About

I'm Singaporean.

I love watching tourists videos by vloggers experiencing Singapore for the first time, trying out our food, and wondering at our tourists attractions.

TBH, I may have become jaded.

Unlike this visitor:

Living in the Shadow of Mt Fuji

When I saw Mt Fuji from Lake Kawaguchi, and I saw people living in the shadow of Mt Fuji, I wondered... what is it like to wake up each morning and see the famous Mt Fuji - a sight that people from all over the world travel thousands of miles to catch a glimpse of what those living in the Shadow of Mt Fuji sees every day.

In Singapore, I do not live in the shadow of Marina Bay Sands (MBS), or Gardens by the Bay (GBTB), or the Esplanade, the Merlion, or Jewel. But they are just a train ride and a walk away.

I feel sometimes that I take these for granted. Or am not adequately impressed.

So I live vicariously through these vloggers.

Living in "Disneyland with a Death Penalty" (Or in the Shadow of a Dictator)

And then there are the critics.

Who often have never even visited Singapore, in person.

Well, other than William Gibson, but I think he was here to assassinate the image of Singapore. And to get a good soundbite ("Disneyland with a Death Penalty") for his book.

Singapore is described by many armchair critics and theoretical philosophers (are there any other kind?) as having a "dark side" to our success and achievements. That Singapore is NOT TRULY DEMOCRATIC. Even AUTHORITARIAN. And (previously) run by a BENIGN DICTATOR. 

[Personal Pet Peeve: So I looked up what "Authoritarian" meant. It was defined as "valuing rules and order over personal freedoms". What does that mean? So in a non-authoritarian state, the "Authorities" may make some rules, but if some individual decide that the rules are wrong they have the personal freedom to ignore those rules? So if you don't "believe" masks protect people during the pandemic, you are free to ignore masks mandates? If you don't agree with the results of the election, you have the personal freedom to cast doubts on the outcome, reject the winner of the election, and foment an insurrection? It seems to me, that the term "authoritarianism" was hijacked by a bunch of anarchists who think rules should not apply to "independent-minded, right thinking individuals" like themselves. In other words, it is self-serving. End of rant.]

Part of the thrill of watching vloggers talk about Singapore is seeing how real people, experience Singapore. And it is not the authoritarianism or dictatorship that they experience, but the simple human convenience of living in Singapore.

Here are video interviews of foreigners who lived in Singapore for some time, and their view of the Singapore Police State:

1) Philip Merry - "I like that I feel safe, that my wife is safe anytime day or night..."

2) Ana - "If ever I leave Singapore, I will miss the Peace of Mind... Everything is just so efficient... Rules makes you free..."

3) Sally Forrest - "Living here is a blessing."

The videos above are videos of foreigners who have been in Singapore for years (20, 30 years) because they would have years of experience with living with/within the "Singapore Police State", experiencing firsthand Singapore's Authoritarianism and Dictatorship. I could post videos from tourists, but you have heard the saying, "nice place to visit, but I wouldn't want to live there". Or nice place to visit, I wonder if it would be the same after I have lived there for a while...

Okay, okay. Enough of being defensive.

If you are curious about Singapore and you have heard nice things about Singapore and you want to visit Singapore, please come and enjoy what Singapore can offer. Accommodations are pricier than places like Bali or Thailand, but that's because Singapore is a wonderful city, with a lot of people, and land is scarce. But once you get past the pricey accommodations, food can be very reasonable, public transit is easy to navigate, signs are in English, and most Singaporeans can speak English (though you may have some difficulty with our accents, and linguistic idiosyncrasies. Most visitors love Singapore. We got almost 20 million visitors a year before the pandemic. We must be doing something right.

But of course, you might not like it, maybe even hate Singapore. The good news is, Singapore is an Air transportation hub with flights to many other destinations. So you're just a flight away to your next holiday!