//TODO: Food in video games?

Sight, sound & scent: Old airport road

Soundscape and visuals, on location @ Old airport road

Here in a nostalgic place once again, on a Sunday when I should be sleeping in. The Goodman Arts Centre, and Singapore Biennale 2011 Open House: I seem to be coming around here a lot, recently, though never actually stopping to dine. Now I wonder.. when was the last time?

A short distance from Mounbatten MRT station, this wonderful place is home to many stalls & is famous for it's hokkien mee, char kway teow, satay, plus other kinds of local dishes. Hawker food, seems to be a part of Singaporean culture, and to her people, eating is often considered an enjoyable past time, so much so that they would travel far & wide to satiate their tastes.

Old airport road food center is just a hive of activity; While the crowd changes, the same noise and chatter remains. Everywhere, it is loud and full of life: smatterings of dialog and dialect. Elsewhere, at the neighbouring food centres, tables are empty, the atmosphere cold, even as the sun continues to beat.

The food culture of this sunny island is diverse. Unlike how.. say a, burger, can be associated with American cusine, or sushi, to the Japanese, it is difficult to have a dish which would represent the various ethnic groups of this land. But it is this diversity that allows the people here to create dishes which are cross-cultural, mixing styles and creating foods such as fish head curry, laksa and satay bee hoon.

I've been transformed into a tourist; Slinking around, camera in hand, I'm an observer, a stranger to this land. As I pass by these people, I snap photos. Yet, no one pays attention: their gazes stay focused, utensils an extension of their body.

It's at places like hawker centers that Singaporeans from different backgrounds can dissolve and enjoy food together. Food can be seen as an important factor to the unifying the identity of the nation.

Options: decisions. Anticipation: satisfaction. With only stomach for so much, maybe next time would be different.