SINGAPORE'S 42nd BIRTHDAY

It was supposed to be an exciting day for the girls. Singapore celebrated its 42nd Birthday on 9th of August and the girls were so excited waiting for the finale whereby they could see the fireworks about 8pm at the end of the parade.

Singapore is totally strict with fireworks display to prevent accidents because most people here live in high rise, apartments and flats. It had banned fireworks since the 70s (if not mistaken) and the people of Singapore only get to enjoy them on special celebrations like National days and Christmas, Chinese New Year, Hari Raya celebrations, and the like. Of course, they need prior approval for those events as no individuals are allowed to make any personal or domestic purchase. Other than the sparklers.

Well, having handled fireworks since my toddler days in Penang, of course to me, fireworks create just lukewarm effect on me.. But my girls went oooh and aaaah over them. What was more exciting for them was that instead of just being able to watch it from our tv, they got to see them from our living room windows as well. Gosh, it must have be a spectacular range of fireworks because this is the first time these could be seen from our place in the westside. The higher it goes the more expensive it cost and it stretches with time too. It probably lasted a good 10 minutes or more. We could hear the booms and the lights just behind the little Bukit Timah Nature hill and they were really the most fascinating ones i've seen in years!

Lea, puts her hands covering her ears and bossily commented how noisy it was outside. She preferred to watch it from the tv, whereas Rae was really gawking looking out in the night sky, brimming with colours of the sparks. We are on the 10th and 11th floor and she ran upstairs to catch it from my room window.

Well, when they get older, they will probably be able to participate the once a year brilliant celebrations with their school mates. Parade tickets are really not easy to get with those who got them guard them as if it were a pot of gold.. I've watched the parade only once in my 2 decades in Singapore and I must agree it was stunning!

Looking at it as a non-citizen, I must say the patriotic event on this day is simply emotional. Singapore certainly had done a lot to make its citizens feel this way.. I don't think I felt gladness but more reluctance in my schooldays during Malaysia's National Day then. We went because it was compulsory.. sigh! What did Singapore do to its multi-racial society than Malaysia failed to instill in us? I remember how the people of Singapore would camp overnight (ALL RACES) just so that they could be in the queue for the tickets the next morning when distribution starts. Why don't we have that kind of intense interest in Malaysia.