In praise of taxis, umbrellas and..banana splits

Though not as torrid as I imagined Singapore to be, it is still pretty hot and humid and after a while it gets to you physically and mentally. The heat is relentless and only early mornings and late evenings are sufficiently cool to walk around. Therefore we woke up early to get to the other side of town and visit the Jurong Bird Park (www.birdpark.com.sg). It is quite a hike even with public transport so we hopped on a taxi to get us half way there. Taxis in Singapore are plentiful, clean, cheap and air conditioned and are a real pleasure to ride. It is certainly not a luxury and everybody uses them constantly. Taxi stands are conveniently located in numerous areas with a shelter from the sun and a bench to rest on. Most taxi drivers are chatty but I remember one in particular. When we told him we had only recently moved to Sing he immediately replied that Sing is a beautiful place and that we had all the rights to live here as we share the same sun and the same moon so our nationality is not important. It was very touching, considering, as well, that many, like him, lost their job in the crisis of '97 and that these jobs have been taken up by expats like us. There is no resentment, just acceptance of the cards they have been dealt with.
Even umbrellas are heaven sent as they are clearly used when it pours, like at this precise moment, but also as useful parasols. On day one I said I would not be seen walking around town with an umbrella in full sun but I dutifully opened mine today when at 10am, instead of the expected downpours, the sun shone hot and fierce. I felt a bit silly but survival, as some of my readers know, is my mantra so I adapted.
However nothing beats the refreshing yumminess of a banana split, courtesy of Ben and Jerry's. After spending half a day at the bird park (too hot to complete the visit) we sat down at the ice cream parlour for lunch and treated ourselves to a mix of vanilla ice cream with chocolate sauce, whipped cream, hazelnuts and a banana.