Symphony of zombies

I think nearly eight years ago, I had to take the train from Raffles Place on a weekday morning. That was the first time I experienced the Symphony of Zombies.

As I walked towards the train station around 8.30am, there was a surge of morning human traffic flowing against my direction. Every single working adult had the same aim - to get out of the station and into their work places. Their shoes clattered, their heels clonked. No one exchanged words. It was a symphony of eerie morning rush. The sights and sounds in North Korea's mysterious subway probably bear some resemblance, just minus the clutter of commercial messages at our train station.

Today, I was there again at about the same time. Same surge, same direction. No one spoke, yet the symphony was clearly beyond audible. It was almost like a well-rehearsed mass display, without the fireworks since it was underground. Some of them had earphones plugged to them. Maybe there was a conductor instructing about their correct positions and timings. I looked at those faces and I thought about the stories behind them. Only a few folks were running; the rest walked briskly. Maybe they weren't looking forward to heading to their destinations. I looked at those faces and I thought about what they did before their weekends ended. Maybe they had some exciting adventures? I thought about what was driving them, maybe someone was badly ill, maybe someone had years of education to complete, maybe they were getting their promotions in a few months.

I shot a short video of the mass display. Everyone was just so in sync - coming out from the gates and walking towards the same escalators. All the escalators moved only in one direction. There were a few lost sheep who walked against the crowd. They had to walk down the stairs since there was no escalator planned for them. Just like me. I walked against the flow. Maybe I was one of the performers too. Just that I was lost. Or maybe I hated the conductor and wanted to screw up his show.

Or maybe I was just too early for my appointment and had too much fun watching these poor souls rushing to work on a Monday morning while I was on leave.