Submitted by admin on Sun, 2005-11-27 09:00. ::
PROJECTED onto a white screen was an image, magnified 400 times, of hundreds of spermatozoa swimming like hyperactive tadpoles. The ones that were not were dead, that is.
So active, so scary, I thought, after seeing sperm up close and personal for the first time. Then I pitied the little guys, as they were all dressed up with nowhere to go.
I could relate to them, as that was the way I felt at the Sexpo, the first exhibition on matters sexual to be hosted by staid Singapore. It took only a Warholian 15 minutes to visit all 59 exhibitors.
Before going to the three-day Sexpo, which opened on Nov 18, I had thought allowing it to happen was such a great idea that I wanted to send a bottle of champagne to Singapore's Prime Minister, Lee Hsien Loong.
No penis rings. No genital ticklers. No abnormally huge vibrators. No blow-up, anatomically correct dolls. The Government had deemed those items “too hot”. Oh, and no nudity, of course.
Hall 4 at the country's exhibition centre in Changi, Singapore Expo, was divided into two sections: Bedroom, which displayed sex-related exhibits and adult toys strictly for visitors above 21, and Living Room.
Among the array was a jade carving of a penis that used to be worshipped. It was little more than 7cm (3 inches) long. I wondered why it deserved to be worshipped.
A curious item that made me wince was the Donkey's Saddle. Women who committed adultery were punished by parading them on a donkey; the animal would be wearing a saddle bearing a wooden carving of a male organ that was inserted into the woman, explained the note below the 5,000-year-old artefact.
Among the items on display was an S$115 (RM253) remote control vibrating pleasure panty; sexy velvet/satin, firm-fitting elastic, removable vibe with batteries, said the blurb.
A 60-something man – with his arms seemingly disapprovingly folded at first – stared at it for a while before gingerly picking it up and turning it over several times. Almost as if he was fondling it?.
A waterproof thumping bunny with dual motors held his interest. I wondered what he would do if he received the S$115 (RM253) “powerful, multi-speed, pearlised, totally waterproof and sensuously soft” present for Christmas.
Also in the Bedroom section was sex-friendly furniture. For sale at S$1,300 (RM2,860) was an ordinary-looking British-made sofa that could be manoeuvred into different shapes to facilitate a range of lovemaking positions.
In the Living Room, exhibitors sold massage chairs, lingerie, books and pillowcases. Boring stuff, according to Claus Kroyer, managing director of www.justdate.com.sg, an online dating service.
But I'm complaining. Compared to the Sexpo in Melbourne, Australia, that I visited in 2002, Sexpo Singapore 2005 was like a woman who teased but did not deliver.
“How's the Sexpo?,” I asked Dr Judy Kuriansky, a world-renowned clinical and sex therapist who has written many books on the subject, including the Complete Idiot's Guide to Tantric Sex (2002, Alpha Books, ISBN: 0-02864-175-2).
What should be included in the next Sexpo, suggested the New Yorker, are “edutainment” films that teach couples to have sex in romantic spots, such as bathtubs and balconies.
“It's very important because it helps people overcome the four ‘ugliness' aspects of sex: embarrassment, shame, fear and guilt,” she explained.
“More exhibits on the sex culture of other countries,” said Andy Chen, a 21-year-old who is doing his national service and who had come with his 21-year-old girlfriend, Kathryn Teo. “The exhibition is limited to items that you can buy from Singapore stores,” he explained, which meant the exhibition was, well, limited. Very.
What was limitless during the three-day exhibition were seminars with titles like The Art of Love Making, Enhancing Sexual Gratification, The Feng Shui of Sex, Infertility and Treatment and Basic Facts on HIV & the Status of HIV in Singapore.
The doctor was a funny speaker but after the one-hour talk, I had learnt only two new things: the male's most sensitive zone is the raphae, which is a ridge through the midline of the scrotum, and that most of the positions in the Karma Sutra are impossible.
The sex therapist conducted a demonstration on trust with Chen and his girlfriend; he had to walk his blindfolded partner around the stage. It was too mild for me. Trust for me is when you blindfold a woman and leave her wondering if those fingers caressing her are yours?.
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