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BUYING HAND PHONES IN SINGAPORE // obsessive love
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Now I am not much of a shopper generally, nowhere near as good a shopper as Nga, who I observed in combat in Vietnam -- she knows how to get a good deal. Like some other men, shopping fills me with a sense of anxiety and dread -- especially shopping for something I don't really understand. I always got girlfriends to help me buy cellphones in Japan, and the one that I did buy for myself, one stark sunny cold Christmas Day in Akihabara, was pink. Why did I buy a pink phone? Because I panicked, and just picked up the first thing I saw, hoping rather forlornly, that pink didn't mean feminine in my new adopted home country of Japan (of course, it did, and it still does.) If I had done the hard comparisons, shopped around, thought about it, I would have bought something completely different. At least something with a more masculine color! But I am a hunter, not a gatherer, and when I enter a shop or mall or department store, I think of nothing but getting out of there as fast as possible. I am there for the quick kill. And when it comes to shopping, shopping for mobile phones (or cell phones, or hand phones, or whatever you want to call them) is the hardest, most tedious kind of shopping imaginable, because the plans are so complicated, and there are so many pro's and cons to weigh. At least in Japan I am a little used to the cell phone (keitai system), but outside of Japan, in countries like Singapore and Vietnam and The Philippines and India, I am a complete novice. On top of that, shopping for someone else is also that much more difficult than shopping for yourself, because you risk the extra burden of shame if you should blunder. I was only going to be in Singapore one short day en route to Vietnam as part of the Obsessive Love and the Rolling of the Dice, and I didn't know the city particularly well. If I had my way I would have spent the day soaking up the souks in Kampung Glam, or hanging with my feathered friends at Jurong Park. But Nga wanted me to find out how much the Nokia 6300 or 6230i models costed in Singapore, and presumably to buy one of them on her behalf. So I had to do it. One motivator: if I bought her a phone, I would be able to talk to her on it. And that might help usovercome the inevitable loneliness, caused by living in a long-distance relationship, in totally different countries. But once I got to Singapore I found that everything was more expensive than I had anticipated, and I started to worry, that I didn't have enough money to buy the phone.
Another traveller averse to shopping and in particular, shopping for electronics, Nick on Bali Blog, wrote: "Today I took my friend Fauzi's advice and went to Toa Payoh to look at cell phones. I'm not a gadget person and don't care about ringtones, video clips or playing games. For me its purely a device to save time.
"Toa Payoh is an area of cheap housing, in high rise blocks, I know because I was here in 1984. [Short story: Arriving in Singapore late at night by bus from Malaysia, I was an inexperienced backpacker alone in a totally new environment. Still I had my tent and was determined to use it. Walking past a downtown park around midnight looking for a good spot to plant the thing, a local Indian, Mr Balasubramanian, told me it was impossible to camp in Singapore, due to the local laws and lack of space. Impossbile is not a word in my vocabulary, so I told him not to worry, I'd keep looking. Realizing I'd be arrested, he invited me to stay at his house in Toa Payoh...]
"Okay so Toa Payoh is a place with a local market area of small shops selling the usual array of gadgets and things that people want, including electrical bits and pieces. In short I needed a phone with good coverage worldwide, a camera, internet access and a built in GPS. Staff at one small shop recommended a Nokia Navigator. The guy helped install my old SIM card, load the address book, install a new 2GB memory card, case etc. Total cost including Sing tax was $785 Sing (US$515), a chunk of which I'll get back at the airport by showing the Customs I'm leaving with the device. So far the thing seems to works pretty good, just have to remember to pick it up everytime I put it down and try not to drop it in the toilet..."
 u s e d + h a n d p h o n e s I MET A NICE GIRL IN HO CHI MINH CITY VIETNAM, AND WE GOT TO KNOW EACH OTHER ON THE NET, AND EVENTUALLY, LUST TURNED TO LOVE, OF THE OBSESSIVE KIND. I was en route to another dose of tropical romance when, in the old trade center of Singapore, Nga asked me to pick up a cell phone for her there. This immediately threw me into a spin, because shopping is not my forte, especially shopping for cell phones, or hand phones as they called in Singapore (and the surrounding Malay world.) I didn't know Singapore that well, and I would only be staying in the city about 30 hours, before my flight to HCMC. As it turned out, finding the phone Nga wanted wasn't really the problem, I saw it on sale all over the place -- the problem was cash flow. And my particular, localised lack of it, and my fears that it would run out if I wasn't more careful. More on that later. First, if you are new to Singapore, or are a Singaporean looking for a handphone, where do you buy them? It should be said, that every residential area of Singapore has a few mobile phone shops -- even the area where I ended up staying, near the East Coast Parkway. Nick above recommended Toa Payoh, where Blazing the Used Handphone Specialist has six branches. Now used cellphones (or handphones, using the local lingo) may well be a Singaporean thing -- I have never heard or seen of them in Japan. Japanese people would never recycle an item as intimate as a cellphone -- that would be like buying used underwear. The legendary Danny Choo, on his way to conquering Japan, has written: "In Singapore, people change their phones all the time, usually within one or 2 years or even a few months! That is why there are lot of 2nd hand phone shops around the neighborhood that will greatly buy your phone and resell it." DikDekDikDek proclaims itself as the used handphone and gaming specialist of Singapore. If you want to trade in your handphone for cash, you can see the value of your model, here. At the time of writing, a used Nokia 1100 can earn you $25 (Singapore dollars), while a Motorola A1200 can make you $170. If you happen to have an O2 ZINC model, you can offload it at DikDek, for $400. Spanair was born, inspired by the philosophy of providing the best quality in air transport service to all its passengers. At present, after 17 years, the company is very proud ´ more information Swiss International Air Lines is closely linked with Switzerland in more than name only. Classic Swiss values such as quality, reliability and hospitality make flying with SWISS a distinctive travel experience. more information TAP Portugal is the leading Portuguese airline, established in March 1945 and in operation now for 60 years. Its hub in Lisbon is a key gateway into and out of Europe and a crossroads ´ more information Thai Airways International is Asia's leading airline, operating out of Bangkok, the indisputable aviation hub of Asia and one of the world's most popular tourist cities. more information United has a rich history, tracing its roots to 1926 and the historic flight of a predecessor company. Walter T. Varney initiated a contract airmail service from Pasco, Washington to´ more information From its humble beginnings in 1939 as All-American Airways - delivering airmail to Western Pennsylvania and the Ohio Valley - US Airways has grown to become one of America's great success stories. Since 2000 I have made the following trips by air (excepting my flights around Japan for jobs and Iceland Express jaunts between Reykjavik and the West Land; remarkably, most of the balance has been with Star Alliance carriers. Think of all those points I was missing!):
2000
2003
In 1952 SAS was the first airline in the world to introduce Tourist Class, a discounted ticket with certain conditions. The entire airline industry later followed suit. At the beginning of the 1980s it launched a new service concept for business travel, SAS EuroClass, and received the coveted Airline of the Year Award in 1984.
Today, SAS develops products and services based on the watchwords of simplicity, choice and care. Emphasis is placed on providing travel service on the customer's own terms. One indication of how much this is appreciated by customers is the fact that the SAS frequent flyer programme, EuroBonus, was voted best in the world in a ballot of some 84,000 frequent travellers worldwide for the third consecutive year in 1999.
With 21 million passengers a year SAS is one of the largest airlines in Europe and the 15th largest in the world. Each day SAS operates more than 1,000 flights. SAS was founded in the spirit of international cooperation. This same spirit was applied in May 1997 when SAS founded Star Alliance together with Air Canada, Lufthansa, United Airlines and Thai Airways International, offering convenient connections throughout an integrated global traffic system.
HOW FREQUENT FLYER PROGRAMS WORK?
Accrual Calculator: This calculator will help you determine the number of KrisFlyer miles you could earn when you fly to various destinations on Singapore Airlines, SilkAir or our partner airlines. i + p h o n e
Oneworld / visit Oneworld American Airlines British Airways Cathay Pacific Dragonair Finnair Iberia LAN Malév Hungarian Airlines Royal Jordanian Qantas
VIETNAM AIRLINES GIVEN THE FACT THAT MY GIRL LIVES IN VIETNAM AND I DON'T LIVE IN VIETNAM, I EXPECT I WILL BE GETTING PLENTY OF AIR MILES FROM VIETNAM AIRLINES OVER THE NEXT COUPLE OF YEARS AND BEYOND. For a price list of domestic flights around Vietnam (and it is cheap, believe me!) click here. May not be as cheap as the city BUT you certainly aren't ripped off. Did my research and bought a number of small electronic things at the airport saving me having to haul it around. The restaurants and food hall upstairs is double the price of the city but when the prices in town are S$3-4, whats S$8 when compared to other airports? Free internet is fantastic. The most exiting thing I found when I went back in March 2005 was free X-Box Live! But I didn't get a go coz my flight was soon and plus I would have to pry the controls out of the cold dead hands of the players." Wrote one of the knowledgable writer-folks at Ft.com: "Bright, shining Changi Airport is one of the very few immigration desks I have passed through that offer bowls of sweets as you wait to have your passport examined - on my last trip, they were Fox's Glacier Fruits." And last but not least, SavvyTraveller writes: "I actually look forward to a trip to Singapore just for the airport. I've never seen anything like it. I mean, how often do you hear the sounds of fake birds at an airport? I'm in the orchid garden, home to a small pond and the soundtrack of chirping birds. It's a tiny island of plants surrounded by a sea of carpet right in the middle of the departure terminal. For something less serene, let's wander upstairs and take in a free movie..." These writers have said it all, and better than I can say it myself. Changi Airport is cool. I can't wait until I make it down to the Singaporean island again, and enjoy a long layover at the airport. APART FROM STAR ALLIANCE OF COURSE, WHAT IS THE BEST FREQUENT FLYER PROGRAM (IN ASIA AT LEAST?) A Smart Asia article by Libby Peacock looked into this very issue. Peacock wrote: First thing to remember is not every flight will earn you miles. That discounted economy ticket may be easy on the pocket, but the low fare may gather no miles – or a vastly reduced percentage. With Malaysia Airlines’ Enrich, certain discounted Economy fares earn 70 percent of miles. Cathay Pacific frequent fliers earn anything from zero to 50 percent flying discounted Economy. Group tickets may not bring the miles you expect (with Korean Air’s SKYPASS, they only earn you 80 percent of normal Economy miles). With Flying Returns, the joint Air India and Indian Airlines FFP, promotional fares earn 70 percent of normal Economy mileage points. Some programmes are more generous than others. In March 2006, Virgin Atlantic’s Flying Club implemented some changes, allowing members to earn miles on all flights, including the airline’s lowest Economy fares. It also introduced mileage bonuses for Silver and Gold members. The only flights not qualifying for miles are ones bought with redemption awards in the first place. Fair enough."Royal Brunei’s FFP, Royal Skies, has two elite categories above basic: Silver and Gold. It is one of few programs allowing members 100 percent of miles even for discounted Economy flights. Royal Skies frequent flyers get 125 percent of miles for discounted Business fares. Full-fare Business earns 150 percent. Qantas’s Frequent Flyer has a minimum points guarantee: members earn at least 1,000 points on Economy, and at least 1,250 on Business or First. Singapore Airlines’ KrisFlyer warns that certain categories of economy class tickets “are ineligible for mileage accrual”. "China Airlines Dynasty Flyer members don’t earn mileage for tickets sold at discounts of 50 percent or more. Free, infant, barter, charter, excess baggage, airline and travel industry discount tickets don’t earn miles either. Always check with the airline or travel agent whether your flight will accrue miles..."
6 -- A sports bar with a complicated payment system, which seems to involve the manager having to validate every purchase, and the signing of paperwork. This frequently results in the staff forgetting to give change to customers, and customers getting angry and storming off to find another bar (of which there are many, thankfully!) Anyway, you get the picture: it is one kick-ass airport, consistently voted the best in the world. You could spend the day in there, and still find things to do. Maybe start the day with a swim in the pool, a massage, check out the science museum, and then catch a cheesy movie in the cinema. By this time it is lunchtime so you could order some of of the huge cheese dosas and mango juice they serve in one of the Indian restaurants, or perhaps a round of sushi. Since it is now afternoon it is okay to start drinking, so I would hit the bars for a chance to meet fellow travellers waiting for their planes, or to watch a bit of TV (there are special viewing lounges set aside for CNN or BBC or the Discovery Channel, for example, as well as sports areas where you can watch boxing or the golf.) There are options all round, and plenty of beverages to be consumed. m a s s a g e + r e l a x MANY READERS OF THIS SITE ASK WHERE IS A GOOD PLACE TO GET A MASSAGE WHILE IN SINGAPORE. It is a fair question, and I am obliged to offer a fair answer. Other readers, meanwhile, ask where is a good place to relax at Changi -- and I mean really relax -- while others want to know where to work out. If you want a really in-depth account of the pleasures and leisures of Changi Airport, check out Ho John Lee's blog. Unlike me, Ho John Lee has actually stayed in the transit airport (not my style -- I am more likely to be found sleeping outside on the concourse with plugs stuffed in my ears!) Ho John Lee says: "The Singapore airport has two transit hotels, a swimming pool, and two gyms on the terminal airside, meaning that you don't have to go through security. This is a bigger win these days than a few years ago. I've also gone into town to stay at a 'real' hotel, but while I'm on business travel I hardly do more than sleep, run, and wash at any hotel, and it hardly seems worth it."The Ambassador Transit Hotel is bare bones, but offers much better sleeping conditions than any airplane bed, flat recliner or not. It can be difficult to book a reservation ahead of time, but there are a number of economy rooms, which are rarely fully booked, and even when they are, I have been able to get a room within an hour or so of waiting around at the desk. The regular rooms have between 1 and 4 beds, a small desk, television, and bathroom. The economy rooms are smaller, some do not have a television, do not have a separate bathroom, but are adjacent to the gym, where there are a number of shower rooms. There is an important distinction between air miles or points, and “tier” or “status” miles or points. Most FFPs work along similar principles. Air miles or points (earned by flying or buying services from FFP partners) make up the “currency” you need to redeem tickets. Tier or status miles, on the other hand, collected through actually flying, allow you to progress to higher membership levels within your programme. The higher your level, the more benefits you get (typical perks include extra baggage allowance, dedicated check-in, the use of airport lounges, priority waiting lists, priority for upgrades and so on). Several programmes have three elite tiers above basic, although some, such as Malaysia Airlines and Thai Airways International, manage quite well with two. Members of Cathay Pacific’s FFP, Marco Polo Club, earn “Club Miles” that are used to determine their membership tier (20 club sectors or 30,000 miles for Silver, 40 sectors or 60,000 miles for Gold and 80 sectors or 120,000 miles for Diamond). All Marco Polo club members are also enrolled in the Asia Miles program (www.asiamiles.com), and it is Asia Miles that can be redeemed for flights or other awards. Here is where it becomes potentially confusing: Marco Polo members can also earn Club Miles when flying with other OneWorld partner airlines, while Asia Miles can also be earned when flying with Cathay’s 17 Asia Miles airline partners. Similarly, Qantas Frequent Flyer “status” credits are separate from frequent flyer points. The number of status credits you earn is determined by cabin class and distance flown – the more credits you earn, the sooner you can achieve a higher status. Qantas Frequent Flyer, with Bronze (entry level), Silver, Gold and Platinum cards, is the largest FFP in the Australian region, with over four million members. Partner airlines include OneWorld alliance members such as Cathay Pacific and British Airways. AIR CHINA
"Use of the terminal 1 transit hotel gym, showers, and swimming pool are included in the room charge, but can also be purchased separately. The transit hotel gym has a fairly new Precor treadmill (was finally replaced this spring), a stationary cycle, and a few weight machines, and a rack of dumbbells. The shared gym showers are much nicer than the ones in the rooms. They're equipped with glass doors and soap dispensers, while the ones in the rooms have just a curtain, with a drain in the floor (so the whole bathroom floor gets wet), and little packets of soap (which are hard to open). c h a n g i + t e c h n o l o g y ONE OF THE OUTSTANDING ASPECTS OF CHANGI INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT IS THE ABUNDANCE OF HIGH TECH GIZMOS WHICH CAN BE USED FREELY (AND FOR FREE) BY PASSENGERS. The e-hub on the second floor of the Transit Lounge, for example, VoIP (Voice Over Internet Protocol) capability, or IP phone technology. In other words, you can simply touch the screen to: make a free local phone call (international calls can be paid for by credit card), send free SMS to your friends, send free e-mails with video and/or voice, send free e-cards with your photo, print your personalised luggage tags, read the latest news and so on. Changi International Airport has great tech throughout -- that so much is a given. But of course great technology doesn't mean squat, if you don't have the personality to back it up. Friendly staff and colorful characters are necessary to complete the equation. Below I want to recreate one of my more eccentric experiences at Changi International Airport -- my encounter with a mad fundamental Christian preacher who also happened to work at the airport. It happened in the transit lounge. c h a n g i + c o n v e r s i o n CHANCE ENCOUNTER WITH SINGAPORE AIRPORT'S RESIDENT MAD BORN AGAIN XTIAN, AUGUST 2003: The offender in question was Chinese, blotch-faced --- an employee of the airport taking an evening break. He seemed over-eager to get in a conversation with me, too friendly or something. I should have known I was heading for trouble. But poor old, trust everyone me. He obviously picked me for a sucker. Within a couple of minutes, I knew I had fallen in with a madman. Of the born again variety, no less. "Are you ready to accept the Lord Jesus Christ as your personal saviour and the master of your life? Are you ready to accept spiritual life?" He ground his finger into my breastbone, real aggressive-like. Other passengers in the terminal were turning to look at us. "When I look at you I can see you are physically alive, but to me you are spiritually dead. What good is it, to be physically alive, but to be spiritually dead? Huh! I pity you! How I pity you! When are you going to wake up, & realise God's plan for you! Hallelulah! amen!" And he proceeded to talk in tongues, & muttering "You'll learn, one day -- my God you'll learn! Hallelulah!" & laughing diabolically, until he eventually wandered off back to work, probably loading bags or something. Or driving those cool little buggies that run from one end of Singapore Airport or the other, or (God help us!) frisking people for prohibited objects in the security check-in, or directing flights up in flight control. He was a geezer, and you should hunt him out if you find yourself with spare time in Singapore -- more likely he will find you. You see, Changi Airport is not all high-tech gadgetry and orchid gardens surrounded by acres of plush carpets and duty-free emporiums. It is the characters that make the place. Go there for yourself -- you will be astounded. You might even find religion.. n e g a t i v e + e x p e r i e n c e s NOT EVERYONE HAS THE SAME VIEW OF CHANGI AIRPORT AS I DO -- and some people are downright negative in their assessments. Malachy Roscoe for example had this misadventure to relate:
.. v i s a + n e w s SOME NEWS FOR TRANSITEES FROM CHINA AND INDIA: For a limited period starting from 1 October 2005, 96-hour visa free transit facilities (VFTF) will be available to PRC and Indian nationals without the need of letters of guarantee by airlines if they are in possession of a valid onward air ticket departing within the next 96-hours and satisfy the following criteria:
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