That day on board a Qantas domestic flight from SYD to MEL, we overheard a male steward making polite conversation with a Chinese woman and her daughter.
The steward enquired where they are from, of which they chirped happily in reply, "SINGAPORE".
"Oh I have been there before. So, whereabouts in Singapore do you live?" our friendly male steward asked.
"I have been there before" probably means he has visited the country once. You would assume that a person of some sane level of tact will then not assume that such a foreigner could tell one suburb from another, in a tiny country not divided by states or cities.
But our dear Singaporean friends answered excitedly, 'OH! WE ARE FROM BISHAN! BISHAN! You know BISHAN?"
And repeated themselves a few more times to a silent and slightly awkward steward.
We hide our faces.
3 comments:
Actually I must disagree. It would be erroneous to assume that all foreigners would not be able to tell one part of the island from another. I've been proven wrong myself by a foreigner who after hearing where I stayed, asked if I was staying "near the canal or nearer to XX Road?". Turns out he'd been living on the island for a long time. And so, we should try not to be as presumptious as we accuse those foreign ja-coons of being...even tho deep down we know the majority of them are just that, Ja-Coons!
Plus, it annoys me no end when people ask abt things they have no clue about themselves. If Mr Steward asked "So, whereabouts in Singapore do you live?", I think Ms Passenger should be entitled to assume that he knows his stuff or is at least midly interested in the answer, if not WTF you ask?? I know he's probably trying to be friendly but there are surely countless other topics which he can talk about which he is familiar with? Eg. Are you visiting relatives or on holiday? How did you enjoy SYD? Have you been to MEL before?
And if he's not appearing to be interested in the answer, then that's even worse in my books, cos once again....you ask for F%$k then? He is not just failing at being friendly, he's being rude. I'd much prefer he get the hell out of my face and bring that Bloody Mary pronto. Now that would be enough friendly I say!
I am sorry. But, I disagree with you Anonymous. There are too many a times where I have met socially inapt Singaporeans abroad.
On a recent holiday trip with a friend, we deliberately skipped a destination because we did not want to bump into a planeload of Singaporeans who will hoard to this particular destination during the school holidays.
I think the steward was indeed being friendly. Thats just usual great Australian hospitality.
He was probably expecting the passenger to say, in the East or 15mins from Orchard Road for examply. If someone is trying to strike up a conversation with you, the least you can do is adapt to the local situation and reply.Especially in the context of steward and being on the plane.
While I value the well-groomed Singapore girl and Singapore Airlines unrivalled service, I can do without the plastic smile, plastic conversation and RED LONG PAINTED NAILS! Tacky!Tacky! Tacky!
Yeah I agree that if you are not interested in the answer, don't ask the question - but I don't think he was not uninterested in their reply - it was the way Mrs/Miss Bishan repeated themselves - as if, the more they drum "Bishan" in his head, he will GET IT. They should have revise their answer (to "somewhere north of the island" perhaps?) or stop taunting him when sensing his unease. That's common sense, mah!
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