Sorry for the delay!!!

Hey Everybody,

Sorry it has taken me awhile to put up a new post!  Things here have been very busy and interesting to say the least.  Last week was pretty stressful at work, and after long days I didn't quite have the energy or patience to post on here, and I am sorry.  I have been tasked with 3 main assignments that have several sub-segments so to speak.  First, I am responsible for all of the marketing research for the water utilities sector of Brady's APAC (Asia Pacific) division.  This means that I have to research how many water and waste water treatment facilities are in: China, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.  Once I figure out how many facilities there are I have to determine how many employees each facility has so that I can determine the purchasing level of each firm.  I will use a combination of these numbers to estimate the TAM (Total Available Market), and then I am responsible for figuring out what Brady's slice of that is likely to be and who the major players in the industry are.  Trust me it sounds way easier than it is!  Secondly, I am going to be assisting in test-marketing of two new products that Brady will be offering shortly.  One of them will be released in October, and one of them is in "Alpha Testing" which means product launch is about a year away.  For this portion of my assignment I am hoping to travel to Thailand, Malaysia, and Indonesia to meet with customers, describe each products main features and allow them to try them out and see what aspects of the product appeal to them.  From that point my colleague, Mark and I will assemble a presentation to instruct the sales team on how to best "sell" the product to future customers.  Lastly, I am solely responsible for constructing all portions of the marketing budget, and calendar for Brady APAC for their 2012 fiscal year which begins August 1st.  Hopefully, I have described my job in detail well enough so that you know I am being trusted with a tremendous amount of responsibility. I am really only nervous about the 1st "check-point" because it is very hard to gather information from websites that aren't in English...so I am hoping for the best!  I absolutely love the people I work with, they are so helpful and friendly! We have been taken out on several occasions for lunch, and have tried all kinds of interesting food, and I love 99% of it which is a good thing.  Last week we were also contacted by a professor from the CIE (Center for International Education) at UWM who was in Singapore.  She offered to take us out for dinner in Clark Quay (pronounced Key), and we went to an amazing seafood restaurant right on the Singapore River, called Jumbo's.  We all had Black Pepper Crab which came highly recommended by Allan Klotsche, the VP of HR who hired me, and it was absolutely to die for.  We also had prawn with mangoes in a cream sauce, bean curds with mushrooms, and a Malaysian type of spicy red noodles, and all of it was delicious.  I am sure the meal for the 3 of us was very expensive, but it was an awesome treat!  This weekend, we had planned to go to Sentosa which is an island off the coast of Singapore for some sight-seeing and just all around relaxation, but unfortunately it rained heavily for most of the day.  Because of the weather we decided to head to a section of Singapore known as Little India.  From the minute we stepped out of the MRT station, it felt as if we had entered a new country.  There were Indian people all over the place, and different looking buildings, and a lot of the signs were no longer in English.  We walked through the entire town, I bought a watch for $5, had an excellent lunch of Chicken Tikka Masala (my favorite Indian dish) with some garlic naan, and took in all of the scenery.  We left Little India around 630pm and headed back to the apartment to change quick.  We had planned to go out Saturday night, and there was one club we were particularly interested in called Zouk.  It turns out this club is ranked #9 in the world, and although it cost $33 to get it, it was a worthwhile experience.  There were lights, lazers, fog, and tons of people and we got lost in the crowd...until 5 am when things finally shut down.  We made our way back home and Sunday was a lazy day filled with laundry and ironing (my new favorite hobby...not!). Monday was relatively uneventful other than that I met with my boss Dawn Ng, and I showed her my progress on the first of my many projects.  I was very nervous, but Dawn assured me that I had been doing "great work"!  Today was a great day, we went out for lunch with Jason (Russell's supervisor) and he is such a nice guy.  He has taken us to places that were cheaper for food, helped us find slightly more reasonable groceries, and has just helped us get acclimated all around.  He is even trying to get some of the guys in the office together for a few rounds of pool and some beer, and a few basketball games as well (you have to remember, I am tall here!).  We had some delicious Vietnamese beef noodles, and the beef was fantastic, it was like a marinated brisket.  It was very filling and only cost $3.50 per person!  I must admit I am a little hesitant to trust Jason when it comes to food, he has said that he usually thinks things on Fear Factor look delicious...so I try to be careful, but I have been trying his suggestions, and they truly are awesome!  When I got back to the office, Anishia the women who sits just behind me in Human Resources surprised be with 2 packages of these giant wafer cookies.  She is very friendly, and always has a friendly smile on her face.  She told me today that I remind her of her 17 year old son, because his name is Brian too!  Anyway tonight was very uneventful, we went into town to buy a basketball so we can get ready for our games ahead, and then came home and watched some movies on tv.  I also want to give my mom and my grandma a special thank you for the care packages they sent!  I can't believe how much they were able to fit into boxes, and I can't put into words how happy and grateful I am for all that you two have done for us...oh and Russell says thank you too!  Anyway, I will try to keep updating this as much as possible, I know you guys are reading now, and I don't want to disappoint you with long gaps between updates.  I love and miss you all!

Love Always,

Brian

 Newton Food Center with some hawker stands that sell amazing food cheap!

 Dinner at Jumbo's with Clark Quay in the background

 Black Pepper Crab, YUMMY!!!

 Clark Quay at night!

 Anishia on her birthday haha always smiling!

 4th floor of Brady APAC where all the action happens! Marketing, Finance, HR, and IT...GO TEAM!

 Step into my office...literally!

 Little India, a whole new world!

 More shops and colorful buildings we passed on our walk through the city

 We ate lunch not too far from here and across the street is where I got my $5 watch

 Traffic and pedestrian traffic is completely different here, we have a scheme for when to go...if 1 or 2 people walk we wait, if a crowd goes we go, that way the Sing police can't bust us haha!

Indian temple we passed on our walk, look at all of the figures on the top...just impressive!

S'Pore Day 2

Hello Everyone,

So today we actually sat down and made a list of priorities to get done, they were: 1) Find Work and figure out how long our commute would take 2) Find umbrellas and 3) Try like hell to find a decently priced alarm clock.  We succeeded on 2 out of 3 but solved a fourth goal we hadn't realized yet, so we are batting .750!  Getting to work is a challenge and a half!  We have to take the #190 bus into downtown (AKA Orchard Road), so we walked to the bus stop which is about a quarter mile from our front door.  After waiting for a while the first 190 came...and went right past us!  Turns out it was full, and when I say full I mean 3 to a seat, and people pressed against the windows, standing from the rear of the bus to the front door, so basically at capacity.  I would hate to see what would happen if buses were like that in the US!  Second bus came...and went, same problem!  As did the third!  Finally the fourth bus that came had enough room for Russ and I to squash up against the front door.  At this point 35 minutes had gone by.  After a 10 minute bus ride to Far East Plaza (The far end of Orchard Road) we had a 2 mile walk to Orchard Station where the MRT central station is located.  After struggling to read the map we finally asked which trains to take and which stations to get off at.  We were not told trains, just Eunos Station...well right now you guys are thinking where is that...that's exactly how we felt.  So, back to the Map!  I actually took a picture of it that is attached so you guys can see what we had to decode.  We found Eunos station on the green line but only the Red line ran out of Orchard Station, so we had to change trains at City Hall.  After 3 stops we did change trains and then rode the green for 5 stops which was quite a while, to Eunos Station.  Along the way the country seemed to change from Shopping Centers and just upper class urban life, to extremely poor areas with high rise "tenements".  People literally had clothes out on what resembled a flag pole to dry them.  Anyway so we got to Eunos station and had no clue where to go.  We asked for directions at the passenger assistance booth, and he led us out the wrong door to buses that were for tours...so discouraged, we walked to the next bus stop.  At this point we were both dripping sweat and obviously frustrated by locals' ability to assist us.  We came to the bus stop and started reading routes.  Turns out the #15 bus at this stop had Kaki Bukit Avenue listed on its route.  We work on Kaki Bukit Crescent...but we gave it a try anyway!  After 4 stops on the bus we arrived at 1 Kaki Bukit Avenue, and proceeded to look around.  We walked a good half mile before seeing any people so I asked for directions.  The first group of guys just pointed at a lady so I approached her.  She gave us directions that followed a viaduct filled with sewage for about 1.5 miles until I spotted the building.  You can see pictures of it below.  We ran into Brady's local toothless security guard and he instructed us how to get to our local food court that we can use on workdays.  Well we walked to the local food court (once again pictures are included) and checked out the local fare...upon first inspection we decided a bottle of water was the safest choice and that we would find food elsewhere.  We then figured our way back to Orchard Road where we began looking for the other things on our list.  We found umbrellas in an ultra tiny walgreens type store, and proceeded to try our luck with an alarm clock.  Things got worse in this department fairly quickly and I proceeded to get into an argument with a store owner when he wanted to sell me an analog alarm clock slightly larger than a watch for $45.  That didn't end well so we left...but we soon found a Borders where I purchased a bus route guide that is extremely difficult to read and understand, but I tried.  After that, we walked into a shopping center to have a look around and to try to find food.  We found the food court and tried to pick out the least shady looking food, and proceeded to order.  The sign read that a meal would cost $6.80 but somehow mine was $14?!?  I attached a picture of what my food looked like, and I can promise you, all of it was at air-conditioned room temperature :-(  We walked around the rest of the shopping mall to see what prices were like.  1) A pair of Adidas running shoes were $200 2) A NorthFace jacket was $566 for a raincoat and 3) two levi's button down shirts were on sale as a pair for $200!  After our mall going experience was done we came back to the apartment, ate some leftovers and passed out.  I will be posting videos of the rain on here shortly so you can see what it is like in Singapore...also my apartment is visible in the videos so check them out!  Until next time, I love you all and wish I had more comments on here...

Love Always,

Brian

S'pore Day 1

Hey Guys,

Well today was definitely an adventure, with ups and downs, but I rolled with the punches and learned a lot!  First thing, early this morning before we went to bed NHL hockey was on TV which was pretty cool, although I won't be able to stay up long enough to watch most of the finals.  Sleeping was a little rough, my bed is ultra-firm to say the least, I am beginning to wonder if the concrete floor would be softer...but I did sleep haha even if I may have been walking like the tin man for portions of today.  Russ and I were up at 10:30am here this morning, and we immediately decided to explore today.  We found out that the hotel offers a shuttle service that drops us off at the Hyatt on Orchard Road which is kind of a downtown shopping center, so we went for it.  Little did we know after the 10 minute ride that the shuttle was a one-way only ride!  We walked all around the first shopping center we saw, they are nothing like back in the states.  Each center is typically 8-10 stories high and they sell a variety of goods from electronics to food, and clothes.  I bought an adapter so I could charge my computer and phone and camera (sorry not too many pics today) for $10, and we were in need of an alarm clock, so naturally we asked the store clerk.  Well, the cheapest looking shitty alarm clock carried a hefty price tag...$65!!!  We told the guy that we could buy it at a Walgreen's back home for $5-6, and then he instantly looked up his price.  He ended up coming down to $35 and insisted this was at cost, but smelling bullshit Russ and I decided to pass, so we still need to buy one tomorrow.  Then I had a phone with me that could be used here so I wanted to buy a sim card, well we got an array of pricing, and it ended up costing me $45 but the man assured me that it had 60 minutes of local calling on it, and 20 minutes of international time which was much more than the ones for $10 would have afforded me.  He was also the only seller who did not need a passport to complete the transaction which I thought was weird.  Russ and I were fairly hungry by this point so we began to look for food.  All of the places around the Orchard Road area were very expensive ($22-40 per person) so we kept walking and finally found a Wendy's where we had lunch for $8 per person.  At this point we decided to try to locate the MRT (Not MTA and definitely a Subway...first lesson learned the hard way because nobody understood what I was talking about)  I finally found a woman who realized I was in distress, she was in her mid to late 40's and acted just like a mother to Russ and I.  She literally walked us right to the station, helped us purchase our MRT cards for use on buses and the subway, tried to help us find a bus route book, and even lead us to a grocery store, so thank you whoever you are, you were a godsend!  After spending about 45 minutes following this lady and trying to memorize as much as I could, we located a store that sold hangars, and I bought a 10 pack for around $6 so that was nice.  After finishing our review of the Takashima S.C. we walked outside and tried to find a way back to the apartment.  This turned out to be no easy task!  After about 45 minutes of walking trying to find the bus stop for route 190 we finally found one, and ended up on the 171...luckily it went in roughly the same direction but we had to walk about 2 miles from where we got dropped off to get back to the hotel.  We quickly changed clothes and headed down to the pool, where we swam for about 45 minutes to cool down.  Realizing on the walk that there was a grocery store much closer to the apartment than the one we had found on Orchard Road we decided to stock up so we could avoid the high costs of restaurant food.  Well we were wrong again!  We picked up enough groceries to last 3-4 days sparingly for a whopping $126!  Talk about culture shock!  Well we carried our loot back to the apartment which was about a 1.5 mile walk due to a shortened route that we tried which worked in our favor, and I started prepping to make dinner.  Our "stove" is more of a hotplate, which took 45 minutes to boil water, and roughly the same amount of time to cook anything to the desired level...needless to say but I told Russ I will not be cooking any more for the remaining 2 months we will be here.  So today was a learning experience with many ups and downs, but overall it worked out ok I guess.  My only issue is that I ended up sweating so badly that my thighs ended up chafing very badly throughout the day, and I am not sure how I will fight that on a day to day level.  I am slightly disheartened by how expensive everything seems to be here, and I hope we catch a break and start to find some of the famous street vendors with inexpensive food.  Otherwise, I am afraid this internship may cost more than I make.  Anyway I wont ramble because I am exhausted right now and would love to try to get some sleep before tomorrow, because I am sure it will be more of the same.  I have attached a few pics so everyone can see parts of what I saw today.  I am sorry there isn't more, I just spent most of the day wide eyed and open mouthed looking around, and when I wasn't doing that I was trying to read maps and bus routes.  Tomorrow I will do my best to get some shots of the apartment, and other things as well.  As always please keep me in your thoughts and prayers, and know that I miss all of you very much right now, and I am trying a bit harder than I thought I would to avoid panic mode, which I am hoping will subside by tomorrow or soon anyway.  I love you all, goodnight and you will see more soon!

Love Always,

Brian

P.S. Some of the pictures were taken in Tokyo at Narita airport.

Singapore in T - 34 hours!!!

Hey Everyone,

Obviosuly I just created this blog to use to reflect on my experiences in Singapore, and to post pictures and stories about my trip.  As of right now I think I am beyond excited, and to be honest a little nervous.  I have never been to Asia, at least not since shortly after I was born, and I don't know anybody there yet other than Russell, the other intern going.  I have gotten all of my shots and taken necessary precautions, including bringing a first aid kit (Thank you Kati), so I guess there is nothing to it but to do it!  I am just really not looking forward to the long day of travel, but hopefully my excitement will keep me energized through it all.  My only other worry/concern is today when I talked to Corinna she said the temperature there was 34 degrees celsius, which translates into 93.2 degrees fahrenheit and it is quite humid...so I guess I will be sweating of the pounds while I am there!  For those of you who are interested my apartment looks very nice, and is through the YMCA in downtown Singapore, so I will have free use of their gym and pool (THANK GOD) while I am there which as you can tell I am very excited about.  Other than that, all of my travel arrangements are made, and I am good to go I think, well, at least as good as I can be I guess.  Feel free to leave comments of support or concern or just to talk to me if you don't have skype.  For those who do have skype my user name is icecougar05, and I will try to be on whenever I can, please bear in mind that the time difference from Central Standard time to Singapore is currently 13 hours and I will do my best to keep you updated on this if it changes. 

Thanks for all of your love and support, none of this would have been possible without any of you!

Love Always,

Brian

P.S. the link to my apartment is http://www.mymca.org.sg/home/metro-apart.html and there are links to photos of it on the right hand side of the page...I will get you my address including apartment number as soon as I can.