10 things I hate about Singapore

[wwww]

I find it a bit funny that people love to stand in queues here. case in point
being DBS/UOB/POSB ATM's - a huge ass line of 25-30 ppl
citibank ATM - 0

so since i had a citibank account i stroll past this huge line and then get my cash in under 60 secs and walk off leaving over 25 people wondering if this concept of zero queue exists

protip : I also discovered that citibank <-> hsbc <-> maybank < -> state bank of india <-> ANZ <- >standard chartered had linked up their atm's which means i could use my card in any of these atm's too.

I don't still get why people will stand in line to get into UOB/DBS/POSB atms when these other ATM's are near empty



#baffling

This also applies to UOB ATMs and yes its one of the things that baffles me the most since I am here.

A local once told me that most of them have their POSB accounts since childhood and switching banks would mean that they had to change all giros and other bank-related things. But wouldnt this take far less time than that senseless queue for the rest of your life?

[ProvenPracticalFlexible]

I find it a bit funny that people love to stand in queues here. case in point
being DBS/UOB/POSB ATM's - a huge ass line of 25-30 ppl
citibank ATM - 0

so since i had a citibank account i stroll past this huge line and then get my cash in under 60 secs and walk off leaving over 25 people wondering if this concept of zero queue exists

protip : I also discovered that citibank <-> hsbc <-> maybank < -> state bank of india <-> ANZ <- >standard chartered had linked up their atm's which means i could use my card in any of these atm's too.

I don't still get why people will stand in line to get into UOB/DBS/POSB atms when these other ATM's are near empty



#baffling

This also applies to UOB ATMs and yes its one of the things that baffles me the most since I am here.

A local once told me that most of them have their POSB accounts since childhood and switching banks would mean that they had to change all giros and other bank-related things. But wouldnt this take far less time than that senseless queue for the rest of your life?

Exactly, or if this is too much trouble you could still open another account in another bank for ATM withdraws and do online transfer to that one (or the other way round for your GIROs).

But on the other hand a country where cheques are still commonly used as a payment method, you'd question how technologically advanced the banking sector and its' customers are.

[rajagainstthemachine]

zombie attack in trains and mrt walkways.

David Attenborough
This creature is found deep underground in the vast network of metro railways. It's distinguishing characteristics are the ability to walk in a straight line while staring into an electronic device. A mental GPS directs it to walk in a straight line even if human beings need to cross its path. It's moral conscience of getting out of the way has been tampered with.
The creature is devoid of expression and will not tender an apology when getting in the way of other creatures.
These organisms are often unaware of the existence of other creatures who wish to get inside the velocipede and will extend an appendage and cling on the nearest pole.
The visuals exhibited on the electronic device is usually Chinese drama
In conclusion it is therefore safe to conclude that Chinese drama when exhibited on electronic devices can convert humans into zombies.

[proxymoron]

For me, the ATM queues in POSB / DBS are rather understandable, considering the minimum daily balance requirement for the savings account in rest of Singapore Banks.

But the thing baffles me most is the queue for Passbook update machines. Last time I had a passbook for my account was in last century!!!. Why would so many people want to queue up for getting there passbook updated?
Does that one also give a $2 voucher??

[rajagainstthemachine]

guys who do this, makes me want to shoot them in the ass

[zzm9980]

zombie attack in trains and mrt walkways.

David Attenborough
This creature is found deep underground in the vast network of metro railways. It's distinguishing characteristics are the ability to walk in a straight line while staring into an electronic device. A mental GPS directs it to walk in a straight line even if human beings need to cross its path. It's moral conscience of getting out of the way has been tampered with.
The creature is devoid of expression and will not tender an apology when getting in the way of other creatures.
These organisms are often unaware of the existence of other creatures who wish to get inside the velocipede and will extend an appendage and cling on the nearest pole.
The visuals exhibited on the electronic device is usually Chinese drama
In conclusion it is therefore safe to conclude that Chinese drama when exhibited on electronic devices can convert humans into zombies.

Pretty sure it's Korean drama with a bit of Taiwanese. But don't forget Whatsapp or WeChat.

[Hidy Ho]

Pretty sure it's Korean drama with a bit of Taiwanese. But don't forget Whatsapp or WeChat.

A younger generation of walking zombies (glued to their smartphone and ignoring all surroundings) are quickly becoming my pet peeve. One almost got an earful from me today but got off the elevator just in time as the door closed.

Other things I notice and are bugged by:

- No left or right side walking methodology in a busy street
- No acknowledgement of thanks for being courteous (opening/holding doors or giving way)
- lack of queuing or give way to people getting out (elevator or MRT)

I see more manner/courtesy in Bangkok than I do here in Singapore.

[Brah]

As someone who has been pretty outspoken about things here that I find odd, annoying, dumb, or downright dislike, having said that, I'm uncomfortable with the word 'hate' in the title of this thread.

It's not a 'hate' place, otherwise we wouldn't be here.

[zzm9980]

As someone who has been pretty outspoken about things here that I find odd, annoying, dumb, or downright dislike, having said that, I'm uncomfortable with the word 'hate' in the title of this thread.

It's not a 'hate' place, otherwise we wouldn't be here.

You're right, it should be 'pet peeves' or annoyances.

But playing along with the title, I'll add something I really do "hate" about Singapore:

The disdain and poor treatment of the foreign help, particularly maids. I'm starting to fume every time I see a maid carrying 10 shopping bags walking behind an aunty on her cell phone carrying a single small purse.

[rajagainstthemachine]

As someone who has been pretty outspoken about things here that I find odd, annoying, dumb, or downright dislike, having said that, I'm uncomfortable with the word 'hate' in the title of this thread.

It's not a 'hate' place, otherwise we wouldn't be here.

You're right, it should be 'pet peeves' or annoyances.

But playing along with the title, I'll add something I really do "hate" about Singapore:

The disdain and poor treatment of the foreign help, particularly maids. I'm starting to fume every time I see a maid carrying 10 shopping bags walking behind an aunty on her cell phone carrying a single small purse.

also maids should be equipped with parachutes while cleaning the high rise windows to prevent them from plunging to their death.

#sarcasm

[earthfriendly]

They tightened the rule on window cleaning? Maids are not allowed to do it without supervision. Read a story where the employer specifically told maid to never clean the window. One day she came home and saw the maid climbing on the grid trying to clean the window, the employer almost got a heart attack!

[JR8]

You're right, it should be 'pet peeves' or annoyances.

But playing along with the title, I'll add something I really do "hate" about Singapore:

The disdain and poor treatment of the foreign help, particularly maids. I'm starting to fume every time I see a maid carrying 10 shopping bags walking behind an aunty on her cell phone carrying a single small purse.

No, it's being pedantic. After all a marketing line in the US is 'I Love X/y/z'; example: 'I love New York'. And it's just marketing.

Just because you say 'I hate X/y/z' in no way means you personally and literally hate it. That is far too black and white. Hell, maybe it's just something that annoys you or me... so it annoys me (normal life), but I don't literally hate such.

SGns, and in fact any non-Brits here are in a mine-field, as they fail to see and navigate the very nuanced linguistic minefield! There is much nuance based on word-play in English and 'Jonny-Foreigner' usually totally misses it, or worse takes it 180 degrees the wrong way, right up the jacksie, then they stick it on you!!

[zzm9980]

No, it's being pedantic. After all a marketing line in the US is 'I Love X/y/z'; example: 'I love New York'. And it's just marketing.

Two years here has taught me that most English speakers here (not just locals) don't understand nuance or sarcasm, so I avoid it. Hell, half the time outside of work I find myself talking in pigeon english to people I just meet ot make sure they understand what I want.

[Brah]

SGns... fail to see and navigate the very nuanced linguistic minefield! There is much nuance based on word-play in English and 'Jonny-Foreigner' usually totally misses it, or worse takes it 180 degrees the wrong way

most English speakers here (not just locals) don't understand nuance or sarcasm,...I find myself talking in pigeon english to people I just meet to make sure they understand...

Ok, now this I hate. Because the end effect is it dumbs me down...

I saw some posting of local mixed metaphors in another forum, I can't think of any at the moment, but when I hear them in actual conversation I usually have to stifle a smirk or laughing out loud!

They're like Yogi Berra lines...

http://www.baseball-almanac.com/quotes/quoberra.shtml

http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/arc ... 12982.html

[x9200]

SGns, and in fact any non-Brits here are in a mine-field, as they fail to see and navigate the very nuanced linguistic minefield! There is much nuance based on word-play in English and 'Jonny-Foreigner' usually totally misses it, or worse takes it 180 degrees the wrong way, right up the jacksie, then they stick it on you!!

If you are talking about "hate" then I think it is pretty clear it is just a speech hyperbole.
For more sophisticated sarcasm and nuances it's probably but partly true, especially in the places like this where the whole non-verbal part of communication is missing. I see often more than one possibility to chose from and typically deciding it was not a sarcasm is more safe.
Yet another point is, that it take some language skills to respond to such speech and as I am not that well versed in English, again I often choose to react as it was just a plain straightforward message.