How bad is LA? Lets start from the Airport.... Once I get to the
airport, I usually need to get a cab. Unlike Singapore where the
pubic transport is excellent, people in LA have to drive themselves
around - terrible. On my first trip, I went to the airport
information counter and ask them how to get to the city - they said
the best way is to rent a car.
When I said I can't drive, the jaw of the guy at the help desk drop
- he has never seen an adult my age who can't drive in LA -
everyone drives, including teenagers - I was told. In LA, every
single taxi I took was driven by a foreigner or new immigrant -
some were Nigerian or Russian.
In Singapore, every taxi is driven by a Singaporean. The job of
driving taxi is seen as a step forward in life. In Singapore, you
may be a bank manager but end up as a taxi driver once you get
retrenched.
They really need Comfort to teach them how to turn their taxi
drivers into money making machines. I always book a hotel near a
bus stop with a DASH service - US$0.25 cents per ride - flat fee +
free transfer. I heard the bus company is making a lost. They
should really learn from Singapore bus companies on how to turn it
into profit.
Whenever I'm there, I usually visit my friends who have emigrated
there. I take the opportunity to tell them what they are missing in
Singapore - good govt and all the recent accomplishment of the PAP
govt. They usually complain to me about how difficult life is in LA
- how hard it is to decide which car to buy at US$21,000.
One of them has a hard time washing his big Lexus - I really
sympathise with him. His house at St. Gabriel area is also very big
with a garden, very troublesome to clean compared to the 3 room
flat that he was living in Singapore previously. I've tried many
times to persuade him to return to Singapore but he was just too
stubborn to listen to all my reasoning. Imagining living in a state
where the governor is a former champion bodybuilder and Hollywood
actor - how to sleep well at night with this kind of people running
the government?
The only good part about LA is its proximity to Las Vegas. There
are free bus offering day trips + free meals usually to the lesser
known casinos. I would take this bus together with some of the
residents from Chinatown. They seem to enjoy it because I keep
seeing the same faces.
Although those day tours are free, the day trippers usually end up
losing more than a few hundred bucks. I'm so glad the govt of
Singapore is bringing the best of America - which is the casino- to
Singapore - hope they also give free meals and drinks.....and hours
of enjoyment for retirees to spend their retirement money.
