{"id":3926,"date":"2016-02-28T07:23:54","date_gmt":"2016-02-28T14:23:54","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/?p=3926"},"modified":"2016-02-28T07:30:35","modified_gmt":"2016-02-28T14:30:35","slug":"exotic-singapore-caning-and-the-kindness-movement","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/28\/exotic-singapore-caning-and-the-kindness-movement\/","title":{"rendered":"Exotic Singapore &#8212;  Caning and the Kindness Movement"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Us-at-Merlion.jpg?ssl=1\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-3971\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-large wp-image-3971\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Us-at-Merlion.jpg?resize=640%2C358&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"Us at Merlion\" width=\"640\" height=\"358\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Us-at-Merlion.jpg?w=640&amp;ssl=1 640w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Us-at-Merlion.jpg?resize=300%2C168&amp;ssl=1 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Bridge.jpg?ssl=1\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-3972\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft wp-image-3972\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Bridge.jpg?resize=303%2C227&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"Bridge\" width=\"303\" height=\"227\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Bridge.jpg?w=640&amp;ssl=1 640w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Bridge.jpg?resize=300%2C225&amp;ssl=1 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 303px) 100vw, 303px\" \/><\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Merlion.jpg?ssl=1\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-3974\"><br \/>\n<img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft wp-image-3974\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Merlion.jpg?resize=299%2C224&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"Merlion\" width=\"299\" height=\"224\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Merlion.jpg?w=640&amp;ssl=1 640w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Merlion.jpg?resize=300%2C225&amp;ssl=1 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 299px) 100vw, 299px\" \/><\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Puppets.jpg?ssl=1\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-3976\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-3976\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Puppets.jpg?resize=640%2C480&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"Puppets\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Puppets.jpg?w=640&amp;ssl=1 640w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Puppets.jpg?resize=300%2C225&amp;ssl=1 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/old-new-chinatown.jpg?ssl=1\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-3975\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-3975\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/old-new-chinatown.jpg?resize=640%2C480&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"old-new chinatown\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/old-new-chinatown.jpg?w=640&amp;ssl=1 640w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/old-new-chinatown.jpg?resize=300%2C225&amp;ssl=1 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/thumb_IMG_4805_1024-e1456477765409.jpg?ssl=1\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-3937\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-large wp-image-3937\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/thumb_IMG_4805_1024.jpg?resize=660%2C495&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"thumb_IMG_4805_1024\" width=\"660\" height=\"495\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<div id='gallery-1' class='gallery galleryid-3926 gallery-columns-3 gallery-size-thumbnail'><figure class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<div class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/28\/exotic-singapore-caning-and-the-kindness-movement\/thumb_img_4787_1024\/'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/thumb_IMG_4787_1024.jpg?resize=150%2C150&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/thumb_IMG_4787_1024.jpg?resize=150%2C150&amp;ssl=1 150w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/thumb_IMG_4787_1024.jpg?zoom=2&amp;resize=150%2C150&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/thumb_IMG_4787_1024.jpg?zoom=3&amp;resize=150%2C150&amp;ssl=1 450w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div><\/figure><figure class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<div class='gallery-icon portrait'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/28\/exotic-singapore-caning-and-the-kindness-movement\/thumb_img_4788_1024\/'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/thumb_IMG_4788_1024.jpg?resize=150%2C150&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/thumb_IMG_4788_1024.jpg?resize=150%2C150&amp;ssl=1 150w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/thumb_IMG_4788_1024.jpg?zoom=2&amp;resize=150%2C150&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/thumb_IMG_4788_1024.jpg?zoom=3&amp;resize=150%2C150&amp;ssl=1 450w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div><\/figure><figure class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<div class='gallery-icon portrait'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/28\/exotic-singapore-caning-and-the-kindness-movement\/thumb_img_4802_1024\/'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/thumb_IMG_4802_1024.jpg?resize=150%2C150&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/thumb_IMG_4802_1024.jpg?resize=150%2C150&amp;ssl=1 150w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/thumb_IMG_4802_1024.jpg?zoom=2&amp;resize=150%2C150&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/thumb_IMG_4802_1024.jpg?zoom=3&amp;resize=150%2C150&amp;ssl=1 450w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div><\/figure>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n<p><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-large wp-image-3931\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/thumb_IMG_4791_1024.jpg?resize=660%2C495&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"thumb_IMG_4791_1024\" width=\"660\" height=\"495\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/thumb_IMG_4791_1024.jpg?w=1024&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/thumb_IMG_4791_1024.jpg?resize=300%2C225&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/thumb_IMG_4791_1024.jpg?resize=768%2C576&amp;ssl=1 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 660px) 100vw, 660px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>This is just a little bit of what we&#8217;ve seen\u00a0wandering around this confusing city. \u00a0Its level of exotic mystery is considerable; so too is the sense of an over-governed, highly disciplined universe. \u00a0These photos are just a peek at the color, variety and mystery popping up all around us. \u00a0A diverse community of Hindu, Muslim, Chinese, Malay, Indian and Anglo live together sharing four national languages (<a title=\"Malay language\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Malay_language\">Malay<\/a>, <a title=\"Standard Chinese\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Standard_Chinese\">Mandarin<\/a>,<a title=\"Tamil language\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Tamil_language\">Tamil<\/a>, and <a title=\"English language\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/English_language\">English<\/a>.)<\/p>\n<p>As we made our way in from the airport just past 1AM Thursday, we saw wide avenues and planned parks that seemed stifling within their neighborhoods, so we were delighted to learn how much more there is to this city than that first impression. \u00a0However.<\/p>\n<p>This is a tough, tough government. \u00a0Even the tour guides note ruefully \u00a0&#8220;Well yes, but I can&#8217;t talk about <em>that<\/em>.&#8221; \u00a0In other words, if it&#8217;s about government rules, or the fines for littering or parking in the wrong place or or or &#8212; no comment. \u00a0And caning transgressors &#8211; nope.<\/p>\n<p>I thought it was just me who felt like I&#8217;d walked into a scene from Fahrenheit 541 or 1984 but no. \u00a0Rick agreed that it&#8217;s kind of spooky here despite the ethnic variety and history and hodgepodge of design and architecture.<\/p>\n<p>Whether at the gigantic conservatory &#8220;Gardens by the Bay&#8221; or the Chinatown Heritage Center or Orchard Road &#8211; an endless Rodeo Drive crammed with shoppers and women dressed like Donatella Versace &#8211; \u00a0there&#8217;s a sense of programmed unreality.<\/p>\n<p>Then there&#8217;s the government-sponsored\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2009\/11\/16\/world\/asia\/16iht-spore.html?_r=0\" target=\"_blank\">Singapore Kindness Movement<\/a>. designed to &#8220;improve the characters&#8221; of the people of Singapore. \u00a0Kind of weird but OK&#8230; \u00a0\u00a0 Still, on a tour bus the recorded guide&#8217;s rhetoric was infused with defense of the rules and policies that govern this place and its behavior. \u00a0Government rules and monitoring affect attitudes, sense of humor and behavior. \u00a0I was in Eastern Europe when it was behind the Iron Curtain and it was scary but people laughed about it and spoke with irony and a sense of the absurdity about\u00a0much of what they faced.<\/p>\n<p>In Singapore, the impact is worse, I think: scary, resigned acceptance and a spooky inhibition that slowly but surely lands upon a visitor.<\/p>\n<p>It&#8217;s quite an experience to swing between the visual (and culinary) feast here and these authoritarian undertones.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>This is just a little bit of what we&#8217;ve seen\u00a0wandering around this confusing city. \u00a0Its level of exotic mystery is considerable; so too is the sense of an over-governed, highly disciplined universe. \u00a0These photos are just a peek at the color, variety and mystery popping up all around us. \u00a0A diverse community of Hindu, Muslim, &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/28\/exotic-singapore-caning-and-the-kindness-movement\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Exotic Singapore &#8212;  Caning and the Kindness Movement<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[6,27,722,9,98,78],"tags":[3725,3713,3582,3716,3712,3715,3723,3714,1381,3726,3711,3724],"class_list":["post-3926","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-culture","category-current-affairs","category-food-and-drink","category-politics","category-religion","category-travel","tag-caning","tag-chinese","tag-christian","tag-diverse","tag-ethnic","tag-hindu","tag-kindness-movement","tag-maylay","tag-muslim","tag-order","tag-singapore","tag-strict-government"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p4gBq8-11k","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3926","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3926"}],"version-history":[{"count":14,"href":"https:\/\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3926\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3985,"href":"https:\/\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3926\/revisions\/3985"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3926"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3926"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3926"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}