Learn 4 Chinese Symbols At The Bus Station in Singapore

Singapore flag.

Singapore is a great place for learning Chinese (Mandarin). As I walked from the Yio Chu Kang bus station towards the Grassroots Community Club Building, I passed a sign which said in English, For Alighting Only. So you could get off the bus, but not onto it.

I passed a second sign which said the same thing. This time I felt compelled to stop. Only four symbols in Chinese. One was a sign I often saw.  It looked like the number four. I had been recognizing the sign for weeks, wondering what it means.

I saw the four Chinese symbols underneath and wondered what they were. How did they tie in with the English words?

I stopped a passer-by, a young man, and asked him if he spoke Mandarin and understood the symbols.

"Which one is which?" I asked.



The last of the four signs looks like a letter 4 with other lines around it. It means car or carriage, in this context bus.

To the left was a sign like half a T with two tiny downstrokes like drops of rain dropping off an umbrella. That means down, descend, get off (a bus).

The other two words mean 'only' (first on the left) and second from the left is 'allowed' or 'permitted'.

I felt very satisfied. I was pleased with myself for translating four signs.

Afterwards I went back and checked another sign which looks like the number 4.

On the MRT map you will see
Legend
East West Line (green)
North South Line  (red)
North East (purple)

The Chinese sign East-West is in the same order.

However, two other signs are in a different order. East North. South North.

Let us go back to East West. The sign for East has only one horizontal line above the four. The downward line of the four curves like a J. Two samll lines diagonally and separate at lower sides of the J point in different directions like a boat rowing to the East thought the many islands of Indonesia and to the island of Singapore.

The one which looks like it incorporates the number 4 means East.
What's the difference between the two signs continaing what looks like 4?.

The 4 above meaning car or carriage has two parallel lines the same as the bar on the four, one above and one below. Like the roof and floor of the railway carriage or car or bus.

The sign for East



Useful Websites

You can learn Chinese (Mandarin) on Duolingo.
Duolingo
duolingo.com

Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker.

Made To Measure Sleeping Bags: down, feathers or synthetic?

Problem
You are tall and need a longer bag. You are short and don't want the extra weight of a longer bag. You want to choose the colour of your bag. Feather and down or synthetic?

Answers
An American company called Enlightened Equipment will make a down bag to order. The name is an amusing pun on enlightened, meaning mentally informed, and made physically light.

I won't order down because I am allergic to feathers. I always like synthetic pillows and bedding. Even when a spare feather pillow is in a cupboard in a hotel I can still detect it and feel trouble breathing.

A relative who has hay fever happily ordered down. He says he believes the item will have tight threading to prevent feathers working through and firm seams.

Story
I am not keep on lending my sleeping bag liner to people using feather sleeping bags. I think it will compromise my sleeping bag liner if I want it back.

Thoughts from my family member:
"When I am sleeping in a conventional bag which is zipped all the way up, I feel trapped. I am squirming around.

"Many sleeping bags can be unzipped to cover just your feet when you are too hot. Keeping your feet warm is essential.

"Because it's lightweight it's easy to carry, compact, and weighs nothing - light and cheap to post. (Assuming you don't want to pay extra for fast delivery.)

"It's still warm enough for  - because it's from America it's degrees in Fahrenheit like the UK, 22 below freezing. Toss it back if you are too hot.

"I read all the reviews on the website of the manufacturers. With these bags you can have support below but the sleeping bag unzips to lie on top secured with straps, but like a wide two part sleeping bag.

"It's still a gamble. I'll let you know what I think of it when I've received it and tried it."

Tip
Plan well ahead. My family has trips planned to Indonesia. You could be waiting a couple of months for the sleeping company to make up a made to order sleeping. Then you need to wait for it to be delivered from the USA to other parts of the USA or Asia or Europe.

If you have two homes or are away on trips, you need to have it sent home. If you have two homes or bases, ideally pick the place where somebody will receive it when you are away and where you will return in time to collect it ready for the next trip.

https://enlightenedequipment.com
Their comprehensive website includes videos and feedback stories from customers.

Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker. I have other posts on sleeping bags and trekking and climbing. Please share links to posts.