MY MOST MEMORABLE MOMENT OF THIS GLOBAL JOURNEY SO FAR

This unexpectedly joyful event is detailed at the end of this posting today.  I begin with yesterday leaving Singapore on Thai Air to Bangkok.

The Thai meal was fine.  The garlic-buttered bread was outstanding.  With Singha Beer and Glenlivet Scotch.

Watched Golda about her leadership during the Yom Kippur War of 1973.  Rotten Tomatoes reviewers gave it a 52 score, but audiences bestowed 91.  I agree with the latter.  Helen Mirren was incredible as Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meir.  She looked more like Golda than Golda herself.  Liev Schreiber had the role of U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, and there was no resemblance.

She was 70 years old when the Yom Kippur War started.  She was a chain-smoker who was undergoing secret treatments for lymphoma.  So was not only challenged by the near defeat of Israel, but was herself suffering.  She eventually resigned in 1974 and passed away at the age of 80.

Most have forgotten the significance of this war, which caused the first energy crisis, shooting up the price petroleum from $2/barrel to $10/barrel.  Note:  one barrel holds 42 gallons.  This price effectively leaped past $100/bbl a decade later, and has now decline to around $85/bbl.

Also, this was the period during Richard Nixon's Watergate Crisis.  Thus, he was out of communication, leaving it all up to Henry Kissinger.  You need to read my posting of 10October2024 to appreciate how close the world came to a nuclear apocalypse.  In many ways, the current Hamas/Giza Strip-Israel War is frighteningly close to the circumstances of the Yom Kippur War, which almost went out of control.  What surprises me is that I was in my first year of teaching at the University Hawaii in 1973, and can't remember anything happening in the Middle East.  Except, of course for the Energy Crisis, which sparked the creation of the Hawaii Natural Energy Institute, which I ran for 15 years until my retirement in 1999.  Not for that exponential rise in the price of petroleum, who knows what my professional life might have been.

There is an hour gained from Singapore to Bangkok, so the flight of 2.5 hours seemed short.  You need to read my posting of yesterday to understand why, but AOT had a counter in the baggage counter, which we use to make a reservation to take us by taxi to the Sheraton Grand Sukhamvit.  Took twenty minutes to reach town, and another half an hour to fight through the local traffic to make it to the hotel.  Cost about $30.  Tips are not necessary, but we gave the driver 50 baht, which should have been 100 baht, for that would have been around 10%.

We got to the Sheraton Grande Sukhumvit at around 3PM, then caught the MTS one station away to get to Jackie's Custom Tailor.  Ordered seven vests, which will be delivered to our hotel Friday night.  I made some tailor orders there 20 years ago.  They have been open since 1969, and make an annual pilgrimage to the USA.

Came back, took a shower, then on to the Library for free drinks at 5PM.  

Had glasses of Cabernet Sauvignon and a sparkling wine.

We could have gone on to the adjacent Rossini's for a fine Italian meal.  However, we found out we could order dishes from there, and remain here for free drinks.  A glass of red wine typically costs $20 there, so in a way I got the food for free, as I had a combo of Prosecco and Pinot Noir for the truffled egg/asparagus and truffles risotto.

My final drink at 8PM was Bailey's Cream and Kahlua on rocks.

Then we learned there was a jazz group ready to start adjacent to the Library, and we got front row seats with our drinks for free.

Featured singer was Zooey.

Ready for my most memorable moment of this global journey so far?  Thus far, we missed the Cherry Blossoms in Tokyo, and only walked to the Singapore shopping mall under our building.  Thus, we have done nothing particularly worthy.  Better things, however, are still coming, for on Saturday night we will dine under the stars at Sirocco, on Sunday fly First Class Emirates unlimited with caviar from Bangkok to Dubai to Munich and take three cruises in Europe with a lot of tours.  So about this highlight of the trip so far, see that logo to the left?  That cover from my SIMPLE Solutions for Planet Earth is a colorized version of my family crest.  

Breakfast this morning began with two courses.  First, soba and tofu, with miso soup, followed by a rice/egg dish.

Then I saw this rainbow bread which certainly looked like the cover for my SIMPLE SOLUTION books.

So I tried a slice with an assortment of butter, cheeses, etc.

Got a dish of papaya, dragon fruit, passion fruit and mango.

Ate almost the whole slice.  Tastes like white bread.

So while the above can only be fully appreciated by me, hopefully, this trip will provide real adventures for you in the future.  No Indiana Jones exploits, but something better than bread.

My pedometer at the end of the day showed the following, representing two days.

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SINGAPORE TO BANGKOK

Our M Club dinner with drinks last night.

Went to bed early.  Note that we essentially did nothing in Singapore.

We catch Thai Air from Singapore to Subarnabhumi Airport in Bangkok.  Started in some strange sounding and dingy looking lounge.  No tomato juice for a Bloody Mary.  Had Asahi Beer and a glass of Chardonnay with curry rice, which was lukewarm, but okay.  Huge chunks of good-tasting beef.

Thailand is, geographically, 700 times larger than Singapore, with 13 times more people.  

• However, the annual GDP are very similar, $495 million for Thailand and $467 million for Singapore.
• Thus, the GDP per capita of Singapore is $82,808 and $7,082 for Thailand.

• 
  Singapore is #1 in world competitiveness, Thailand #40.
• Global Peace Ranking:  Singapore #6, Thailand #92.
• Almost everyone in Singapore was fully vaccinated against Covid-19  by September of 2022.  Thailand is now up to 77%.
• Thai people are friendly.  While not unfriendly, Singaporeans are not particularly friendly. 
• Singaporeans are highly regulated in most aspects of everyday life.  In Thailand, you muddle your way through each day.

• 
  It remains illegal to chew gum in Singapore, but there are a lot of ramifications as to what this really means.
• Here is a shocker.  While you can chew gum all you want in Thailand, there are strict rules of disposal.  YOU CAN BE FINED 20000 BAHT ($550) FOR TOSSING YOUR GUM ON A STREET
• 90% of Thai are Buddhist, while the no religion rate is close to zero.  There is a spread of religions in Singapore, with 22% claiming no religion.

Here are strange laws in Thailand.

• The wearing of no underwear in public, called going commando, is prohibited.  How this is controlled is unknown.
• Don't drink alcohol in temples, government buildings, gas stations, PUBLIC PARKS, schools and hospitals, Can carry a six-month sentence.

• 
  As a tourist you are expected to follow this tradition. Thailand is a Monarchy, you will here and there come upon portraits of the King and Queen.  Twice a day at 8 am and 6pm, the national anthem is played, and you, too, are expected to come to a halt, if others are doing so.
• There is a 1950 law that says in Thailand you must speak Thai in public.  Except it is not enforced.
• You cannot show your national flag in Thailand.

• 
  Don't, don't step on money, for the King is printed on it.
• Going to a fancy party?  Don't go as a nurse, for you can be fined $550 dollars or get two years in jail for pretending be a nurse in public.
• You can find a smelly Durian fruit in markets.  Hotels prohibit them.

How to get from Suvarnabhumi International Airport to your hotel?  

• Train can cost around $1.50, but you still need a cab or tuk-tuk, the latter costing only from $1 to $5, and more, which is negotiable.

• 
  Bus is cheaper, maybe even less than a dollar, but depends where you're going.  Then cab or tuk-tuk.
• Taxi when you leave the airport building, but the system has changed with use of machines and QR Code, and scares me.  Should be not much more than $10, plus toll charges, around $3.  Tips not necessary, but leave change.  Tipping also not necessary in Singapore.
• 
  I have tended to catch AOT Limousine, which has booths inside the building so I'm interacting with live humans.  Prices range from $20 to $50 depending on type of vehicle.  The cheapest is fine.  Toll charges are included.

Well, see you in Bangkok.

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SOME DIFFERENCES BETWEEN SINGAPORE AND JAPAN

There are differences worthy of mention between Japan and Singapore:  1.39 S$ to the U.S. $1.

• Virtually everyone in Singapore speaks English.  Not so in Japan.
• The shock of cold in Singapore reminds you that you are not using a warm Japanese washlet toilet.  
• Most of the 50 or so TV channels in Singapore are in English.  In Japan, perhaps half dozen.

The one huge negative factor is World War II.  Travel throughout the Pacific Islands, Oceania, China and Southeast Asia, and you get the same understated, but emotionally wrought response about Japanese occupation of their territory.  It has been more than 80 years, but feelings remain.  One reason:

The Kempeitai (the Japanese military police), which was the dominant occupation unit in Singapore, committed numerous atrocities towards the common people. They introduced the system of "Sook Ching", meaning "purging through purification" in Chinese, to get rid of those, especially ethnic Chinese, deemed to be hostile to the Empire of Japan (anti-Japanese elements in the local population). The Sook Ching massacres claimed the lives of between 25,000 and 55,000 ethnic Chinese in Singapore as well as in neighboring Malaya. These victims, mainly males between the ages of 18 and 50, were rounded up and taken to deserted spots and remote locations around the island, such as Changi Beach, Punggol Point, and Siglap, and killed systematically using machine guns and rifles.

Returning to one positive today, both countries are safe.  Singapore has a high sense of security and positive interactions with law enforcement, with a sophisticates surveillance system.  Japan features strong national character and social harmony.  There are strict laws to reduce petty theft.

The Global Peace Index of 2023 shows the following ranking of peacefulness.  Note where the USA rests:

• #1      Iceland
• #2      Denmark
• #3      Ireland
• #4      New Zealand
• #5      Austria
• #6      Singapore
• #7      Portugal
• #8      Japan
• #10    Switzerland
• #15    Germany
• #16    Netherlands
• #18    Hungary
• #22    Australia
• #23    Mautitius
• #24    Norway
• #28    Sweden
• #33    Taiwan
• #37    UK
• #41    Vietnam
• #43    South Korea
• #60    Greece
• #67    France
• #75    UAE
• #80    China
• #92    Thailand
• #115  Philippines
• #117  Kenya
• #119  Saudi Arabia
• #126  India
• #129  Haiti (but not today)
• #130  South Africa
• #131 USA
• #132 Brazil
• #136 Mexico
• #143  Israel
• #148  Turkey
• #149  North Korea
• #154  Iraq
• #157  Ukraine
• #158  Russia
• #163  Afghanistan

Continuing on to our Singapore visit, we went for a free breakfast at Crossroads.  Excellent choices, but I just had a noodle bowl because my plan was to have Singapore Soup Dumplings and sashimi with Tiger Beer for lunch.

• There are various stations for eggs, pancakes, etc.

Then, on to our excursion, underneath our hotel.  

• The whole complex is a civil engineering masterpiece.  
• They can go higher, or lower, and chose both. 
• Population of 5.5 million, versus Hawaii's 1.4 million.
• Has limited space.  The State of Hawaii is 23 times larger than all of Singapore, 283 square miles.  Molokai is 261 square miles.
• See that map?  the size of this whole country is within the area indicated by "gap."

• 
  The British first went underground for military purposes.
• Then came the various utilities.
• In 1987 the MRT mass transit system, now with 42 stations, of which 10 miles are below the surface.  10% of all their roads are underground.

• 
  Then came from the malls around the stations in 2000.
• Our complex surrounding the Orchard Road Station has 130 specialty stores anchored by Takashimaya Shopping Centre, six levels of shopping and dining.  Watch a You Tube video of a tour.  This tour is only around 8 minutes long.
• But underground tunnels connect our shopping area with most of Orchard Road shopping malls.

• 
  One of them is Ion Orchard Mall, across the street from our room, which has become the center of gravity of the local retail scene.  Alone, eight levels and more than 7 million square feet of shopping space.  The entire Ala Moana Shopping Center is ONLY 2.5 million square feet.

• 
  But they build well also into the atmosphere.  
• You will be amazed at Marina Bay Sands and Jewel Changi Airport.  A tour of Jewel.  Worth the watch.  Located right in the midst of the airport.
• At 65 floors and a height of 931 feet, Guoco Tower became the tallest building in 2016.

• So we went for a walk through the massive underground shopping area below our hotel.

Bought a sashimi and unagi meal from Takashimaya, and had it with Tiger beer, supplied by the hotel.

For dinner went to the M Club.

Walked 4140 steps today.

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