Singapore

March 1, 2019 /

Since the tortuous experience of applying for a Taiwan visa, it is not normal for the visa to enter the customs without any moths. I checked the official website of the Singapore Immigration Bureau before. Chinese citizens can fly directly to a third country from Singapore without a visa, but in the end it is up to the immigration officer to decide whether to issue a visa to you. I had already bought a flight ticket from Singapore to Australia, and the visa was processed in three days. I was afraid that the Singapore entry visa would not be safe, so I applied through CYTS (Singapore can only apply through a travel agency). All the materials were sent. Two days later, I was told that the probability of refusal for a woman like me who is unemployed and traveling alone is 80%. It is strongly recommended that I do not submit the materials. It is not good to have a record of refusal. At that time, the property certificate was also done. Before sending the materials, I was asked if I could do it in this situation, but now I am told that I can’t do it. Then I can only rely on my luck to see the mood of the immigration officer when I transit from Malaysia to Singapore.

Today, I took a bus from Malacca for three or four hours to cross the border. The first official kept asking me where the Singapore visa is. I explained to him the visa-free transit of the third country. I also printed out the page on their official website and gave it to him. He saw that he hadn’t heard of it at all. He even asked his boss. When he came back, he said it was rare, and he stamped it and let me pass. up. After getting on the bus and stopping again, I realized that the one just now was the Malaysian exit, and this is the entry point of Singapore. I was too happy just now.

The little girl at the Singapore immigration gate was reading my materials while gossiping with the immigration officer next to her. She called and said that I needed to go to another office to do this and wait for the staff to come and pick me up. While waiting, they asked me what brand the earphones were and whether they were easy to use. After waiting for five minutes, an immigration officer came and took me and two other foreigners upstairs to their office. Every door had to be fingerprinted and passworded. After going up, I went through the materials individually and asked a few questions, and it went smoothly, but I couldn't leave after I finished the application. I had to wait for the other two foreigners to complete the application before being taken down together.

When we were taken out, it was estimated that twenty or thirty minutes had passed. While waiting, I had an ominous premonition. I must be the only one in the bus who did not apply for a visa in advance and was taken to the office. Man, I don't think the car will wait for me that long. Sure enough, when I got out of the checkpoint, I couldn't find my bus or any familiar passengers.

Fortunately, there are buses that can go to the city, but the first bus only charges Singapore dollars. How did I know that the bus would leave me! I was supposed to go to the city center to change money. Fortunately, there was another bus that could go to the urban area to charge RM. Fortunately, I still had more than 30 RM on me. When you get off the bus, there is a currency exchange place, and you can take the subway to the place where you live. I bought a Singapore Internet card in Beijing in advance, otherwise I would be blind if I couldn't find the route. I told my friends that this kind of accident happened to me often, and I was always very attracted to this kind of thing. My friend said it very well: "The things that are often attracted may be things that are subconsciously expected to happen. It is quite exciting to have a little heartbeat and sweaty palms during the trip." Haha, what I said is very true.

Yesterday, I struggled all afternoon until I settled down at almost 7 o'clock in the evening. Before I had time to eat, I was dragged by the sofa owner to watch the light show and night view. After seeing it, Singapore gave me the impression of being dreamy, romantic, and beyond reality. I have never seen such a stunning light show. Coming from Malaysia is really a little uncomfortable. I feel another world, and every moment has a new impact on my brain.

Marina Bay has a 15-minute light show at 8 o'clock every night. The combination of light, shadow, sound and water is perfect. But don't stand in the front row, the whole body and the camera will get wet. After watching this, I went to Gardens by the Bay to watch the light show of Super Tree, which was staged twice every night at 7:45 and 8:45. Everyone lay on the ground and watched. The soundtrack last night was all classic Chinese and English songs about the moon. The lights changed with the rhythm of the music. It was really enjoyable. I heard that there will be different themed shows, such as Disney and Christmas. After that, we went to Marina Barrage and the Singapore Flyer. Find out that there are romantic dating places hidden everywhere in Singapore!

Let me make complaints about this weird and wonderful sofa owner in Singapore. This is the first uncomfortable experience I have encountered since using the sofa guest software. It is quite an eye-opener. The day before yesterday, I had just arrived in Singapore at night, and was dragged by this sofa owner to watch the light show. The light show is really beautiful, but in order to hurry, he started running in front, and I had to follow him through the crowds. After watching the light show, it was almost nine o'clock, and I was taken (forced) to walk around for more than an hour. It's a bit too enthusiastic. If I didn't say that I was too tired and wanted to go back, I would probably take me to watch the night scene. It was almost 11 o'clock when I went back. I was already hungry and my appetite was gone. I just wanted to go to bed quickly. After laying the floor, he actually asked me if I brought a pillow? Which backpacker travels with a pillow? ! Then he brought me a pillow. In addition, there are many other things. I told me that the power must be turned off at night, and the charging cannot be done. There is no air conditioner, and the fan cannot be turned on, for fear of burning. Ah, I really want to heat me to death!

The next morning I ate something casually, and when I was done, I asked him where he planned to take me, but he didn't make it clear. When I went out, I said to go to the botanical garden. We walked for two or three hours under the sun in the huge Singapore Botanic Gardens, and he kept walking five meters ahead of me very fast, without any intention of chatting, which made me very uncomfortable and stressful. All the previous sofa owners were very casual, they would take me shopping when they had time, and it was okay for me to go anywhere by myself if I didn’t have time. I wondered why he received sofa guests? ! If you spend your time and energy taking people out, but don't try to understand the exchange culture, why not be a tour guide? ? I didn't want to be rude, but finally I couldn't take it anymore, and told him that I didn't want to go shopping anymore, and I wanted to be alone in the afternoon, and then I went to meet other friends, and let him leave me alone. He seemed to be having a hard time understanding how I wouldn't thank him for walking around with me, and asked me a lot of details about where I was going to meet friends.

It was almost two o'clock when I finally got rid of him, and went to Orchard Road to meet another local Malaysian friend. Ate Nasi Padang and drank papaya juice. While eating, I complained to him about the sofa owner: It’s okay if he’s not a foodie, and it’s okay if he doesn’t know where to find delicious local food, but he’s been on his way and doesn’t even give me time to eat, so I can’t bear it! This Malaysian friend said that he had seen a few Vietnamese girls who had lived in my sofa owner’s house on the sofa guest software, and they reported the same, and their legs were almost broken. And he didn't let them meet other friends in Singapore at that time, all arrangements had to be under his control, the desire to control was too strong!

I am not an ungrateful person. It is one thing to thank him for receiving me, but it is not right to disrespect other people's feelings, not to inform the plan in advance, to impose one's own ideas and plans on others, and to try to control other people's arrangements. I'm not a person who complains easily either. I'm pretty physically fit and able to walk, but it's not the original intention of hosting couch-surfers to keep walking and not communicating. I'm not a passive-aggressive person, and I will never deny this platform just because of a bad experience. All previous experiences are really good.

In the evening, I went to China Town in Chinatown and met another Indian friend who had lived in Singapore for nine years at Maxwell Food Center. I was very happy to find that he is a real foodie. He said that he travels for food, and he doesn’t have to go to Mount Fuji for a few days in Tokyo, but he must eat Tokyo food. You can go to Beijing without climbing the Great Wall, but you must eat Peking duck. Then he took out his mobile phone and showed me that before he traveled to each country, he would make a list of must-eat foods in the local language. I thought I was the only one doing this kind of thing. Knowing that he is going to Kenting, Kaohsiung today, I introduced him to the foodie brother I know in Kaohsiung. Then he also sent me a list of recommended food in Singapore. He has been to China many times and can speak some Chinese because he once had a rich second-generation Chinese girlfriend. We had Tian Tian Hainanese chicken rice and Maggie mee goreng. Afterwards, we went to Clarke Quay, and the night view was beautiful in the evening.

In the evening, I went back to the owner of the sofa and told him that I have my own arrangements for tomorrow, so I don’t need him to take me shopping. Fortunately, another Korean girl came to live in the same room with me and had a companion, but it is estimated that she will be dragged away tomorrow. In order to directly avoid being controlled by the sofa owner, I left for Santosa at 6:30 in the morning. There was no one there when we arrived, and the big ball at the entrance of Universal Studios hadn't even started to spin, and it didn't start until after 8 o'clock. It has reached the southernmost tip of the Asian continent, 136km away from the equator. It was only nine o'clock when I came out of Santosa, and I ate something at the Toast Box, a toast workshop at the door. A friend suggested that a person went to Labrador Nature Reserve for hiking. For lunch, I ate Heng Kee's curry chicken rice noodles, and then went to Hong Lim Market & Food Center (Hong Lim Market & Food Center). I found a park not far from Fort Canning Park on the map. When I arrived, I found that it was the kind of climbing a steep slope. When I walked up, I unexpectedly found that the scenery was very good, and I saw monkeys up close. The rapid runaway a few days ago was not in vain, and the speed has increased a lot.

The experience on the first day really made me realize that freedom is precious only when I lose it. Without the control of that wonderful sofa owner, I can walk as slowly as I want today, stop and take pictures wherever I want to take pictures, sit down and rest when I want to rest, and take a bus when I want to. Buses (yesterday I had to take the subway except for my legs, I prefer to take the bus because I can see the city scenery along the way), I can ride a Mobike if I want to, and I can eat wherever I want. Only in this state of freedom of body and mind can we calm down to feel and experience the country of Singapore: the greenery is very good, green everywhere, the urban construction planning is very good, there are gardens on many high-rise buildings, everything is in order, and the local The people are also very friendly, and the cultural food is also very diverse and integrated.

A person's impression and feeling of a country/city has a lot to do with the people he meets in that place during the journey. Of course, I will not deny Singapore simply because of the uncomfortable sofa owner experience, but the experience of the first two days and the tossing of entry visas really made my trip to Singapore greatly reduced. But it is really the bottom that will rebound higher. Now I have to thank this wonderful sofa owner for allowing me to meet the Korean girl who lived with him the night before. Because of her, yesterday’s experience took a 360° turn, which greatly increased my favorability for Singapore. .

The Korean girl didn't arrive until after 10 o'clock the night before and lived in the same room with me. After the sofa owner laid the floor for her, he asked the same question: Did you bring a pillow? I still have the same sentence in my heart: Which backpacker travels with a pillow! ? Then he took out a pillow from the drawer and gave it to her. He said that he would take us to Santosa tomorrow. The Korean girl agreed immediately after getting off the plane and didn’t understand the situation. I told him directly that I would go by myself when I woke up very early. He said oh, and then the desire to control appeared again. He first asked me where I went that afternoon, where did I meet my friends, etc., and other questions that disgusted me. Can you go to bed earlier today?" I was originally angry, but this sentence made me angry, so I just said "Why?" I thought: I didn't go to bed very late last night, did I? ? I didn't disturb anyone when I went to bed late, did I? Do you control when I sleep! He didn't say anything, and when he left our house, he lit the fire for me again, and said, "Are you sleeping now? I'll turn off the lights for you." I said, "We will turn off the lights ourselves!" Based on this series Uncomfortably, I did not chat with the Korean girl who just got off the plane, and dealt with her problem with a short sentence. After taking a shower and returning to the house, I felt a little guilty. I chatted with the Korean girl and learned that she had just flown here from Australia after studying and working in Australia for a year. After that, she would go to Malaysia, Thailand, and then return to Korea. , basically the opposite of my itinerary from Malaysia to Singapore and then Australia.

After chatting for a few words, out of good intentions, I felt obliged and responsible to tell her objectively about my unpleasant experience with this sofa owner the day before, and I didn't want her to fall into a pit of fire. But since she had promised to let him take her shopping the next day, I regretted telling her so much that she would have preconceived prejudices, and I thought it would be better for her to make a decision after experiencing this matter herself. When narrating the unpleasant experience, she suddenly said in very fluent and pure Chinese: "It's enough for the two of us to speak Chinese." I was shocked at the time, how can you speak Chinese so well? ! Only then did I learn that she went to Harbin from primary school to high school, she is almost half Chinese! It was too late and too tired to go to sleep with no time for small talk. Before going out yesterday morning, I exchanged contact information with her, and said that if you can't go shopping with him, send me a message, I will save you, and we can go shopping.

Yesterday at 1:30 noon, when I was wandering in the street, I received a message from this Korean girl in Harbin, saying that she had just finished shopping with our sofa owner and was alone, and asked where I could meet me, saying that she hadn’t eaten yet For lunch, I reckon it happened to her again. I made an appointment to have lunch with her at Song Fa Bak kut teh 松FA Bak Kut Teh. As soon as I arrived, she hadn't ordered anything yet, and she started complaining. Our sofa owner took her out to Santosa, where I went after 7:00 in the morning. He clearly promised her to take her to have breakfast first, but he went straight to the subway station without mentioning the meal at all. She asked He just took her there. She said that without asking her opinion, he took her around all the places there like going to a market, including children's playgrounds, casinos, suspension bridges and other places that she was not interested in at all. He also ran wild in front of her along the way, without much communication. I also asked her (also asked me) to buy a subway card over and over again. We both felt that the deposit would not be refunded and it was only necessary to stay for three days, so we didn't buy it. After they came out, they took her to the big shopping mall outside, and they insisted on taking her to the library there. She and I couldn't stand it anymore, so I said she wanted to find a place to stay by herself in the afternoon and get rid of him. Messaged me later.

She said that luckily I woke her up the night before yesterday, and she was a little mentally prepared yesterday. But she said that when she first arrived, she was a little frightened by the conversation I had with the sofa owner. She felt that my attitude was simple and rude, and she was afraid that it would not be easy to get along with. I feel guilty too, it was definitely not my norm at the time, but now she understands me completely. I would blame myself for being too intolerable and demanding too much from the sofa owner. Listening to her complaining proved that it was not my problem at all. During the process of complaining, I couldn't help laughing out loud several times in the store, and the old man next to me would look at us a few times, and we paid for it several times.

We all wonder why he hosts couchsurfers! ? He has to spend his own time and energy to take us to places we are not interested in, and he doesn't try to chat and understand us, and he has all kinds of excessive rules when he lives in his house, so why bother? ! And what we don't understand and feel sorry for most is that he vacated a separate room to receive sofa guests, but his elderly parents also laid the floor in the living room. Later, we reached a consensus that he was too lonely. In fact, he was not with us, but to find someone to accompany him, but why did he go to all kinds of places where he had brought (forced) other sofa guests to visit countless times? Woolen cloth? ! Can any friend who studies psychology give me an analysis?

Let me talk about this Korean girl who grew up in Harbin. Her experience is very interesting. I went to Harbin from elementary school to high school, and later worked in Korea and Japan, and worked as a translator. A few years ago, I wanted to learn English well, so I went to Sydney to study. I worked in a duty-free shop at Sydney Airport (I made complaints about the Chinese aunt group). I have worked in a Vietnamese restaurant in Sydney, worked in a youth hostel in Taiwan, and planned to return to Japan to do language translation work in preparation for the Olympics. This girl sometimes has a Northeast taste when she talks about it. She likes to eat Northeast dishes such as pork stewed vermicelli. Because she is the same age as me, and the songs I listened to when I was young were similar to the stars I was chasing. Think about it, there was a Korean girl in Harbin who grew up in the same environment as me 10 or 20 years ago, and now she is selling the same wonderful thing in Singapore. The owner of the sofa, it's amazing when you think about it.

This girl is definitely a language talent, proficient in Chinese, Japanese and Korean, and English is also very good. At a certain moment, I felt that her Chinese was better than mine. Yesterday, I was thinking of the name of the dessert. After thinking about it for a long time, I said it as "Yang Ganzhilu". She corrected me in seconds, which is really shameful haha. I asked her which identity she felt had a stronger sense of identity with Korea or China. She said it was China. She said that sometimes when someone asked her which country she was from, she would simply say that she was Chinese because she was afraid that it would be troublesome to explain.

Last night, we chatted and walked around. We went to Merlion Park, then went to Little India, and entered Mustafa Centre, a huge Indian market that spans several streets and multiple floors. Once you enter, you can’t get out. It’s very interesting. , everything. After eating Indian food, I drank outside and chatted until almost ten o'clock before going back. As soon as he entered the door, the owner of the sofa asked in amazement why did you two come back together? Where have you two been? Also asked how she has my contact information. I really wanted to say "It's none of your business!" But I held back out of gratitude. On the last morning, we went to the National Gallery Singapore.

When this girl was packing up her things last night, she gave me her transport card in Sydney, saying that I can use it when I go there. In the morning I go for a run at Mount Faber Park. We were so relieved when we escaped from the sofa owner's house this morning. If it weren't for her living here with me, I would definitely run away and go to a youth hostel the next day. But then again, we both have to thank him for letting us know each other, and we had a great chat all afternoon, and there were many topics that we couldn't finish talking about. Many opinions and personalities are also surprisingly consistent. When walking on the street, the focus and ideas often coincide. We both said that the people who use the sofa client software should not be the two of us? Why hasn't he been assimilated and changed by so many sofa guests he has received? He certainly wouldn't think that what he did was inappropriate. Such "enthusiasm" would be our "unrewarding". In fact, many times you think that what others need is not necessarily what others really need. Don't impose your own ideas on others, and focus on respect.