Yes, I do!
Door: Yaisa
Blijf op de hoogte en volg Yaisa
05 December 2006 | Singapore, Singapore
Barely touched down in Singapore and we took off again to Perth, where one of my best friends got married this weekend!! Nicole and Marcus are now the lovely Mr. & Mrs. Ohm and it was a wonderful weekend! Four days of catching up & reminiscing with friends we hadn’t seen for years, meeting new people who had come for the wedding from all over the world, relaxing & enjoying in the spa with the girls, partying & celebrating during the pre-drinks, the farewell brunch and of course the ceremony… it was a fairy tale weekend! The bride looked fabulous, the groom couldn’t stop smiling, the bridesmaids were gorgeous and Nina & I had the honour of being Masters of Ceremony, which in Australia appears to be a professional job… Quite strange therefore for DJ, videographer and staff of the venue to have two totally untrained MC’s walking around trying to have the show run smoothly… :-) Well, I think the bride & groom were staring at each other too much to notice all the things that didn’t go so smoothly or perhaps too much in love with each other to care about what happened around them… Anyway, moving to Singapore has many advantages, one of them being that we are much closer now to all the friends that have moved to the Asian Pacific before us…
So, we’re back in the office now and we have collected a few peculiarities for you over the last few days… Things that we find a little strange as we are new to Asia, but that we may find totally normal in a few weeks, so we better write them down now for the sake of future memories… So here we go with remarkable differences between Singapore & the Netherlands:
Elevators:
In Asia, the buttons to open/close the elevator doors within the elevator are used extensively; as soon as you're sure nobody else needs to go in/out of the elevator, press the close button like a maniac.
Access cards:
At least they got the message here in Singapore, employees DO NO WANT five different access cards, passwords and pin codes to access the building, the toilets and all the different computer system. So we now have one card (with digital photo, chip and magnetic thing) that opens all doors and systems... and yes, don't forget to bring the card when you go to the toilet because you need it to get out... :-) And canned drinks are available free of charge as well, as long as you have your access card with you!
Lunch:
Canteens are an unknown phenomenon here in Singapore and so are plastic lunchboxes. Lunches consist either of getting a quick Western style sandwich at one of the corner shops or, much more my kind of food, warm lunch in one of the hundreds of food markets or restaurants around. So far we've had: Japanese, Chinese, Indian & Korean lunches and there is so much more too try!!!
Coffee:
No, you don't need to get coffee for all your colleagues, which is a relief considering the fact that we work in one large open space with at least 100 colleagues on the floor... And of course Timmo tries to take advantage of our cultural habits by asking me regularly to get him some coffee, but I’ve adapted quickly to the new environment. (I do miss my Nespresso’s & Cup-a-Soups though… :-) )
Well, that’s it for now, good news is that our apartment in Amsterdam is rented out as of today and tomorrow we’re viewing the first condo’s in Singapore!
Thanks for all your comments on the previous weblogs, keep mailing to us!
Love to all,
Timmo & Yaisa
So, we’re back in the office now and we have collected a few peculiarities for you over the last few days… Things that we find a little strange as we are new to Asia, but that we may find totally normal in a few weeks, so we better write them down now for the sake of future memories… So here we go with remarkable differences between Singapore & the Netherlands:
Elevators:
In Asia, the buttons to open/close the elevator doors within the elevator are used extensively; as soon as you're sure nobody else needs to go in/out of the elevator, press the close button like a maniac.
Access cards:
At least they got the message here in Singapore, employees DO NO WANT five different access cards, passwords and pin codes to access the building, the toilets and all the different computer system. So we now have one card (with digital photo, chip and magnetic thing) that opens all doors and systems... and yes, don't forget to bring the card when you go to the toilet because you need it to get out... :-) And canned drinks are available free of charge as well, as long as you have your access card with you!
Lunch:
Canteens are an unknown phenomenon here in Singapore and so are plastic lunchboxes. Lunches consist either of getting a quick Western style sandwich at one of the corner shops or, much more my kind of food, warm lunch in one of the hundreds of food markets or restaurants around. So far we've had: Japanese, Chinese, Indian & Korean lunches and there is so much more too try!!!
Coffee:
No, you don't need to get coffee for all your colleagues, which is a relief considering the fact that we work in one large open space with at least 100 colleagues on the floor... And of course Timmo tries to take advantage of our cultural habits by asking me regularly to get him some coffee, but I’ve adapted quickly to the new environment. (I do miss my Nespresso’s & Cup-a-Soups though… :-) )
Well, that’s it for now, good news is that our apartment in Amsterdam is rented out as of today and tomorrow we’re viewing the first condo’s in Singapore!
Thanks for all your comments on the previous weblogs, keep mailing to us!
Love to all,
Timmo & Yaisa
-
05 December 2006 - 07:16
Djin & Theresa:
Dear Timmo & Yaisa,
We are so happy to hear that you have settled so well into your new life & work. Best wishes for Xmas and we are sure 2007 will bring more exciting news from you. The family will be celebrating Xmas on 25th night with us with lots of food as usual. Take care and lots of love
Djin & Theresa -
05 December 2006 - 07:57
Monique:
He Yaisa,
Goed om te horen dat jullie flat verhuurd is. Weer een zorg minder en nu maar snel een mooie woning in Singapore. Leuk die andere cultuur, maar volgens mij moet het met jou en het eten daar wel lukken en Timmo die kan prima zijn eigen koffie halen volgens mij.
Hier alles prima, vandaag 5 december maar wij vieren het niet. Kleine Fleur viert het op de creche. Nog 2,5 week werken en dan heb ik twee weken vrij, heerlijk. Zal wel een vreemde kerst zijn zonder jullie maar we vermaken ons wel. In ieder geval veel succes met het kijken naar een flat, ben benieuwd en lieve groet van ons allemaal.
Fleur, Henk, Monique -
05 December 2006 - 08:18
Suzanne:
hai Yais en Timmo,
leuk om alle berichten te horen van jullie, haha ik moest zo hard lachen om die fantastische gratis workshops bij de bank!
tjus!
Suz -
05 December 2006 - 13:04
Luan:
Oohooohhhh! Wat een misleidende titel boven jullie stukje!! Hadden jullie mij bijna gefopt!
X Lu -
05 December 2006 - 17:13
Anjo:
Ja, de kunst van een 'teaser'om de tekst te lezen verstaan jullie goed...
Fijn dat jullie huis verhuurd is, hoop dat jullie snel een mooie plek in Singa vinden! -
05 December 2006 - 23:12
Mama:
better forget the canned drinks, too bad for your health, and good that there is no cup'soup also full of crab, keep smiling! this could be only you mom! -
06 December 2006 - 12:49
Kaat:
Zooooo hadden jullie me even beet zeg! Yaisa, heerlijk je verhalen. Vooral zo (en zo enthousiast) blijven doen ajb. Bij ons heerst nog een beetje een after-Sint stemming nadat gisteravond de goede man in Amstelveen wat voor (vnl) de kinderen had achtergelaten. Maartje vond het heerlijk! Deelde de cadeautjes uit als ze hoorde dat dát cadeautje toch echt niet voor haar was... En ze was aan het eind van de avond een volleerd uitpakster. Heerlijk.
Succes met jullie zoektocht naar een fijne woonruimte en zie al uit naar jullie volgende bericht.
Liefs, Kaat -
06 December 2006 - 14:57
Sandra:
hey yais en timmo,
super om jullie eerste indrukken te lezen! grappig.
hier in den bosch alles goe, klaar om ook te gaan reizen:-) tot mails
San -
07 December 2006 - 13:18
Ronald:
Timmo,
We missen je!
Er staat nu al drie dagen een bak met chocoladepepernoten op de kast en die raakt maar niet op.
Op deze manier komen alle Sonja kilo's er vanzelf weer aan natuurlijk...
Groeten,
PS Indian Lunch....??
Reageer op dit reisverslag
Je kunt nu ook Smileys gebruiken. Via de toolbar, toetsenbord of door eerst : te typen en dan een woord bijvoorbeeld :smiley
