SEAfaring: Singapore

From Melbourne, after six weeks in Australia, I wound up next in Singapore on a bit of a lark. Ellen, who joined me from Taiwan for the road trip to Uluru, had a flight home from Australia that laid over there overnight. I decided to join her for that flight, and then stay for a week myself. Singapore is a major flight hub and thus a convenient layover destination before I’d reunite with Claire in the Philippines.

What I didn’t expect was Ellen changing her plans to join for that time. A chance typhoon over Taiwan canceled her mountain climbing plans to reach Yushan, Taiwan’s tallest peak, and kept us together for an extra week. Lodging and flights were rapidly changed, sans refund, to accommodate, but exploring a storied city with a traveling beau is not a bad fallback for missing a hiking expedition. We were both really lucky that the fates aligned there.

Singapore is known as the financial capital in Southeast Asia, which affords it an impressive degree of glitz and glamour. We were primed to vibe on it after having just watched Crazy Rich Asians. Obviously, that’s a caricature, but walking around Gardens by the Bay, under glowing “Supertrees” at night and seeing the massive Marina Bay Sands hotel was an treat for the eyes to say the least. Or basking in Sentosa’s beaches and amusement parks, which I think was Ellen’s favorite place. It’s easy to be swayed by such displays of luxury.

It’s also a generally comfortable and functional city to get around in, and I enjoyed it for that. All the buses and metros are easily accessed with a credit card. We stayed in the humbler Geylang area, which kind of had a ‘Little Bangladesh’ vibe. The bus and MRT systems are highly functional, with a convenient tap system that work on phones or cards. Its multicultural origins, split between Chinese, Malay & Indian made me not stand out which is always appreciated. And English is well spoken among all, making most tasks easy for a wandering foreigner.

With all this wealth and convenience comes a quite high cost for accommodations and food for the region. It wasn’t so hard to find an affordable meal or eat vegan with a little homework or compromise though; I liked the “economic lunch” deals with rice and veg for a few bucks; they reminded me of 2010’s NYC and the “Recession Special” $1 pizza I used to unabashedly enjoy. Most food and activities cost a lot though, and if you want to spend, the sky’s the limit. In this way, I could see some parallels with life as an equatorial New York or London. Only in some ways though.

Singapore has some severe and strict laws that make it stand out in uncomfortable ways to me. I was highly troubled at the execution of a marijuana trafficker earlier this year that made headlines, and caning is employed on severe crimes but also can happen upon overstaying a visa. Imagine the outcry if the USA whipped all the people who overstay visas in hopes of immigrating there illegally. Gum is even banned from purchase in Singapore! I don’t mind law and order but it makes me uneasy, does society have to be so cruel and strict to maintain it? I think people give Singapore a pass here due to the worser conditions and governments elsewhere else in Southeast Asia.

On the bright side of things, Singapore has, as of this year, officially legalized being LGBT, which is a welcome departure from its neighbors, Malaysia and Indonesia, where it is a crime to be gay. Marriage still remains distant here, alas. Across this trip in 2023, I drew the line on visiting openly autocratic states or severely homophobic countries like those two. It might remain a constant in my life, especially as I stress about red state cruelty in America. There are a lot of arguments for visiting these places despite parts of their legal or criminal system I abhor.

So it’s kind of a tough balance to strike for me, and Singapore is undeniably a successful, safe and yes, fun, place. I hear it lacks culture, but I thought that was a bit weird. Yes there’s superficial rich people, but it’s otherwise a pretty fun and interesting place, especially to spend money. I again liked the melting pot and busy urban vibe that in ways I felt I fit in with. It is democratic, though only one party has run it since the country’s independence some 60 years ago, making people argue otherwise. Overall, I’m glad to have visited, would return again (probably only whilst employed), and thought it was interesting to be on the ground here and see things there for myself.