Where to eat then? Chinatown, came the cry. That’s the place for two young(ish) rakes to be on a Singaporean weekend. Unfortunately, we weren’t the only ones privy to this secret. Saturday night a few days before Chinese New Year and the place was hopping. I mean wall-to-wall bodies, little shuffling steps, noise, color, and not a seat to be had at any of the hundreds of restaurants or food courts lining the streets.
It wasn’t long before we gave up on our goal to find the "best" place to eat in Chinatown.
"I think we just need to find somewhere that has some open seats" said Joel.
It took a while, but eventually we managed it. I saw an empty spot at a sidewalk table and enthusiastically parked my bum. At the time, Joel was a few feet away and almost kept walking, the press of bodies being too thick for him to notice my absence. Fortunately he heard me yell as a few steps further and we would probably have never seen each other again.
In moments, Auntie was by my side. Very old, very small, but with an energy I didn’t even have in my youth.
"You want soup? Tom Yum soup? Chicken soup?"
I only heard the first part. I discovered Tom Yum soup in Thailand, many years ago. Very hot, sour, spicy and delicious, of all Asian food, it’s my very favorite.
"Yes, tom yum" I nodded enthusiastically. Excellent. I couldn’t believe our luck.
"Oh Joel, you’re going to like this!"
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