I love this particular New Year's Day.

I think it's because of the long weekend. Everyone is pretty laid back. Today I went with Mum down to Somerset 313 to do some shopping. The MRT train ride there was pleasantly quiet. No hustle and bustle of rush hour, during which the trains are so packed that I'm pressed up against the doors.

As the train was travelling along, I looked out over a grassy field. It was dotted with groups of foreign workers sitting together. Meanwhile, the passengers in the train were chatting quietly among themselves. Families with children and baby strollers had come out in droves, the parents finally able to find time to bring the kids out. In discreet areas, couples huddled together, whispering to each other and sharing an intimate joke. Some teenagers were gossiping in a corner, their tittering serving to heighten the atmosphere of leisure as the train sped, slower than usual, under an evening sky.

Everyone, it seemed, was using this period to have a short breather. A little break from the usual hectic pace of Singaporean life. .

So have a relaxing New Year's Day. I won't make any resolutions (cos I never keepy them). Once Monday hits we'll all be thrown back into the rat race.

But at least for now... it's peaceful.