Around the World with Wes and Masami - Around the World Travelogue by Wes and Masami Heiser with Journal Photographs Expenses Lodging Guide Schedule Preparation Route

Singapore

2002.11.16 -

Finding Work

Wes returned to Singapore without Masami to follow up on interviews with 2 companies. Both had positions that sounded like the type of work I wanted: field work to do technical pre-sales, software implementations, and post-sales support at telecommunications access providers across the Asia Pacific Rim. One of the companies said we could live anywhere in Asia Pacific we chose, but thought they could support us better in Singapore. The other job was to be based in Singapore. 2 weeks before, Masami and I listed the pros and cons of living in the cities we would consider living in: Singapore, Bangkok, Shanghai, and Tokyo, given that the salary would be the same. We thought we would never return to live in Singapore, but we both ranked Singapore above the others.

Interviews with both companies went very well. But after investigating the inner workings of both companies through friends in Singapore, Bangkok, Tokyo, and California, I chose to accept the job offer from Agilent Technologies Singapore. On the day of the face-to-face interviews at Agilent, I was presented a written job offer. 3 days later, on Friday 22 November, I started my first day on the job.

Many people asked me how I went about my job search, given the generally poor world economy. I'll address this question here since I'm sure many more people are also interested.

4 months ago, I emailed a set of friends in San Francisco, Seattle, Denver, Sacramento, Atlanta, Tokyo, Singapore, Shanghai, Paris, and London to report back their understanding of job availability in the areas I wanted to work. Only Shanghai was positive. Nevertheless, the person in Denver offered to get me in touch with the President of KPMG Japan, a Sacramento contact did a search through the internal Oracle job postings and emailed me every managerial position open in Asia, etc, etc. They all knew that I wanted to return to the workforce in Dec 2002 or Jan 2003 and that Singapore would be my last world-trip stop. When I reached Singapore, I called on my former boss Martin and my former co-worker Lakshmana for lunch. Both asked whether I still intended to terminate my trip here. Both knew of job openings. My timing was lucky, but it also helped that I let people know my intentions in advance.

Had I not found work in Singapore, I would have gone to Shanghai to follow up on leads I got from others.

Gems in Singapore

Singapore is a developed country suitable for work but less entertaining for the traveler than surrounding countries. Attractions in Singapore beyond food are limited. Here we list a few of the gems to try whether your a Singapore resident or just passing through.

St. Julien le Restaurant: One of Singapore's best French fine dining experiences is prepared by Chef Julien Bompard. The restaurant is located at 3 Fullerton Road where the Merlion was before it was relocated next to Fullerton One. Reservations are recommended. Tel: 6534 5947. Visit the website for details: http://www.saintjulien.com.sg/

East Coast Seafood Center: Visit any one of the restaurants at the East Coast Seafood Center for Pepper Crab. We prefer Long Beach. Our neighbors perfer Red House. Everyone in Singapore has their own opinion of where the best pepper crab is served.

The Shiatsu School: Feeling stiff and tired? Visit the Shiatsu School for a Japanese style shiatsu massage. Founder and owner Terry Liew uses a pragmatic and curative approach that will improve your balance and well-being. Advance reservations are a must. Tel: 6836 1231

Live your Dream

This concludes the entries on the Around the World with Wes and Masami webpage. We hope you found the information useful, and we encourage everyone to pursue your dream. Many things became self-evident on our world travel:

We learned that our relationship with each other is the MOST important thing in the world. Everything else can be fixed if it's broken.
We learned that rich and poor are relative terms to describe some arbitrary net worth that has no correlation to happiness.
We realized the value of the comforts in life we had before starting our travels and learned what we can live with and what we can't live without.
We learned that a life must be challenged to be a full life.
We experienced how good people in every country in the world are. Don't believe the politicians. They create fear in people to serve their own purposes. Ask yourself how cruel that is.
If you have a dream, don't get bogged down worrying about what happens before, during, and after. If the dream is real, and you plan properly to make it happen, it will be achieved.

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