Part 1 – Coping with the heat

Dear friends and family,

Other than some random FB posts I have been pretty quiet about our new lifes here in Singapore...
I have actually really been looking forward to starting my blog back up upon arrival here, but I had not yet found the peace of mind, nor the energy to sit down and have a go at it. And I also feel I need to wrap up the London blog first… polish that a bit and send it to the printer. I still enjoy reading the book I had printed with the stories and photos from our 2.5 years in Geneva. Especially the stories about snow… and the photos where we are skiing and sledging and wearing wooly hats and have rosy cold cheeks…

Anyways, inspiration I have plenty, so let’s get this thing started!

Let me get one thing of my chest straight away, and then I promise I won’t dwell on it too much hereafter as I’ll just have to learn and live with it.
But, YES, it is God almighty, hardly bearable, all consuming, awfully, freaking hot and humid here. And it is September and that is not the worst month, so it will get worse and I am dreading it!

Good thing is that you could live your entire life in Singapore inside and underground by moving seamlessly from your air-conditioned car (if you own one) or taxi (if you don’t) to the air-conditioned surroundings of the MRT*, the shopping malls, the restaurants, the bars, the school, the post office, the supermarket, the doctors/dentist/osteopath/orthodontist office, the nail/foot reflexology/massage/hair salon, you NAME it!

But the real fun is outside though! So once in a while I strip down to the bare minimum of clothing, smother myself in factor 50 sunscreen and explore the city. I have learned (… OK… I am still learning) to ignore any of my exposed wobbly bits as covering them all up is out of the question! And so is the use of my once so favorite and beloved Spanx underwear.
Bingo wings and dimpled thighs have rights too, you know! And I am pretty sure that most Asians think we Caucasians are white (read: blodgy pink, as white would actually be pretty) and ugly anyways, so might as well confirm their point of view... ;-)

After exploring, often in the form of either a walk or excursion with the lovely AWA** ladies, I arrive back home early to mid-afternoon, completely exhausted and sweaty and sticky beyond compare. And then, instead of sitting down and typing a fascinating, educational and funny blog post for all y’alls to read, the only thing that stops me from booking the first flight out to Alaska is a well-deserved Starfish Nap.
‘A Starfish Nap?’ I hear you wonder. Let me enlighten you!

Step 1: You drag yourself up the stairs to the bedroom where you turn on the fan and set your phone alarm for 4pm, which is exactly 7 to 10 minutes before the girls are dropped off by the school bus.

Step 2: You strip the wet, sticky clothes of your body and take a quick cold shower. 10-12 Seconds max, because any longer and the hot water kicks in and you don’t need that!

Step 3: You pad dry(ish) and position yourself in the middle of the bed and assume the starfish position. The starfish position ensures that an absolute maximum amount of skin is exposed to the cooling airflow from the fan, including and especially the always sweaty armpit and groin areas, and so optimizing the cooling down and revitalizing effect!

Step 4: Snooze away, my friends, snooze away!! Best naps ever!!

Those of you who followed my Geneva blog know that I like to use plenty of pictures to illustrate my stories. No pics for this one, though! Hope you understand ;-)
But I did find Toffey kind enough to demonstrate a cat version of the starfish napping position, see picture section below.

That’s all folks for now, just to get it started and as said, I won’t dwell on the heat much more after this one! As my friend Lucia says: 'If the climate in Singapore was also great, EVERYONE would want to live here!'
And that is so true! Because all other aspects of Singapore life are pretty darn great indeed!

More next time!
X Stefanie

MRT* = Mass Rapid Transport = highly efficient, clean, cheap, airconditioned and wonderful underground system that gets you EVERYWHERE in Singapore

AWA** = American Women’s Association = Fun club that offers a ton of things to do to prevent the Expat Wife (also known as Trailing Spouse) to die of friend-deprivation and general boredom.