And so it ends...

The computer is being unplugged tonight so this is the last post while in Singapore. We've had amazing adventures here but there was so much more we could have done. We are definitely ready to go home, but I wouldn't say "no" to another extended stay in Singapore!

I again have to thank Trish (and the entire Soft Star crew) for allowing me to come on this adventure. It is a gift I hope I can repay some day. I also want to thank my mom for traveling out here with me and helping us to settle in. Thank you Mom.

I asked Kahlil and his favorite things in Singapore are the swimming pools, the hawker stands, and the double-decker buses. Langston agreed. The hawker stands took me by surprise... but I must say he is quite a bit more adventurous with his food now than he was when we first got here. I wonder if his like of the hawker stands has less to do with the food and more with the fact that you are eating out in the open air.

The things I will miss most are...
FOOD!!! - Six years ago when I was preparing for a business trip to Singapore somebody asked me what I wanted to do when here. I said eat. At that time I didn't get a chance to really relish all that Singapore has to offer. This time around I feel like we did a pretty go job of trying lots of different foods and venues, but I think we still missed a lot. A couple of my favorite eats have been: BBQ stingray, satay, fresh lime juice, fresh cane juice, mango milk ice, and bok lai. We are bringing home a cook book, but I think it just wont be the same. Even if we get the recipe right, I don't think we can recreate the hawker stand experience.

Thunder storms - It is so exciting when a good storm rolls in. It tingles so many senses - misty breeze on the skin, booms in the ears, flashes across the eyes. I'm a little afraid of thunderstorms at home and I think I figured out why they don't bother me at all here... at home you can be in a field and the lightning might think you are a good conduit to the ground. But here, surrounded by 20 story buildings and 300 foot cranes, you really don't have to worry about lightning striking you. And of course it goes without saying, we'll all miss the sunshine... especially next February when the Oregon gloom is in full swing.

Kitchen and Bath Drains - Most all of the private and public kitchens and bathrooms I saw here had drains in them. That is common in industrial / public spaces at home, but not in private homes. At first I thought it was strange but then I learned the true value of these drains as we were working out the kinks with Langston's potty training. If we ever build our own house, don't be too surprised if you find drains in places you don't typically expect.

Fashion - While I will never be confused for a fashion-ista, I do enjoy flipping through the red carpet editions of magazines and watching the occasional episode of America's Next Top Model. At home, fashion is almost a four letter word but here fashion is everywhere. I have enjoyed people watching those that have put more than five minutes into their appearance. If we lived here for several years, who knows, I might develop a sense of style... might...

Touch-me-not plants (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mimosa_pudica) - I spent countless hours as a kid in Hawaii touching these plants with a twig to watch the leaves and stems fold up. I would try to touch them so lightly only one of the little leaves would fold leaving the adjacent leaves in place. It was a fun game. Seeing them when we first arrived here brought back a wave of nostalgia and a warm fuzzy feeling of being a carefree kid on a tropical island. While here I taught my boys how to 'play with' these plants as I did around their age. While we weren't here very long, I hope they remember these plants fondly too.

Public Transit - It was fantastic to live here for four months and not get behind the wheel of a car once AND to not feel trapped by that fact. The fact that city buses and the MRT can get you within two blocks of just about anywhere in the city is fantastic. But what I really love is how well the system works... you just add $$ to your transit card and then tap in when you get on the bus, tap out when you get off. EASY. So easy, in fact, even a three year old can master it.

Well, that about wraps it up. Good night Singapore. I hope to see you again some day.

Loose Ends

I realized there were a few thing that I wanted to share, but got busy with life. Now that our time is winding down, it's now or never!

The first loose end, is Langston's school. In previous posts I said that he started at Superland and told about his birthday celebration... but I had to share a couple photos and a little about Langston's routine.

This is the bus Langston rides to school in every day. It picks up him and Elizabeth, his classmate, at the lobby/breakfast room of our apartment every morning around 8. This has got to be one of the cutest buses I've ever seen, especially in the afternoon when it is full of kiddos.

Speaking of breakfast and second breakfast and elevensies, I think Langston may be a hobbit. We have breakfast here at the apartment every morning - and he does not have a small breakfast rather eggs, fruit, cereal and yogurt... this is one day, not four. Then, according to the notes I get from school every day, he has a second breakfast at school. Granted, he usually only eats half portions at this meal, but still he eats half of it. But then comes morning tea which he seems to like since it is typically completely eaten. So now it's 10:30 am and he has already had three meals. As I said, hobbit! At school they also give him lunch... half portions again is the norm. Then he comes home and begs a PB&J out of me. Seriously. Five meals before 1pm. I guess it's no wonder he's got the miniature body of a 40-year-0ld beer drinker.

Another loose end, is my meeting the owner of Love for Earth. On my third attempt I finally meet Patrick, his wife, and two kids. They were quite surprised to have me just show up in their shop! We had a nice visit and they asked me questions about the shoes. Maybe they will surprise us at our shop one day.

Finally is the "student lead conference" at Kahlil's school. This is a meeting between students and their parents and is a chance for the student to show off all they learned and made that year. Kahlil was very proud to tell us the story of the Three Little Pigs with puppets, sing the 's' song, and show us all of his art work. He also had Jay and I both fill out one of the math worksheets he has done this year and then he checked our work. He checked on Jay first and Jay did both of his sections correct so he got two smiley faces. I got one section right and one smiley face, but on the second section I circled 6 even though it is smaller than 10. Kahlil found my error right away and boldly crossed out the 6 and circled the 10. I got a sad face for that section. His confidence in correcting my error was fantastic. I highly recommend these conferences. It really gives the kids a chance to spend some quality time with Mom and Dad.