What's culture shock to you for those who live(d) in Singapore?

[saint73]

This will sound really stupid to some but it makes my blood boil: people who eat lots of spicy food then sit next to you on the MRT, the other day a young man sat next to me, soon as he sat down his breath made me hold mine.
Within a minute i turned around and said to him with a smile"we had a bit of garlic this morning didn t we???"
His response brought another issue up,how some don t know how to treat people. "go sit else were if you have a proplem with it cos i don t"

oh no that bad, I will vomit after that....but I will run away from him...Ha ..ha..

[Jacqueline_Diller]

I see there are a number of Londoners here. Well as unfortunate as it is, I am still stuck here in London. I have to say the underground is alot more polite in daily commuting to work(this excludes the tourists and the overflow of recent immigrants).

You should try the Docklands Light Rail. There has been a flow huge of immigrants (not mentioning any nationality to be politically incorrect) in the last couple off years and try telling them to move into the centre of the train is like trying to move mountains. They simply ignore you or pretend they do not understand you.

On one occasion I heard a woman shouting at the man for being FAT because he rubbed past her to get inside! Take that!

[sundaymorningstaple]

I see there are a number of Londoners here. Well as unfortunate as it is, I am still stuck here in London. I have to say the underground is alot more polite in daily commuting to work(this excludes the tourists and the overflow of recent immigrants).

You should try the Docklands Light Rail. There has been a flow huge of immigrants (not mentioning any nationality to be politically incorrect) in the last couple off years and try telling them to move into the centre of the train is like trying to move mountains. They simply ignore you or pretend they do not understand you.

On one occasion I heard a woman shouting at the man for being FAT because he rubbed past her to get inside! Take that!

Did she call him a poppadom? Big Bro strikes again!

[huggybear]

Bad Breath? who cares? everyone has bad breath at least once a day (when you wake up). i'm sure there are people in london who eat spicy food (an oxymoron? spicy food in london?) who don't rush to the bathroom to brush their teeth or frantically sprint to buy some mints. why not offer the person a mint instead of the passive aggressive "so i see you've been eating garlic)?

[christoscy]

I ve never been to London so i have no idea what they do there but i made the comment about Singapore which is the subject and the way i see it you shouldn't eat so much spices right before using public transport in consideration of others Plus if have been eating garlic a mint does nothing.

[sundaymorningstaple]

I ve never been to London so i have no idea what they do there but i made the comment about Singapore which is the subject and the way i see it you shouldn't eat so much spices right before using public transport in consideration of others Plus if have been eating garlic a mint does nothing.

I'm afraid that I'm going to have to disagree with you. I think you may have been out of order with your comment.

No offense to anybody here on the forum either but my advice to christoscy is to never ride public transport either in India or China. (Indonesia isn't so good either). Again, it's not blanket condemnation but just higher percentages.

[huggybear]

Hello

i'm in my fifth day now...i don't want to call it culture shock because everyone speaks english and all the signs are in english.

but here are just some minor observations...

1. everyone hangs their clothes to dry...that is the asian way...

2. no one uses a knife...just fork and spoon...

3. people don't seem to drink beverages while eating (i've been frequenting mostly hawker centers thus far and food courts)...

4. i'm not sure if singaporeans use modifiers. they speak really fast and seem to omit many words...i find myself having to listen really hard.

5. they don't give you any napkins while you're eating. when you ask for some...they give you one sheet.

6. alcohol is really really expensive and adds up fast.

7. the island really is that small. i had no idea...people tell you that it's a small island but when you arrive here it really hits you. i think i took a taxi ride for literally 400 meters...the maps made it seem far....

8. a "queen size" bed is more equivalent to a US full size bed...and i guess people here don't bake. the ovens are TINY.

just some things i've noticed....

[provenearning]

huggybear, welcome to Singapore!

its been interesting reading all the comments about our culture... especially about the lack of queues. Because, if you were to cross over to our nearest neighbour, many times the people in the queue at restuarants or hotels are S'poreans... but you are right, when it comes to buses and MRTs, the idea of queueing goes straight out the window. Its every person for themselves!

as for not using a knife, well, we don't really eat huge chunks of meat like steak or chicken. They're usually cut up into smaller pieces thus forks, spoons and/or chopsticks are usually sufficient. I know my husband is able to 'dissect' a roast chicken just using his chopsticks and a spoon! (me... I use my fingers!)

[huggybear]

i'm not that good at chopsticks. with rice and noodles i'm absolutely atriocous. you're right that they're usually cut up...but i usually like to cut them into smaller pieces...they usually like their meat in long strips. i guess i like small cubes. and when you use a spoon / knife to try to cut a piece of chicken into two....sometimes it's hard not to send the piece of meat scurrying across the plate.

some other observations. as an american, i have become the de facto ambassador for all of american foreign policy and people criticize george bush all the time. i didn't vote for him, in fact he lost the popular vote in his first election! thus most people didn't vote for him! however i just propose instead of criticizing all the mistakes we've made, can you please offer any solutions on how to resolve them now? that usually shuts them up because i haven't met one person who has offered a solution.

the people here are football crazy. i'm surprised they haven't figured out a way to televise youth games on a daily basis to look for the hot new talent.

i find it difficult to find a cab...why does the "HIRED" sign light up? who cares? you would think it should be the opposite. if the cab is free it should blink and light up...if it's busy or occupied, it should be invisible.

very friendly people thus far i have to say. among the most friendly i've met. so far the most friendly people i have met in the world are in minnesota. they're friendly to the point where you think you're in a horror movie and something bad is going to happen.

[lost_canuck]

i'm not that good at chopsticks. with rice and noodles i'm absolutely atriocous. you're right that they're usually cut up...but i usually like to cut them into smaller pieces...they usually like their meat in long strips. i guess i like small cubes. and when you use a spoon / knife to try to cut a piece of chicken into two....sometimes it's hard not to send the piece of meat scurrying across the plate.

some other observations. as an american, i have become the de facto ambassador for all of american foreign policy and people criticize george bush all the time. i didn't vote for him, in fact he lost the popular vote in his first election! thus most people didn't vote for him! however i just propose instead of criticizing all the mistakes we've made, can you please offer any solutions on how to resolve them now? that usually shuts them up because i haven't met one person who has offered a solution.

the people here are football crazy. i'm surprised they haven't figured out a way to televise youth games on a daily basis to look for the hot new talent.

i find it difficult to find a cab...why does the "HIRED" sign light up? who cares? you would think it should be the opposite. if the cab is free it should blink and light up...if it's busy or occupied, it should be invisible.

very friendly people thus far i have to say. among the most friendly i've met. so far the most friendly people i have met in the world are in minnesota. they're friendly to the point where you think you're in a horror movie and something bad is going to happen.

hee hee, people in New Zealand are like that too, invite you back for dinner at their place within minutes of knowing them... nice but scary, and well being american anywhere in the world it is like that, I have a friend in England who is going through the same thing, not much you can do but what you are doing..

And as for cabs, well the sign is a green colour with a number or says TAXI when they are free, and red hired when they are not, other cabs have lights which are on when they are free and off when they are not, be prepared tho, the one thing I found hard to deal with is you get in a cab, they ask you where you want to go, and then inform you they won't go that way because they are on shift change and only going towards home, I have had to get out of cabs and struggle to find another.

Chopsticks are a learning curve and you will get it, welcome to singapore, I have been here almost 2 months now, and carry my own tissue for napkins and watch locals for tips on chopstick, spoon use.

[lplagnol]

The one thing I am strill struggling with is the walking. Maybe I lived for too long in New York, where people walk with a purpose. My experience in Singapore, besides 3 or more people walking side-by-side, which someone else already pointed out, is the fact that they are oblivious to their surroundings when walking. They will stop or slow down out of the blue and you have no clue what's going on. Most of the time, they stop to chat, blocking the way and leaving it up to you to figure out how to get around them (particularly annoying when there is traffic on both sides and you have to wait for it to clear for you to be able to get around them. Some other times, they slowdown to use their hand phones. The stopping/slowing down is particularly dangerous in escalators. They come off the escalator and stand on the landing leaving no room to alight for those behind them. The tippy toeing and balance trick required not to land on your face or theirs is an art.

[ScoobyDoes]

The stopping/slowing down is particularly dangerous in escalators. They come off the escalator and stand on the landing leaving no room to alight for those behind them.

I give you three weeks before you get so ticked off at the stupidiy of this that you end up just pushing them out of the way to make a space.

It's either a "crime-n-punishment" arguement OR an act of education that frees you of all guilt. The alternative is to learn not to get on the escalator just one or two stairs after the person in front.

[lost_canuck]

The one thing I am strill struggling with is the walking. Maybe I lived for too long in New York, where people walk with a purpose. My experience in Singapore, besides 3 or more people walking side-by-side, which someone else already pointed out, is the fact that they are oblivious to their surroundings when walking. They will stop or slow down out of the blue and you have no clue what's going on. Most of the time, they stop to chat, blocking the way and leaving it up to you to figure out how to get around them (particularly annoying when there is traffic on both sides and you have to wait for it to clear for you to be able to get around them. Some other times, they slowdown to use their hand phones. The stopping/slowing down is particularly dangerous in escalators. They come off the escalator and stand on the landing leaving no room to alight for those behind them. The tippy toeing and balance trick required not to land on your face or theirs is an art.

it happens and they do move slower here, I find the foot shuffling a bit annoying and find myself doing it, mostly to avoid kicking people to get out the way (just kidding..well maybe... )anyway after being here, you will slow down it is a hot country...... move slowly, less sweat too,

I spent a year in Australia and in the beginning wondered why people moved so slow, then found when I returned to Canada I too had slowed down, then winter hit in Canada, and boy can I walk fast *lol*

My training ground was Harrods in London, good way to get used to muppets staring around them, stopping, starting and wandering aimlessly into your path, grrr... It all comes down to anticipating other peoples moves, don't use logic tho, just know that If that is where you think you want to walk, they will go that way, go the opposite direction and make eye contact, tends to make people veer

[sundaymorningstaple]

I have been here almost 2 months now, and carry my own tissue for napkins and watch locals for tips on chopstick, spoon use.

Come on now. Who do you think you are kidding! You've been here 2 months already so you have cottoned to the fact that you can use tissue packets to "Chope" seats in the local McD's or BK. "When in Rome.........."

sms

[abbby]

Singapore Queues? Everything also Q, MacDonald's Hello Kitty, free gifts, Idol contests, buy properties....maybe should call it a Q-city.