SingaCorps, err, Singapore

We’ll take away a lot of wonderful memories from Singapore.  These include:

• Best zoo ever – actually feels like you’re in the jungle.  The zoo also includes a night safari - apparently nocturnal animals are more active after dark. 
• Great ethnic neighborhoods that maintain some semblance of authenticity, unlike much of Singacorps.  In 24 hours, we were in India, the Middle East, Thailand, Malaysia, and China - we obviously ate about 6 meals a day. 
• Festival season!  We timed our arrival in Singapore to coincide with Chinese New Year, and we’re glad we did it.  In the couple of days leading up to the New Year (Gong Xi Fa Cai, by the way – it’s the year of the metal rabbit!), the streets were packed with non-stop night markets.  We were surprised to find Chinatown had become Ghosttown after the New Year; apparently families like to be with each other for the holidays.  But we did stumble upon some Temple ceremonies – we got to see an authentic dragon dance (checked off the bucket list).  Also, there have been ceremonies at most of the (many) Hindu Temples we’ve visited.  Tis the season! 

• The food!  We’ve loved every meal and become proficient in hawker food court culture.
• Architecture!  Some very bizarre skyscrapers and very colorful/intricate shophouses in quaint colonial neighborhoods. 

• Merlion.  Singacorps can’t seem to decide on a mascot, so it went with its top two choices: Mermaid and Lion.  We stumbled upon three absolutely ridiculous merlion statues, and there must be more…

• Auntie Ainu.  Our hostel manager shared her lifestory (unsolicited), cooked for us (unsolicited – but delicious), and brought us to her favorite noodle stand in Chinatown (solicited, but we didn’t expect her to lead us through back alleys in the middle of a raucous New Years Eve celebration).

However, something still seems a bit off to us in Singapore.  In many respects, the country is run more like a corporation, with strict hierarchical governance and closed-door decision-making.  It feels like a pre-fabricated metropolis, with the population adapting to the city rather than the city adapting to the people (I kept thinking of Sim City).  We think Singapore is still trying to find its identity (for instance, looking for a cultural tourist attraction, Singacorps’ Board of Directors decided to – creatively – build a crazy-shaped opera house!  Now they have two large beige lumps on its marina shore, which supposedly resemble durians – without the smell). 

Also, while I’m ripping on this lovely, clean, delicious, hospitable city-state (it really is nice – such an easy place to stay), let me take the opportunity to bash Sentosa Island, which is a completely synthetic island designed for tourists.  It felt like Disneyland, but without the rides.  Or imagination.  And, trying to escape Sentosa Prison, we got to enjoy Disneyland-esque lines.

One last complaint: With de facto one-party government and state-run media (top headline in Monday’s newspaper: “90% of Singaporeans Satisfied!”), there isn’t much political discussion.  The furthest we got with a local was, “Osama bad, Obama good,” an eye-opening revelation we heard in Indonesia quite a bit as well (in Indonesia, one coffee farmer told us “Obama is a good boy” and a taxi driver was shocked to learn that Obama only has one wife).

And there are certainly benefits of running a corporation, er, country, without any dissent.

• When the gov’t wants to build something, they do it – quickly.  Our guidebook is only 18 months out-of-date, but it’s been useless for metro stops and new ‘cultural’ attractions…
• Great public housing – actually looks livable!  We read that public housing is re-painted and re-furbished every couple of years.
• Very clean.  Like, disconcertingly clean.  At midnight on Chinese New Year, much of the city-state was in a festive mood, freely tossing mochi wrappers and Tiger beer bottles on the ground.  By 2am, on our walk back to our hostel, most of the streets had been power-washed and swept.

Singapore reminds me of Taiwan (where we taught English for a summer), but with OCD (everything must be clean and orderly!) and more diversity.  And equally amazing food and public transportation.

We enjoyed our time in Singapore very much, but we’re ready to move on.  Off to Malaysia in a few hours.