Love It | Hate It

Singapore - A 'Fine' City
(Or so the joke goes, because you can technically be fined for a myriad of activities and infractions.)

A little love/hate list dedicated to Singapore. Maybe hate is a strong word. But that doesn't always mean it is too strong. However, I mostly use it here for contrast, and if you want to mentally insert 'dislike' in place of 'hate,' go for it!

LOVE IT

• FOOD. The food here is awesome. Any Singaporean will tell you that that is the best thing about this place. The hawker centres have so much to offer, and they are dependably clean (enough). Food poisoning is not common, and is more likely to result from my own kitchen than a hawker.
• Diversity. I love seeing such a mix of faces. I love hearing the different languages on the train. I love the different clothing - the colorful saris and elegant hijabs (headscarves). I love standing in one place and seeing a Buddhist temple, a Mosque, and a Hindu temple. 
• Cleanliness. It is mostly an image thing, but the Singapore government works very hard to make things look nice. The MRT trains, the streets, the parks. Litter is uncommon, people tend to throw cigarette butts away. Now, this glossiness can hide other things like poverty. But in and of itself, the cleanliness is nice.
• Safety. I truly enjoy that I am able to run a night, go out alone, take taxis and trains, carry valuables and dress how I choose without feeling threatened or anxious. That said, we're careful to avoid becoming complacent - crimes of opportunity can take place anywhere.
• Ease. The everyday tasks that sustain our lifestyle are relatively easy to accomplish. Grogery stores and malls abound, as do markets. Electricity and internet are reliable. This is a first world country and no mistake.
• Expat population. Along with a diverse local population, there are lots of expats from all over. It is excellent to get to share experiences and perspectives with other people who are also living in a place that was not originally their home and who have often traveled extensively.
• Green. This is a green city. There are parks and flowers and greenery all over. In the morning I'm more likely to hear bird calls than traffic, though of course it is usually both. And people almost never honk their horns here.
• Hanging laundry out the window. Now that we've mastered the art of clipping our clothes to a bamboo pole and the slipping into the grommets outside our window, I enjoy watching all the colorful clothing flapping in the breeze and sunshine. It just feels wholesome.
• Our apartment. As I've mentioned at length in other posts, it is lovely.
• Not owning a car!

HATE IT

• Pushy and/or slow pedestrians. The citygirl in me has awakened, and now I cannot abide pedestrians that are a) too slow, b) too pushy, c) playing or texting on their phones at every moment d) who stop dead in the path, oblivious those behind them and e) who get mad at me for doing the same thing!
• Crowded trains. While the transport is efficient, it is also crowded. My morning commute usually involves pushing onto a full train and at least two stops of extreme coziness with the window two inches from my face.
• Bugs. Knock on wood, our apartment is so far remaining fairly cockroach-free. But the ants. They make me nuts. You have to be so, so clean in the kitchen or they find any crumb. And even when there is nothing out, they are always around, just exploring everything. GET OUT OF MY PANTRY!
• Rotting food. The weather here makes it hard to keep food fresh. Crispy food goes stale, fruits rot quickly and attract fruit flies, salt and sugar get damp and clumpy, and I've already thrown out more meat than in the rest of my life put together.
• Rent. The housing market is insane. Like NYC insane. And the renter terms aren't even that great. In the States if something went wrong in our apartment, we'd high five and call the landlord. Here, we have a hefty deductible if anything breaks, even if it isn't our fault. And they required 2 months rent as deposit, in addition to first and last rent - that is a serious chunk of change! Fortunately, we have cool housemates with whom to split the bills.
• Sick day policy. This one is a late entry (because I was home sick yesterday). I don't know if it is universal in Singapore, but I think it is true for many companies. I'm allotted 14 sick days per year BUT in order to use a sick day, I have to get a note from a doctor. That means an hour (plus) in a clinic waiting room with other sick people just so I can spend 90 seconds with the doc to tell him I have a cold and need a note. Then I pay the $10 co-pay for the privilege. It just seems like a waste of everyone's time and resources, when I really just need to be in bed sleeping! It also feels like I'm back in middle school.
• Not having a car.

LOVE TO HATE IT (These tend to be be easy targets of disdain)

[There is actually more variation in this
forecast than normal - usually the highs
are identical too!]

• The weather. This is true everywhere. We all complain about it. What's my biggest beef with the weather here? 'It's always the same,' I whine, looking at the forecast. Gosh darn predictable weather!
• Malls. This could also go in the next category. There are malls everywhere. Most of the downtown MRT stops exit into malls, most of which are connected by tunnels and catacombs. You could get lost for days - weeks - in these temples of consumerism. And I swear, there is never a directory. I jsut wander in confusion, until I realize I've been tracking the smell of Auntie Anne's pretzels. Yep, we've got those too. 
• Advertisements & PSAs. There are hilarious public service announcements everywhere. I think my favorites are the ones warning you not to get molested: 'Don't get rubbed the wrong way!' There is also a nice series of warning videos they play in the MRT station about what to do if you suspect someone is planting a bomb on the train. At the end of one such video, the train goes into a tunnel and then you just see a big explosion. Great, can't wait to get on the train now! As for advertising - as with most cities, it is both everywhere & shameless.

(Their balls are in our hands?)

Clean public toilets are possible!!

Is it Santa dressed up like a Dollar Sign?
Or a Dollar Sign dressed up like Santa? Ugh.

HATE TO LOVE IT (This category ends up being a list of vices more than anything)

• Air conditioning. I know that aircon uses a bunch of energy and that it is crazy to cool buildings down to 68 degrees in a tropical country. But when I walk in out of the heat, I want to cry with joy as the cool artificial breeze envelopes me, drying the sweat droplets from my forehead.
• Prata. I've covered my love of prata in a recent post. Composed primarily of flour and butter (or ghee), I sure love this cripsy fried dough, but I'm not sure my arteries share the sentiment.
• Kopi. If you order a normal coffee ('kopi') here, you'll receive a delicious mix of strong coffee, evaporated milk AND sweetened condensed milk. The liquid, served steaming hot or poured over ice ('kopi peng'), is muddy and rich and dark and sweet. Definitely bad for you. I'm trying to keep it to one cup a day.
• Running. Not the easiest sport to love in Singapore. It takes awhile for your body to adjust - if it  can. Even after several months of acclimation, I get sweaty before I've made it 200 yards to the running trail. You will end most runs completely drenched. But then again, everyone around you is too, so you're in good company.
• Tiger Beer. Singapore's own beer, this passable lager is relatively cheap and quenches thirst admirably. If you wanna feel like a local, head to the hawker centre around 10pm, order a bucket of 3 or 4 four tall bottles (750ml), and ride the Tiger!