1st March
At the beginning of the month that sees my
first trip to Australia, I have been forwarded the following e-mail message from a
colleague who'd received it from her nurse friend." This guy went out on a Saturday night a few weeks ago, to a party. He was having a good time, had a couple of beers and some girl seemed to like him and invited him to go to another party. He quickly agreed and decided to go along with her. She took him to a party in some apartment and they continued to drink, and even got involved with some other drugs (unknown which). The next thing he knew, he woke up completely naked in a bathtub filled with ice. He was still feeling the effects of the drugs, but looked around to see he was alone. He looked down at his chest, which had "CALL 000 OR YOU WILL DIE" written on it in lipstick. He saw a phone was on a stand next to the tub, so he picked it up and dialed. He explained to the EMS operator what the situation was and that he didn't know where he was, what he took, or why he was really calling. She advised him to get out of the tub. He did, and she asked him to look himself over in the mirror. He did, and appeared normal, so she told him to check his back. He did, only to find two 9 inch slits on his lower back. She told him to get back in the tub immediately, and they sent a rescue team over.
Apparently, after being examined, he found out more of what had happened. His kidneys were stolen.
They are worth $10,000 each on the black market. (I was unaware this even existed.) Several guesses are in order: The second party was a sham, the people involved had to be at least medical students, and it was not just recreational drugs he was given. Regardless, he is currently in the hospital on life support, awaiting a spare kidney.
The University of Sydney in conjunction with The Royal Prince Alfred Hospital is conducting tissue research to match the student with a donor.
I wish to warn you about a new crime ring that is targeting business travelers. This ring is well organized, well funded, has very skilled personnel, and is currently in most major cities around the world and recently very active in Sydney."
2nd March
Saw "The Full Monty". Very funny,
can't remember the last time I laughed out loud in a cinema. All the Singaporeans I was
with found it really funny too.3rd March
Confirmed... The venue for the school
production of "Oliver" will be the theatre in the
Raffles Hotel. Wow ... high profile or what !!!4th March
Went to hear Fanny's pipes!!!! Yes Fanny
plays the bagpipes and her band were playing at a special open air function at CHIJMES
(don't ask me what that stands for!!). It was a beautiful evening and we ate and drank
alongside a white picture- postcard church as the sound of the pipes complemented the
refreshing evening breeze.5th March
Have decided that all this eating and
drinking is no good for the slim, trim figure I have always been known for (!). Have
decided to drink only chilled water this evening.Am not looking forward to this evening at all!
6th March
Saw "Kiss of The Spider Woman" at
the theatre we'll be performing Oliver at. Very good (even
though it wasn't the musical version I was expecting). The cast consisted of only two
actors (Ivan Heng and Daniel York) who were on stage for the whole of the 2 hours 15
minutes. How they managed to learn all those lines ...Amazing.
7th March
At last I managed to contact the
Singaporeans I'd met in Korea in 1991. They took me out for a seafood meal at "The
Red House", East Coast park. There was far more Chilli crab than we could eat so the
leftovers were packed into a doggy bag for Victor's wife and children.
8th March
Had a tour of Singapore's National Scout HQ,
a very impressive building with numerous meeting rooms, a large hall, a shop, guest
bedroom and even a karaoke bar.This evening I'm going to see "Pax Bosnesis":
"Direct from Bosnia comes this powerful and visually stunning play about the brutalizing effects of war. performed by young people who survived the Bosnian war, Pax Bosnensis, which means Bosnian Peace, is about the struggle for survival amidst destruction, the rebirth of hope in times of tragedy and loss.
An evocative performance which uses minimal words, Pax Bosnensis will touch the hearts of many. Performance will be followed by discussions with the director and cast, with the rare opportunity to exchange views and share ideas on war."
9th March
Hey, Fanny let me have a go on her pipes and to both of our amazement I could still play a couple of tunes from memory. The last time I played the bagpipes was when I was 16 and a member of the Wolverhampton Pipe Band. She's trying to encourage me to take up pipe lessons again and join her group!
Singapore's gone yoyo mad. The kids at school are all yoyoing around the place and I've just come across a Pro-Yo performance going on outside Takashimaya on Orchard Road.
Borrowed the Oliver video and watched it this evening. Wow.. maybe I shouldn't have bothered, we'll never live up to those professional standards.
Received a phonecall from my mystery visitors who are arriving on Thursday. They're doing India at the moment.
10th March
It's confirmed. I've accepted the job in
Thailand. From next September I'll be working at the
Patana School Bangkok. About two thirds
of my salary will be paid in sterling (due to the Asian currency crisis)....so if you want to visit me in Singapore you've got till June 20th!
11th March
One of our older students, Kumpol, a native
of Bangkok introduced me to some of the delights of Thai food at a hawker centre this
evening. He also taught me some key Thai phrases to start my preparations for the new job.The most memorable phrase of the night ... Fried rice is "cow pat" in Thai !!!
12th March
Collected Andy and Pete (friends of friends
I'd not met before) from the airport at 7am. I took a sign saying "Andy &
Pete" so they would recognise me but the sign was not needed as I spotted them
straight away. On a flight of business men and family groups they were the only two
backpackers so were easy to identify.
13th March
After a very busy day at school and Oliver rehearsals, myslef Andy and Pete enjoyed happy hour at the
local bar with jugs of beer. After eating some of the local food and drinking more beer I
resigned to an early night leaving them to explore more of Singapore nightlife ... not
sure how they got on as it's Saturday morning as I'm writing this and they haven't got up
yet.
14th March
Andy and Pete went off to the night Safari
while I chugged too many vodka shots at a party with some of the Russian ex-pat community
here. Luckily vodka doesn't give you a hangover :-)
15th March
Went to Fantasy Island
for the first time. It is a very well designed collection of water rides and shoots billed
as the ultimate water adventure. We thought that some of the shoots were a bit too close
to being a dangerous adventure...infact I'd just got changed when a man dislocated his arm
on one of the slides.Just got home to hear an answering machine message from Nick saying that he will be receiving a new computer this afternoon and is looking forward to being on-line. I wonder if he'll manage to find this diary page. If he surfs the net like he drives we'd better hold on tight!!
16th March
YoYo craze still very
big at school!
17th March
Saw "Joseph (and his coloured
coat...)" with Alison and Fanny. Excellent production in a beautiful theatre.
18th March
Had cable TV installed (the management are
paying!). Still at the channel surfing stage so not spending much time writing diary...Saw "Aaron Carter" at the shopping centre today. I'd never heard of him before but he's on MTV all the time here.
19th March
...hey hey hey ... no school today... it's
the swimming gala!!
20th March
Hans Pro Yo (USA yoyo
champion) demonstrates his skills in school assembly. Kids are gob smacked due to current yoyo craze.The
Sahotas
release their new single today. Proceeds go to the Stroke Association. Good luck guys!
Flying out to Australia at 10:30pm this evening.
20th- 26th March
Activity week in Australia
28th March
Unpacking ... washing ... re-packing ...
what a life!
29th March
Exciting news from THE SAHOTAS which will be
made public on Wednesday... can't tell you yet ...... log in to the
Sahotas
News page on Wednesday morning.
30th March - 11th April
Easter trip to India