New Travel Guide to Singapore
A Guide That is Personal, Quirky and Written From the Heart
New travel guides to Singapore appear regularly, but sometimes one comes along written with love and affection for the city together with intimate knowledge of its soul.
This travel guide is different, but still complements The Graffiti Guide to Singapore very well. It is called Singapore Swing, by John Malathronas and published by Summerdale Publishers Ltd. in the UK. (Tel: +44 (0)1243 771107).
John Malathronas is a former backpacker on the Asian scene, and in this book he returns to his former haunts with fond memories of old Singapore to enlighten and illuminate the present. Not so much a guidebook, more an essay on a multicultural, multifaith city where living together in harmony has led to mutual respect and what appears to be a good life for all.
With chapter headings like "The Immortal", "The Dutiful Son", "The Wise Old Man and On Meritocracy", you could be forgiven for thinking that this is a heavy tome. Far from it. These are the titles of legends and myths that (slightly rewritten) introduce a first-person account of modern-day Singapore. From the first chapter “The Buddha’s Message is Eternal” the prose grips and keeps the reader enthralled.
Whether the writer is discussing hotels, cultural misunderstandings, or Sir Stamford Raffles’ time in Singapore, he throws up fascinating facts. How easy it is to mistake jellyfish for finely cut up cabbage, for instance, or how young Singaporeans cope with the weight of an ancient culture and its demands on them today.
The "Wise Old Man" chapter is all about forging nationhood and covers race, religion and the subtleties not always recognised that come together to forge a nation such as Singapore. Required reading for any politician dealing with the headaches in other parts of the world.
The chapter, "What the Eyes Don't See", is the nearest to normal guide-book expertise you'll find, but even this chapter has a different slant. Dealing with Singapore's ethnic areas in a quirky fashion that leads into a discussion of gays coming out has been accomplished with a smoothness that is enviable.
This is a book written by a tourist to Singapore who cares deeply about the country. In fact, one could say, he loves the country. And this is what makes it so different. Read it and be impressed, read it and then visit Singapore, and you’ll view it with different eyes to those who make a quick stopover to sample the shopping malls and the food courts, and have only the usual references to guide them around this fascinating city, brought to life by John Marathons.
