(no subject)

Yesterday I got to Singapore no problem. The hostel I'm staying at is... kind of a mixed bag for me. On the one hand, I like the open air concept. I'm currently sitting in the lobby and the roof is a plastic opaque thing, and I'm looking out to the other buildings. Somehow due to the placement of the building, the wind doesn't blow the rain in this way. There's also a smoking garden with more seating. There're some bookshelves too, and a couple of couches. The Internet connectivity has been somewhat abominable, and I don't think it was just because I was behind a wall in the dorm room. It's behaving tonight though, which is surprising given that it's raining. The shower stalls are awful, though. The folding doors feel like they're about to fall off, and I'm pretty sure the locks don't even work. They're also so tiny I'm in constant fear that I'll accidentally spray my clothes. The toilets are similarly cramped. The bed isn't comfortable, and the pillow feels like a "dead cat" pillow I once had. I've woken myself up snoring a few times because my head was so poorly supported.

The other guests are mixed: lots of fellow Asians; two of my other roomies are Vietnamese. Last night I had dinner with the woman who slept on the bottom bunk of mine, who's from Chile. But there're also a lot of Europeans here, and I think the proprietor is hanging out with the white dudes. IDK. I think I could grow to like the place if the staff were friendlier to me. When I first got here, the receptionist just got a blanket for me and showed me to my room and didn't even bother explaining anything else to me. Is this normal for hostels?

I do like the ambience though. I feel that maybe in the future I'd want a place like this for my own.

I tried to go to the Hipster cafe that Sarah rec'd to me, but the first time, I couldn't find the front door (it's not in front, it's through the gate next door) and the second time, it was closed by the time I got there. Bah!

But I had a lovely time with troiyaumes and hubbie today! We went to the Geylang Serai center and had delicious food, then went to get some durian at Aljunied, followed by shopping for mooncakes at Takashiyama. I have never seen so many mooncakes in one place. I hope never to see so many mooncakes in one place ever again.

My feet hurt from walking a lot though. I'm trying to decide if it's the shoes, or the walking, or the fact that I've put on weight so my feet are no longer used to carrying my weight. If it's the shoes, well, fuck, I gotta get new ones. If it's the walking, that's just a good thing. If it's the weight, that's no problem either; I'll just keep training my feet to carry me. That's what they're designed to do, after all.

Right now I'm sprawled on one of the couches in the lobby of the hostel, taking in the ambient noise, and eating Tim Tams. It's nice and cool from the rain, which is better than the air-conditioning in the dorm room right now. I'm also working down my new notebook as much as I can. And trying to work on a draft of my prospectus.

Tomorrow I'll see jolantru! We'll hit up Esplanade and figure out where to have tea from there. The Cookie Museum has sadly closed their Esplanade outlet, after 11 years too. But I'm sure the Singapore Flyer's fish spa is still there. It better be anyway.