Singapore Adventure: What it means to live in Singapore

In May and July, Ana and Simon have shared with you a few bits and pieces what it means to live in Singapore. The time they have in Southeast Asia is now coming to an end and there shall be a few data points added to the picture you (and they) have gained about Singapore over the course of the year.

Efficiency

Oh how much cliché and stereotype exists in the world? How much are Western media talking about the hard working people in Asia, the ease of doing business in Singapore? Well, let’s face it – there is a lot of data that supports this idea. Ana had her working pass in less than two weeks. Simon’s appointment with the student visa authority (that he scheduled online) ended 2 minutes before the scheduled time – good that he was there early. The metro is very efficient and trains are coming when the systems says they will be coming. And the best thing, especially for living as a foreigner in this tiny island, is the automated immigration process. As Ana and Simon are both legal residents of Singapore (while they are holding employment / are studying), they can use the automated border control systems. Their passports (the foreign ones!) are linked to their resident status and as such, they can be used at the electronic gates. You scan the passport, one gate opens, you enter, the first gate closes, you have to scan your fingerprint and then the second gate opens and either off you go or you are back in Singapore. The nice touch: When you leave Singapore, the screen will say: “Bon Voyage, XXX” and when you arrive it reads: “Welcome to Singapore, XXX”.

Just enough space on the screen for all of Simon's names

Having said that, there are also things that do not work very efficiently. This is often related to the fact that people are following their guidelines / process rules without ever questioning their applicability. This was true when Simon had to go to the bank twice as they said that the signatures at different locations of the document were not similar enough and he had to explain: “You may be surprised to hear that but it is actually not the first time I sign a document.” Also, when they order food in restaurants, it happens frequently that the starter and the main dish come at the same time or – even better – the main dish before the starter. But the order was given at once, the main dish was faster to prepare and then, this is what you get…

The wild Singapore

Everyone thinks of Singapore as a city state. Thus, you may consider it as a city, maybe with a few parks but almost entirely built-up. Well, this is not true. Despite the fact that more than 5 million inhabitants live on a size smaller than the city of Hamburg or the Spanish island of Lanzarote there is surprisingly a lot of green and some of it even “wild”. It took Ana and Simon some time to find these places but they were very impressed when they climbed Bukit Timah Hill, Singapore’s largest (natural) elevation – there are many buildings that are taller. The hill is almost in the geographic center of the island and you do not hear any city sounds and you could also believe that you are somewhere in the jungle of neighboring Malaysia. There are even a bunch of monkeys.

The wild side of Singapore

Even abandoned train stations could be discovered

Ana and Simon crossing an old railway bridge

Wild monkeys in Singapore

International travel expedition reaches the top

Also the zoo is something really spectacular. Without visible barriers, you may find an Orang Utan above your head, letting a banana peel fall on your head. Definitely worth a visit.

Two lions "hanging out"

Coolest chimp in town

Singapore getting excited

In terms of stereotypes, it is also true that Singaporeans do not often show their emotions in public. This is true at work, at INSEAD and almost everywhere else where you find many people at once. They do get excited about food (as shared in the first update on Singapore in May) but that is not necessarily observable for the visitors. The closest that a foreigner could feel Singaporeans to get excited and proud of their country (with the exception of the taxi driver asking in Singlish: “How like Singapore-lah? Everything safe and clean!”) was during the Formula 1 Grand Prix. Being a place not short of setting new standards and landmarks, Singaporeans took pride in having the first night race and obviously the skyline of Singapore provides quite an impressive background. The weeks leading up to the event, there would be F1 race cars in bank buildings on Ana’s way to work, bleachers being built up and F1 parties announced everywhere. Ana and Simon were lucky to be invited to one of Ana’s colleagues who lives in the 67^th floor of one of the condominiums, overlooking about half of the track. It was incredible to hear the sounds of the mighty engines all over downtown and at the end of the race, there was a great firework – fireworks are certainly something that Singaporeans get excited about.

View over about half the cirque - on the right is the Marina Bay Sands hotel

Fireworks after Vettel won the race

Another way that usually shows people very excited is the way they celebrate weddings. Ana and Simon were lucky enough to be invited to a wedding of one of Ana’s Singaporean colleagues. For the first time in Asia, they both dressed up properly and went for a Sunday morning wedding, wearing red as the color symbolizes good fortune and joy in Chinese culture.

The ceremony started around 11AM, followed by a massive lunch. Ana’s colleague is a Chinese Singaporean and therefore, most of the events were simultaneously translated from English to Chinese - quite interesting, especially during the ceremony which was a catholic one. After the ceremony, that included wishes for well-earned promotions and career advancement, there was a short reception, followed by the actual lunch. The lunch was then the most important part of the day, with around 250 guests (incl. 3 Westerners, Ana, Simon and one other “white guy”). The food was exceptional and Ana and Simon could show the mastery of chop sticks. It was a lot of fun, incl. the married couple entering the venue (again) half way through the lunch with a singing performance. The only surprising fact for Ana and Simon was that people would leave as soon as the last course was served. The married couple was super happy that everybody came.