Expat Vs Foreign Talent

Its a pretty addictive experience being an expat. Almost all your basic necessity is taken care of. You have a better pay cheque as compared to working in your native country and you get to experience a different culture and lifestyle. An expat is someone hired out of their own native country to provide a skill to a company that they can't get locally.

Now thats an expat. A foreign talent is someone from anywhere in the world. Thats where the similarity ends. The term "foreign talent" is coined by the Singapore government to replace the term "Foreign labour".

Recently, the government has been allowing these foreign talents into Singapore, with wide open arms, to increase the GDP. These foreign talents can be the lady behind the Starbucks cash counter or he can be the waiter, who can't speak proper english, serving you at the restaurants to that telemarketer thats trying to sell you some banking products.

With an influx of these foreign talents, it has caused certain displeasure amongst the local population. The public transport for one, has been strained to the max. In a recent conversation with a client in Singapore, he mentioned about how taking a public transport every morning is a gamble for him. "Every morning, the trains will be packed lo. Sometimes, I wait for 3 trains, sometimes 4 or 5 trains before I can get into the train."

When i was a student, I remember that the trains being packed, but never will I have to wait for 3-5 trains in Ang Mo Kio like my client have to.

I would have say, however, that expats would benefit the economy as it would create more jobs for the locals. However, foreign talents usually compete with the lower tier Singaporeans for job. For one, employers can hire a foreign talent for a fraction of what they have to pay a local. They don't have to contribute to the CPF for the foreign talent and they don't have to worry about the foreign talent going to the army for reservist. The locals are already losing out in competition because of these factors. Many of my peers from NTU, SMU, NUS, are having difficulties looking for job in the current market. Employers can choose to hire someone from a random university at a cheaper rate.

Even the old lady on the streets picking cans and cardboard boxes, faces competition from a foreign talent.

People in Dubai would always ask me why would I want to go overseas to work when the whole world is flooding into Singapore. And I told them that it is exactly the reason that I left Singapore. I felt like a foreigner in my own homeland. Singapore, I felt, was losing its flavor, identity and slowly becoming a city without a soul.

In my recent trip back to Singapore, I overhead a conversation of two middle aged "Aunties" on the bus.

Aunty A: Eh, who u voting ar?

Aunty B: PAP lo

Aunty A: but my daughter ask me vote another party le

Aunty B: why le PAP good what!

Aunty A: My daughter say that PAP let a lot of foreigners in.

Aunty B: Really ar?

Aunty A: Yeh, even the toilet uncle near my house has been replaced by a china man. Now he selling tissue. He say no choice.

Aunty B: Huh? So charm ar?

Many Singaporeans are quick to point out that we are displaying a xenophobic behavior when we do not welcome foreign talents. However, it is difficult to welcome them when there were many people in Singapore were already having difficulty making ends meet without the competition.

Beach Party Galore!

Every year, when it comes to winters in Dubai, its like hell broke loose and all the creatures hibernating somewhere in the fridges in Dubai, suddenly appear. Then again it might just be because of all the beach parties. Before winter, you see people camping in the gyms, working their ass out, so that they can flaunt it in the beach parties.

Everyone starts sun worshipping just because it is more pleasant to be out in the sun. Last week at Nasimi, it was a crazy party, the line up of Deejays were wonderful. Not like I remembered who was there, but I think I had a great time. Thats all that matters right? RIGHT?

Sandstorms, Brown clothes and all those in-between

Sandstorms isn't something I've seen in my part of the world. Its a pretty awesome sight to experience. The WHOLE city covered in sand. Then suddenly, i remembered about my laundry. Not good at all!!! 

But as I've learnt being here for almost 2 years, a major sandstorm in Dubai, signifies a major change in weather. And true to that, the weather became way cooler as compared to the past few days! 

However, there are some things you should do in a sandstorm. You shouldn't...

1. laugh with your mouth open. Before you know it, you will be coughing with all the sand in your mouth
2. wear white. Your clothes will turn brown. Just like my laundry
3. open your eyes. Shades come in really handy in times like that, to look good, AND to protect your eyes. But that's secondary, really!

A Walking City

I've always dreamt about living in a walking city, like one of those you see in "the sound of music" where u walk around and the shop keepers will greet you and ask you how is your day as you prance away with a flower in you hand feeling all chirpy. Ok! that is a little too much but you get the gist.

Well this comes to what I wanted to share about Dubai, it has NONE of this at all. Dubai is a city made for cars. Not for bicycles, motorcycles, scooter, foot, none of the above. It is made for HUGE cars that look like tanks.

Everyone here drives one of those huge hummers, the size of a mini school bus. When I was contemplating to buy my dream BMW Z4, i realized it looked so minuscule beside one of these giants. And yes, I have yet to mention about one of those monster trucks they drive here!

The huge toys they have here!

Before I arrived in this city, there were images in my head, I would walk to the nearest markets, get to know the place and the people. But then again, it was all in my head. During Ramadan, almost all the restaurants are closed and people would usually gather for meals at friends places. The night before it was my turn to cook dinner, the Metro had to breakdown. The cabs had to disappear from the roads. The weather had to be 45 degrees. The mall had to be horribly far away. 

I had to go to the supermarket to get my groceries by hook or by crook if not the dinner party would not materialize! I was thinking, since I could see the mall, it should take too long. Somehow, I conveniently forgot about the 8 lanes highway between my apartment and the mall. Although it was in plain sight, I had to walk to the nearest overhead bridge, which was about 1 km away from my house and the mall and 1km back towards the mall. 

It wasn't the distance that killed me, it was the temperature that did. When I arrived at the supermarket, I was drenched in my own sweat. Then a cab appeared.

I almost pulled my hair out i swear. Well, then again, this is Dubai. There are days you would kill to be here. There are others, you would die being here.

Dubai's Winter

As a kid, I learnt that deserts were burning hot in the day and freezing cold at night. This, i discovered wasn't true when I first came to Dubai. The 45 degrees heat lasted through the night. I felt like I was in a sauna. Even when there was a gentle breeze, it felt like the hair dryer was on full blast in my face.

Like many Singaporeans, I thought that coming from the tropics, I would be able to handle the heat. Not so smart at all.  I dreaded the first six months I was here, choosing to hide indoors, with the best invention on earth, the air conditioner.

But when I almost gave up on wearing clothes in Dubai, winter came. Dubai became like the most beautiful, comfortable place on earth. From 45 degrees, and not seeing a person in sight on the streets of Dubai, the city became a gorgeous cooling 23 degrees with every critter hiding in the caves in Dubai crawling out to beach parties, watering holes and gathering at the outdoor cafes. If you have a good imagination, it almost felt like you were in Europe.

People become nicer, and more tolerant, the parties start to get crazy and the concerts go on full swing. This is Dubai in winter.

This is where I hide during Summer... My cave, the shopping mall.

And this is where I will be, during winter...BY THE WATER!!!

I can't wait =)

Oh my god....!

Four Catholic men and a Catholic woman were having coffee.

The first Catholic man tells his friends, "My son is a priest, when he walks into a room, everyone calls him 'Father'."

The second Catholic man chirps, "My son is a Bishop. When he walks into a room people call him 'Your Grace'."
...
The third Catholic gent says, "My son is a Cardinal.. When he enters a roomeveryone says 'Your Eminence'."

The fourth Catholic man then says, "My son is the Pope. When he walks into a room people call him 'Your Holiness'."

Since the lone Catholic woman was sipping her coffee in silence, the four men give her a subtle, "Well....?"

She proudly replies, "I have a daughter, slim, tall, 38D breast, 24" waist and 34" hips. When she walks into a room, people say, "Oh My God."

Dubai's Quick Fix

You know how you enjoy the convinence of using a disposable fork and spoon, disposable plate, disposable chopstick just because of the ease of throwing them after use? Well, many of the people in Dubai are the same. You hardly find substance here. (before you people out there get offended, i said hardly, there are those rare gems around that you would need to filter through to find. Maybe, just maybe you guys fall in that catagory)

Why am I writing this post on a Monday morning you say? I have been chatting with this friend online for quite sometime, lets just call this friend A. A is part of an airline company that is situated in this part of the world. As an air crew, A flies around most of the time and its almost impossible to catch A in Dubai for lunches or dinner, hell, its almost impossible to catch A in Dubai at all!

A seemed like a nice person and a very suitable canditate to be a friend to keep in Dubai. A however, has this habit of calling off the meeting we arranged. We have had 5 failed appointments before we finally got to meet up. Once by me, 4 times by A.

Any normal person would have given up at the third attempt. You know the saying, "once bitten twice shy". So what does 5 times make me?  I really wonder sometimes. It either makes me a really patient person, or an utter fool.

When we met, it was nice. We talked about life, the world, travels. But due to a flight A had to catch, we had only about an hour to meet up. We arranged to meet up a few days later when A is back. Having met A, i thought that perhaps the failed meetings we experience previously is a thing of the past. Not so...!

This morning, when i woke up this Monday morning, I saw a message with , " I would love to meet up, however, I have to help my friends move on the date we're supposed to meet."

Friends at home always mentioned that I have lots of friends here. I said yes, that true, but many of them are just sustanance, not substance. As much as I try to be everything a friend is, you put yourself out there, you be nice, I feel that its almost impossible to really find proper friendship in Dubai.

After a year, this is all too clear, no expectations, no disappointment. People come and people go. Many of them just want a quick fix. Just like how you love your instant noodles, quick, convinient and settles your immediate need.

Like the junk we people hate to love. Like the junk we people eventually become.

Travel and living...

Being in Dubai has given me the luxury of time to reflect upon myself. What I want in life, how I want to live life and where I want to go in life.I have been blessed to be an expat at such a young age and to explore a new country with a whole different culture as compared to mine.

However, I have to confess, I have been quite a tv junky in Dubai watching Discovery Channel Travel and Living. I always dream of a career in traveling. Like how they do it on discovery channel. I hardly see any Asian hosts doing these crazy around the world travels and I akways dream do fill that position.

I love watching Nat Geo as well, having crazy hosts do out of the world things , traveling to dangerous places or seeing things that you can only see though your tv screen.

I did photo journalism in school and journalism having a dream of being a travel journalist or a travel host. However, I'm now in one location, in middle east! Ahhhh! Well, that's quite a dream job yeh?

If only....

Dubai through my eye

Dubai Though My Eyes

After taking a 9 month sabbatical slumber from blogging, I decided to get back to where i  have left off. My excitement of exploring this new city wore off after two months and I fell into a slight withdrawal from Dubai.  All I wanted was to get out! The first year is always difficult,like everyone says. I'm not saying that living in Dubai is easy for me now, it's not, it's getting eas-ier. 

If we compare Dubai to a lady, she isn't that French super model that you'll fall head over heals over, she isn't the Italian bombshell that make you breathless and weak in the knees, neither is she the Spanish babe who stole your heart. Let's just say that Dubai is akin to Durian, blue cheese, caviar. I'm not saying it's a tough pill to swallow, but its grows on you, slowly but surely. Dubai is this lady below the Arabian veil that doesn't show you it's charm, however, if u take some time to get to know her, you'll slowly fall in love. 

There's a million and one things you can do in Dubai and the sky is the limit. Hell, you can even conquer the skies if you wanted to! Choose between taking a hot air balloon or sky diving close to the tallest building in the world.

I'm not about to write an advertorial for Dubai, however, as I'm penning my thoughts  on a flight home from Dubai, I realized that I'm reaching my one year mark in Dubai before I even noticed it. I've given myself 2 years in this city. It's either that I like it and live through it happy, or suffer the next year which was what I did for the past 7 months. 

The last two months I'd say, was when I picked myself up again and started to look at this city again through a different set of lenses. The friendship I forged here helped me tide over troubled waters.

Dubai, guess what, I'm ready to take the plunge for one more year! 

P.S: I don't like crying babies on planes......

P.P.S: 3M needs to improve on their ear plugs. It isn't cry baby proof yet!