The story of Singapore
For a long time, as a child, I used to think that
Singapur is yet another tier 2 city in the vast Indian subcontinent, like
Bilaspur or Raipur… Well, many years later, as we embark on the discovery of
South East Asia, it turns out that this childhood notion is not entirely wrong!
Though named as Singapore (or lion country), it
emerges that Asiatic lions never roamed these areas, though tigers were often
spotted till 1930.
Singapore as a city Nation punches far above its weight of 60 Lac people
occupying an island half the size of Delhi.
The success story of present-day Singapore has an interesting plotline
and the inevitable legacy of British occupation!
The most perplexing questions which need to be answered are:
Why is this little dot on the map, with hardly any arable land, an economic powerhouse; what does the standing military of 55 thousand protect against; why is this country which is contiguous to Malaysia (64% Muslim) and close to Indonesia (90% Muslim) not an Islamic state.
The answers of course lie buried in the pages of history, but need to be peeled with a certain degree of deliberation and of course a visit to the country does certainly help.
Singapore owes its existence to the fact that it lies at the mouth of the Malacca strait. This happens to be the critical channel for movement of ships between Europe and South east Asia and China. The Dutch, French, British and every other European power historically depended on this route for the lucrative spice, tea and silk trade.
The break came in 1819 when a British Officer called Stamford Raffles, who was permitted by Sultan Hussein to set up a “trading post” here, decided to waive off charges on ships stopping here, pulling away all the lucrative traffic from the established port of Palembang on the Malaysian mainland.
Thus began the dizzying transformation of this group of sparsely populated islands (which were actually just jungles and swamplands) into an economic powerhouse.
It also helped that the population, which was largely derived from Chinese migrants who came in search of work from far and near, decided to live in harmony in spite of diverse cultural and ethnic backgrounds. Consequently, there are 30 % Buddhists of Chinese origin, 20% Christians, 15% Muslims and 5% Hindus who ended up not fighting each other after the British granted self-governance in 1959. Even those of Chinese origin were not pro communism and those of Muslim origin practiced what is called as moderate Islam.
While the country has seen some turbulent times, when they separated from the Malaysian federation in 1965, they set about nation building like nowhere else, under the charismatic leader Lee Kuan Yew.
Interestingly, having been briefly occupied by Japan in the war years and being a small but rich territory, they laid a lot of emphasis on defense, and were initially trained by Israel with whom they seem to share a common ideology, including being surrounded by Muslim dominated countries. They continue to have agreements with various friendly countries to conduct military exercises (since they don’t have any land available) including Air Force training in India. There is conscription for all males above 18 years of age.
Singapore has been variously described as an “illiberal democracy” or a “soft-authoritarian” state. Much of its dizzying progress is actually attributed to this apparent lack of liberties.
Though it is technically a multi-party democracy, the all-powerful People Action Party has always been in power. They have a British/India like Governmental organization. They even use the IPC for judicial functions. The criteria for being elected President are rather interesting and include having held a specific public service leadership role or experience as COO of a profitable private company!!
Starting with being a free port for ships passing through the strait of Malacca, and thereafter being a trade exchange for Malaysian rubber, Singapore has systematically invested in technology, services, tourism and medical industry. (Remember the time when Jaylalitha was unwell and needed ICU care and was flown to Singapore leaving all the Apollos and Manipals wondering why they couldn’t treat her!)
No wonder that they are very high on all social and economic parameters including per capita GDP, education, healthcare and internet speed! They are also notoriously high on public discipline and sometimes referred to as a “Fine Country”. There is a fine for the slightest lack of civic niceties like not flushing a public toilet! Perhaps the only country in the world where chewing gum is banned.
In modern times, the government of Singapore has been closely aligned with India.
Glimpses of Singapore
The trip to Singapore happened as the sixtieth birthday celebration for my wife. We visited in the second week of February, which incidentally is the month with the least number of rainy days. Since the temperature remains the same throughout the year, that seems to be the only factor to choose a suitable time to visit.
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| The symbols of Singapore @ Gardens by the Bay |
It's not an overstatement that stepping into Singapore transports one into another plane of existence.
No words are enough to explain the sophistication, smoothness and ease of existence in this City State that starts at the Changi airport itself, which has been continuously rated the best airport in the world.
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| The Crowded Immigration counters at Changi Arrival!! |
Everything works with robotic precision. As you zip into the city, it seems
that there must be unseen hands which keep the roads, sidewalks, bushes and
trees in a picture postcard like condition.
Riding the MRT (the city metro rail) and city bus could be described as a
tourist experience itself, and not merely a way of getting around.
Moving along the underground escalators and seamlessly switching between the different lines and looking at fellow passengers in the MRT is yet another experience.
Though I should have expected it, I was quite awestruck when I was in the front bogie in one of the MRT trains and found that there was no driver!
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| Driverless train: View from the front cabin! |
Incidentally, tourists are the only people who look up and look around. Everyone else is continuously looking at their mobiles while sitting, walking or even alighting from the train.
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| MRT and the virtual world |
All residential apartment buildings seem to be 12-14 storeys high and are
simply known by a number, prominently written on them.
Not a single street light, corridor light, security light or display board
could be found damaged, missing or stained anywhere on the roads, buildings,
gardens or subways.
We got some interesting insights into the day-to-day
life of the Singaporean, thanks to our local host.
Almost nobody cooks at home. Yes, you heard that right. Many homes have not
even established a kitchen. Food is taken at the hawkers centre, or simply
picked up on the way home from work.
The country expects everyone to be productive, regardless of age if health
permits. One could routinely find eighty-year-old
people working as janitors and waiters/waitresses.
Maids are available and affordable, but expat maids have to be compulsorily
full time and living in the owner’s apartment. Anyone working part time is
fined heavily.
The environment seems almost artificial since the AQI is 40 inspite of the
highest density of population.
There are NO houseflies in Singapore. We were witness to this mind-boggling
public health achievement in a tropical country, as we spent 2 hours in a hawkers
center. This was an open-air arena of 100 odd stalls where food was being prepared,
displayed and consumed in the open.
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| The Maxwell Hawkers Centre: Open Air Food Stalls but no flies |
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| The status of the Chinese Veg stall!!! |
Public accountability is extremely high. Expectations of impeccable civic
behavior like no littering, no jaywalking, respect for personal space, traffic
discipline etc are universal and ensured with heavy fines. School education is
of a very high quality and free. Teachers have annual exams and get demoted if
not keeping up the standards!
Politics is invisible and so there are no hoardings
of politicians, public rallies or gatherings. Anyhow there's nothing here to
protest about!
The law enforcement is also largely invisible and mainly relies on cameras.
Considering that 70% of Singaporean are ethnically Chinese (Only 10% Indian and 10% Malayan), one can try to imagine how life would be in Mainland China and why that country has become an economic giant.
The mechanism outlined for dealing with a serious situation like spilling water
or coffee on the airport floor has to be seen to be believed!
The morning visit to the botanical garden (and the orchidarium within), was,
for me, the high point of the visit. Bird Paradise is an unparalleled aviary with all continents covered, where one could actually forget that birds are captive. While one could spend an
entire week at Sentosa, we came back mesmerized from the SEA aquarium. (This in
spite of having visited the grand creations at San Diego and Dubai). There are
no real beaches to talk of in Singapore, but the beaches created at Sentosa are quite a draw.
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| The Merlion by night |
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| The Marina Bay Sands hotel |
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| Supertree grove@Gardens by the Bay |
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| The Cloud forest |
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| Botanical Gardens |
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| The Orchidareum |
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| Cable car to Sentosa Island |
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| Beach at Sentosa |
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| Sultan Mosque |
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| Serangon street, Little India |
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| Srinivasa temple @Little India, Singapore |
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| The Bucket List |
After spending 5 days in this fairytale land, we
couldn’t help thinking if our country did not suffer from hyperreligiosity, overpopulation
and overdemocracy, could we also have
reached where Singapore has!
Traveler tips
1. The actual attractions at The Jewel open at 1030. The bag drops for Indian
carriers open only 3 hours before departure time. The bag drop at Jewel (mentioned
at their website) is not applicable to Indigo.
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| The Jewel@Changi Airport |
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| The Jewel Inside the Airport! |
2. The airport Wi-Fi simply comes on without the hassle of registration, OTP,
time limit etc etc
3. The Klook sim collection point is located within the arrival building along
with the moneychanger counter after baggage collection and exit from customs
gate.
4. The staff canteen food court with Indian veg options at arrival is at T2 and
can be accessed via a lift.
5. Taxi from airport to little India is NOT expensive (22$). No need to
struggle with luggage on arrival. There's plenty of time and opportunity to
check out the MRT and public transportation!!
6. The staff canteen food court with Indian veg options at departure is at T1
and can be accessed using the inter terminal skytrain.
7. Procuring a EZ card on arrival ensures seamless
travel
8. Indian credit and debit cards work everywhere. Our hotel insisted upon a refundable 100$ deposit by credit card, even though the stay was paid for in advance.
9. Souvenir shopping is best done in Chinatown.
10. Sultan Mosque does permit tourists inside from Gate#3.
11. Tickets for various attractions booked on Klook App are legitimate, but are cheaper only if booked in advance.
12. There is no need to buy water as all water in all taps is potable. Just carry a small empty bottle!
13. Though it can rain anytime, we enjoyed very comfortable weather and a nice breeze throughout the stay considering that we were in a Tropical Country (Only 1 degree above equator!)
14. Starter kit
a. Download free Klook app. This can be used to buy simcard of M1 or Singtel telecom for $12. It will be delivered at the counter after baggage clearance and customs. Alternately local sim can be bought at any 7eleven store by showing passport
b. Buy EZ Link metro card for 10$ (cash only) from passenger service counter at entry to airport Metro station. Thereafter you can top up with card.
c. App for Taxi is Grab
d. Activate international transaction on debit/credit card before leaving India.
e. Not much need to carry Cash. Max SGD 50- 100 per head. One SG$ is Rs 65
f. All hotels are expensive. Choose one near MRT. We chose one in Little India due to multiple vegetarian B/L/D options at walking distance.
g. Curiously the best deal on Hotel Hilton Inn at Little India was available on the Indigo website!
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| The Travelers |
