Work and Play

I’ve gone abroad exactly seven times since Miles was born last September. Phnom Penh, Koh Samui, Melbourne, and Taipei were the holidays we took together as a family. The other three flights? All to Singapore, including my latest trip a few weeks ago at the end of October/beginning of November. I have many thoughts and feelings about Singapore, most of which I’ve already written about when recapping previous trips to the Lion City, so I won’t go through the tedious process of repeating myself (much).

The one big difference this time around, however, was the fact that I was in town for work, instead of the usual three Fs: Food, Family, Friends. Behind this little corner of the Internet that I’ve staked out for myself over the years is a mid-career switch to financial journalism, when I decided I’d rather get paid for my writing than not. My coverage has mostly focused on the Hong Kong market since becoming a journalist, but a couple months ago my editor asked if I was interested in taking over the Southeast Asia beat instead. I gladly said yes, and a few weeks later I found myself in Singapore with a small suitcase, a list of interviewees, and a few free evenings to see some old friends.

I ended up walking a lot. It was very reminiscent of my first visit to Singapore, nearly 11 years ago. Back then I was really just starting out on my journey here in Asia – I hadn’t even decided to move to Hong Kong yet at that time, but I was definitely starting to dream about starting a life in this part of the world. Those were the days before I had any idea how to plan a trip on my own, before I ever had a smartphone in my pocket to consult on-the-go, and definitely before I knew my way around Singapore (admittedly it isn’t a whole lot even now). I walked everywhere I went without really knowing where I was, just eager to be in a new and unfamiliar place. Some of those places I’ve never been back to, even after eight subsequent trips to this city. Some places I add a new layer each time.

Gallery

I didn’t bring my camera so I snapped away on my Samsung S10e and did some editing in Lightroom – pretty happy with how these shots turned out, I think.