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The weather TODAY: Partly cloudy. Passing showers in the afternoon over northern, central and eastern Singapore High tide 10.33 am 2.9m - Sunrise 6.55 am Sunset 6.57 pm Moonrise 6.15 am Moonset 6.34 pm PSI: 29 (good) Temp: 24-31 degrees Celsius

Get for me: Useful Services for the home

Moving in to a new home in a new country can be a trying experience. It helps to have a helping hand to point the way. While we can't help you settle down in Singapore and get used to the weather here, we can certainly try to ease the pain a little by providing the following information. You may ask- how in the world does this chap know what it is like....how does he manage to get his information. Well- the hard way. Raymond took care of expatriates' needs for his company, a foreign bank which in the hey day had close to fifty expatriates, not counting the family members, in Singapore. He did this for about ten years when he was a premises officer. He was moved around the bank for the next seven years and before resigning from the bank IN 1995, he was a private banker. Anyway, that's history.

Let's get back to the present.

MOVING IN

If your company has got a rental apartment or a house for you, fine. What you need to do is to make sure that you check the inventory of the place carefully and annotate any damages before pointing them out to the person doing the inspection of the place with you. Keep a copy of the inventory handy. You never know when you will be leaving Singapore and you will need this important set of papers. If the property company is also taking care of the maintenance of the place, get his/her contact number, as well as the numbers for his/her pager, mobile phone and if possible ask for a 24-hour contact number. Also, get a list of the maintenance companies the property company has appointed to take care of the aircon, pest control and other things such as plumbing.

If your company has provided you with a company-owned apartment/house, it is likely that your company has a premises officer to take care of the place. Get his contact numbers as well as a list of maintenance companies involved in the upkeep of the place. First and foremost-rely on yourself. In case he/she can't be contacted, at least you have some numbers you can dial immediately. Some problems can't be put on hold.

SECURITY

If you are lucky, your new home comes with a wall safe in the master bedroom. Make sure you have a spare key. If not, get one duplicated. If the safe is a Chubb safe, you can go to their office to get one done straightaway. Chubb keys can't be duplicated at local shops.

Chubb Singapore Pte Ltd 207 Kallang Bahru Singapore 339343

Tel: (65) 292 8421 Fax: (65) 298 7310

If you do not have a safe, invest in a safe deposit box at any of the following banks:

Standard Chartered Bank Raffles Place Branch Tel: (65) 225 8888/ 535 3522

6 Battery Road Singapore 049909

Scotts Mall Branch Tel: (65) 225 8888/ 535 3522

1 Scotts Road #01-01 Shaw Centre Singapore 228208

It's good to keep an eye open when you have maintenance staff in your home. Singapore may be one of the safest places in the world, but there's always a possibility someone may have light fingers. Just be careful but polite. No tipping please, it's not practised here except in hotels and restaurants or night spots.

UPKEEP OF HOME

Pest Control

You may get problems with rats, cockroaches or lizards (Geckos). Call the pest control chaps below:

To catch lizards, these people may place traps resembling matchboxes on the walls- be prepared for this eyesore.

PestBusters Pte Ltd

Tel: (65) 288 2828 (24 hours)

Vector Control

If you find a bee hive within the grounds of your house or within the grounds of the block you are staying in, call the pest control chaps. If the bee hive is located on public property, call the government vector control people below:

Vector Control (mosquitoes, flies, cockroaches, rodents & fleas)

Vector Control & Research Department Ministry of the environment

Tel: (65) 731 9789

Supernatural Happenings

Some places, especially old buildings, may be haunted. Raymond has had expatriates who have complained of people knocking on their doors in the wee hours of the morning. So, before you even move in, try to check out the place first by asking questions. Best of all, ask the neighbours discreetly. Your property officer may know something, but he/she may not want to let out the information to you.

REPAIRS

General carpentry, renovation, painting, plumbing, changing of locks, etc

Johnson Decoration Contractor

350D King George's Ave King George's Building Singapore 208579

Tel: (65) 292 9522 Fax: (65) 292 2076

JDC has served expatriates of some foreign banks for many years, and has easy access to expatriates' premises because its staff can be trusted. Speak to the boss directly- he is Mr Tok Yew Seng.

Electrical, plumbing and air-con breakdowns

NTUC Income (24-hour household services)

Tel: (65) 788 6616

E-mail: household@income.com.sg

INVENTORY

Crockery

Noritake (The Blue Danube is available here)

304 Orchard Road #01-39 Lucky Plaza Singapore 238863

Tel: (65) 733 7029

Pavillon Christofle

391 Orchard Road #01-19A Ngee Ann City Singapore 238872

Tel: (65) 735 7490 Fax: (65) 735 6973

E-mail: christofle@pacific.net.com.sg

Royal Copenhagen (S) Pte Ltd (They even have a cafe which uses their crockery)

333 Orchard Road #01-09 Mandarin Hotel Shopping Arcade Singapore 238867

Tel: (65) 737 9810 Fax: (65) 734 5360

Robinsons

Centrepoint Orchard Road

Tel: (65) 733 0888

Opening hours: Sun - Thu 10.30 am - 8.30 pm

Fri - Sat 10.30 am - 9.30 pm

Electric appliances

Goh Sin Huat Electrical Pte Ltd is a perennial favourite of expatriates.

492 Tanglin Halt Close Singapore 148810

Tel: (65) 467 4833 Fax: (65) 474 0933

Curtains/upholstery

Laura Ashley Japan Co Ltd

391B Orchard Road Ngee Ann City Singapore 238872

Tel: (65) 834 0515

Fax: (65) 834 0514

Au Furnishing & Textiles Pte Ltd (They have done work for expatriates)

2 Jalan Raja #03-26 Singapore 329134

Tel: (65) 355 2288 Fax: (65) 355 7171

Cleaning Services (house/curtains/upholstery)

Berkeley Cleaning Pte Ltd

12 Tuas Ave 8 SITA House Singapore 638896

Tel: (65) 862 3228 Fax: (65) 862 2852

Nafa System Services Pte Ltd

Blk 153A Serangoon North Ave 1 #02-462 Singapore 551153

Tel: (65) 282 3836 Fax: (65) 284 2674

SMALL MATTERS

Party Attire

Children's Party Dress Company

277 Orchard Road #03-45 Specialist Shopping Centre Singapore 238858

Tel: (65) 737 1968 Fax: (65) 738 7289

Delivery of newspapers

The Straits Times (local daily)

Business Times

Tel: (65) 749 2577 Fax: (65) 746 1925

Sharpening of scissors and knives.

Handy-Man Centre (FE) Pte Ltd

1 Scotts Road #04-04/07 Shaw Centre Singapore 228208

TeL: (65) 737 7815 Fax: (65) 732 7124

Xinghe Knife Sharpening Service

Blk 74 Geylang Bahru #01-2876 Singapore 339682

Tel: (65) 293 2286 Fax: (65) 297 1857

Live Christmas trees

Cold Storage Supermarket

Contact them directly at (65) 735 1215 (Takashimaya Branch) or call their dial & Deliver Service at (65)344 1661 fax at (65)3441522.

getforme their website: Cold Storage

Classified advertisements

The Straits Times

Tel: (65) 737 1166 Fax: (65) 747 4622

Yesterday's Front Page

Did You Know?

Tanglin Shopping Centre in Tanglin Road was completed in 1971 (stage 1) by the architect Design Partnership and in 1981 (stage 2) by DP Architects Pte.

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News Flash Today, Tuesday 7 Dec 1999

In Singapore

Kidney recipient dies in road accident.

Fortune magazine ranks Singapore as top business city in Asia.

Pacific Internet & SingNet will better StarHub's recent free-surfing offer.

SilkAir has offered to fly relatives of the SilkAir crash victims out to Palembang to perform their own rites at the memorial site.

Singapore riverside became part of the general festive light-up when 20 sculptures and a rotating holographic wheel came ablaze with lights on Friday.

In Asia

Jakarta: Graft probe against Suharto to re-open.

Canberra: More boat people caught heading for Australia.

Hong Kong: About 100 Macau police raided several residential buildings suspected of storing illegal weapons and drugs yesterday.

Around the world

London: Elderly patients in Britain are dying of an unspoken policy of involuntary 'euthanasia' to relieve pressure on the National Health Service.

Sacramento (USA): An immigrant man shot and killed five of his seven children before killing himself.

Moscow: Russian President Yeltsin bounced back yesterday after a week-long bout of pneumonia to announce a state visit to China this week.

Courtesy of The Straits Times

News updated before 8.00 am daily.

Christmas is just around the corner. Have you started shopping yet? For the benefit of those living overseas, we will post here over the next few weeks pictures of shopping centre facades decorated for X'mas.

The editor

Contact the editor at getforme.com