A little side-tracking is no problem, it happens a lot.
My sister speaks mandarin fluently and she gets better treatment, I guess since no one expects a white person to speak mandarin. So she can get very good treatment, generally speaking. I know that Singaporeans are usually made fun of for their accent in speaking mandarin when they go to other countries. Oh well, it is a great country and I love it. And you DO have AWESOME food! I admire you for going healthy choice!!!!! Hard to do! Singaporean food tastes sooooo good I don't even feel guilty afterwards!
The interesting thing is that I was the slimmest in my whole adult life while I was in Singapore! Before and after I was/am a little heavier, the same clothes don't fit :-( Strange, huh?