As well as the western hols like Xmas we have, of course, Chinese New Year which saw the usual muted response from Singapore - lots of street activity with people milling around not taking up the commercial opportunities on offer and the routine damp squib of the severely-controlled firecrackers ( Government here seems to think that unbridled use of firecrackers in the traditional way would lead to rascally mischievious behaviour harmful to the public peace - or some such official reason. Thus a licence is required for every use of said festive toy). But I suppose it counts as somewhat exotic although holding the main festivities in a "Chinatown" in the middle of Asia makes it seem much more Western than you would think.
The other event which we like is Deepavali (Diwali in Europe I believe) and this year it was a bit of a washout but still wonderfully colourful and is one of the festivals where you do not see so much of the tacky consumerist side of Singapore intruding. I suppose if you are into that sort of thing it is quite "spiritual" and makes you go all gooey about the religious aspect of life for a few seconds.
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