*SINGAPORE ON A FRIDAY*

... so says my friend Rodd, who spent two years here.

Eating - is a religion.  Food courts abound, offering everything from $2 traditional hangover breakfasts like Nasi Lemak (coconut rice+pair of cold, leathery fish+ bait fried to a crisp+dollop of searingly chili paste wrapped up in a banana leaf) to the latest 'concept food' out of a lab - witness the R Burger, an anemic burger which, on first bite reveals itself to be simply a Chinese bao with a twist. The latter you will find in places like the space-age ION megamall where nothing exceeds like excess.

 Drinking - apparently popular, despite the fact that Asians are supposed to lack the enzyme that converts alcohol to acetic acid and water (I DID learn something from analytical chemistry). Since I don't drink alcohol on even a casual basis, I always opted for the juice from a young coconut. In Costa Rica you buy them for $1 or pick them up off the sand, in New York they're the latest trendy boulevardeering drink at $3+, in Singapore they're almost as expensive.

Shopping - mainly for stuff you can get back home if you've got the funds, is practically the reason Singapore exists. It should immortalize itself with a giant cash register mounted on a pole.

And work - in my case, I interviewed "The Father of Emerging Markets" Mark Mobius - on a SUNDAY!

The path around the east coast and beyond is the only respite from what is basically unappealing bike riding, caused by narrow lanes, no shoulder, and traffic moving like there's a limited supply of nasi lemak. Read more at http://www.galfromdownunder.com/japan

Some notes ...

Getting a 4 hour facial and body massage/herbal bath etc, for $58. There's always a catch - like timeshare sales, my arm was unsuccessfully twisted to buy $128 creams and potions. Singapore women start very young with a monthly regime of facials - they place a priority on looking good. The posterchild at this salon was a 40 year old manager who looked no older than 21. She pointed to her neck - a little lined like the rest of us, to prove her age.

"Face Threading" is another strange but popular beauty technique. Sounding like a primitive initiation ritual, it's merely passing a pair of threads across the skin to remove hair and dead cells. Well, sounds less scary than a laser!

Former New York 5 Boro Bike Club guy Stephen Libby and his fiance Lay Sim took me to a Peranakan restaurant in Bedok, on the east coast. They ordered a feast so I could try the various foods. Peranakan sweets are gluey and chewy. The Peranakans knew all about "mouth feel"

I was invited to see Ajian Brown, a Bhuddist monk from Australia with a British accent. He drew a huge crowd - about 2000 people, but I confess I found his style somewhat flippant and unbefitting for a monk. Then again, he would probably say "I'll not let you ruin my happiness" - a catchcry of the evening.

I also cruised around Chinatown, popping into the Temple of the Sacred Tooth. I soon realized that the color red as an effect on me - it made me feel agitated ...