three day stopover in singapore before flying off for a family holiday. been in 29 cities since may 2007, and counting. totally identify with george yeo's "singapore's a hotel" metaphor. it was a time to catch up with close friends, distribute the chocolates and wine, down some chilli crab, stroke corrections with ronald, "qi-gong" massage, and then its back to departure-point changi (naval base/airport). during the college years, it was not surprising that we were scattered around north america, western europe, and parts of asia.

today, we're all around the world for work/grad school. perhaps the pit-stops are more transitory compared to college time, but the steady-state flow of singaporeans out-of-country at any time is quite incredible. today with budget flights and out-sourcing of production and global service chains, almost every young working singaporean is "cosmopolitan". this creates different opportunities and problems compared to the late 90s when we were arguing about the "cosmopolitan" and "heart-lander" dicotonomy.

some short impressions and notes about the recent places that i visited.

cannes, france: lunch at l'annex. best japanese tuna and tiramisu (homemade, smooth and subtle taste, and huge!) ever. absolutely delightful. compared to any other french town (including nice and monaco), cannes felt really touristy and obstentatious. which came first - the cannes film festival or her irreverence?

avignion, france: my second success at matchmaking. more accurately, "creating the conditions for people to come together". i find myself better at doing this than hardcore match-making. Probably because ex ante, the victims don't know what they're being put through. truly, it's a question of "dare and do".

arles, france: roman town, not too exciting. made up by the excellent bouillabaisse (soupe de poisson) at rue porte de laure. try it!

marmaris, turkey: secular behaviour in a muslim state. a replicable model, or a unique product of geography (between europe and the middle east) and history (legacy of the ottoman empire)?

ephesus, turkey: pathetic preservation of historical ruins. thankfully only 5% has been excavated. brings to mind recent economist articles about sustainable tourism - do developing countries have the capacity to preserve their geographical treasures for future generations at a cost of the current? how do we extend the planning horizons of these government agents to beyond their own tenures?

mumbai, india: energy in the streets, even at midnight. pure hunger and drive of her people - from slum dwellers to the billionaires. people who prefer to be in a crowd than alone. minimal concept of personal space. importance of establishing power relations. impetus to read up more about the indian psyche.

and two other cities that i'll love to talk about, but only off the record.

join the navy and see the world indeed!