little india and arab street

lucky for me, one of our chicago friends has a sister living in singapore. she was so kind to show me around a different part of the city/country/it all blurs together. she is a singapore encyclopedia and taught me so much about the different cultures and history.

first, she took me to little india. we totally lucked out because it was diwali that weekend! my sole knowledge of diwali comes from where all my greatest knowledge has been gleaned: the office. in kelly's words, "diwali is awesome... and there's food..." turns out it's like thanksgiving and christmas combined, a.k.a a huge deal and a national holiday. everyone buys new outfits and decks their house out in new furnishings.

every street was decked out for diwali

indoor market

everyone looks their best for the holiday - salons had lines outside, and there was lots of henna action going on

festival of lights

buddha is always so happy

the temple was closed for worship, but they let me slip off my shoes and tip toe inside.

at my ninth grade physical to play fall sports, my doctor once told me i was "as flexible as a brick." the world would be a better place if everyone were this flexible.

the roof of the temple

after little india, we walked over to arab street. the busy, noisy, holiday vibe completely changed. arab street is much plainer, much more subtle. we stopped and had this amazing hot bread that i forgot the name of, and browsed the bead stands.

the mosque

this group of women was sitting in the middle of the square, laughing and chatting. i was trying to casually take a picture of them, but they saw me and waved me over. then they took pictures of me for awhile. i loved their colorful scarves, but they have got to be sweltering! singapore is almost on the equator...hot and humid every.single.day.