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Singapore Noodles
Nov. 15th, 2007 08:25 amSingapore bans Xbox game because of lesbian scene.
For some reason, I thought homosexuality was now legal in Singapore, or at least de-criminalised, much like marijuana in Amsterdam. I guess not.
I wonder sometimes if I'd have come out of the closet earlier if my parents hadn't moved us to Singapore when we were teenagers. I lived there from the age of 16 to 18, studying in an international high school. Boys could not have long hair or earrings, though some westerners with their foot in grunge flaunted it. Books, plays and movies on homosexuality were completely forbidden (though I did manage to get myself a copy of Interview with the Vampire). While I was living there, Singapore introduced a ban on chewing gum. When we travelled abroad, we brought back boxes of gum and used it as a type of bargaining power at school (the more chewing gum, the more popular.)
One of Singapore's beaches is popular with windsurfers. I took a course on windsurfing when I arrived on the island, then tried to go there a few times on my own to practice. I heard rumours in school that it was a gay hang out - anyone carrying a bottle of mineral water was suspect; it was every gay man's secret signal. There was a shower room where we washed after windsurfing; looking back, I realize it was a big cruising spot. I was so naive. I still remember this muscular guy staring intently at me - I thought at the time he wanted to teach me windsurfing! Doh.
For some reason, I thought homosexuality was now legal in Singapore, or at least de-criminalised, much like marijuana in Amsterdam. I guess not.
I wonder sometimes if I'd have come out of the closet earlier if my parents hadn't moved us to Singapore when we were teenagers. I lived there from the age of 16 to 18, studying in an international high school. Boys could not have long hair or earrings, though some westerners with their foot in grunge flaunted it. Books, plays and movies on homosexuality were completely forbidden (though I did manage to get myself a copy of Interview with the Vampire). While I was living there, Singapore introduced a ban on chewing gum. When we travelled abroad, we brought back boxes of gum and used it as a type of bargaining power at school (the more chewing gum, the more popular.)
One of Singapore's beaches is popular with windsurfers. I took a course on windsurfing when I arrived on the island, then tried to go there a few times on my own to practice. I heard rumours in school that it was a gay hang out - anyone carrying a bottle of mineral water was suspect; it was every gay man's secret signal. There was a shower room where we washed after windsurfing; looking back, I realize it was a big cruising spot. I was so naive. I still remember this muscular guy staring intently at me - I thought at the time he wanted to teach me windsurfing! Doh.
