Chinatown

In 10 days we will usher in the Year Of The Cock. Last night I braved the crowds in Chinatown to soak in the festivities, shamefully, for the first time in my life. It was as if the whole of Singapore was there, converging upon the streets and the bazaars.

We had tea and dim sum by the street; it was uncanny to be eating just an elbow away from the human traffic, which would scrutinize our every dish as it slowly jostled by. It has taken me 25 years of life to realise how delicious frog legs are, braised in a claypot with ginger and chives.

We came upon a massive, sanctified site where The Buddha Tooth Relic Temple is to be constructed. I wonder if it will really house what the name suggests, and if so, which tooth. Doubtless even a chipped lower incisor preserved from the enlightened mouth of Siddharta himself would command the reverance of the Buddhist world.

We ended up at Maxwell market for ice-cold beer. Wonderful.