singapore III: a beggar in singapore

Singapore indeed, is a clean and well-regulated city. The people is quite friendly but some are bitter. I met the chinese… the anglo.. they are very friendly. And who’s the bitter one? Well u can easily guess it. It’s the Malayan.

“Excuse me, could you show me the money changer around here?” I asked a boy, a very malayan one. I’d say he looked so Indonesian.

“The what changer?” he grinned to the girl beside him. The girl, with a cup of ice cream burst in laughter. Her voice echoing in that busy plaza. But everybody ignore her.

“The money changer,” I said.

“Oohh.. you mean the mmonneyy changer,” he corrected my spell and laugh. “Dunno. I’m here to shop,” he said.

What??? After laughing at my Indonesian accent, he.. just ignore me and said that he is just shopping—and so doesn’t have to help a stranger? Well.. if I wasn’t remembering my position as a stranger-on-the-job, then I would pull out my shirt and asked him to come out and play.

He is as big as me, generally,.. eventhough.. hehe… I’m thinner than him. But I was a karate when Iwas a high school student, so I guessed I can compete with him. No problemo.. wahaha…

But that’s just an example, there are many other who was so nice to me. In my three days experince there, the nice person is chinese. They helped me showing direction, accompany me walking three blocks to the subway, and even.. giving me some money!!!!

Yes, I was a beggar there for being “too rich”. It was in a busway… I have no little money, so I offered my money (S$10) to the driver. But he refused for didn’t have the change. He asked me to exchange it to a lady in the bus.

But, I was quite lucky for the women didn’t have any change, so she gave me her coins, if I’m not mistaken it was 10 cents. She’s so kind, the driver explained the route, he didn’t judge me from my colour.

And when I was visiting china town, I met a man who took me to a subway. He was about to go to work. He was so nice, talked many things as many as his question about me and my country.

“I was in Puncak, Bandung. It was five years ago,” he said.

He told me that he is in charge for the security system in Singapore’s power plant. It means, he has to guard it since power plant is like tha heart of a country. Without energy, the country will be in a chaos.

“Such a big responsible you have. Don’t you think you will be late for taking me to the subway,” I said.

“No, I won’t. It’s just couple blocks away,” he said.

And in the subway, once again, another Chinese helped me to take the ticket. They were lovely couple, and nice. Islam teaching truly said, "Allah judge men from the Taqwa, not from the race."

Then, why should this nation couldn't grow as Singapore in pluralism?