Q & A about Singapore

Here are some questions you have asked us about Singapore. Special thanks to my husband and Google/Wikipedia for help with the answers. Worth noting: we have not actually been there yet. I will update this after we've had a chance to experience the country first hand.

Q) Where is Singapore?

A) Singapore is in Southeast Asia off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula and 137 kilometres (85 miles) north of the equator. 

Q) What type of political system do they have?

A) It's a unitary multiparty parliamentary republic with a Westminster system of unicameral parliamentary government. Translation: It's similar to the British system and their Prime Minister is very important.

Q) What language do most people speak?

A) There is no real standard for the language. The official language is English but many are of mandarin decent and speak a form of mandarin. We will be attempting to learn mandarin. Everyone has their own dialect though and the mix of everything is commonly called Singlish. The English they do speak is British influenced for spelling, grammar and choice of words.

Q) Are their special limits to women like dress code?

A) Not that we know of but I may have an update for this one later. There does not really seem to be a dress code. The people Ross met last week seemed really big into name brands and "magazine fashion". A lot of people dress for their religion/beliefs. The Indians, for example, wear beards and head wraps. Ross said "Imagine my surprise when I looked at a jet and saw a guy with a beard and turban sitting in the seat."

Q) Are there nice beach areas with snorkeling and diving?

A) Not really much diving and snorkeling. We will investigate this one and provided a 

better answer first hand in a few weeks. 

Q) Beach bungalow or city high-rise?

A) We're thinking a neighborhood between both. There are lots of little houses just north of east coast beach park and to the east of city center. If you live in a high-rise it will take 20 minutes just to get in and out of the parking areas (if you even can get parking). We've been told that the beaches get a little touristy for every day living.

Q) How bad is the pollution?

A) There’s not too much auto pollution, the main pollution comes from when other countries close by do burns and it carries over.

Q) How does the cost of living compare to here?

A) Cost of living is 38% higher on average than in the U.S. I'll be able to give a better update once we are in the country. We are prepared for the fact that it's very expensive to live there. 

Q) How much acid rain do they get per year?

A) Google says none. No one has mentioned this being an issue. 

Q) I'd love to know more about holidays celebrated there.

A) Click Here for the official list of holidays I found. I'm excited to celebrate National Day in August. From what I've read, it's like the US Independence Day. I might need a post just for holidays, after we've been there to experience a few. Ross says they are equally concerned with milestones like 5 years at Mountain Home (he was there for the celebration last week) or this year is their Air Force's 50th anniversary so that will be a huge event.

Q) I'd love to know what the schools and education is like!

A) The public schools are good. They teach math a little different. Not base 10, but not really the American way either. We've been told the American private schools are the best. Grade school teachers make about $110,000 a year and there is a waiting list for locals to get spots for their kids. Americans get first dibs. Most American private schools say the majority of their students get bumped up two grades when they repat to America. This is the school we are considering from our kids.

Q) If I was a local, born and raised, what might I do for hobbies/entertainment?

A) The locals Ross met last week really love food. They love making it, eating it and trying new flavors and foods. (I'm signing up for cooking classes!) Their favorite sports are soccer (football) and basketball. Cade'll be in heaven.

Q) Is there a vast difference between in the city and other areas?

A) Not really, just different demographics of neighborhoods. For example you've got the Americans in the north east, Indians in little India, etc. Rule of thumb, the more west you go, the cheaper it is and more industrial and lower class people.

Q) What insights did Ross get?

A) Insights . . . a lot of the Singaporeans feel like the draw of expats there is getting out of control. A common thought is that ‘Expats are first class citizens, Singapore nationals are second class citizens’. But as a whole, they are very proud of their culture. They can be stubborn and tend to over analyze things that don’t need to be thought too deeply in. (Sounds familiar! I'm so guilty of that.) It also seems that systems over there force separation of classes, for instance: to buy a basic car it will cost a local about S$130,000. (Just the ‘Certificate of Entitlement’ which allows the person to have one is S$60,000-70,000. Then the car is S$50,000.) This puts a car way out of reach for many middle class on down. Then they see expats like me driving a new Mazda and get frustrated.

Q) Is Ross going to get caned?

A) No, he most likely will not get caned. He will probably get fined for some stuff as every small deviation from law is caught and fined. (Think traffic ticket.) Canning is only to make examples of serious stuff they don’t want to have happen again. Selling any amount of drugs is life in prison and they are quick to export people who are disrespectful (recently a guy on a motorcycle threw something at a car, apparently he's out).

Q) What kind of animals can you find there in the wild?

A) They do have a lot of tropical animals like snakes, but with such a high population there aren’t a lot of animals running around. The zoo and safari are supposed to be incredible though. Singapore imports beef and meats from neighboring countries.

Q) Why is gum outlawed?

A) Gum is outlawed because it started becoming a nuisance (on streets, chairs etc.) then people started using it to stick on the sensors of the buses to keep the back doors open so people could sneak on, then some people got killed because of that and the government said 'no more'.

Q Is there a type of alcohol/drink they are recognized for and a must try for visitors?

A) About alcohol: they don’t really like the Singapore Sling...it is a tourist drink. They really are passionate about their 'Tiger Beer'.  It is unregulated and used to contain formaldehyde which gave you a distinct buzz. It is potent so you don’t beer bong or pong with it. With liquor they seem big into name brands; they like Jack Daniels and Bacardi. They ask for drinks by brand, not just 'rum and coke'.

Comment with other questions and we'll do our best to answer them. I'm very excited to be able to see what the answers really are and experience for myself. Singapore here we come!