Afternoon out

Took a nice, leisurely stroll along the Singapore River today. Weather was nice and warm. Never realised how beautiful the place can be.

Chatted with some construction workers near Read Bridge where they were working on the new MRT station. I asked them if they worked on Sundays. One of them rolled his eyes, and said that they were bound by contract to finish the project, and at the rate things were going, yes, they'll be here tomorrow. He asked me if I was a foreigner. I laughed and said I was Singaporean, born and bred here. I told them that tomorrow morning, I'll be leading a group of runners through the area, so maybe we can say hi to one another if we meet tomorrow.

Moving further down the river, I reached the large grassy field opposite Liang Court. I saw two European men in their forties and a young Asian lady in her twenties there. They were having a whale of a time, flying their remote-controlled planes. Observing the aeronautical display was another European man and his adorable toddler, who was dressed in baby pink. I asked the group if I could sit at the side and watch them fly their toy aircraft. They said yes. And so I took off my sandals, sat down on the grass, and watched their little machines zip through the air, their propellors spinning and humming away. I enjoyed myself greatly.

When they left, another trio came to play frisbee on the same grassy field. They wore Ultimate Frisbee League T-shirts, and judging from their wide variety of throws and accurate catches, I've no doubt that they are experts at the sport. Cool moves.

And while I lazed around on the grass, I was approached by a South Korean tourist who was on holiday in Singapore. His name was Jyun. It was his fifth (and second last) day here. I took the time to tell Jyun about Singapore, about the different buildings, shops and the Singapore River, about the recent National Day Parade and the fireworks near the Esplanade. We had a good conversation, and then Jyun went on his way to further explore our island city.

It was a nice and relaxed afternoon. After soaking in the sun and a few friendly interactions with absolute strangers, I went into Liang Court and collected my New Balance Real Run race pack. Then I took a slow walk down Clemenceau Avenue, through Istana Park and then onto Orchard Road, where I took a bus-ride home.