New life in Singapore

We are not hardcore bloggers. Once in a while, when things get interesting, is sufficient. So far we've been lazy about sending long emails sufficiently describing our new life. So, we hope this blog will suffice.

We arrived in Singapore on July 28. Since then we have been keeping very busy with the most pressing issues: finding a place to live and eating well. We are glad to say that we've done both!

As for the apartment, we viewed 7 places in two days, and we found a little gem in Holland Village, a neighborhood with a number of high-rise public apartments, as well as a pedestrian street of trendy bars and restaurants. I think we got quite lucky with the apartment. We were the first and only people to view it - on the very day that the previous tenant moved out. It has wood floors through most of it, as well as tile in the expansive kitchen. This is the largest kitchen we've ever had, and it seems great so far - gas range, small oven, huge fridge, and tons of counter space. In addition to two bedrooms (one which will be a study), it also has a small laundry room, which I appreciate.

The rent is just a bit more than we hoped to pay, but the location makes up for it, as I am a short bus ride from work (15-20 min, about 75 cents each way). I can also ride my bike as soon as it arrives with the rest of our boxes in about a month. We are also only a 5-minute walk from Buona Vista MRT station, which can take us into the city in a matter of minutes. So, if Hisako finds work downtown, her commute shouldn't be too bad.

As for eating, we've done pretty well so far. Our first meal worth mentioning was some Thai curry in Chinatown. We've enjoyed sampling the world's flavors in the hawkers areas that can be found all over the city. We've had a lot of noodles, too, and we've been excited to find Japanese-style bakeries. Great food, as expected!

Classes start this week, so I'm preparing syllabi for my two courses. I have met a few of the students, who seem eager to learn. The faculty and staff have all been terrific, too. They've given us plenty of helpful advice for settling in. They seem supportive in every way.

シンガポールは暑い、暑い！と言われ、覚悟の上で来星（シンガポールを漢字にすると「星」となるらしい、、、）すると、その日は小雨模様でした。
感想は、“これなら我慢できそう！”でも、日中は我慢できても夜は毎日風がなくなって熱帯夜です。それは、私たちのアパートは２１階建ての３階だから。。。エアコン絶対必要です。
２１階に住んでいたらもっと涼しい風があたって景色もいいんだけど、やはり高層階になると値段もぐっとあがるらしい。３階で満足とします。

ボルダーの生活から一変して都会の生活になり、人は多いわ、雑音は多いわ、とにかく、工事が多いです。地下鉄から高層マンションまで元気な国だな〜！って思います。