Singapore & Penang - Professional Writing Services

July 2019 – a study adventure

A wall mural depicting a woman and children on swings — *Me becoming part of a mural in George Town, Penang*

I was fortunate to be offered the opportunity to study at The Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, a postgraduate school of the National University of Singapore, for a week in July 2019. I was studying with a group of Australian government public policy nerds. We were able to meet and hear from a range of Singaporean public policy nerds: both people working in different government departments and people driving research and policy in Singapore. The people and the course were very very interesting. However, learning how the Singaporean government works and how it treats people made me very angry in my white Western privileged idealistic way and I decided to avoid visiting Singapore ever again if possible.

But before that decision, I was in Singapore so I was making the most of it. Leaving Australia in the small winter window where the weather is bleak and cold, and arriving somewhere particularly warm like Singapore was a nice change – I appreciated the good whack to the senses as the heat and humidity hits you on leaving the airport.

Abhi and I had decided to leverage my study adventure to include a stay with his brother Nihit and Nihit’s wife Swetha, who were living in Singapore at the time. Coincidentally, Abhi’s parents were also visiting Singapore so we celebrated Abhi’s 40^th birthday with cake, rooftop drinks and famous Singaporean crab. Yum yum.

Four friends smiling — *With Nihit and Swetha*

Inside a clean and tidy food market — *Singaporean food market*

four towers with plants growing up them, feature in a city garden — *Gardens by the Bay*

people in a pool on a rooftop of a tall building — *Singapore roof top pool*

Abhi and I also squeezed in a quick trip to Penang, a lovely island at the very north of Malaysia, where we stayed in George Town and enjoyed a lot of good food. The gluten free options weren’t plentiful so I was restricted in my meals, but Abhi’s only restriction was the waist band on his pants so he clocked up 5-6 meals a day. The scales registered an extra 6kgs when Abhi got home!

I highly recommend a trip to Penang – it’s easy to get around and there are lots of interesting cultural and historical things to visit and learn about. The street art is terrific – so creative and engaging. There’s also a hill to climb with a great view from the top and a cafe with an enormous dessert menu if you need a reward. The heat can be oppressive for us non-tropical dwellers but there are plenty of options to rest and recover. And of course the food is amazing – although don’t try the durian – it’s not worth the pain!

colourful umbrellas hanging at roof level creating a cover over a walkway — *Lebuh Aceh,* *George Town*

An old tree growing up a wall with a painting of a woman sitting on its roots — *Penang street art*

A stall holder at the night food market — *Night markets, George Town*

Friends at a market about to eat durian — *Trying Durian – don’t know why – stupid idea*

Night food markets with towering mural on the wall behind — *George Town Night Markets – so muggy – melting*

A shop front with an open blue door in Malaysia — *Glove Puppet Show on Pengkalan Weld*

Outside decorations of a temple — *Chaiya Mangalaram Thai Buddhist Temple*

A view of a city with the ocean behind it — *View north-east to mainland Malaysia*

A man choosing food from a large kitchen — *Meal No.15*

a painting on a wall of a cat in coloured balls — *Penang street art*

A display of plastic versions of dessert - a visual menu — *Visual dessert menu on top of Penang Hill*

Two friends dining at a road side stall — *A George Town restaurant literally on the street*

A man in a restaurant eating a bowl of meatballs and noodles — *Meal No.23*

A heritage building — *Cheong Fatt Tze – the Blue Mansion*

Back in Singapore, I visited Lew and Kyla and Fiona and Max, and met their respective offspring. I enjoyed walks through Singapore’s manicured gardens and established a new personal habit of taking an umbrella with me to shade me from the sun while walking. I enjoyed Singapore’s odd bits, green bits and the city scape but was very happy to say goodbye.

Two young women dressed as elves posing in a garden — *Garden nymphs?*

A manicured public garden — *Singapore Botanic Gardens*

A woman smiling at the camera holding an umbrella with the sun poking through the trees behind — *Sun umbrella*

A woman hugging a giant painted egg — *Egg of fortune*

The Singapore city skyline at night with a moon masked by clouds — *Nighty night Singapore*