It is unusual to see bustling Little India so deserted and empty of traffic in the middle of the day.
But there were people at the bus stop waiting to go home or meet friends and relatives. Today was the last day of the Chinese New Year holidays, which bring Singapore virtually to a standstill.
Traffic began to wane on Friday evening and shops downed their shutters on Saturday evening, transforming the market near my home almost into a ghost town. The market was deserted, but not the bus stop and the car parks. The Chinese were out en famille, going about meeting friends and relatives. Chinese New Year family reunions are a tradition still going strong in Singapore.
Tomorrow the city stirs back to life. Singapore will revert to its diurnal round of long working hours — Singaporeans work the longest hours in the world, according to the International Labour Organization.
"Many Singaporeans are wedded to their jobs and look askance at idleness of any kind," said the Economist last week in a rare column on Singapore headlined The stingy nanny, with the subhead, "The city state stays strict with the needy". It was referring to the lack of unemployment benefits in Singapore.
But people would rather work, wouldn't they? Not even the Chinese New Year closed all the food stalls. The coffee shop stayed open, charging 10 cents more. An elderly Indian kept another stall going, serving roti prata and briyani night and day. And a Chinese girl and an Indian boy worked the fried chicken stall. Holidays are not for all. Some would rather make a buck.
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