September, Already!

8 Months on in Singapore

As I sit down to write this update it is difficult to comprehend the speed at which the last 8 months have gone by. Ruth and I arrived here in December and now it is September. When we arrived we weren’t sure what to expect, other than there would be lots of people and it would be hot. Neither of these two expectations have caused us too many problems. So far every day has introduced us to new adventures, and it seems like we have managed at least 10 years worth of life experiences into 2007.

What is really neat is that we still have 3 months to go!!

So what is different about living in Singapore?

Here are my 5 biggest differences, these are the ones that have the most impact on our lifestyle.

1. Living in an apartment.
I never thought that I would live in a three bed roomed box on the 11th storey. I have always preferred to live in a house on a section where you can dig in the ground and go outside to hang the washing on the clothesline.

Actually I am quite enjoying living in our apartment. We have an open laundry area to do our washing and hang out the clothes on poles. When I look out the windows there is always something interesting happening on the road down below. We don’t feel like we are looking into other apartments and neither are they looking in on us.

2. Living in a Condo.
The condo style of living is so different to the way we live in New Zealand. You have security officers who keep a track of the comings and goings from the community. That helps to make you feel secure, knowing that someone is there watching out for you. We have a large swimming pool of 50+ metres that is maintained for our use. We simply walk out our door take the lift walk a short distance and we can swim. This has been really good for refreshing us in this tropical environment. The gymnasium has been another plus. I have tried to put in an average of three sessions a week. Once again it is maintained and easily accessed. No expensive membership and I don’t leave home to use it. I feel like I am living in a resort.

3. Not owning a car.
I bought my first car when I was 17 and have owned a car ever since. In New Zealand we had three cars and really couldn’t do without them. Over here the transport system is very reliable. We tend to use the trains which run like clockwork, if you miss one there is no need to panic because you know the next one will be along within 6 minutes. We have an Easy link card which we top up regularly, this is our ticket for getting on the rains and buses. We pay around $70.00 a month on this. Ruth was paying more for the petrol in her car for a week while working in Tairua. We don’t have car insurance, registration, warrant of fitness and other running expenses to pay. I am sure that we get home as quick taking the train as we would if we were driving a car and we don’t have any of the stresses associated with driving. Sometimes we travel by taxi, the taxi service in Singapore is extraordinarily good. You are never far away from a taxi and it is easy to hail one. They are cheap, a thirty minute trip to the airport is less than $30.00. For a small fee you can ring and order one, mostly it is just as easy to hail one. I am convinced that there is little or no need to own a car in Singapore and as a result we have more money to spend on other things.

4. Singapore Food.
We continue to find new and interesting flavours to try as we explore the various restaurants and food halls. We originally thought we would be in for treat as we adjusted to Asian food. We now know that there are lots of different influences included into the cuisine here.

It is probably possible to eat every night of the year at a different restaurant, for cheaper than you would cook the same meals at home. Not only that but you would have only visited a fraction of the options available.

Eating food will never be the same for me now that I have been exposed to the exciting spices and flavours of food available in Singapore.

5. Work and Play times.
For us we have shifted from going to work in our teaching jobs in schools and kindergartens in New Zealand to working for a company that specilises in tutoring out of school hours. There are pluses and minuses to this.
We like;
Having mornings to ourselves throughout the week. We don’t have to set the alarm and have no rush to starting the day.
Working the afternoon evenings and still being able to pick essentials on our way home at night.
Having all day Monday, Tuesday and until 2:00 Wednesday for our weekend. When we explore Singapore it is work time for most other people.
Having holidays where we can hop on a plane and explore other places at very reasonable rates.
The downside is;
We finish on Friday at 9:00 and work Saturday and Sunday 8:45 – 6:30. But you have to do the hours sometime.
We are working during weekends when lots of events take place including organized sports
We really are a long way from home when it comes to keeping in touch with others, so sometimes we don’t get to informing everyone of what we are up to.


So far we feel the lifestyle is pretty good and we are looking forward to continuing working her for another 12 months. Remember nothing much happens here before 11:00 am and shops tend to stay open until 10:30 pm or later most nights.