Singapore…
I have never wanted to go.
Midnight Express
1978 Trailer
Midnight Express Wikipedia Page
Midnight Express had a huge impact on me. When I saw it, I was still smoking weed (and occasionally hash). The movie convinced me never to go to Turkey. (Max almost got me to visit our dear friends who live there on this trip but the timing did not work out.)
Well… Singapore has a similar place in my head.
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🇸🇬 The Michael Fay Case (1994)
Who:
Michael Peter Fay, an 18-year-old American high school senior from Dayton, Ohio, living in Singapore at the time.
What he did:
Over about 10 days in 1993, Fay and other youths were involved in a spree of vandalism — including spray-painting cars, throwing eggs, smashing windshields and stealing road signs.
Legal consequences:
Singaporean courts convicted Fay on multiple charges including vandalism and mischief. Under Singapore’s Vandalism Act — a harsh anti-crime statute — caning is an allowable punishment for such offenses.
Sentence:
Originally he was sentenced to six strokes of the cane, four months’ imprisonment, and a monetary fine.
After intervention and pleas for clemency from U.S. officials, including then-President Bill Clinton, Singapore reduced his caning to four strokes before it was carried out.
Execution of the caning:
The punishment was carried out in May 1994 at Queenstown Remand Prison. The cane used is a soaked rattan rod delivered with significant force — enough to split the skin and leave wounds that could take weeks to heal.
🌍 International Reaction
The case drew huge media attention in the U.S. and around the world, sparking debate about judicial corporal punishment, human rights, and the clash between “Western” and Singaporean legal values.
Many Americans and human-rights groups condemned caning as “cruel and degrading,” while others defended Singapore’s strict crime deterrence.
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So…
Max was leaving from Phuket to head to Bali by way of Singapore. He found a flight to SFO via Singapore that gave me a 10 hour layover during the day. We agreed that it would be fun to have a parting meal in Singapore and then I would say goodbye and he would start his 1 month solo travel journey.
When we exited the plane, I confided in Max that I was suuuuuuper apprehensive to go in to Singapore proper and asked if we could just have a meal in the airport. (Not a good look, Daddy-o!!! 😡) He asked me to leave the airport with him and I relented!
Short version: He got checked in to his hotel, we walked around for a bit and found a nice place to eat, I told him a few more stories and then we said goodbye at the train station. That was one of the saddest moments of my life. I was crying like a little baby as I walked away. My son is now launched and flying free on his own. I could not be more proud of him!!
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Day started at 5:30 as we checked out of the hotel. Got to spend some more quality time with Piak as Max slept in for a bit longer. Piak was such a great host!! What a fantastic country Thailand is. Happy that we could spend time exploring some of it together.
Airports and the people in them fascinate me. I’ll drop a few photos below from Phuket.
Singapore is a different city than anything I have experienced before. My first impression was that it is quiet and subdued. But it is neither of those. I thought it would be repressive but I was stunned by how diverse the lived experiences were for women. Rode the train from the airport to downtown for $2. Everyone was just off doing their thing.
I would not mind exploring more. Maybe another time.
I have seen nothing like the Singapore Airport. You do not need to interact with a human to enter or leave the airport! (They employ these amazing passport readers, fingerprint sensors and cameras.) The layout is as good as any I have seen with clear signage and an easy flow for passengers. But the most amazing part was their incorporation of nature. It is, without question, the best airport I have ever experienced.
And… who doesn’t love a butterfly garden – IN AN AIRPORT!?!?
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I will end my travel journal with a political note and a groovy song.
I spoke at length with Max during this trip about the Africa trip I took back in 1988 with my brother Utz. We had both studied African politics in college but had never actually visited the continent. Having been to Europe more than a dozen times, that struck us as problematic. We wanted to get in touch with our African side. Long story short: We did. The trip was life changing.
We realized shortly after landing in Egypt that we had been fed a constant diet of anti-Black and anti-African propoganda. Some of the nicest, most gentle, thoughtful and kind people I have ever met were in the five countries of Egypt, Sudan, Central African Republic, what was then Zaire (now the Democratic Republic of the Congo) and Congo.
Having visited Singapore for 10 hours, I can say with total clarity that I was, similarly, fed negative propaganda about Singapore. Travel is the best teacher.
Something's mighty mighty wrong
And it seems awful strange
Just like a back up gear there are those in fear
Of falling near we who are already here
Look-a-here, look-a-here, look-a-here
You need courage in times of fear