Singapore Expats

Ok, this might sound like a strange question, but do most offices in Singapore have showers?

any suggestions or experiences appreciated.

thanks

I would imagine as a rule of thumb showers are in the larger offices... However, this will sound a bit funny, but in Singapore it is socially acceptable to sweat, it comes with the territory... Then when you’re in the office for 5 minutes the air con is so darn cold you will dry up instantly... Even hardened locals turn up to work with their shirts a tad wet...

No one worries about BO in Singapore? especially in the office?

some men i see have a white cotton tank top underneath their work shirt to absorb the juicy goodness.

you'd probably find yourself using some type of deodorant or anti-perspirant around the arm pits.

or you can bring a few changes of clothing out with you.

whatever the case, you get into a routine, so don't sweat it.

(HA HA!)

I've been in Singapore around a year and I no longer notice the weather. I still sweat sometimes, but usually only at times I expect to sweat anyway, i.e play fighting with my son etc.

The foods you eat can affect your body temperature, and the following list may be helpful. Try to avoid stimulants, but that's hard when some relatively innocuous foods are stimulants; the humble apple, mangoes etc.

Try to avoid:

Wheat, caffeine and high protein foods.

Drinks that may help:

Coconut juice, buttermilk, spike your drinking water with lemon.

Other than that you can also try some kind of vigorous exercise in the morning before work to burn up excess calories. This may help keep your temperature down during the day.

Watch your stress levels, as stress will send your temperature up. This is actually very important, and probably should have been at the top of the list.

Try concentrating on minimizing the energy you expend on breathing, as breathing vigorously will raise your temperature.

How do you walk? You may be wasting energy with your ambulation technique. If you have Singaporean friends, watch how they walk! You'll be surprised, there are lessons to be learnt.

Be cool.

SunWuKong wrote: If you have Singaporean friends, watch how they walk! You'll be surprised, there are lessons to be learnt.

Be cool.

Yeah, they'll teach you how to walk into total strangers, stop and the top or bottom of escalators, and myriad other forms of strange ambulatory behaviour.

I'm from a tropical country and I find the 'heat' unbearable when it's really humid...so, I try to relax (to keep blood circulation and body heat down) and if that's not enough, I bring out my trusty fan.

And get a good brand of deodorant...or at least one that works for you. There's a brand that I tried and it was near useless. Your mileage may vary.

About BO; sorry, buddy, but you'll find the ugly truth that some people do smell...unpleasant in the heat.

Also, a lot that you might class as BO may well be due in part to the diet of the individual. Different races have different basic diets and this general aroma may well be construed BO in some noses. Additionally, Yes, there seems to be a lot a BO! As well as Halitosis (Particularly from some of the northern Asians). But such is life I guess. Makes MRT journeys a test at times especially in the evenings on the way home from work.

sundaymorningstaple wrote:Also, a lot that you might class as BO may well be due in part to the diet of the individual. Different races have different basic diets and this general aroma may well be construed BO in some noses. Additionally, Yes, there seems to be a lot a BO! As well as Halitosis (Particularly from some of the northern Asians). But such is life I guess. Makes MRT journeys a test at times especially in the evenings on the way home from work.

I've been told that..if you're thinking what I'm thinking...is not always due to diet.

I never bothered verifying but it smells nonetheless. I wish there some sort of rule of thumb (so we can avoid getting a whiff) but, unfortunately, such generalizations cannot be drawn.

This thread really makes me laugh...you guys are funny the similar topic was discussed in the office the other day and yes, BO is a big turn-off...a shower in the morning, a splash of cologne or your fav deodorant, there you go

Depending on where you work, there should be gyms with a shower near by? I used to get up a bit earlier, run into work, stretch then shower.

carolynW wrote:Depending on where you work, there should be gyms with a shower near by? I used to get up a bit earlier, run into work, stretch then shower.

I take it most offices dont have showers then... i must be blessed here in Tokyo... not only do we have showers available at the office, there is also a gym next to the building.... i usually sweat like a pig on the way to work (slammed like sardenes in the train), a 2min shower in the office and then fresh as a fiddle at my desk to begin the day.... lovely.

Actually, being cool and not worrying about it might not be the way I actually got an official comment from my boss, that as much as they understand I'm a sweaty angmo, they don't tolerate that in office. Seriously, very embarrassing to hear your boss tell you to come to work by taxi .

I have a 20 minute walk to work, and it's humanly impossible not to sweat at least a bit. My solution was dropping my European dress code and walking to work in lighter clothes, with exposed arms, because deodorant and showering in bacteria-killing soap didn't really help.

Its very common to wear a vest or tee shirt to absorb, the sweat, once at the office just take it off, wipe down in the toilet and you are as good as new!
Although sweat is to do with many waste product, so you can also help by cleansing the system, drinking vinegar beverages does this in many ways...first it neutralises the body pH to its normal level, and secondly it cleanses the drain pipes, all the oily foods, and free radicles are washed out through the pipe system The more you drink of the beverages the more you urinate and clear the waste products in the body.

I do sweat heavy, but my sweat is not offensive, so i have been told, yes i do ask, because i can smell myself and I think wow, i'm sweating but its also acceptable to me. But pigs can always wallow in their own ---- I reckon 30 days of drinking vinegar and the stench will be reduced, and you can also see it in the urine, when it's starts to be clear! Urine by the way is connected to sweat.

I did a translation for a Danish watch Company on the effects of sweat and nickel, they used synthesised sweat from urine, because of the waste products that are sweated out of the body through skin. So it is to do with diet and cleansing, special vinegars can eliminate the BO.! Food aromas do seep through the skin pores.

Imagine when i was in Beijing, I was asked why do all western people smell like cheese My first thought was all the dairy products we consume, then I thought why do you smell like garlic and Asian spice. Cheese OMG I'm glad my Taiwanese wife loves Cheese! That was all i needed for my mind to travel in virtual space contemplating what i would really love to eat! Durian perhaps, can you imagine it! Now calm down follks, those that love Durian I mean! I'm still into the leathers and handcuffs from the 60's! Uniforms too!