Bleagh The Food!!!

Today was much about walking. My parents and I decided to make our way down to Singapore Expo for the Halal 2009 expo. I thought to myself, "Why not? Building closer and stronger rapport for my community!" Anyway, I knew getting a parking space would be a disaster but my Dad displayed faith. Geez.

Of course, his faith was that he parked at a bend. Which is illegal at any case. I kinda showed him the "C'mon Dad" face but hey, there's another car in front doing the same thing. In the same boat we are!

Wouldn't it be a surprise if most of the demographic that attended was the Malay community. But they were some Chinese who came by. Either the organizers devised an aggressive marketting campaign or the prime weakness of Singaporeans where the sight of a huge crowd is the presence of a bargain. Hey, anything to ease the tough economy.

Outside, a group of cars lined up to please the eyes. A white SUV caught my eye. At first glance, I thought it was another imitation but OMG, it was a Hummer. MAN, that's rare! I didn't get the chance to snap a picture. But it kinda look like this:

NIce? YEAH.

The expo, summed up in a sentence, is like an indoor pasar malam. Rows of food booths cover the pathways. The smells adore me as we jostle our way through. It seems there's a celebration at the back. Wedding decorators, antiques, education and even ear candling booths! And I thought the Halal 2009 expo was only about food! I guess it's my prejudice of the Malay community that seems to like food a lot. That's evidenced by the high percentage of obesed malays. Yuck. [I'm not a black sheep. I'm fat too. Haha.] There are quite a number of booths here set up by our neighbours across the highwat. There was one selling pau and another selling ice cream. Another piece of evidence from my community's love for food.

Donut Empire, a donut shop, set up a booth there. The 'new' Pastamania that had recently been given the Halal status. Yay! And one antique shop that featured goods from Africa. In fact, the booth owners ARE from Africa! Haha! Guess it's not all Malay here! I was certainly eyeing at the antique booths. My slums need a boost of 'foreign taste' to complete its transformation. Well, it's only a sixth in. Haha.

The expo, which ran its last day today, was graced by many familiar Suria stars. (Sorry guys. No Jennette Aw or Britney Spears here.) Though, I didn't know all their names. Bleagh. I can't belief I don't support local Malay arts. But anyway, it was kinda nice to see an expo about the Malay community. I think they need more overseas products like the ice cream and pau from Malaysia. Their marketting too has to expand to attract not only Malays but other communities as well. They should market it as a gateway to increasing understanding between different communities. Haha. Do I sound political to you? On a serious note, the expo seems like a launching pad for new food businesses like Pastamania to introduce themselves their Halal certification and open up a new area of foods available for the Muslim community. Dang, we need more French food!

At the end of the day, it's cool. : )