Modern and Efficient Singapore

October 25, 2013

Earlier in Vietnam I had booked my flight from Ho Chi Minh City to Singapore. I left Vietnam on the 27th of July, the last day of my visa! There were certainly things I didn't see that I wish I had - Halong Bay and Dalat being two of the biggies - but overall I felt as if the four weeks I spent in Vietnam was sufficient. If I had more time or had planned it out in advance, buying a motorbike and driving the length of the country would have been amazing. For any of you who would consider it, just a piece of advice: try to avoid highway 1 and take the road less traveled!

The difference between Vietnam and Singapore is enormous. Ho Chi Minh City is like the wild west compared to the clean, organized, and modern streets of Singapore. The country is only 276 square miles (716 square kilometers)! With a little over 5 million people Singapore is basically a city state with little undisturbed natural habitat remaining (although there are some great parks in the city).

The main island of Singapore is within sight of Malaysia
and not far from Sumatra, Indonesia either

A street in Singapore...

...compared to Ho Chi Minh City

The city has a reputation for cleanliness - spitting and even chewing gum is illegal! If you have ever been to China (most of Singapore's residents are ethnically Chinese) you understand why the spitting rule was put into place. In addition to cleanliness Singapore is also rich - and unfortunately for tourists, a heck of a lot more expensive than the rest of SE Asia! Singapore is both one of the top five global financial centers and shipping ports. GDP per capita, or the average wealth per person of the country, is higher than that of the US or any large European country. It's a bit easier to reach that level with just over 5 million people, but it hurts travelers' wallets all the same.

This is how they keep the city so clean!

I actually didn't spend nearly as much as most tourists do in Singapore. One of the most expensive costs of living for locals is real estate. Consequently that makes hotels and hostels pricey too. I arranged to couchsurf for the first three nights and then stayed with a friend the rest of the week, so at least I saved on room. The food actually isn't too bad price wise - if you stick to the local food stalls - and the quality is hard to beat. You can get great Malay, Indian, and Chinese food around town.

A hawker center, or food court, the best source of c
heap and delicious food in Singapore.

The Couchsurfing host I stayed with initially is from the Philippines and works for an IT company in the city. It's sad to say but the most valuable export coming out the Philippines is the people! Filipinos work around the world, from cruise ships to the Arabian peninsula to Europe and send money home to their family; at least it is a way out of poverty. Mike, my host, was super friendly and invited me out to a house party with his coworkers the night I arrived.

After spending a few days with Mike I met up with Justin and his girlfriend. Justin went to Ohio State and we met on a study abroad internship in Canada. His girlfriend is also from Ohio but has family in Singapore, and as it turns out they were visiting at the same time. For the first few days they were actually touring Thailand, but when they came back offered to let me stay with the family.

We did a lot of walking and exploring around the city, similar to how I had been doing it during the rest of the trip. It was nice to see an old friend and have companions while sightseeing. Together we went to little India, an Arab market, bike riding on Pulau Ubin (one of Singapore's 63 islands), and to Chinese and Japanese gardens. Near Little India I tried bouldering for the first time. Its a sport similar to rock climbing but without ropes or harnesses. You can train indoors on short artificial boulders (which we did). Below are mats that cushion your fall. Justin had tried a few times, and his girlfriend Steph is an expert, so they made me look silly! The short courses may not look hard but are a workout! Take a look at this video if you are interested: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4QrvLoxFAM4

I quickly found out that bouldering is hard work!

On Saturday night I went with Justin and Stephanie to meet my couchsurfing buddy Mike on a pub crawl. Alcohol in Singapore is heavily taxed so drinking isn't cheap (on a different night Justin, Steph and I had visited Raffles hotel where they tried the famous Singapore sling for a cool 30 bucks!). Joining the pub crawl cost 20 Singapore dollars (about $15 USD). It got us a free shot at four bars (albeit a fruity one) and drink specials. The beers were half off - only 6 or 7 dollars as opposed to $12 or more! Like I said, drinking can get expensive. The pub crawl fee also got us free entry into a club, which was our last destination for the night. All and all it was a fun time.

I had been trying to book my flight to Indonesia while in Singapore but had a few issues with the site. I finally had to call the company and book over the phone - since I waited until two days before the price went up, but it wasn't much more than $100 - not bad. I was scheduled to fly from Singapore to Medan, on the Indonesian island of Sumatra. Unfortunately Justin and Steph couldn't join me, so I was back on my own. But as I'll explain later it turned out just fine!

Here are some pics I took exploring Singapore: