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Dear Members of the ADB,
I hope our magazine receives you well. Though the majority of our readers and event-attendees
are most understandably Dutch males, I would like to call upon my fellow female readers.
A lot of our male counterparts might think that they make it happen, in fact, we all know better;
it’s their second -mostly female- better half which does. If you have not gotten yourselves around
the ease with which one books and organizes trips in the region, let alone against which price
you’ll be paying, you are loosing out! Too many people leave without having fully enjoyed the
region or even Singapore itself, so therefore, forget about the usual business updates here and
find your not-to-be-missed-in-Singapore-list below.
One is not allowed to leave Singapore as yet, if you cannot relate to:
- a piece of Banana cake from Bolleywood Veggies,
- the view from Treetops Walk into Malaysia on a clear day,
- having taken off your shoes at the reflexology walk in the Botanical Gardens,
- the Deepavali-crowd along Serangoon Road, better yet; the Thaipusam procession,
- having peddled around Pulau Ubin on a bike you thought was even too small for your 8 yr
old son,
- sipping coffee at one of the Joo Chiat area shophouses,
- having dropped peanut left-over’s on the floor of the Long Bar,
- the house of bats in the night safari,
- admiring the 500+ birds on poles at the Sunflower market in Ang Mo Kio and be voted Ang-moh
of the week whilst you were on your second koppie-O,
- having run some hash whereby you learned the true reason they invented long kang’s,
- singing out loud whilst seated between an Indian and a Chinese family in (pick one) a church,
- just joining a queue because there simply was one,
- the Jurong Bird Park Show and not think it’s cheesy,
- enjoying a shopping experience at bustling IKEA on a Saturday afternoon, thinking this is great,
- having complemented that female colleague because she has enthusiastically taken-up pole
dancing,
- being asked ‘how much?’ after you’ve just told someone you went on a holiday, anywhere,
- the #1 Costume Shop, yes, even if you don’t have an occasion,
- having impressed your colleague for having done Sungei Buloh without rubber boots,
- at least one music festival around Fort Canning Park,
- having visited the Chinese Gardens during the Lantern Festival,
- having lost your screen wiper to a Bukit Timah Nature Reserve monkey,
- the inside of a 3 or 4-bedroom HDB in e.g. Upper Serangoon Road (Yishun also can),
- having spent the Sunday on a rent-a-BBQ-pit along East Coast between relaxed Malays
(pleonasm)
And other institutions such as: the Cliff, the Handle Bar, ACM, Top 10, the Istana, KM8,
Chimes, Altivo, Brix, the MRT, the one & only Harry’s, Mustafa’s, Lucky Plaza, Geylang Serai,
Villa Frangipani and the Clark Quay belt. And all these are just on two of the total 64 islands
which make up the city-state we call Singapore, our home!
Anyway, plan, organize & enjoy!
Annabelle
ADB mission:
‘To share meaningful and business-related information amongst the Dutch business community
in Singapore, whilst networking in a fun environment’
Welcome to the ADB
ADB, Your key to the Singapore business community!
 The "Association of Dutch Businessmen in Singapore" is THE business organization
for men and woman, living and working in Singapore with the ability to speak Dutch.
Every month the members convene after working hours to share their thoughts and
experiences over a drink. This get-together is followed by a presentation, forum
discussion, or company visit.
The ADB was formally established in November 1990. Several Dutch businessmen
in Singapore were of the view that communication, understanding and, where possible,
cooperation among Dutch businessmen and women could be much improved. Accordingly,
it was felt that a business association had to be established and presently the
ADB counts approximately 350 members (all natural persons rather than companies).
The members represent all layers of Dutch business activities in Singapore:
from director to entrepreneur, from researcher to trainee, from legal advisor
to sales manager. All share a common interest in the business environment of Singapore
and its surrounding countries.
The ADB does not contemplate to be a Chamber of Commerce or a trade institution,
seeking to formally represent the interests of Dutch business in Singapore. The
ADB, however, constitutes a platform for Dutch businessmen to share their thoughts
and experiences. Thus the ADB provides an easy and friendly entrance to the Singapore
business community. |
