A Vibrant Expression

Can you introduce yourself and what you do?

Hi, my name is Orlie, and I’m a product designer. I’m actually based in Japan, and I work within the automotive industry. I can’t go too much into what I do, it’s a bit hush-hush.

What do you do in your free time?

I recently got into doing my nails, so I’ve just been obsessed with doing little fun nail designs over the weekend. I enjoy just putting on my favourite streamers and spending the day doing my nails. And then I like to go out within Tokyo to just explore neighbourhoods and shop and eat with my friends. I also do some studying to improve my Japanese.

What brings you to Singapore?

For a holiday. I used to live in Singapore – I went to college here, and then I worked here for a bit. My partner’s also here, we’re doing long distance. So yeah, I just came here to spend time with him, and also some of my friends here.

Awh, that’s really sweet! What are some of the quirks of long distance relationship?

I feel like it’s all about communication and you have to be willing to put in the work, because that’s kind of all you have. You don’t have each other physically, so you have to be willing to make the time and effort to talk to them. Obviously, it gets very monotonous, and it becomes like a routine. But, I think it’s up to you guys to still make it fun and keep that connection. If there’s any troubles or worries,  you have to talk it out or else you’re just gonna place assumptions on them – that’s not very healthy. If anything, I think it really helps with your communication skills.

What’s your favourite memory from 2026 so far?

This year I travelled a bit. My mom came to Japan in April and we went to Hokkaido together. It was so nice, we ate a lot of yummy seafood. And then I recently went to China for the first time. It was very fun, and my partner was with me. And now we’re spending time in Singapore together. So it’s been very memorable this year.

For foreigners who want to go to Japan, what’s one city that you would recommend?

Honestly I feel like I haven’t travelled around in Japan that much yet, but I would recommend Hokkaido. It’s such an awesome place, any part is really fun. The seafood is just absolutely delicious, and it’s way less crowded than Tokyo.