Can it get much better than this

[nakatago]

Wait until you see (contd):

How people rush into an MRT train and barge people coming out out of the way.
How some taxi drivers play psycho mind games with other drivers.
How the weather is basically the same every day of the year.
How a lot of serving staff wouldn't notice that you'd walked into a restaurant and were waiting to order (because you went and picked up the menu yourself) if you waved a flag right in their face.
How you can sit in cheaper restaurants or food courts and people will spit out piles of bones etc right onto the table in front of you.
How western styled restaurants often serve bilge, anything resembling authenticity does not kick in unless you're paying something like S$75+ a head.
How you can't get a decent sandwich
How people don't look where they're walking, so it's either you who has to perpetually weave, or they walk into you and then blame you for that.
How walking past HDB blocks you will endure a shower of rubbish being thrown from the windows above.
How you better just do what the government tells you to.
How if you go the grocers after 10am, every vegetable item will have already been handled and bruised by the 100 other people that came before you that morning, all looking for the perfect one.
How you can't get anything out approaching a pint of decent beer for under S$15.
How customer service from the likes of banks is astonishly poor, that's if you can understand the person you are speaking to at all.
How the consumer market is so under-developed. Look at options for say travel or general medical insurance and wince at the lack of choice and cost.
How there is as near as matters no consumer protection.
How a lot of SGns even friends are unable to hold any meaningful conversation.
How almost all the media is government controlled, pumping out soma for the masses.
How where you go, what you say, and what you write is all monitored.
How most of the local food is heavy and very oily.
How people 'chope' tables at food courts.
How many people lack the most basic graciousness or manners.

Anyway that was stream of thought, better not get me going or I'll write a list

What list? lol

How about how you'd better not have a heart attack because nobody gets out of the way for ambulances. In fact, you're better off hailing a taxi if you think you're going to die.

experienced this first hand. not only did the driver in front NOT get out of the way, but he slowed down as well, then almost coming to a stop before turning the corner as if to avoid some imaginary pedestrian

Emergency vehicles should have a shovel in front like how snow ploughs do. Car won't get out of the way? Then, shove it lot of the way!

[EADG]

Resurrected my alter ego briefly to say even I'm saying 'wow'.
...though I do agree with everything written so far.

I think we had a thread or three with likes/dislikes lists, JR's is good though would serve as a representative excerpt from them, plus a few new ones.

But to the newbie - you will have your own personal experiences, and all of the above. It's a personal choice, that once acclimated, if these are things you can live with, or not.

It's certainly not all bad, there's almost as many good points to consider. We're still here, right?

[JR8]

Delia, piss off, it's hardly off topic. It's a 30% subjective / 70% objective take on our homeland. It's all going tits up over there, despite how much I love my Sky+, football, family and friends.

Ha! I'm not saying it isn't like that in the UK, but the OP is not in the UK, the follow on focus is on negatives of SG that will turn a new arrival within six months.

p.s. Sorry I'd haven't got back to you earlier but I'm baking a Mango (poached in rum) and macadamia loaf cake right now so been busy doing the prep, true to your nick for me (in fact the foundation of it IS one of her cake recipes lol).

p.s. is this really you?

[JR8]

Emergency vehicles should have a shovel in front like how snow ploughs do. Car won't get out of the way? Then, shove it lot of the way!

Should have horns, sirens and half-ton bull-bars on them like NYC fire-trucks. No surprise that no one f's with them.

[saturdaynitespecial]

Just moved to Singapore from UK, great place to live, great people, Great everything......

Yup. This place is heaven on earth. Like the saying goes... Life is a rose garden.




.

[JR8]

Resurrected my alter ego briefly to say even I'm saying 'wow'.
...though I do agree with everything written so far.

I think we had a thread or three with likes/dislikes lists, JR's is good though would serve as a representative excerpt from them, plus a few new ones.

But to the newbie - you will have your own personal experiences, and all of the above. It's a personal choice, that once acclimated, if these are things you can live with, or not.

It's certainly not all bad, there's almost as many good points to consider. We're still here, right?

Oh hello, haven't seen you for a while [Bunter, put that cake down and observe that EADG, a contributor of impeccable wisdom (and likely not a Man U fan lol) agrees with everything said so far !]

There are of course balancing positives, without doubt. Otherwise why would we choose to live in SG, or look forward to returning? The immediate humour was what 'Mr. Week#1 Happy' is going to start getting P'd off with shortly.

Maybe a definitive compilation of 'pluses and minuses' list is called for? So as not to offend those suffering from Stockholm syndrome

[Mad Scientist]

Every country has its good and bad. You have to take it in your strike.
To find out if that country suits you , write the good and not so good fairly and from there you can see if the place you live suits you.
We are all human, One man's junk is another man's treasure.
The place where you stamp your feet is the place where you hold the skies comes what may.

[BillyB]

Resurrected my alter ego briefly to say even I'm saying 'wow'.
...though I do agree with everything written so far.

I think we had a thread or three with likes/dislikes lists, JR's is good though would serve as a representative excerpt from them, plus a few new ones.

But to the newbie - you will have your own personal experiences, and all of the above. It's a personal choice, that once acclimated, if these are things you can live with, or not.

It's certainly not all bad, there's almost as many good points to consider. We're still here, right?

Oh hello, haven't seen you for a while [Bunter, put that cake down and observe that EADG, a contributor of impeccable wisdom (and likely not a Man U fan lol) agrees with everything said so far !]

There are of course balancing positives, without doubt. Otherwise why would we choose to live in SG, or look forward to returning? The immediate humour was what 'Mr. Week#1 Happy' is going to start getting P'd off with shortly.

Maybe a definitive compilation of 'pluses and minuses' list is called for? So as not to offend those suffering from Stockholm syndrome

Ha ha, Stockholm syndrome!! Sounds like one of those bands you listen to!!

Maybe the OP will see beyond the micro factors and just enjoy everything per se. Maybe he is more open minded and more tolerant and can overlook the minor annoyances? Everyone is different.

But I do wonder how many people would leave Singapore at the drop of a hat if the tax rates here increased to the equivalent of those in the U.S or U.K?

[EADG]

Oh, I've been here on and off all along, at least my alter-avatar has

Oh hello, haven't seen you for a while [Bunter, put that cake down and observe that EADG, a contributor of impeccable wisdom

Though not sure many would agree with that last bit.....

[JR8]

Ha ha, Stockholm syndrome!! Sounds like one of those bands you listen to!!

You're sounding like my father now!

p.s. As it happens it is a song by Muse, so you get a runners-up prize

[Balnald]

Glad I could provoke a good thread, the Singapore folks I work with are very friendly, a lot of my time is spent regionally out of Singapore, my company pays taxes and rent as well as a local living allowance... Besides I came via the middle east and Africa as las assignments so I am very easy to please.........

[DimWit Kid]

Been here 13 years and going.

Just quit my company because I don't want to leave Singapore and want to spend more time here instead in various companies headquarters elsewhere and traveling 200-220 days a year anymore.

So I'm with SE here...

[snowqueen]

Glad I could provoke a good thread, the Singapore folks I work with are very friendly, a lot of my time is spent regionally out of Singapore, my company pays taxes and rent as well as a local living allowance... Besides I came via the middle east and Africa as las assignments so I am very easy to please.........

Wow, with that package you will certainly live a very comfortable life here. We don't get any of those perks but seem to do OK. We don't get do go on the regular fancy Bali/Thailand/Vietnam trips that my friends go on but we do OK. For us it was a lifestyle choice rather than money when we chose to move here from the UK.

Although I agree with everything on the list that JR8 said, and I have a few of my own to add, it's a small price to pay. Yes, there are some day to day annoyances, but I only have to read/watch Sky or BBC News to be reminded of why we left the UK. Not really shocked any more to read about daily teenage stabbings/murders/rapes in the UK. I miss friends and family but the country is a shit hole and I'm not in any rush to go back.

Enjoy your time here, warts and all, it's still a great place to live.

[JayCee]

But I do wonder how many people would leave Singapore at the drop of a hat if the tax rates here increased to the equivalent of those in the U.S or U.K?

I think you hit the nail on the head there, at least 50% (of westerners) would be my guess.

One thing my soon-to-be-wife and I have discussed is the possibility of getting out of Singapore in a few years as we don't particularly want our future kids to grow up in such a vacuous, me-me-me culture, but we don't particularly want to move to the UK either. So Australia has been mentioned as a possibility a few times, but when I look at the tax rates it really puts me off and makes Singapore look a lot more attractive

[nakatago]

But I do wonder how many people would leave Singapore at the drop of a hat if the tax rates here increased to the equivalent of those in the U.S or U.K?

I think you hit the nail on the head there, at least 50% (of westerners) would be my guess.

One thing my soon-to-be-wife and I have discussed is the possibility of getting out of Singapore in a few years as we don't particularly want our future kids to grow up in such a vacuous, me-me-me culture, but we don't particularly want to move to the UK either. So Australia has been mentioned as a possibility a few times, but when I look at the tax rates it really puts me off and makes Singapore look a lot more attractive

One way to look at it is Singapore's low tax rates is the exception; most countries more-or-less take out roughly the same ballpark rate in income tax.

That's what I've been trying to tell myself, at least.