Your next trip should be to Singapore......

On the Perth-Singapore flight I sat next to a middle-aged Singaporean lady. Strangely enough we began talking about Perth and Singapore.... I was talking about Perth and mentioned that I thought it wasn't as rich as Singapore when sharply "Who told you Singapore was rich? Its not rich, there is no money there". She went on to explain - that the ruling family holds all the money while everyone else lived in decaying 60's and 70's apartment blocks. That all the companies are run by their sons and daughters and all the profits stay in the family. That no-one can speak up about it as to criticise would mean ending up in jail. That everyone keeps their head down, their mouths shut.

She tells me a joke - theres two fisherman, one Malay, one Singaporean. They fish all day and the Malaysian has a full load of fish, while the Singaporean has nothing. The Malaysian asks the Singaporean why and he answers "Its because the fish here dont open their mouths"

I looked down at her wrist and saw a diamond studded watch. I listened to her tell me "I am old and I am ill in my kidneys. Singapore stresses me so I go to Perth every month". But not next month. Next month she's going to London to see her son. He went to school in Perth, at Christ Church, he started university doing Science/Engineering at UWA. But then he got a scholarship to Oxford. He's an astrophysicist now, he's still in the UK. But he won't come back to Singapore. So she goes to visit him a few times in the year.

She says again that Singaporeans arent rich, that they spend all the money they get. I start thinking that even if its everything they've got its still a lot of money being spent. I wonder whether thats because their children do so well that any notion of leaving an inheritance, leaving a legacy has no point. But I say nothing. So she asks me whether Ive been to Singapore. And I say no.

And suddenly her voice changes a little. "One day you must try and spend a few hours. Take the bus from the airport - its free - and you can get on and off at all the attractions. You can do it in 3 hours, its easy, everything is very close together. Not like Perth. Maybe one time you could even fly in from London in the morning and take the evening plane to Perth. That way you can see everything, you just take the train into town. Don't bother staying overnight, dont spend money on a hotel. You should go to the island of Sentosa. Do you like food? Theres wonderful food everywhere. You must visit."

Home. Thats what it means.