a Japanese who arrived four months ago and will be working here for the next three years. His wife is accompanying him and they too knew about what's going on at 'Orchard Tower'. He told me that there are fifteen thousand Japanese presently living in Singapore.

Driving a Taxi is like attending classes everyday and I get to learn so many things from expats and tourists from all over the world. Its simply great and I just love my job.

A Friendly Newspaper Vendor.

I parked at the taxi stand at Boon Keng Road MRT along Bendemeer Road after a passenger alighted and decided to take a short break after having driven for more than three hours. It was a  busy Friday night for me. 

The time was about 10pm and I started talking to this elderly newspaper vendor sitting right in front of me. I asked him what time he normally close shop and he said "11pm" in Hokkien. I then spoke to him in Hokkien, asked if I could take his photo, he obliged and I started chatting with him, made small talk and asked him a few more questions. He told me he is more than 70 years old and he is only an employee working part time, three to four days a week earning some pocket money. I offered him a cigarette but he refused as he had his own Indian ones, very cheap, costing $3.50 for twenty five sticks in a bundle. He told me that this stall used to be located across the road and had been doing business for quite a long time already but he has only worked there for about two years. I asked him if there were many commuters using taxis at this stand here and he said not too many. Business for him was quite brisk but for me after half an hour had passed, no potential passengers. 

We were chatting away about everyday life and then it was 10.30pm and I decided to move on.  

HDB Hotel.

I picked up a male Asian looking tourist at the taxi stand opposite St Andrew's Cathedral yesterday at 6.30pm. He was carrying a big suitcase and wanted to go to Woodlands St.13.  I said "Waah, very far away from town, you must be visiting a relative or your girl friend". He laughed and replied, "No, no girlfriends here or relatives, only going to stay here for three days". "Where do you come from and why not stay in a hotel in town, more convenient for shopping and food?" I asked. "I come from Myanmar but I work on board a Tanker which is now parked at sea near Marina Bay only for a few days and so I am renting a room in Woodlands St 13, very cheap at $30.00 a night, stayed there about four times already. I book online, the hotels in town are very expensive" he said, speaking in good English. "Really?" I exclaimed, and was surprised to learn from this 41 year old Myanmese seaman about such kind of arrangement, an HDB Hotel room?? can book online. I have heard whispers about this sort of 'HDB Hotels' for quite some time already but was not very sure whether its true or not because renting a room in HDB flats is not cheap nowadays. The rentals are between $600 to $800 per month.

Surprise, surprise, this morning as I reached for my 'The New Paper', and right on the front page, such a coincidence,  an Advert in airline magazine says: 'RENT A ROOM FOR $60 A NIGHT FOR 2' IN HDB HOTEL", Wow!, what do you know, its true. Anyway, as far as I know, its illegal to rent out your HDB flats and bedrooms to tourists or for short term stay, if caught, flat owners face compulsory acquisition of their flat from HDB.

Read All About It !!

Hurry, hurry, go get a copy before its sold out!

Introducing Uncle Frank the Cabbie

with his own monthly 

column in

"TIME OUT SINGAPORE"

PPA

International Consumer

Magazine

of the Year 2011

PICCADILLY CIRCUS in Singapore.

Yesterday, around 5.45pm, I was flagged by an elderly Englishman along Boundary Road, junction of Upper Paya Lebar Road. He wanted to go to PICCADILLY CIRCUS on his own but lost his way around and needed help. I told him I know how to get him there, and jokingly suggested that he would need to buy an air ticket first. Straightaway he knew I was pulling a fast one and exclaimed excitedly "You know where it is? Thank goodness, nobody I asked had the slightest clue to what I was talking about!". He told me he lived in Singapore many, many years ago, during the sixties when he was an ex-British Serviceman doing a year's duty and lived in Seletar Airbase. (I believe many Singaporeans are unaware that there exist such a place except for the famous and well known one in London.) "God Bless You!" he said.

This English gentleman, now a tourist, wants to relive his days when he lived here but was shocked to find great changes everywhere, totally unlike the peaceful, quiet and serene surroundings that he experienced in the past. Suddenly he looked excitedly at the entrance and exclaimed, "It's still there, the facade, but no Guards!". He could not sit still and spied at every corner. Indeed, you could feel just pure nostalgia.

Finally past the entrance and inside, his voice quavered loudly, "Oh my God, its like yesterday, my beloved PICCADILLY CIRCUS!!" and turning to me he said, "I love Singapore, thank you, thank you, you have made my dreams come true my man!" I quickly replied "The pleasure is all mine". He insisted to alight by the side of the road, the metered fare was showing $12.40 and he pushed $20.00 into my hands. "For you my friend, for you and thank you again". He said he wants to walk by himself and be filled with past memories and bade me farewell. I watched him slowly walking away along Edgeware Road and that's when I started taking the above snaps. I felt very happy having his company and sharing his joy as I began to drive off.

Antique Bamboo Chair.

 The past week was rather quiet and nothing very interesting or eventful happened except till last night at about 10.30pm when I picked up an elderly woman along Jalan Besar, near Lavender Food Centre, and she wanted to go home to Telok Blangah Crescent.

 Along the way, we chatted and laughed and we had a very pleasant conversation. You don't believe it, she is 86 years old, same age as her husband, both are Hokkiens, speaks a bit of English, looks fit and healthy, very independent and alert. She has seven children, 3 boys and 4 girls, all married, 15 grandchildren and 5 great grandchildren. Her husband and herself lives happily with her youngest son. She is indeed a blessed woman.

When we arrived at her destination, she asked if I could accompany her to her apartment as it was already too late in the night, I of course obliged. Reaching her 7th floor apartment, she thanked me and said goodbye. At the same time I noticed this bamboo antique stool which is also a baby chair outside her door. I asked if I could take a few pictures of it with my iphone and she said go ahead. Everything done, we bade farewell and I left. The reason for me taking the above pictures is because I sat in one when I was a toddler and it brought back fond memories of my childhood days. 

Pasar Malams.

Driving along Petir Road in Bukit Panjang recently, there was this Pasar Malam (night market) activity which immediately brought me back to the past, maybe about 40-50 years ago, memories of the times when it was like a huge affair, very exciting with nearly everyone in the neighbourhood participating in the frantic shopping spree or walkathon, noisy, overcrowded pavements with people spilling onto the main road, pushing and crammed up along the whole stretch of the road lined up with at least 30 to 40 stalls selling anything from hairpins to mattresses and even mini nurseries filled with so many potted flower plants, money plants, and of course food, tit-bits and snacks, etc. It was something like a mini trade fair and no one wants to miss it. Usually the whole family in every household can be seen at the Pasar Malams with groups and groups of families in tow. A spectacle I would say.


The scenario is somewhat different today, no longer jammed packed but still thriving with people taking a walk or buying some tit bits or snacks and enjoying their favourite pastime. 


Pictures above show activities many years ago in Smith Street and Trengganu Street, a Pasar Malam scene during Hari Raya festival and a 1967 photograph along Clementi Road together with a cute caricature of a hawker near the Singapore River. 


(Photo Credit: National Archives of Singapore with acknowledgement and thanks.) 

"Meow Meow".

It was less than five minutes when I stopped and parked my taxi at the HDB covered car park near Mayspring Condo to go to the 24 hour food court to pack or 'tah-pau' some snacks home when, OMG, surprise, surprise, a furry commuter lying on my taxi's bonnet was waiting for me to fetch her for a ride last night at about 2.00am, with a couple of 'Meows'.

I had to apologise for not being able to ferry her because I may be charged with 'kidnapping' as her owners were not around then. It took me a while to coax her off my cab, but she kept giving me that 'Meow meow' please lah look until I had no choice but to lure her away with a piece of my 'siew mai' snack and only then she finally decided to take leave.

This night made me smile and feel happy knowing that even my 'furry' friends like to use my cab.

Fare Hike Made The Difference.

Yes, its true, earnings for cabbies have increased somewhat and I think this difference comes from the continuous additional 25% from 8.00pm till midnight everyday including Sundays and Public holidays. I would think an increase of 20% earnings after the fare hike is certainly visible, barring possible further increases in cost of diesel fuel.

These days I have been driving an average of 250km per day, additional 40 to 50 kilometres from around 5.00pm to 12.20am as more commuters, mostly foreigners and tourists make use of our services. Visitors to Singapore have risen significantly and they have been our regular and constant supporters. It has been quite tiring for me lately and I needed more time to rest.

One Of My Favourite Food Joints.

Picture this, a popular and tasty meal that taxi drivers look forward to quite often and very favourable because meals are bought and served very quickly. This famous food joint is at Jalan Besar and Kitchener Road junction, popularly known as "Ka Toh Chien", Hokkien for "Scissors Cut". There is a queue nearly everyday at this food place as shown through photographs taken by me last Saturday evening around 10.20pm when I went for my meal as shown above, consisting of white rice, a piece of fried fish, soy sauced sliced pork meat, fried green beans, fried egg and cabbage curry with chilly gravy which only cost me $5.80. The last photo I took an hour later shows how fast satisfied customers were attended to as the queue disappears but will form once again in a couple of hours time till the shop closes at 3.30am.