What do you think about Singapore?

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llub2

cane city

Tan D

As a Singaporean, I do love this country, but if there is a choice, I won't stay in Sngapore forever.

The living standard is too high, and "high" here is no due to the things too expensive, it's because this is a "Pay And Pay" country.

Nothing is free in this country, including education and health care. Even your fully paid Television/Radio need to pay license every year. For those whose own a car, they are the so called "high tax payer". As once you brought a new car, you need to pay average about S$50000 tax (COE + ARF + Duty + GST). And you only can use the car for 10 years!!! Yes! ONLY 10 years, which meant you are paying about S$6000 tax (plus road tax) per year to own a car here!!!

What about housing? A HDB flat unit cost you at least S$120,000 (3 room flat), where the cost of building a unit is only about S$20,000! The HDB is earning you almost 6 times!

What about your retirement? The Government only approved to pay allowance of S$290 per month for all needy elderly. Can anyone survive in Singapore with S$290 per month? When you still need to pay rental, PUB utilties, Conservances & Services charges, how much is left for daily expenses? Which mean you need to take care of your own retirement and don't even depend on the Government.

What about the Government? They are the world highest paid Government, where the Ministers & President are earning about S$1.58 to S$3.18 millions per annum. Just compare with US president of less than S$1 million per annum, and the total population of Singapore & US, you can imagine how much each Singaporean need to come out to pay for their Ministers.

In short, Singapore is only suitable for a short term stay and work. For a comfortable retirement, no way.

ohioan_femme

What I think is that this question has been asked a gazillion times here already.

sandra y

I look forward to be visiting Singapore again. I like food because it is so delicious especially the bak kut the & the Hainese Chicken rice, the fruit shakes stand in Orchard Road and those selling yummy ice cream; the place very clean even the hawker's market; the certainty of peace and order; the beautiful places like Sentosa Island and the bargain places located in Chinatown. Last but not the least, friendly English speaking Singaporeans a very welcome attraction.

homer2288

I think Singapore is a good country to visit. Shopping and food are good. It is a clean country. Politically stable.

I would live in Singapore temporarily because I wouldn't want to start a family there. 1st of all cost of living is high. There is not much land available. Even if there is, it will be very expensive. To own a car is not cheap either. You need COE to own a car which can cost more than S$20k. I like to have a house and land, and dont like the idea of living in multistory apartment.

Working in Singapore means, you work 6days a week, sometimes on Sundays as well. Not only that, overtime is a requirement.

Kids can get stressful with school work. The education system is alot more intensive.

Lara Grace

Just love Singapore. I worked there for 4 months back in 2004 and don't mind getting back to SIN for another year or two. I found local people extremely friendly, the country was very clean, the food was great, the shopping was beyond fantastic and Singapore Sling at the Raffles'.... Well, you MUST visit this country, at least once!

Chrisyongbee

I am a Singaporean. I love this country neither for the shops nor for the food.

As a frequent traveller I have the opportunity to compare with other countries both near and afar. Singapore have a very favourable living environment and although not the best, it is among the top.

The Government is stringent when enforcing law and order, but I think it benefits the public more - at least in terms of safety.

blazey

Singapore is not the kind of country I would like to live in, good foods and shopping is not that important to me, that country is highly regulated thru criminalization of activities which are considered by other free countries to be relatively harmless, so one is not totally free to enjoy life and do things which are even harmless to others, I'm a law abiding citizen but living there would make me feel restricted and boring.

I am a Singaporean living in Sydney.

When I was in Singapore, I had the same issues some of them had above. High standards of living, low pay, etc etc. But to be honest, after coming to Sydney, I learned to be more appreciative of Singapore.

For example, housing, some of you above said it is expensive. I would say it is actually cheap. for the amount of money that we spent on a 5-room flat, you can't even afford a 1 room flat here.

Safety: you can go out until the wee hours, and go home alone, and you still know that you are safe. Here, you basically better get home before the sun sets (and sun sets very early in winter).

Transport: Cheap and super efficient. You pay peanuts for such an efficient service in Singapore. Here, you pay three times the price, and don't even get half the level of efficiency in Singapore.

Politics: Some people might say that the PAP are dominating Singapore. But hey, I wouldn't mind if they are. Because they are doing a wonderful job. How many countries have politics as stable as Singapore?

Size of country: People think it's small, I would prefer to think of it as cosy. Easy access to everything without having to own a vehicle.

Racism: Singapore is pretty much the only place where people do not view other races with coloured lenses. Other countries, it is pretty serious. They might say they are not, they welcome migrant. But when you interact with them, you can tell the difference.

If I can choose, I would move back to Singapore right away.

kudos Qi

Yes i am proud to be a singaporean as we can travel from place to place safely just compare to our neighbour country (JB) it's just like a heaven to hell. (not bcos of the nationality there but simply they dun take gd care of the country.) Do u knw ytd lunch hr when i was out for lunch at TgPg area, there's always police routine around they will greet us with a smile & monitoring . Keep it up singapore!

World

Hi AgentJip ST....(trick question...)80's lingo..(winking back)

Well, its a country led by a very intelligent Government and an extremely obedient citizens..voila! a perfect combination for a successful and peaceful country..my frank opinion.

smile_: )

It is a place where I grow with all my families and friends and a place I would truly call home.

Despite those fact-based logic of high maintenance and cost living in Singapore, it is still the best in my heart. There is really no place like home and though I do travel a bit at times, marvelling at the cultures and histories of other countries, it is still the place I would love to come back to.

There is a sense of pride whenever I returned from the travelling and the reason for all that I feel are stemmed from the stability of this small but united country.

Many in here have spoken their thoughts and voiced out the good and the bad. The good outweighs the bad :)

I will definitely stay here for good not due to being in comfort zone for too long but because I feel safe and home.

Dave

Good question, I don't know a lot about singapore but you would get a vast amount of responses on a travel forum...

http://www.trip-extras.com/forum/282

lilydonaldson

I love singapore as a place for holiday. But for living..i guess i would pass it...the level of competition between people is so strong there..what you call it there..."kiasu"?

ViRg()

Uh... I think I've pretty much covered this topic several times... oh well, here goes...
My opinions of Singapore are the same as anyone else's which is it's clean, safe & stable/ efficient.
However, to live there... permanently? Scary thought, lol.
For a holiday? Definitely.
As I feel not only are the costs of living ridiculously high... I find the strict laws stifling. Overall it's a rather conservative country.

Stamatios D

I think Singapore is very safe and clean and the food is great. I have visited Singapore many times and can vouch for that. Singaporeans are also very professional in everything they do. However, I think it would be very difficult for a foreigner to be accepted in the Singaporean society.

thetagal13

Im Singaporean. Singapore is home to me. The security level is good, education is world acclaim, the food and living standard is up to my expectation. What more would i want? I dream of getting a job that requires frequent flying but in the end, i would want to return here. It is where home is to me...

valkyrieace99

I've only been to Singapore once & already I love it there. The language barrier isn't that too big. Everyone speaks English & that's a big factor for me. Sure, I'm willing to live in Singapore forever. I've no problems with following the rules. I don't smoke so I've got that problem covered. Jaywalking, I don't think so. Why would I jaywalk when I can cross safely? I love the timers for the pedestrian lanes. It allows me to know how much time is left before it's not allowed to cross. Visiting Orchard Road was maginificent. I'm a mall rat so I've no problems spending all day in malls. I've yet to taste local food but if hotel food is counted, then it's ok. I enjoyed visiting Singapore last March & I'm planning to go back someday, now that Formula One's finally arrived there. I'm still not used to seeing the sun set at 7 pm. I'm from the Philippines & here, 7 pm is alread dark. In Singapore, it was still light! There's no shortage of McDonald's, KFC, Burger King, Pizza Hut. I've so many more places to visit & explore. I'm definitely going back. And if there's a chance of me living there for good, why not?

dracula22

â˜¼ Shm â˜¼

Yes! i luv Singapore. This is my homeland with great jobs, schools/college's, facilities, everything gd!..

L Word Rock !

Don't really like to live in Singapore . Weather is too humid , not much freedom , government is too conservative . Prefer Melbourne althought housing , public transport is not as cheap as Singapore but don't forget people in Melbourne draw higher salary . For example , my brother is paid Aus $50 an hour to teach English in a school .

moonrider

well i been work at here for 9 years, the currency is good, 2.25 to ringgit malaysia, and everything was available here, shopping mall, transport, entertainment, food, everthing, make everyone's life easy and comfortable.

Star Bright

One of the first things you notice about Singapore is the cleanliness, no chewing gum, no spitting, there's heaps of reasons that are good, some of the best hotels in the world and the standard of service is renowned. Also Raffles does the best Singapore Sling in the world. Awesome place, I love it.

apaini131313

fine city

Fumiaki

Singapore will be right for you if you're looking for stability. It can be a pretty dull place. Singaporeans are generally conservative, which I think stifle creativity. Singaporeans are viewed as ignorant because there are simply too much interference by their government. They have a very strong government by the way. They grew up in an environment where they are not required to make decisions, the government will do it for them. Pace of life is pretty fast, but somehow, their city is just not as vibrant as Tokyo, San Fran. or even Shanghai. There are a lot of clubs there, but they all closes by 2-3am, latest. Despite Singapore being so strict, prostitution is legal... I know, what a contrast. I have nothing against legalising prostitution, I just find it contradicting that the country can be over strict on censorship yet issue licenses to brothels.

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