Culture Shiok!: I was literally starving.

And I do mean, literally.

Hungry for books!

I forgot what this feeling was like,

but I do remember it from Japan,

especially living in rural Japan...

but,

after residing in Portland, Oregon,

a city which is blessed with as far as I know

THE BEST new/used bookstore in the US, Powell's,

as well as a state-of-the-art library network, I forgot what it was like to want for new reading material.

As I am still waiting for my employment pass, I can't get a library card in Singapore quite yet. For anyone else, this matter would probably be no big deal, but for a biblio-holic like myself, it's torture lah!,

especially since the libraries here are insanely awesome.

Even more ironic is that my official job title here is "Reading Specialist." Something is amiss in the world.

I'm sure you might be thinking:

Why not just go buy a new book, Kellie?

and yes, you're right, I could. . . but books in Singapore are extremely expensive--- twice or three times the price of those in the US, and I always feel guilty about buying new books anyhow, unless it's a book I plan to keep for years and years

and so

I decided to go on an adventure-

(adventures are more fun anyway!)

to seek out used bookstores in Singapore.

My Google search brought up a few different spots, and I ventured out to the MRT station.

I found two bookshops almost located right next to each other on the map, and I found myself in a great little area called Tiong Bahru. It's a area that still retains a neighbourhood-like feeling of an Singapore of days of old. . . and it's beautifully quiet. The hustle and bustle of the city, the sheer number of people and amount of ambient noise can grate on the nerves, slowly over time, like water torture. In fact, I decided to move across the street from my workplace, to avoid commuting for this very reason. I didn't realize that a quiet neighbourhood like Tiong Bahru existed, though,

until now!

A few bakeries and cafes on a single street, all unique.