Handpicked

Introduce yourself and tell us a fun fact about yourself!
My name is Serin, and if I could eat only one food for the rest of my life, I think it would be sushi, like raw seafood.

You must like Japan a lot then.
Yes, I’ve been to Japan multiple times now, in fact. Still, I’ve just been alternating between the golden trio of states that every Singaporean visits—Tokyo, Osaka, and Kyoto. But soon, I think in the next few years, I’m going to try venturing out more into the suburbs that are not very well-known to explore more of the local sights.

What’s your favourite thing to do when you visit Japan?
Take in the cold weather! And I know it may sound a bit creepy, but I also like to people watch. Sometimes I just take a seat by the riverbank or stay in the corner of a street and just listen to the white noise of people walking by. It really immerses you in a place and it feels so different from doing it in Singapore—the language, the culture, the tone of voice, and the style is so different!

Japanese fashion is really the A-game I would say. It’s very noticeable, especially when you go to amusement parks or other thematic areas. They really dress up for the occasion there, and the Disney otakus are a real eye-opener. Besides that, the street culture in Japan is very outstanding as well.

If given the choice, would you move to Japan?
No. I love to visit as a tourist for leisure, but if I had to live my whole life in another country, I would choose Australia. I’ve been there in the ;last year with some very good girlfriends of mine, and I love the semi-slow pace pace of life there. It was actually quite similar to Singapore in many aspects, but oh, my God, the coffee culture there is really amazing! Everything from the aroma to the beans that they use and the heart that they put into each cup—you can taste it all from the first sip.

Needless to say, I was a caffeine addict in Melbourne (laughs). I’d drink three cups or more each day!

Let’s talk a bit about work now—we hear you used to be a wedding coordinator? How did that gig come about?
It was an opportunity that an ex-colleague of mine handed my way. She was moving to this company, and after she settled in, she asked if I would be interested in joining her as one of the coordinators, so I said “Okay, sure, why not?”. I studied events management in school, so to me, weddings were a way for me to test out the industry. I was there for about a year and a few months before I quit.

So how many weddings did you work on in that time?
Approximately 60.

What? That’s insane!
Yeah! I was working balls, day and night, and had clients messaging me at 2AM about their guests’ dietary restrictions!

What are some of the fondest memories you have of that crazy time in your life?
It’s a bit funny, but I do enjoy collecting the leftover flowers from each wedding, especially when the clients have ordered a ton of fresh flowers. During the teardown process, sometimes the couple just can’t take them all back with them, so they’ll ask us all to just take it. I don’t know why, maybe it’s a Singaporean thing, but not many people take them willingly, but dude, there are carnations, roses, hibiscus—these flowers are expensive! Who would you not want to bring some of them home?

So naturally, I’d oblige and make my own little bouquets for my side table at home. It freshens up the table whenever I’m home doing work. Yeah I do miss getting fresh flowers for free on the regular.

That said, what would your dream job be?
I don’t want to work at all! (laughs)

But okay, my dream is to just enjoy life without much financial setbacks. I want to follow the wind and see where it takes me, and live my life discovering new things.