I went to meet SOB this week. In a taxi. I mean I went in a taxi, not that I met him in a taxi. That would have been weird. Imagine doing a full gynaecological exam in a taxi. Actually, don't, sorry, I apologise for even suggesting it. Anyway, I got into this taxi and asked to go to such-and-such medical centre please, and the taximan said sure and pulled away from the curb and around the corner.

"You know," he said conversationally, once we'd got going, "in Singapore each different hospital has its own speciality. If you have kidney trouble, you go to the X hospital. If maybe something wrong with your heart, you go to Y hospital. But when a woman gets into my taxi and ask to go to such-and-such medical centre, must be very careful. Maybe just go for checkup, or have some woman's problem, or to visit a friend in maternity. I have one child, a daughter, she's twenty-four, she said to me, 'Baba, just because a woman is going to such-and-such medical centre in your taxi, you should not take for granted you can tell her congratulations.'"

"What a wise young woman," I replied.

"So..." he continued, looking sideways at my abdominal region.

"Check-up."

"Ah."

On beta day I'm going to catch public transport.

SOB was recommended to be by a midwife who frequents expat boards giving advice on the Singaporean OB/GYN system to those who need to know. She posts messages about parent support groups, OBs who are ok with home births, which hospital to go to for which prenatal test, and who to see if you want to discuss the fact that you haven't fallen pregnant yet. She seems to know everyone involved in the reproductive industry, from confinement nurses to embryologists. And she's forever urging people to feel free to contact her by email if they need more information. So I did. I gave her specific instructions on what I wanted SOB's role to be, and she replied and gave me the name of a doctor she thought would fit well. And then she gave me her phone number because as an Australian expat and former IVF/ICSI patient, she wanted to offer to listen if I wanted to talk.

My heart overflows with the milk of human kindness. And maybe there's bit of "once a Stirrup Queen..."

The appointment itself went well. SOB is used to working with fertility patients, and is happy to test according to the schedule I'm used to. He's also happy to order extra testing in case of freak-outs and can get me my beta results within hours, six days a week. The nursing and reception staff were efficient and helpful, and the whole thing gave me a feeling of confidence, which is handy, because Mr Bea's still set on the idea of delivering in Singapore, should the opportunity present itself. Romantic that he is, he doesn't want to miss out. Of course, before we can have that argument, we need something to miss out on.

One week til fly day.