EVOLUTION

On Feb 1st, I said goodbye to Ebisu, my home for a year in Tokyo. As friends always ask me how do I feel about going back, I didnt know. On the limousine bus to Narita airport, I slept half the time (I expected myself to be staring at the city since it could very well be the last time).

My flight was delayed for two hours at Narita as there were problems with the runway. SQ had to land @ Haneda airport (about 30 mins south of central Tokyo) first, and then took an hour to fly back to Narita.

Relocating back to Singapore has been difficult:

1) I was shocked at the service level when I first touched down @ Changi Airport. Although 5am, I said Good morning with a smile at the immigration counter. No response. In Tokyo, they would have greeted you with at least a nod.

2) Went for Macdonald's breakfast (ok 5am) @ Changi Airport. When my bf ordered Big breakfast set, the lady asked "What drink" with a bit of gangster attitude. I asked my bf "Have I been away too long and that this has always been the service level in Singapore, and I have forgotten; or this is an exception?" In Macdonald @ Tokyo, you are always greeted with long phrases of polite nihongo.

3) First dinner @ Chatterbox @ Mandarin Hotel. Paid S$21 for ba ku teh. The meat was not tender and I couldnt get use to the Chinese rice yet. Disappointed. In Tokyo, you pay and often it comes with a quality tag.

4) I was also shocked upon returning home to my Condominium. The stairs and the walls were so dirty. I later found out that it was because the upstairs unit is now under renovation, and they would repaint back the stairway walls before Chinese New Year. Still, I think in Tokyo, the construction company or apartment management would have found ways to prevent such inconveniences to others living at the same stairway.

5) I used to catch a cold easily in Singapore. In Tokyo, even with the four seasons changing, I never did for the entire year. Once I landed, I have been having on-off cold and eyes are often itchy due to the higher dust level.

6) I used to stay a minute walk away from my office in Ebisu. So now, back to reality in Singapore, I have to reach office by 8am, and I think it takes 40 mins by bus, which I am not yet used to. So I have been taking cabs. Thought of driving to work daily, but after some accounting, I didnt take it makes sense. I guess I will shuttle between cabs and buses..hehe

Disclaimer: of course there are positive aspects which I would not be elaborating in this post.

With the above adaption, also I had only one weekend to rest and started work immediately on Monday.

Luckily my wise bf was with me. He said "Its all part of the relocation package, it doesnt stop when you fly out of Japan." Thats true. With all this relocation stress and I hated my ugly Singaporean mentality of always complaining, it striked me instantly of the importance of understanding and accepting change. I am giving myself time to adapt to the transition.

To me this experience clearly illustrates the impermanent nature of all phenomena. This is the true nature of reality. Being ignorant about this fact would only result in self-created unhappiness. Life is change. If I resist, I will continue to perpetuate my own suffering. The more I try to hold on to what I had, the more distorted my life will be. I have to accept this inevitable change... this is adaption phase!