Last night, I attended my first election rally (see above). So exciting..never attended one before! So off my mum, my bro and I went, to see PAP at the site next to Potong Pasir MRT station. My mum wanted to stargaze lah. She figured that one of the Holy Trinity - LKY, Lee Hsien Loong and Goh Chok Tong - would definitely turn up at the hotly contested Potong Pasir SMC. So we went there lor.
Sooo many people were already there. But I had to first endure a bout of bickering between mum and bro over where to park. Cos the parking space was all taken up!!! Then my mum so crever. She's been checking out new condos and she knew of some space next to one of the showflats there. So we finally managed to park, after like 20 minutes.
My mum was so excited...started rattling off the names of the pple she knew on stage. Lim Hng Kiang lah...Vivian Balakrishnan lah...then she started lamenting the absence of the Holy Trinity. It was really quite amusing - and heartwarming too -listening to the politicians you usually see on TV speaking in real life. Vivian attempted to speak Tamil, but it didn't sound remotely like it. His Hokkien was much better. Sitoh Yi Pin (who's battling Chiam See Tong) tried to read Malay word for word, which was really funny. Ok, I give them a pat for effort :)
Then suddenly, there was a commotion near the side of the stage and my Ah Beng bro goes: "
Tua liap lai liao!
Tua liap lai liao!" (Loosely translated, the big one is here.) Oh yes, SM Goh is here. Fwah, my mother very happy man. And all Singaporeans interrupt Vivian mid-speech and applause! Woohoo!
But I tell you, for me, the stars of the night were not the men in white, but this row of hokkien-spouting
lao bengs (one had a copy of Wanbao stuffed into his back pocket, see second picture below) standing in front of me, very near the stage.
Donch pray with them horkay!!! Every time one of the speakers pauses for cheers and approval from the audience, these
lao bengs will not fail to blow their whistles. The best one is this guy (see above left pic) who will punch his fist in the air and shout: "SITOH!!! SITOH!!!"
Solid siah. Haha. And there's a PAP guy in white standing near them who will signal to them to shout each time, if they don't respond quick enough! I don't know if they are paid to shout! Hahaha.
Part of the cheering squad comprised some more modern
bengs (see left pic) who would laugh embarrassedly every time they had to blow the whistle. So funny.
My stupid Ah Beng bro also tried to join in the cheering at the start. So embarrasing! He would clap very loudly and go "
Hoh ah!!!
Hoh ah!!!" Wah lau.
And then, at one point, he whispered in my ear: "Eh jie, you look behind ah, got this woman in white with a man in white. Just now I walked past him and he smiled at me. Who is he ah?"
My mum and I turned to look, and both said together: "Ng Eng Hen lah!!!" Manpower Minister lah!!!"
My bro goes: "Orr...no wonder I thought he looks familiar." TSK TSK. My mum of course will not give up an opportunity to shake the hand of a minister right? So she approaches him and shakes his hand. Me too :) Cheap thrill. I must say he's damn tall man.
Nearing the end of the rally, the arena lights suddenly all go off at the same time! (Above left pic shows lights, left pic shows darkness.) Think the generator no power or what, I don't know lah. SM Goh only has the lights on the rostrum to guide him. I was wondering if people would start leaving, but everybody gamely stays rooted and listens to his entertaining speech about how Sitoh is better than Chiam.
And to end off the rally on a high note, the PAP rounds up the audience to shout slogans ok. And many people actually punch their fists in the air and shout ok!!! Like Hip Hip Hurray Hurray like that lah. Like this:
"Majullah PAP! Majullah Singapore!" (THREE TIMES) and "Potong Pasir! Sitoh!" (THREE TIMES).
I thought it was hilarious. I also found one of the PAP emcees superbly enthusiastic man. Ever heard WWF commentators? He sounds EXACTLY like that, with a slight Singlish lilt. On the whole, it was a pretty enjoyable time at the rally. Found out how much Sitoh has done for his residents, despite not being the incumbent. I think he has a chance of upsetting Chiam this time round.
1. The Taiwanese seem to have a penchant for all kinds of games. There's this huge, sprawling section in the Shi Lin Night Market (士林夜市) where you will find all kinds of games possible. There's one that's like bingo, but it uses mahjong tiles and anybody can sit down and join the rest to play it at any time. There's another that involves trying to make an empty glass bottle, which is lying on the floor, stand. With the help of fishing rod thingie, that is.
2. The Taiwanese' fav sport should be basketball. Everywhere you go in Taipei, as long as there's a semblance of game stalls around, you will see this basketball game (above). Slot some tokens in and you're ready to go. Shoot enough hoops within a certain time limit and you get to advance to the next stage. It's damn tiring.
3. The Taiwanese are either an innately curious bunch, or they are simply appreciative. People actually stay around long enough to watch free performances and that includes sitting down to listen to buskers sing and play. At 渔人码头, or Fisherman's Wharf (above), an elementary school's symphonic band was playing, while many onlookers hung around to watch. The band's teacher even introduced all the different instruments the kids were playing, by getting the various sections to perform a short piece each. Very educational one horkay! And I think you no need to drop any coins in for them!
4. People actually earn money by holding up signboards pointing the way to eateries! Like these chaps in 西门町, a place somewhat like Singapore's Bugis Village. Come rain or shine, they are there.
