travel trials

It's a pity that smrt/sbs transit don't offer frequent traveller programs like many of their airborne counterparts do - say, for example, chalking up 100km on public transport being able to redeem a fere return mrt trip or something like that - for if that were the case, in a year's time not just me but at least half of the rest of the nie student population would be eligible for quite a fair bit of free travel...

Well, one thing that bus/train travel does offer, though, is the opportunity to see some of the worst and most selfish acts of typical ugly Singaporean behavior being unapologetically exhibited for all to see, and to be inconvenienced by. I've mentioned this before, but seriously, i can never get tired of being pissed off by people who crowd the entrances to buses/trains in order to barge in and find a seat long before the people inside have exited (of course this applies less to sbs buses than it does to say nus buses though). Especially since my mrt trips require changing trains at interchange stations and terminating at boon lay, the sight of people thinking nothing of standing right in front of the train doors, gearing up for the mad push throw the throng of exiting passengers in order to score a prime seat, particularly during peak periods, is more than commonplace.

Well, i have to be honest and say that as unapologetic as they are about barging in and pushing aside exiting passengers in the process (and btw i'm sure a lot of these exiting passengers are guilty of barging in themselves), so am i about going out of my way to obstruct their quest to score a quick seat to as far an extent as i able to, by purposely standing in their way and making sure to push back whenever they push against me (and isn't that a law of Newton anyways?), Of course i make sure not to smother old people/children or accidentally outrage someone's modesty in the process, although i have to admit that at some times i'm tempted to do so (i mean the former, btw, not the latter)

The other day there was my experience with an impatient fairly old lady who was seated in a crowded train car. I was standing near the exit at the time. When the train was approaching Dhoby Ghaut (which was my intended stop), the lady, along with her hubby, got up and tried to shuffle her way past the crowd towards the door, evidently because she was intending to alight there as well. Fair enough. When she got behind me however, not only did she utter something in a Chinese dialect unintelligible to me which i can infer was to the effect of " i want to go out", but she also started poking me at the back rather strongly. I was quite annoyed so i turned round and tried to inform her that i was intending to alight at the stop as well. As she responded to this only by poking and pushing more vigorously, i can only conclude that she understood English as well as i did her unintelligible Chinese dialect, so i decided to quit trying to explain to her that i was exiting as well (and admittedly, restraining myself from scolding her loudly, which wouldn't have been nice or right at all) and just endured her continued pokes and pushes (eh, while trying to lean back so as to make my point clear to her that i was not going to move for her - there was no space to do so in any case). In retrospect maybe i should have shown less anger and more consideration for the elderly, but seriously, i would have let her through (methinks) had the train not been so crowded and there been no room to move to anyways - in any case, if she did get out first, she'd still proceed to be overtaken and swarmed by the hoards making a beeline for the nearest escalator/elevator, so i don't see the point of her getting off first.

Then, i was reading today's paper, and the expat column in particular, i was pleased to see the guest writer commenting on something that has also garnered my annoyance as of late, namely what he terms "escalator paralysis" - the phenomenon in which people inexplicably lose all power of lower limb movement upon setting foot upon an escalator/travellator/walkalator - i do find it weird that how rushed, for example, that people tend to be upon exiting at mrt train so as to reach an escalator, they then proceed to stop dead in their tracks once reaching the escalator. That's ok as long as they keep to one side, a practice that is almost religiously carried out in say tube escalators in London. But no, S'poreans just have to think nothing more of stopping on both sides of the escalator, blocking the way of those who do not succumb to this paralysis (i.e. me, for one). One good thing though is that normally when i gradually inch my way towards such people they soon get the hint and move aside for me to pass, if that is possible (you see, old lady in the mrt, i'm not unreasonable, i only expect to get through if there is indeed room to pass), and even apologize in the process. In any case, this is precisely why i normally take the stairs instead of the escalator at that middle part of citylink where you have to go down and then up again...

In other developments, if anyone reading this happens to be in Brazil now, turn on your telly to espn and see if you can spot my interview :p. What happened was that i was on my way back home from service this morning, at the junction of Raffles City next to Raffles Hotel and Chijmes, when this ang moh guy (with an ang moh cameraman behind him) approached me and asked if he could ask me some questions on S'pore and the Brazilian soccer team (he was wearing an ESPN Brasil shirt). Since i was free i agreed and so, after positioning myself against the suitable backdrop of Raffles Hotel, the camera got rolling and he fired away with his questions.

Unfortunately he asked about S'pore and what i feel about living here - well as can be evidenced from this space i was in one of my typical anti moods, but i figured that if i were to express those feelings about S'pore i would have not done us much good and at the same time may risk some S'porean expat in Brazil calling me out in the ST or something, so i tried to stay positive with my response (i said S'pore was fun, for goodness sakes), although how believable i was i can't be sure. He then proceeded on to my next expert subject, soccer (apparently the Brazilian olympic soccer team is in town and are playing against S'pore - i was pretty aware of the former but barely aware of the latter). He asked me to name some Brazilian soccer players - think i didn't do too bad - i knew there was Ronaldinho, Kaka and Ronaldo (though has he retired?). Oh if only he could have quizzed me on Brazilian tennis players, politicians, history, or food instead, then maybe i'd appear to be less of an idiot. And then he asked me what are S'pore's chances against the Brazilian team in the upcoming match - well, as much as i would like to show my faith in my national team (oh, who am i kidding?), i had to be logical and realistic, and so i answered that i was sure Brazil would win (hey, at least i didn't say we'll be thrashed). And there ended my two minutes of Brazilian fame.