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millwaterasiancorner Singapore
This month, I interviewed my brother who lives in Singapore. Let’s see what life’s like, there in the world’s only island citystate. (N: Nita, G: Gary) N: How long have you been living in Singapore? G: 4 years now. N: What makes you stay? G: I had a job offer to come to Singapore and stayed since then. Before that I was in China and Sydney. The design industry is relatively active here and I feel Singapore can provide me both career challenge and good family lifestyle. N: Interesting! So what do you like most and least living in Singapore? G: Singapore is commonly known as the “’introduction to Asia”. It is very easy for a foreigner to settle in, as everything is very organised and tidy. The least I like will be the cost of living. It’s been top of the world’s most expensive cities to live in for a few years now… N: That’s a surprise, I thought Singapore was an affordable city?
G: Basically, schools use English as the main language to communicate. Then as a curriculum requirement, students must choose another language to learn. They call these ‘mother tongue’ subjects. The common ones are Mandarin, Malay and Tamil, which are the majority races. There are also other MOE (Ministry of Education) approved foreign language like German and French.
G: It’s only cheap eating in the hawker centre (food court); most other stuff is quite expensive.
N: Finally, can you tell me something the Kiwis will find interesting to know?
N: Is Singapore very different, or similar to other Asian countries, in terms of culture and food?
G: When going to a hawker centre, locals usually place a pack of tissue paper on an empty table to reserve, then walk away to buy their food, as it is the least expensive items from their belongings. N: Ah-ha, so never use the table with a pack of tissue paper on it!
G: The down-side of being the “introduction to Asia” is that it does not have a very distinctive characteristic like some other Asian cities. However, it is a very cultural-diverse country. Singapore is made of three main races: Chinese, Malay and Indian. This gives you the opportunity to immerse yourself in different cultures... mainly food. For example, I can have a Mee Pok (a Chinese type of dry fishball noodle) for lunch one day, Biryani Rice (a flavoursome Indian rice dish) the other and Ayam Panyet (an Indonesian-style fried chicken) next. Speaking of street food, I also recommend both chilli and black pepper crab, chicken rice, laksa, prawn noodle and satays… N: What language is taught in school in such a cultural-diverse city?
G: That’s right! (Photo credit Ben Saulo) Nita Wong Originally from Hong Kong, 20+ years ago Millwater resident
Know something that we don’t?
If you’ve got information that may be topical or of interest to Millwater residents, we’d love to know! Please get in touch with Sarah on 09 426 6155 or email sarah@themillwatermag.co.nz
