Feet Biting Fish

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!  John and I hope you all had a blessed holiday and ate lots of turkey!

I’ll start this entry with our Thanksgiving adventure.  This was my first Thanksgiving away from my old Kentucky home and, ironically, John’s second Thanksgiving in Singapore.  We decided to go out with a few friends on Thanksgiving night, so we rounded a few up and made reservations at the Fullerton Hotel–a downtown hotel that used to be the Singapore post office.  John and I were rushing to get on a bus to get there when we passed a bicycle cab, looked at each other, and asked…why not?  So, we rode in the back of this thing through the busy streets of Singapore.  It was wonderful!

We went to dinner with our friends Kerry and Adrienne–Kerry is from the UK and Adrienne is from South Africa, so this was their first Thanksgiving!  We taught them the American art of pacing oneself at the buffet so as to be able to eat more.  They were pros:)  Fortunately, the buffet did have turkey, dressing, and mashed potatoes.  But, it was advertised as being “a traditional Thanksgiving feast with European and Asian fare.”  Hmmm…I’m glad to know that traditionally, the Europeans and Asians celebrate Thanksgiving:)  Nonetheless, the food was beyond marvelous and we immensely enjoyed our fellowship with our new friends:)

Kerry is a friend I met at a Body Jam aerobics class.  Basically, we met while learning aerobic hip-hop moves.  One of our first outings was about a month ago to Chinatown where we decided to give one of the famous “fish spas” a try.  Basically, the spa has a huge tank of fish with a bench on the side.  You sit on the side and put your feet in the tank with the fish.  The fish swarm at you and start sucking (and nibbling) the dead skin off of your feet.  Luckily for us, this particular spa also had a tank full of fish for your hands suspended above the foot fish tank.  Words cannot describe the feeling of sticking your feet in the tank for the first time.  I took John with me about a week later and captured his expression on film–check the pictures below!  It feels like needles that don’t hurt, tickling, and sucking all at the same time.  And, to top it all off, if your feet are ticklish, that adds to the experience.  Eventually, you get used to it and the fish get all of the skin off so they swim away.  But, as John experimented, he discovered that if you stick your entire leg into the tank, they will also swim up to the rest of your leg and get the dead skin off.  And, as you pull your feet out of the tank, some of the fish like to “hold on”, so you must be careful not to sling them across the spa:)  If you come to Singapore, this is an experience you must have!

In other news, randomly enough, we ended up at the Marine Corps Ball a few weeks ago!  I met a nice woman at my Bible study whose husband works at the Embassy and she invited us to the Ball.  We decided to take her up on it and check it out!  The Marine Corps ceremony was very moving, especially as an American abroad.  When I heard the “Star Spangled Banner” I didn’t realize I hadn’t heard it in over three months.  As much as I’m loving my experience in Singapore, it’s definitely been a crash course in American appreciation.  Life here is fun, but America is definitely home!  Long story short, John and I met lots of very interesting people at the ball, many of which we are still in touch with now.  We had an extraordinary dinner, danced to oldies, and met some fellow expats.  What a night.  And to think, we went on a whim:)

We’re off to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia for the weekend.  Look for an update sometime soon!  We’re taking overnight buses there and back, so I’m sure we’ll have stories!

We miss you all very much and since Thanksgiving is over now, I can say it….MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!!!!:)