Day 2 - The MRT

Today was my first day at work. Of course my sleep is a little messed up so I woke up early. There are 2 ways I can get to work, I can take a cab which is about a 30 minute ride or I can use public transportation which takes about 50 minutes. They have a train here called the MRT, pretty much like BART. Except that it is VERY clean and there are no homeless people or weirdos hanging out on it. There was not a speck of graffiti on this train and not a piece of trash in sight. The cab would cost me $50 round trip and the MRT costs me $3.20. Not really a hard decision because the cab would make quite a dent in my daily per diem. The MRT is a little intimidating. First off it is hard to remember where you need to go when you have stops with names like Ang Mo Kio, Paya Lebar, Tanah Merah, Tiong Bahru, well you get the point. I have to transfer twice and my biggest fear was getting on the wrong train and ending up who knows where. I did pretty well though and didn't get lost once. Where I get on the train is in the main part of the downtown business area. It was PACKED. I mean really packed. When I got on I literally went about 2 feet inside the door because that is all the room their was. Fortunately the farther I got a way from town the more the train cleared out and I eventually got a seat about half way through. Singapore is very populated and most of the common folks live in big government run housing. They buildings are tall and all look the same. I have heard from people who have been inside that they aren't heavy on the amenities. Small kitchens, exposed plumbing, no AC, lots of people sharing one apartment. Still though, no trash and no graffiti. I took a couple of pictures of some I saw from the train. Public transportation is pretty well thought out here and on my walk from the MRT station to my office they have a long covered walkway to protect you from the sun and probably the rain. It sounds simple but I got a strange sense of satisfaction making my way to work and back. The one downfall of the packed train is that some of the people here don't seem to practice the highest level of hygene. Now their clothes look clean and all but I am not sure if everyone had taken a shower in the past couple of days. When I was leaving work walking back to the train I found myself behind this worker who looked like he was from India. He had slacks and a dress shirt on but I could smell him from about 20 feet behind him. I did have a moment where I wondered if maybe I smelled the same. Did I happen to mention that it is hot and humid here and everywhere you walk outside will cause a sweat? I made a mental note to watch where he went on the train platform and go the opposite way. I ended up wedged between 2 ladies on the train and I was thinking to myself that I hope they weren't thinking the same thing about me!

The area around my hotel is a little touristy so the train was the first place I went were I was really among the locals. I was pretty much the only person on all the trains I rode today who was white. I saw quite a few stares but nobody really made me feel uncomfortable. There is a ladies voice who announce the stops. One of the announcements is to report any strange people on the train or anyone doing something unusual. I was hoping that someone didn't report me.;)

Work was good. I found out just before I left SF that they wanted to change my schedule around. I had planned out 15 days of training and they wanted me to cut it down to 10. I was a little bummed but what are you gonna do. So when I got in we met and they basically said I didn't have to do anything in particular the first week. I sitting around people who have already been through training and are working on real shots for ILM. I just have to answer their questions and help them out for the next couple of days. They are really nice here and I think they really appreciate when someone makes the long journey over here. They told me to cut out early because they knew I would probably start fading in the afternoon. Sure enough about 4pm I was starting to feel just a little tired. So now I have a couple of days to work on revising my training plan and getting used to the time change before I have to go into action.

So now I am back at my hotel contemplating what I am going to do for dinner. This is the time I wish I had someone to hang out with. I am thinking is time for some good Indian food so I might head over to Little India unless something else catches my eye.