Mandai Boardwalk

We went to Mandai Boardwalk on Lunar New Year's Day, today. 

Starting point of Mandai Boardwalk

It was a cloudy cool day with light breeze, perfect for a nice easy 7 km round trip walk, with Seletar Reservoir on one side, river wonder or the Zoo at the other side. Emerald water, green trees and plants, the green color permeated the surrounding. It was soothing to my eyes.  

The trail is flat all the way except the stairs at the entrance near river wonder/the zoo. 

It was quiet and peaceful as well,  except occasionally bird calls or animal sound from the Zoo or River Wonders. Despite the crowd at the boardwalk,  we spotted a few birds along the way, an ash Tailorbird, a flock of birds with shiny black/green feathers,  and an iora which I  just got to know from a signage at the end, returning point of the trail. We also saw some interesting/unique plants/flowers.

glossy starling

Alocasia Longgiloba

Ash Tailor Bird

Iora nest sculpture - turn around point of the board walk

Near the end of the walk, it occurred to me that I had been more aware of Malay people than others. I was pretty sure there were more non Malays there. Thinking about it, I realized that when I belong to a minority group of a crowd, I am more aware of people similar to me, when I belong to the majority group of a crowd, I am more aware of people different from me. There are several terms for this cognitive tendency, salience bias* is one of them, see notes at the end for more information.  

It was a pleasant 2 hour leisure walk.

The Mandai Boardwalk trail

Notes

*

Salience Bias – People tend to notice things that stand out in a given context. When you are in the minority, people similar to you stand out more. When you are in the majority, people who are different from you stand out.

other related concepts

Distinctiveness Effect / Solo Status Effect – People are more aware of their unique characteristics in a given setting. If you are the only one (or one of the few) from a particular group, you are more conscious of others who share that identity.

Ingroup Awareness vs. Outgroup Awareness – When you're in the minority, you look for a sense of belonging and focus on others like you. When you're in the majority, your attention shifts to those who are different because they seem more novel or unexpected.

**

The entrance to the trail is near River Wonder, follow the sign to River wonder if you get there at carpark first.  There is a sign for Mandai Boardwalk near the entrance to River Wonder