What's it really like to live in Singapore?

[rohit99]

Originally Posted by ricardo blue

Hi DS,

Although Singapore is not a place I would imagine myself feeling particually comfortable in (probably due to my liking for self expression, freedom of movement, political views and fondness of drugs). I found a list of good and bad things about the place that you might find interesting.....if not amusing.


5 good things about the city

§ You are never too far away from anywhere. You can reach any place within 1 hour, even at peak hours.
§ There is a shopping mall around every nook and corner-->your girlfriend/ wife will be happy-->you will be happy.
§ You can get food 24/7 and you can get all kinds of food.
§ The sex ratio is skewed in favour of females, most of whom believe in the maxim - less is more.
§ Everything is so bloody well planned and efficient!

5 bad things about the city

§ You are never too far away from office or for that matter, home. No refreshing change, whatsoever.
§ The underground remains crowded even on weekends - full of shoppers and their unfortunate boyfriends/husbands/noisy kids.
§ Much of the small talk is dominated by food - new places to eat & new cuisines to try - that's all people talk about!
§ All the females look alike and you can never tell whether they are aged 13 or 30.
§ There is no excitement - its never unpredictable!

5 odd things about the city

§ People like to make out on escalators in train stations.
§ The Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) services are not that efficient - they can stop in the middle of the tunnel, the doors of the train and those of the platform may not necessarily match and to top it all, they don't even announce which side of the train the next platform is on! (whoa Kolkata Metro rocks!)
§ Booze is so damn overpriced!
§ You'll see more elderly people than children on the streets - the birth rate is like the 10th lowest in the world and the Government provides financial incentives to people having babies!
§ Discussing politics is taboo.

5 ugly things about the city

§ There is a surveillance camera everywhere.
§ Freedom of speech? - even the Singaporeans accept the absence of that la!
§ There is no concept of a family dinner; husbands, wives and children are known to eat out at their favourite joints before coming home.
§ Taxi drivers are amazingly some of the most racist people on the road.
§ And yes - who can forget - Death to Drugs!!

regards,

Ricardo

Very true , Ricardo

I am from India and have lived in Singapore for some time. I can share the same feelings with you.
Keep it up

[ecureilx]

Originally Posted by rohit99

Very true , Ricardo

I am from India and have lived in Singapore for some time. I can share the same feelings with you.
Keep it up

Sorry to be a bit rude, but I only I hear complaints of "lack of political freedom" and wierd stuff like "there is CCTV everywhere", mostly from guys who havent travelled the world, or lived in expensive places of the world..

You guys have to step out of your Cocoon and see the rest of the world.

Did you also know Singapore has the lowest crime rate in the world ?

Did you also know Singapore has one of the world's best Social Security System ? As well as the one of the best medical care system, for CITIZENS.

Well, I dont know about you guys, I would gladly trade in whatever Indian guys rant about, in favor of Safety and security and efficiency.

A rhetoric question: would you feel safe sending your 18 year old sister on a taxi ride, all alone, at midnight hour, on a 2 or 3 hour journey ?? Guess that is the best thing you can do in LA or NYC. Forget DRIVE BY SHOOTINGS or WRONG IDENTITY and getting murdered for resembling somebody else.

Well, in Singapore, you see young drunk girls fearlessly hailing cabs at 2 or 3 in the morning and heading home safely.

And while you get news reports of crime, the crimes are like 1% of what you get in neighboring countries. Across SEA, most of the countries crime reported is Shooting, armed robbery, murder, rape, gang fights with guns, and cars getting hijacked with the drivers and the driver being shot and dumped.. etc.

Singapore reports serious crimes such as molest, petty thievery, and neighbors fighting.

Guess you guys have to see the world. In Malaysia, every pawn shop has atleast 2 or 3 guys with shotgun and in Philippines even 7-11 shops have armed guards. And normally you see convoys of cars when a senator is passing by, in Indonesia.

And rich people cant even take a peep out of their balcony, in Some other South Asian Countries

And it only takes a careless thing as not locking the steering lock in your car, and your car is gone in 5 minutes.

Not in Singapore.

As for the racism part, well, if you behave like Romans, when in Rome, you get treated properly. When you start to throw off your fancy 5 figure salary and demand respect, people turn into racists. Guess you guys havent seen racism, if you say people in Singapore is racists.

Anyway, sorry if this sounds like a serious rant. I been here for 10 years, and used to think like you guys, wondering why Politics is rarely discussed or is taboo.

There are more important things such as safety, security, and well managed environment. Atleast for me.

Ricardo Blue - dont tell me you are also from India. Indians discussing politics is like having food daily.

Cheers guys, and have a nice day.

ps: I hope this does not turn into a Singapore Bashing thread. The forum is for people to share good information and not to bash any country I presume.

[autumnstar]

Lol ecureilx, well said! I feel most westerns get treated fairly well here, but in SEA, Singapore is truly the best place to live IF you had to choose.

[Super_gx]

I've lived in Singapore aka 'Asia Lite' for 2 years now.

Getting a decent haircut is the thing that has eluded me throughout my stay.
You can go to a fancy salon or a community barber. I've never been able to find anybody who can cut my hair properly. I dont know what other guys of Afro Caribbean/African descent do..

That said, that is possibly the ONLY bad thing I can say about the place.
You have to come here and kind of NOT compare it to what you can do or get in another place...if that makes sense?!?!

One thing you will notice is the general level of friendliness and warmth you receive from people. The weather is nice (When its not thundering with rain) and people are generally in a good mood.

As previously mentioned, transport is great, so finding accommodation in an affordable area can be a breeze.

Singapore, like its living space is quite small, However, its located in a great spot in SEA which just invites you to skip to a neighboring area for a cheap getaway.

If you do plan to come over here to live, be aware that in most cases, you will be expected to fork out for the following in advance:

- A goodwill deposit when making an offer to rent somewhere.
- 1 Months rent (2 months if you go for a 2 year lease)
- A Security deposit
- Estate agents commission (Usually equal to your monthly rental cost)
- Utilities costs (To register the utilities in your name)
- Stamp duty (No idea what this is for, but this is paid when signing your rental agreement)

Having $7k to $12k would give you a comfortable threshold to set up shop.
(In remote cases, your company might help you with the initial living costs, this is on a case by case basis though)

Good luck with your decision.

[ini_niki]

Originally Posted by DesertStranded

Yeah, here in Dubai the rent is outrageously expensive. The revenue generated by Real Estate surpasses even the revenue they make off of oil, even in these days of high gas prices. Likewise, there is the illusion of democracy here as well. The price of goods and groceries is the same as the states. Work hours are long and employers are known for taking advantage of non-Western employees.

I was just wondering if the salaries in Singapore would be enough to cover rent. Here, about 75% of my husband's salary goes towards rent, then a large chunk goes towards transportation. Since there is no effective public transport here yet we have to use taxis or rental cars. I'd like to find a place where we could live for 2 yrs. and afford rent & transport and actually be able to save some money while we wait for his greencard.

Hi ...

I know you posted this in November ... so not sure if you're still wondering ... and unfortunately you've probably missed the boat re: hiring freezes ... due to the economic crisis ...

Still ...

Living in Singapore is awesome ... I love it. Mind you I have a background of living in Asia so I'm used to the Asian way of life ... but Sing has the best of all worlds.

Rent can be expensive -- if you want to spend stupid amounts of money you can ie. US$15,000 per month on a penthouse / mansion ... but you can also spend under S$2,000 for a 2 bed / 2 bath HDB (govt. housing) apartment located centrally, with air-con in bedrooms ... like me. Transport is minimal ... if you want to be 'atas' (posh) you can waste your money on a car ... otherwise the MRT / bus system is cheap, clean and goes everywhere. Otherwise you can get a cab ... also cheap / clean and goes to the rare places that the mrt / bus doesn't.

Food is super cheap ... esp. veges etc if you buy at wet markets ...

What you will be paying heaps for is alcohol - v expensive compared to US, UK, Aust; but might be cheaper than Dubai ... no idea.

And of course, like anywhere, if you want to buy branded goods you'll be spending big.

Re: schools -- these are expensive if you've got kids and want to send them to expat schools.

Re: jobs -- this is a problem at the moment. Singapore is not untouched by the current crisis. Lots of tech / IT jobs here are already with 'cheaper' employees ie. from India / China (which helps as the four official languages here are Eng / Mandarin / Malay / Tamil) ... so unless your partner has a super specialised skill that only he can perform, it's highly unlikely that you'll find work easily at the moment.

But that doesn't mean dont try ...

Singapore is the perfect blend of East and West for me ... it's got all the benefits of Asia - culture, food, colour, languages, communal attitude - and all the best of Europe/Aust - safe, clean, ease of lifestyle, health, fashion, freedom for women etc ...

The weather is hot and humid -- but everything is airconditioned -- the shopping is awesome and the people are lovely ...

And on top of this the govt actively wants expats to come here ... but yeah, there are problems re: getting visas ... if you don't have a job (or certain huge ammount of cash) you can't get a visa ... and also visa versa kind of ...

I know, I know ... I sound like I should work for the tourism association

but really ... Singapore is great

[ecureilx]

ini_kimi - completely agree with your comments.

[ini_niki]

Thanks ... I really do love living in SG!

[autumnstar]

ini_niki, nice to have people like you around. I guess it's good everyone loves to move(whether it's just westerners moving to asian country or vice versa) but you must always note the pros and cons.

[ecureilx]

my 2 cents advice - when in rome, be like romans, and life is good ..

[ini_niki]

Actually compared to other places I've lived ... Singapore property prices are relatively cheap. You can get a HDB (govt apartment) with 2 beds / 2 baths / air-con / indoor laundry room and very centrally located for under S$2,000/mth ... that's where I'm living. You can also get much cheaper places or similar cost but with fewer rooms in less central areas ... like East Coast / Jurong etc ...

It depends on what your requirements are -- like anything -- if you want a posh lifestyle you pay for it; but you can live cheaply too.

But would suggest that biggest issue re: moving to Singapore would be whether or not you can get work.

The economic crisis has slowed down most companies ... there are hiring freezes all over ... and unless you / your partner have a very specific / unique skill it's unlikely that you'll find work easily. Mind you ... it's the same all over the world at the moment