So this backpackers.com post made me laugh. I’ve spent two nights in airports, Barajas (Madrid) and Ruzyne (Prague), which the latter being a much better experience. The results here do and don’t surprise me. Sure, Singapore is an amazingly clean and safe airport, but I can’t imagine being able to sleep in peace there. Wouldn’t it be violating some law?
Speaking of laws, I’m still reading The Devil’s Picnic, although my cover isn’t nearly as cool. It’s an interesting quest by Taras Grescoe, which covers his quest for the forbidden foods of the world. I’m not done yet, and likely won’t be before the school crush starts, but there are a few very amusing bits:
(about the previously mentioned Singapore): “its detractors call it Princessland, a bizarre cross between a Confucian Chinese mandarinate and a British boarding school, the ne plus ultra of the nanny state” (Grescoe 57).
His section on Singapore and the laws governing, among other things, the consumption of crackers with poppy seeds, provided an interesting introduction to the concept of a Nanny state and governments – including those of San Francisco and New York – where laws govern more ‘sinister’ actions such as smoking. On a related note, he compares the War on Drugs to Prohibition and while I wouldn’t have made that connection, I can see it.
It’s also interesting to see how some things have changed since this book was written. When speaking of the then-new ban on cigarette smoking in New York City, he interviewed an Englishman who stated that, ” …in London , you would never dream of asking an adult to extinguish a cigarette in a drinking establishment intended for other adults.” (Grescoe 164). I was in London this summer but prior to when the ban took place and I have to say, the prevalence of smoke annoyed me. I thought after my time in Asia, I was immune to smoke but its presence is strong once you’re accustomed to a relatively smoke free environment.
Overall this is a really good book. I have The End of Elsewhere on Mt. TBR and hope to get to read it soon.
On another reading note, I’ve done quite a few reviews lately for Front Street:
Private Scars – Brenda Youngerman
I Hear Your Cry – Veronica Shaffer (loved that the author signed my copy of this book)
The Pawn – Steven James
A Merger of Equals – Debra James
Olga: A Daughter’s Tale – Marie-Thérèse Browne
The End of Sorrow – JV Love
and an as-yet unposted one for Spontaneous Tourism since the book hasn’t yet been officially released. I enjoyed that one, and think it’s very cool that the author is wild releasing his own book on BookCrossing.
ETA: Interesting article in the New York Times by Taras Grescoe: Catfish with a Side of Scombroid
