Singapore Sling

Thanks to Her Majesty the Queen of Thailand’s illustrious day of birth, I was blessed with a four-day weekend, and aimed to take advantage of it by going abroad again. A couple months ago my co-worker Sarah and I decided to travel somewhere spontaneous, a place that would provide contrast. Our first thought: Singapore.


Singapore certainly provided a fresh experience, with clean air, trash-free sidewalks, and a scrupulously designed transportation system. I’d heard mixed things about this city before I arrived; some loved Singapore’s immaculate efficiency, others found it bordered on sterility. It certainly lacked the intrepid grittiness of a place like Thailand, where motorbike drivers define their own traffic laws, people set off fireworks wherever they see fit, and elephants roam the road. In contrast, the first thing I was warned about in Singapore was not to jaywalk, or even walk outside of the white lines.


Singapore is a new city-state, therefore struggles to define its identity, ethnicity and culture. Of course, it's still populated with people, therefore has developed a distinctive personality. Thanks to Sarah’s cousin, who has lived in Singapore for ten years, we got prime insight into the soul of the city.

My weekend was a swanky experience that surpassed both my life in Thailand and even my considerably cleaner life back the USA. Sarah’s uncle welcomed us with a glass of Chilean wine, and encouraged us to explore the futuristic shopping malls that lined Orchard road. That evening, her cousin took us on a whirlwind tour, and we moved through the meticulously constructed circulatory system of the underground railways and tunnels that connected the city. Above ground we soaked up the bright lights, architecturally innovative buildings and the glimmering waters of the Singapore River, which we overlooked during a delicious seafood dinner. On top of some delicious tofu and noodle dishes, we ordered a famous (and incredibly messy) Singaporean dish called chili crab.



The next day Sarah and I found a haven of affordable eats in a food court at the bottom of Ion Mall, where we enjoyed a mix of Indonesian, Vietnamese and Malaysian cuisine. Then we ventured to Sentosa, a part of the city that featured everything from a tram, to a manmade beach, to an amusement park. Sentosa was a perfect encapsulation of Singapore: a carefully created version of what an ideal city should be, but with constant reminders of the industry and painstaking labor required to maintain our urban creations. Siloso beach had blue waters, swaying palm trees and white sand, all the elements of a perfect beach, but with an endless series of tankers and industrial boats visible floating beyond the manmade islands that lined the coast.


That evening we hit the town with a couple fellow American teachers also visiting from Thailand. We managed to hit quite a few key locations in one night. We began our evening in Clarke Quay, a well-known promenade of clubs and bars, including “Clinic.” At Clinic all the waiters wore nurses outfits, and our (extremely overpriced) alcohol was served in an IV. Our subsequent destinations were buildings converted into clubs: Chimes was formerly a church, and St. James Power Station was previously a power plant. Beers ranged from 12-17 dollars, and most clubs had a 15 dollar cover charge, so the warnings I’d received about the prices were confirmed that evening.

The costly stereotypes didn’t necessarily extend to food, however. The next evening Sarah’s cousin took us to the first place with a somewhat local vibe. Newton’s Center was packed with rows of delicious local foods, including Chai Tow Kway (a stir-fried yam, egg and carrot cake), Char Kway Teow (fried noodles with Chinese sausage), Po Piah (a light spring roll stuffed with veggies, peanuts and shrimp) and Barbecue Stingray covered in sambal sauce (my absolute favorite dish).

Our final evening was spent with her cousin and his Singaporean friends, in a bar called White Rabbit. After some delicious Bloody Mary shots (which are chased with a tomato dipped in balsamic vinegar), we went to a local-favorite called Zouk. This club was divided into three rooms, but we spent most of our time in Velvet Underground, which featured funky live music and a more ambient vibe than the main Zouk dance room.



We were up and ready to go early Sunday morning, and I returned to Bangkok still ruminating about my stimulating stay. Singapore was a playground for the elite, a theme park that blurred the line between flawless and reality, but not without a cost. While I marveled at it as a tribute to human innovation, I would find living in Singapore difficult for several reasons. In my core, I would choose culture over cleanliness any day, and I can almost feel Singapore’s desperation to create some semblance of tradition and justification for national pride. What is excellence without a history? And while I greatly appreciated the efficiency of this sleek metropolis (especially compared to the occasionally incompetent methods in which Thais handle transportation, bureaucracy and planning), I would eventually be bothered by the knowledge that I was being monitored by video cameras 24/7. For this weekend, however, it was nice to indulge in feeling like a cocktail-sipping professional. A vacation is more than a change of location, it’s a holiday from my sweaty but familiar life as Teecha Rochelle.