Of food and friends in Singapore

We finally made it to the melting pot of Asia, Lion City! And we're loving Singapore so much already.

Singapore is a peaceful, beautiful, modern, and clean gateway to Asia that houses people of diverse cultures and religions. You'll find foreigners, expats, and locals of Christian, Muslim, Jewish, Buddhist, Hindu faith just to name a few who all live and work together in peace.

Did you know that Singapore has 4 official languages? English, Mandarin, Tamil, and Malay.

It's such a relief to be back in a clean, safe, and orderly country where people speak English.

The world famous Merlion Park overlooking Marina Sands Bay Hotel

Marina Sands Bay Hotel houses an infinity edge pool, multiple restaurants, bars, and nightclubs at the top

The nighttime water & light show at Marina Bay Sands Park. Reminded me of Las Vegas.

Brian is here for his final global EMBA UCLA - National University of Singapore session. He's knocking out his final group project his assigned team has been working on for the last 6 months, as well as Corporate Governance and Corporate Law. Once this session completes, Brian has 1 more session at UCLA left this summer before he graduates with 2 MBA degrees from both UCLA and NUS.

While Brian's been busy with school, I've been catching up with friends from college and grad school, site seeing, and eating the many delicacies of Singapore. (More on food in a following post.)

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I had a chance to catch up with some friends from college and grad school who now live in Singapore:

1. Willie and his wife Desy. Willie was a good friend of mine from the good ol' dorms, Adam's Hall at the University of Oregon. Let's just say that Willie always knew where the party was at, and my friends and I thank Willie for getting us into many frat parties. It was wonderful seeing Willie become a father of 3 many years later with his college sweetheart, Desy!

Willie and Desy are expats originally from Jakarta. They took us to a Japanese Izakaya (small bites) restaurant, and we capped the night at Bingki, a Korean dessert place that served refreshing shave ice treats.

Thank you, Willie and Desy for your generosity!

2. Christian, his wife Laura, and son Zack. Christian is originally from Singapore, a grad school classmate at Pepperdine University's who also pursued a Master's degree in Organization Development. Christian is a family man of faith who is well-respected and regarded in both the OD and Pepperdine communities.

Christian and Laura introduced us to the delicious world of Peranakan food. Peranakan cuisine comes from descendants of early Chinese migrants who settled in Singapore, inter-marrying with local Malays. The food combines the flavors and spices of Chinese, Malay and other influences.

Thank you, Christian and Laura for your hospitality!

3. Mei is a friend of mine from college at Oregon. Although we didn't know each as as well while we were both in school because she's older than me, Mei and I stayed in touch over the years and our paths always seem to cross whether we're in California or Asia.

Mei and her husband are both expats from California who are go-getters and some of the most driven people I've ever met. They are both living it up as expats, traveling all over the world together. I'm super proud of Mei for all of her achievements, and know that she will continue to make an impact in the business community and inspire young women.

Thanks Mei for coming out to see me! Although we don't always get to see each other, I'm so glad we've stayed in touch all of these years.

I love Singapore and wish we could be here longer.

I'm so thankful for the opportunity to catch up with friends and getting introduced to many Singaporean and Asian delicacies.

Stay tuned for a future post about how to eat like a local Singaporean.