Expedition Unknown

It was not till 1968 were the first confirmed man reached the North Pole. To celebrate the 50th anniversary of such achievement for the Human Race, the Singapore Government is trying to organize an expedition to replicate the feat.

In a country where people are used to an average daily temperature of 32 Celsius and high humidity, ensuring they could survive in a sub-freezing environment could be a challenge. So for the past few years and following their tradition of state planning,  they have been relentless preparing the population for those extreme weather conditions.

Working for a local Singaporean firm I have experience first hand the tough daily training that locals endure, similar to the army boot camps. Temperatures at offices, public buses or shopping malls are kept at similar conditions to those of the North Pole at all times. It is not unusual to see colleagues with 2 or 3 jumpers braving the office weather.

                                            Staff piling up to 3 layers of winter clothing in the tropical office

So far, there have been no reports of casualties, but there are some "over the coffee rumors" that the last two people to leave the company, did not resign but perished after working extra hours to meet a deadline. Irony at first degree.

Some people also say that by using this tactic, the Government is helping to keep the staff young and fresh and therefore prevent the aging of the working population in a country where labor is scarce. It may seem odd, but so are the plot of all the movies nowadays ( Superman vs Batman, comes to mind) and I have seen people not only paying to watch it but asking for a second one.

Working on a sub-freeze environment is not the only peculiar thing you can expect when joining a Singaporean office.

I remember a story in Tintin’s book the Blue Lotus ( clarification note: he is not a Marvel Superhero Character and yes Belgium produces more interesting things than waffles and Spanish fugitives), where he jokes with his Chinese friend Tang about the westerners stereotypes of Chinese people in the old times. 

One of remarks is about the alleged obsession of Chinese women with small feet and the pain they will endure to achieve them.

Well, after almost 6 years living in Singapore I must agree that is myth ( purist will correct me in Singapore is not China, but hey America is not just the US and nobody seem to care to correct that in the media )

But don’t get me wrong, that particular fact maybe a myth but there is something going on with footwear among Singaporeans, and I don’t refer to the lovely Asian tradition of remove your shoes before entering a house as a symbol of respect, tradition that I second in my own home despite the several murder attempts by my cleaner with her diabolic floor waxing technique that make my floors more dangerous than ice.

I refer to that tradition of coming to work in heels and then change them at the office for slippers. Yes, you hear it right, is not like in any other part of the world were women wear the comfy shoes while commuting and put the painful but stylish footwear at work. 

                                                                   Official Office Footwear

At Singapore offices the world is upside-down, with women changing their show -off ones for the “better not to show anyone”-ones.

Someone will say its because they feel at home at the office. Judging by the number of hours they spend in the office it may be. 

But to me, it raises other queries, are shoes going to be ban like tobacco in the offices and only allowed to be worn two blocks away from the entrance? Or is this a new another plan from the Government to train their citizens for an unknown expedition? Ill keep watching for answers ( right after my new defrost cycle ).