Entries tagged with 'hawker centers'
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Snapshots from Asia: To 'Chope' a Seat

In Singapore, to chope something is roughly the equivalent of "I bag this!" or "I've got dibs!" Growing up, my brother and I would race to the family sedan, competing to slap our palms against the front passenger’s seat window—the first to get there and hence winner would yell chope! loud and clear, thus claiming his “prize” for the road trip. Chope is also a talisman of sorts to ward off “evil”: in grown-up terms, whoever yells chope last gets to inform the boss of the firm’s budget deficit. In this case, what looks like an innocuous pack of tissues on a hawker center or food court stool is actually shorthand for “Chope! This seat is taken!” Bewildered tourists have...

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Post a Comment | Posted by Wan Yan Ling, July 12, 2007 at 2:15 PM
Tagged: hawker centers, Singapore, Snapshots from Asia