Winash Times: 2010

Singapore Slang.....

by AshWin

If you feel , there is no Unique thing to Singapore , as they are relatively young country, then You are taken for a twist here .

I have been here close to a year, I m amazed at the way People talk here, They call Singlish ..something Unique here..
When You hear ..It would be like English , but It just sounds different , in my words Weird . Even People speak a different dialect of Tamil,unlike in TN
If you are new to Singapore , here is Slang you should get used to...

                 Yes or Ok means Can -- You l see lot of people use 'Can can '

                 'Top Up' means recharge/refill -- You need to know this coz you l have to topup..err recharge your Bus/Train Ezlink cards

                  Already -- I dont know why they add this word to every sentence they speak

                  Ok- Lah     -- Almost all people add this word 'Lah' to the end of sentence , Formosan Influence

                  Jalan - Jalan means road/ street /way /route /path/Go ..depends on person you speak to ..:(
                  Angmo - A White Foreigner esp. from Europe/US
                  Bukit - Bukit mean Hill, a elevated place - They refer this   to any higer slope as well

             Kopi/Kopic/TehC - Kopi means coffee ,alias Black coffee , You should ask with Milk , which is 'C'

                  MRT - Nearest railway station , You can spot any place and ask for nearest MRT and look that
                              in the map - very easy

                Kaya Toast - Breakfast you can find only in this part of World - Butter, Kaya (sweet) with bread


                  Mustafa /Cheers/ 7-Eleven - These shops are available all round Island , 7/11 & Mustafa are 24/7 shop , where you will get everything from Condom to Computers .

                  NTUC Fair Price /Cold storage -- NTUC (National Trade Union Congress ) , has stalls all over the Island , is under the Government and has quality products at lower prices .
People only call NTUC and not fair price,
Cold storage has all imported products at slightly higher price, especially the meat products (not for me)

                    HDB - Housing developementAuthority
                   Condo - Condominium
                    Poly - generally means Health clinic nearby /also known for Polytechnic college
   Community centre - Place for localitypeople to congregate and serve people within .
                   Dry/Wet market - Place where you can buy cheap Non-Veg (Sea food kind)
                  Tekka -- Tekka means Market , which is actually in Little India .

                                    and many more, will update as and when I notice ...

    Some Useful Abbreviationss

                  PUB - Public Utility Bills

                  NRIC /IC - National Registration Identity Card , all people call it IC .
                              Since most of people here are from other countries , carrying IC ( Foreign Index Number -Pink/Blue Card) is better, to have in Wallet.
                              Whenever you go to , Your first identity Card for registration would be your IC

                   NETS - Network for Electronic Transfer

                           Anytime/Anywhere to Swipe money .Make sure when you open account You have NETS enabled
                           Almost All remunerated have their NETS enabled on to their Debit/Credit cards

Expat Disarray ? .....

by AshWin

Ofttimes , I have been reminded of this word while in Singapore...

The official meaning(M-W) ,says someone moved from country voluntarily to seek new home abroad .

IF you go through World history (courtesy- Bill Bryson ) , Countries had prospered /are prospering only through Immigrants , There was phase in every country ,where a generation of hardwork intertwined with flux of immigrants (both high skilled and low skilled) , prospered their nation

Once they feel, they have achieved the consistent GDP, and have sufficient self pool of Talent, They take part in commanding Third World, oblivious of fact that they also contributed to growth .

Singapore is almost in transformation of that Phase, but they need consistent conflux of Skilled/non skilled people to meet their demands.

Some numbers which really poise developing India's role in Singapore's parabolic growth

$27 Billion : World Bank estimates of Annual Money remitted to India (largest in planet,US,SNG major Contributors )

25 million : Indians living outside country

$25 Billion : Singapore-India Bilateral Trade value last year

200,0000 : Expatriates in Singapore

3500 - Approx Number of Indian companies in SNG

150 - World's leading Banks in Singapore

27 - Average Age of Expat in SNG

184 - Number of Indian restaurants (per street directory.com )

2- Second largest investor in Indian economy (next to US)

3 - International Indian schools based in SNG

There are gripping numbers for china as well, We'l see that later (Rise of Dragon)

India and china have been bestowing these numbers consistently , for most of developed nations.

Singapore is only country in globe to have benefited most from both these countries' as they share a common culture and proximity to their homeland .

The Great challenge is that , to restore the talent and impart that skill to citizens here, and to stop them moving to more greener pastures,thereby foregoing their citizenship.

The Numbers arent that great , the Conversion rate of Work permit to PR to citizen is meagre 32 %

The fact that Mumbai/Chennai or Ningzia/Guanzhou will take decades to become Singapore of present time, is their Addon , and bythat time Singapore would have marched on its own .

And this is a Society which accepts that , Survival of fittest happens in across Expatriates .

To add to that Singapore has 4 national languages ,Malay,English,Tamil and Mandarin

Australia,UK, US ,and many South Asian countries have the same Issue, but their landscape offers them more, unlike Singapore .

Many Countries can take leaf out of Singapore's book ,when it comes to planning . If in 90's they planned what it should be today , Government has already planned for 2030 , but irony is that they need more Singaporeans rather expats who enjoy the fruit of this country and fly back home along with their remittance money . No Wonder Singapore PM wants couples to spend more time in Bed ..lol :)

If you look at this this in financial standpoint , They are pushing only well to do live here going forward , coz others simply cannot afford luxury offered here .

If the Expat Edifice is perturbed , then it might be bad if not worse for this country, so PR conversion or Citizenship rules should be flexible ,coz most of Expats are Asians and not Europeans :(

Despite all this unbending rules, inter race politics for improvement ,Singapore is the most happy city in Asia

http://abcnews.go.com/Video/playerIndex?id=4110675

Gong Xi -Syabas Singapore !!!!

Quoted Quotes ....

by AshWin

Enthusiasm may start a work, but it is only effort that can finish it.
You may deceive your companions, But never your conseience.
Powerty grows on laziness; Power grows on fear;
Patience grows on understanding; Position grows on responsibility.

Marriage is based on tolerence;
Love is based on faith Admiration is based on respect;
Hatred is based on suspicion.
Sentiments resists logic
Logic resists passion; Passion resists sense;But Sense promotes wisdom

Love is a mixture of tolerance and affection
Lust is a mixture of aggression and ego;
Fate is a mixture of helplessness and faith;
Hate is a mixture of contempt and sentiment.

Liked these lines ...something we can share/ feel :)
-- Anonymous ..

2 States - Marraige Drollness

by AshWin

Chetans latest ..is about the Intercaste/state marraige in India ..with certainly Pun intended a bit more..:)

I thoroughly enjoyed the book,completed in few Office MRT trips ...

I m not sure howmany people would understand his lingo like

'Practising Tam Brahm ,safezone guy, Gori vs kaala Jokes,Citibank/HLL didoes

To cut long story short, The passage from love to marraige between 2 Hi-fi Management Geeks ,who are from different parts of India where their cultures' differ more than a yawning gap,still their hearts stand tall .

To be honest, These type of marraiges are rarity, but can only happen/nurture in your college days- First love is always special,and if it culminates in arranged approved Wedding as this does,Life is certainly Beautiful !!

I have many North Indian friends who told me the horror of surviving in Chennai, but All is not that bad from what you think of this cultured city

For sure Chennai is not Bangalore or Hyderabad,which are perfect Cosmo cities, but people must understand that everything takes time in Chennai , but once accustomed, they swear by it ,without losing Identity ,not many cities can boast that !!

But certain witty quotes about chennai are blatantly true .

'Spotting a Tamil speaking Sardarji is like finding polar bear in Delhi '

'Why on Earth all people wake up so early in this city '

'Tamilians love Anybody who is fair , Intellectually Intelligent,Educated people - Chennai embraces them .

'Fashion is not a chennai Hallmark'

'Traditionally Hindu-addicted people ,reading Editorial pages - TOI took decades to come here .

'Tamilians love to irritate Non Tamil Speakers by speaking only in Tamil - partly true depends on clan and Gang ..

'Nerd Embryo - boy/girl who has physics,chemistry,maths as their best friends !!!

'Every teenager watches porn'

'Tamilian, Brahmin & Iyer (3 seperate identities -Noncompliance in any -U r disqualified )

'Marble Floring to a Punjabi is Foreign degree to a Tamilian '

'Tamilians can distinguish good singers from bad, as punjabis would a butter Chicken in a jiffy '

The Story has sprinkles of sarcasm,racism (Hightime we accept it exists) ,but we all are united by Indian at heart ,which is the final uniting factor in all our desi marraiges :)

Avatar --- Opulently Audacious

by AshWin

Avatar

THe Most expected film of the decade ...certainly did meet its expectations, unlike many fall like damp squib.

I watched this in 3 D(someday all films should be watched this way) ,providing out of World Experience

Year end seems to be time some good films are coming out , be it 2012 (some say it s a dumb movie),Rocket Singh, 3 Idiots ,Sherlock Holmes

Avatar is so different from other ones coz of its very thought of living in another planet ,courtesy his special effects

Cameroon just gives us around 15 mts of time at start of film , before we understand that

'We are no more in Kansas and should get used to Pandora'

The irony is that kernel of scientifc possibility of such a life cannot be ruled out .

Here are some Flake facts supporting Cameroon's World

Pandora is a alien world where Nature is still intact with its people, a Super conductor paradise.

The rare 'Unobtanium' ,which Earth is so deficit of ,for its Energy crisis ,is ubiquitous here

We all know that When superconductors are in the presence of a magnetic field, they can float.

Pandora is such a place where its assumed that Mountains ,Landscapes, reefs float Coz of this principle

Unobtanium can conduct electricity without resistance at room temperature; the best current superconductors work only when the temperature is below minus 150 F

Thus Unobtanium loaded mountains, Trees float in this Massive magnetic field

Another startling effect is bioluminescence Ecosystem – organisms’ ability to create their own light, This might be a reality tomorrow if we run short of Energy and Nature when deprived light produces on its own.

Pandora is more of a Moon rather a Planet , where Day/Night is quite long (27 Earth days to revolve the planet)

The radiation Emitted is also downplayed by Super Magnetic field , thus protecting people living there.and their huge Sizes are result of Gravity (10 times of that of Earth )

THe Usual filmy gimmicks are also there,like Navi people speaking English(not sure why they are blue coloured) , Invasion tactics compared to Iran/Afghanistan ,Destroying the Giant Tree Clan when The Precious metal is available everywhere in Pandora but Sci-Fi totally overhauls all those minuscule Errors

The Climax is one to be worth watching in 3 D

The Story is envisioned in view of a paraplegic who remains saving the alien group while Good Spirits(Eva) ,Neytiri, Bio-Scientists all form best of acting crew.

Albeit the Length of Movie is bit Elongated ,you dont get these movies every decade

3 Cheers to Cameroon !!!

Winash Times

Über mich

Erstwhile

Singapore Slang.....

Expat Disarray ? .....

Quoted Quotes ....

2 States - Marraige Drollness

Avatar --- Opulently Audacious