I just went to name this blog posting "Racial Harmony?" but the name auto filled...which means that I have titled another blog posting with this name. Turns out it was over two years ago, and though the content is actually different, the point is the same.
Right now I have a brother and a mother in Singapore. I have been sick basically since my brother arrived nearly two weeks ago, and certainly the whole time my mom has been here, but I felt about 75% yesterday, and I had taken the day off from work...so we went out.
We were walking across Bukit Timah Rd., near my house, going to the bus stop to catch a bus to the best claypot chicken rice in town. It looked as though we were three tourists walking towards Little India. A Chinese guy stopped us and said, "watch your bags in front of you. I had two bags taken. Pick pocket. Those Indian people..." Um...okay.
Then, we took a taxi from Dempsey Hill (after a pleasant walk in the Botanic Gardens and Orchid Garden and a nice drink at a shi shi cafe) back to my place. The uncle (or taxi driver...), who happened to be Indian (relevant) was driving a way that I don't usually go. After the second weird road choice, I asked him, "uncle, which way you go?" "I am driving down River Valley so you don't get two ERP charges on Orchard Rd - I'm not like the Chinese guys who try to cheat you out of your money." (ERP is a fee you pay to drive on certain - most - roads at certain times of the day). Then he went on for a few minutes about how Chinese try to take your money, but Indians are honest people. All of them, I'm sure.
Finally - literally on the same day - my mom and I were in a taxi on the way home from book club (with the author of the book we read!), and the driver was TERRIBLE. He was speeding up when everyone in front of us was stopped. He was so jerky that I was holding on, thought I was going to throw up, and was not able to have a conversation. It was one of the worst drivers I have had. Finally, after about 12 minutes, we had to turn, and a truck sort of went into our lane during the turn. The guy said "Indians are such bad drivers." And then he super sped off at unreasonable speeds of starting and stopping with apparently no clue that Chinese men could also be terrible drivers.
Singapore is an example of racial harmony...if racial harmony means that you don't publicly talk about anything "racy" and there are no race riots (or at least haven't been for at least 40 years). Yeah. Perfect. Harmony.
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