Singapore Through My Eyes
Hi, I’m back!
Sending well wishes and lots of love and light to those reading this<3 I miss you all. Welcome to my second blog:)
Just four hours a plane ride from the Philippines lies an island country and a city-state that I can best describe as a melting pot of Asia. I took a flight at the crack of dawn from Manila and arrived in Singapore bright and early.
After a restful weekend, I started volunteering at HOME. The acronym was not the only symbolic thing about this place. HOME, short for Humanitarian Organization for Migration Economics, has been a safe haven for thousands of migrant workers in Singapore. With a full day of orientation, and training, and a belly-rub-loving house cat, I was welcomed to the HOME shelter for domestic helpers with open arms.
There are around 250,000 Foreign Domestic Workers in Singapore. They are commonly referred to as ‘helpers’. Most, if not all, are hired on two-year contracts and often live with the family. The shelter housed runaway helpers who have left their employers’ houses, either due to a disagreement on transfer, violation of contract agreement, or abuses in their workplace.
From the shelter being run mostly by volunteer caseworkers to maintaining day-to-day shelter activities by the residents, including housework, appointment tracking, and kitchen, women were the foundation of the shelter. Every day I was reminded of how resilient, kind, brave, and awesome we women are. I cherish every moment of my Watson year because these women keep me going.
Outside of the shelter, these women continued to build their community through common spaces such as churches, temples, and malls around Singapore. They maintained a strong sense of networking groups despite rarely seeing each other in these spaces, extending their community to a digital platforms such as WhatsApp and Facebook.
On days that did not consist of casework, client intakes, and quality time with ming ming at the shelter, I found myself strolling through the beautiful and historic streets of Singapore. Before I walk you through my time there, I think it is a MUST to highlight the Singaporean food culture.
As such, a large part of Singaporean cuisine revolves around hawker centres. In Singapore, food is a unifying thread to the bustling diversity of cuisines from the Malays/Indonesians, the Chinese, and the Indians as well as, Peranakan and Western traditions, and the neighboring regions such as Japan, Korea, and Thailand. It is also the best and favorite conversation starter among many Singaporeans.
When dining out, rather than restaurants, you will see lots of Singaporeans prefer eating at hawker centre stalls with a wider range of options and affordability. You can safely assume that I enjoyed my mealtime very much in Singapore:)
Luckily, my hotel happened to be situated very close to a mom-and-pop café called the Brown Sugar Café. I frequented their cafe so much that the owner was marking down the days I had left in Singapore. Meals made with such kindness from this café soothed my homesickness.
Apart from being a foodie destination, Singapore does an excellent job of preserving its architectural heritage. One of the most common features of streetscapes I saw was the Peranakan houses. Many central neighborhoods, including Joo Chiat Road and Blair Plain among others, have shophouses decorated with Peranakan tiles, giving us a glimpse into the colorful legacy of Singapore’s architectural history.
As a melting pot of Asia, Singapore is no exception to religious and ethnic diversity. A lot of my walking tours led me to historical neighborhoods like Chinatown, Little India, and Haji Lane, with glimpses of the maze into the religious centres, food market, music, souvenir and boutique shops, and colorful streets. I never ceased to be enamored.
My month-long stay in Singapore flew by. It was time to say goodbye to my time in South East Asia. For now. As my travels start to slow down, so will the frequency of my blogs. But I will continue to share the wonders of different parts of the world through my eyes with my beloved community. If you have read this far, I saved the best for the last. Unlike last time, there is no surprise tattoo because, to be honest, I could not afford it there haha. But I hope a photo dump will suffice:)
Until next time…
Anusha<3
Not possible to ever get enough of you, Anusha! Your cultural exchanges and everything that you’re learning, seeing, taking in, and eating is so You and so Watson! Perfect fit! Sounds like your time at HOME was exactly the experience you hoped for - to get a deeper understanding of the lives of domestic workers in Singapore. I’m sure everyone was sad to see you leave, including everyone at the cafe. Safe travels. Sending love and light. Ginny
Yes Anusha!! We love to see you enriching and engaging with cultures through developing interpersonal relationships, trying out the food, noticing the architecture, and truly delving into the geopolitical nature of it all!! Can’t wait to hear what other journeys you’ll be embarking on 💜