If 2021 felt like a blur, the easing of Covid-19 rules in Singapore this year meant the return to at least some form of normality.

But with every bright spot this year – the easing of travel restrictions and packed stadium concerts – there were fresh concerns like how expensive 'cai fan' is these days.

By the end of it all, the headlines of some of these stories have surely got us hooked. 

To celebrate the end of 2022, here are the stories that got us talking this year.

Angry Causeway commuters

After two years of eerie silence, the Causeway jam is back.

While the Singapore-Malaysia land borders reopening in April led to tears of joy and bittersweet reunions, there were also fights on the Causeway that made us shake our heads.

First, there was the mother-son duo that was seen blocking another Singapore-registered car, ripping its licence plate and throwing it at the windscreen.

They were soon nabbed by Malaysian police, but their image of defiance – the mother crossing her arms in the middle of the road – will live on in recent memory, and on our computer screens.

And just a month later in August, a Malaysian driver cut in front of another car after crossing the Tuas Second Link and flashed his passport at a fellow countryman.

There were those who "behaved like monkeys" while being stuck in snaking queues, while others got creative (and hungry). 

Singaporeans facing trouble across the border

There were also incidents of Singaporeans facing trouble in Malaysia – some of them all too familiar. 

A family was asked to cough up "coffee money" after being told that they had "committed a serious offence" at the Johor Bahru Checkpoint. 

Another also vowed not to drive to Malaysia – after "spending a fortune" to replace $8,000 worth of car parts that was stolen. 

Even leaving Malaysia was problematic for several Singaporeans. This family was stuck in traffic on the Causeway for a whopping seven hours. 

Maybe it's better to go to Europe instead. 

No Malaysian chicken for dinner

Even as we welcome the reopened borders, fresh chickens from Malaysia were not allowed into Singapore for months.

The solution for some? Packing whole chickens inside their luggage like souvenirs.

Dubbed the "chicken rice crisis', it has led to hawkers raising prices of the beloved dish, and some shutting their stalls.

Opportunist folks on the internet looked to cash in too, with a "rare" plate of chicken rice going for a mind-boggling $999.

When the export ban was lifted in October, not all Singaporeans were warmed by the return of fresh Malaysian chickens.

Eyebrow-raising hawker food prices

The affordability of hawker food has been called into question more than once this year – with inflation and the Russia-Ukraine war exacerbating the rising cost of living.

The prices that raised eyebrows? $11 for 'cai fan' at an Ang Mo Kio coffee shop that has a diner crying 'robbery', or what about $3.50 for just rice and bean sprouts?

While diners are making a din online, hawkers like this tofu and cai fan hawker had to come out to defend their exorbitant food prices.

If you are looking for ways to stretch your dollar, makciks sure know best.

Wildlife gone rogue?

With the lifting of Covid-19 restrictions, the crowds are back.

Were the wildlife here just as eager to roam the streets?

Besides a wild boar in Yishun that sparked a 12-day hunt after knocking a woman unconscious, there was also a bevy of otters that chased a jogger in West Coast Park.

These adorable animals were not to be trifled with. They left unsuspecting pedestrians with injuries, and several homeowners in tears after otters wiped out their prized fishes.

Monkeys were also causing a scene this year, from sneaking into toilets and raiding kitchens.

Here's to learning to coexist with wildlife better in 2023. 

chingshijie@asaiaone.com

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