Marietta McGregor

Street to hell

Old 'Boogees' Street was the hottest place in town in the ‘50s. Different clientele then. Naked sailors dancing on plastic tables and lighting their farts. Transvestites in sequins. Leering and cheering boozed-up expats. PM Lee Kuan Yew swept out Singapore's seedy underside to make room for a different tawdriness. Bugis Street Market. The biggest in the city, it heaves with sweating tourists haggling over rainbow cellphone sleeves, cutesy phone charms, vinyl wallets and plastic jade. "Tee-shirts three dollah today mister, buy two only fi' dollah!” Pongs from drains and underarms and outgassing plastic. "We can’t keep doing this", says my companion. I think he means ‘to the planet’. Anyway, he buys two pairs of shorts for fifteen bucks. Cheap at twice the price.

extinction rebellion her thigh-high vegan leather