Yes, Dewi, dragons do exist

This afternoon as we were walking back on to campus from an awesome outing at Vivo City, we saw several fellow Prince George's Park residents standing near the gate, one or two with cameras, staring at the patch of trees that line the fence. Must be someone posing for an end of the semester picture, or maybe a pretty bird.

No, it was the damn scariest wildlife I've encountered in a long time. It was a Malayan water monitor, maybe 4 feet long from nose to tail, just creeping around and "smelling" for prey with his tongue. Now, I grew up in the Badger State, and so encountering a badger might scare me more, but this lizard looked like he could walk away with Dewi if he were so inclined. I've since learned that they're more scavengers than hunters, but he probably does feast on the smaller lizards and other wildlife that is pretty abundant here.

They apparently can live in canals (of which there are many on the island and even on campus), and can do saltwater or fresh (both are close), and can climb trees (got lots of those). I don't think I'd feel much better seeing something that big up in a tree as opposed to on the ground. Anyway, allegedly they are more prone to hide than fight if provoked, but, uh, what constitutes provocation, and are we talking 51/49 flight vs. fight, or are they really passive animals? Regardless, I will be carrying Dewi in my arms anytime we step outside the gate. Somehow I don't think the dragon would respond kindly to a giggling toddler staggering over to pet it.

Wah yo smah keh?

We've been regulars at a little kopitiam since we moved to Prince George's Park four months ago. Before Karina started working, we were going in every morning when the stall opened at 7:30, Dewi in tow, to have two kopi-o's and some little cakes or curry puffs.

Since March it's been more of a weekend treat, and we've since moved on to iced kopi tarik, which is, to put it mildly, the best coffee drink on campus. The one constant over these four months has been the proprietor, always there to greet us, getting his stall opened up, giving orders to his staff, and sometimes having us try his latest concoctions. Dewi has been the beneficiary of countless little treats in his effort to win her over (he has succeeded, by the way).

But for all the interaction we've had over these months, we still can't understand him for the life of us. Now it's no secret that Singlish is distinct from English, and for those natives who spend most of their time speaking Malay, Chinese, Tamil or something else, their Singlish becomes even more of a hodge podge.

Anyway, the other day I went in during the week, solo, to get an iced kopi tarik and a chicken ham bun for breakfast.

Proprietor to me: "Wah yo smah keh?"

My interior monologue: "Why am I smoking? Do I look or smell like I've been smoking? That doesn't make sense... um, what else? Why you small cake? Does he think I should have a bigger breakfast?"

My response: "No, thanks, this is enough for me right now."

Proprietor, puzzled, pointing but not helpfully: "Wah yo smah keh?"

My interior monologue: "Oh, he's trying to get me to try those new little cakes he has on display. They look like old birthday cake. Stall...stall..."

Proprietor, a little impatient: "Yo smah keh."

My interior monologue: "I'm not gonna try that cake. I don't know what the hell he's saying. Wait... small kid? Where... your... small... kid? Is he asking about Dewi? Yes, that's it!"

My response: "Oh, my small kid! She's at daycare."

Proprietor: "Ah, with mama."

Me: "Um, no. Daycare... down the road."

Proprietor: "Ah, at home."

Me: "Yup, ok, thanks, see you soon."

The details just didn't seem to matter. He seemed satisfied that "smah keh" was being cared for while I was gallivanting. I was happy that I solved the puzzle without the benefit of having already had my morning kopi. And this morning our smah keh finally high-fived him after at least a month of repeatedly leaving him hanging. Progress...

4 Months Ago Today

4 months ago today we were on a plane from LAX to Tokyo to Changi, making our way to Singapore for our big move. Derek had just left the working world, ready to be a student again. Dewi had started crawling, and had just said goodbye to her nanny-share nanny and buddy. I had just wrapped up all my work at WEAVE, and was about to start life as a temporary stay-at-home-mom . We had just cleaned our house from top to bottom and re-painted for our renters, sold off all of our furniture and household goods, packed up most of our items, made several Goodwill runs, and said goodbye to DC. We had just spent Christmas with Derek's family in Wisconsin, then New Year's with mine in California. We had just said goodbye to family and friends and were on our way to Singapore...just the 3 of us.

Here we are, 4 months later in our new city, and the feelings of being nomads are slowly going away. I have started a great new job, Derek has handed in his last paper of the semester, and Dewi is growing and excelling every single day at her daycare and at home with us. She is walking everywhere, and loving her newfound freedom, saying new words, dancing to new songs, and delighting at every single piece of her new walking world. We are moving off campus to our own apartment next month, we are prepping for our first visit back home, and we have visitors coming in the next few months. We have taken the MRT and buses everywhere, tried out restaurants recommended by foodie friends, had our full (often too full) share of hawker food, gone to parks, museums, friends' homes, and relaxed at home in our teeny apartment. Life is good, and best of all- we have at least 3.5 more years of exploration to do in our new city. Life is good.

At Jurong Bird Park