No chewing gum!!!

After going to bed at 5:30 AM, I woke up at 7:30 to my Blackberry alarm chirping at me... time for my first day in the office. I have two hosts/buddies with whom I was suppose to connect first, one of whom I just learned flew out of the country yesterday to Manila. I finally connected with the second host today around 10:00 AM. After I got the address to the IBM facility, I caught a cab and was off. I took this picture out my hotel room window right before leaving.

The taxi cab driver was able to confirm some interesting laws... the one that is the most interesting to me is the "no chewing gum" law. I was warned about this law by several folks in the US once they learned I was going to Singapore. He confirmed that you are issued a citation if you are caught chewing gum; however, you can chew it if you have a prescription! I likened that to marijuana usage in the States!! Since all my friends prepared me, I made a visit to Costco and bought two boxes of BreathSavers before leaving. Although, with a slip of the mind, I brought three packs of my favorite Spearmint Orbit with me that I picked up at the airport ... I suppose I'll have to partake of the illegal substance in the privacy of my room :)

I spent the day getting to know some of the local executives and am now formulating a plan for how to proceed over the next weeks.