Singapore, a fine city

A view at Marina bay

A complete month passed to get in the feeling of Singapore. Straight faces and straight talk is something we can define as the culture of Singapore. The complete race it seems is developed to be workaholic. Foreigners from different country with different mindset arrive in Singapore and get colored with Singapore.

It is rare to see independent houses. Government has build apartments called as HDB(housing Development). There are private apartments as well called as Condomium.
Initial days it was tough to digest that Rent for these apartments are as high as 3k SGD. You can easily find 2-3 families staying in same apartment in different rooms sharing same kitchen and toilet.

People moreover looked like programmed. No nonsense country I guess is the slogan of Singapore. You break rules and you will be fined heavily. I changed almost 4 houses or better to say 4 rooms to find a comparatively cheaper and better place. Broker generally charge half month rent for 1 year contract and full month length for 2 year contract. You can bypass broker by looking into some site. Most effective site I found was http://singapore.gumtree.sg

Something I really appreciate about this country is inspite of getting people from different countries they successfully put the same color. You can find people from different race working together without commenting on dress, accent culture or anything as such. At my first glance of my office in Singapore I felt like I just landed on an airport.

Coming back to acco again. Condomium generally have amenities like swimming pool and other play areas but HDB doesn't have. Although government has provided common swimming pool, library, play area at one common location. Anyone can walk into library and spend time without membership. HDB has rules which need to be followed strictly although condo can be ussed moreover like hotel.

Shopping: Mustafa(Farrer Park MRT) stands tall in Singapore when shopping word appears. Spread in a wide area, it have almost all the household things available which is required in day to day use. along with that dress material and electronics goods are also available at competitive price.
Mustafa also arranges foreign package trip and Visa for nearby countries.
Other then Mustafa there are many malls and 24*7 shops. You can also find some shops in your locality who sells second hand goods at quite cheap rate. For electronics goods you can go to Simlim (Bugis MRT). YOu need to have a clear idea of what you are panning to buy and its rate. Bargaining can be done at this place.
                    Cash Converter: This information may be more useful for new comers. If your stay duration is not confirmed, this may be ideal place to buy goods. They sell second hand goods at almost 1/5th of the price ranging from household goods, electronics items, sports item and gift items.  Even while leaving you can sell out the goods back to them. You can find more information at this link.

EZlink Card: This card found a paragraph in my blog because of the innovative idea behind this card. You can get this card at any MRT station. The card can be used to do payment for all MRT and Bus services. Just tap and go concept. This is valid also in all govt provided facilities like sports complex, library, govt food court etc..

Food: You may feel good in Singapore if you are a foodie kind of person. It is easy to find food courts nearby your place selling Chinese, Thai, western and Indian food. Food courts are available inside HDB and Condo which is generally open till 10 PM or sometimes full night. People do less cooking at home and moreover eat outside.

Chinese and Malaysians account a big part of the population of Singapore followed by Indians. Chinese and Tamil is one of the nationalized language.

Festivals: People from different countries kept their culture and festivals alive till some extent. Government declared holiday for each community. You can get holiday for Id, Diwali, Christmas and Chinese new year.

Places to see: You can spend your day at Marina bay and go on amphibian duck trip around the city. Sentosa island is also one of the attraction here.
A nice laser show presentation is done at Marina bay in open. Evening can be spend there with food and drinks watching the music and show.