4th of July

After 11 years of celebrating Independence Day with a lonely hamburger, we finally made it to the American Association’s 4^th of July bash this year at the Sembawang naval base. About a hundred US sailors are permanently stationed at the base, which is shared with the British, Australian, and New Zealand navies.

There were several thousand people roaming the grounds and picnicking on blankets, many wearing college T-shirts, athletic jerseys, and other articles of distinctly American clothing. A few bands performed the sort of music you would expect from middle-aged performers – Springsteen, Allman Brothers, and a lot of country music. On this occasion even songs I never really liked sounded good.

I never saw so many ang mohs and so few Singaporeans at one time in Singapore. In fact, the only thing to remind me that I was in Singapore was the long queue for the toilets.

There were lots of organized activities for the kids, and at least one unofficial one – a bunch of adventurous kids were riding down a steep embankment on large cardboard sheets. In the evening there was a modest fireworks display. There was also plenty of food and beer. I had ribs, a pork sandwich, and cole slaw. Margarete and Cherisse had hot dogs, chicken wings, and lemonade. All of the food was reasonably priced. It was so nice to have a meal without rice or noodles!

After our four hour vacation we boarded the shuttle bus back to Sembawang MRT station. The bus traveled just a few blocks, but it brought us from one world to another. I’m sure we’ll be back next year.