13Some days, Ping had to pinch herself. Juniper Garden was another universe. A secluded, tree-lined Eden of sundrenched, two-storey bungalows with large gardens and green lawns hedged and fenced in, protected by burglar alarms and gates with signs that warned, “Beware of Dog”.
Majestic raintrees shaded the lanes which had few passers- by except the maids walking their dogs in the evening. The estate had attracted those riding the crest of Singapore’s newfound prosperity. Businessmen, lawyers and doctors had bought houses here, stocking them with the emblems of their new wealth. Every other house had two cars under the porch, a rock pool stocked with Japanese carp, or a swimming pool in the back yard.
In the afternoon, when she returned from school, a sunlit silence descended upon the roa
