Hi Steemians! I am adding an entry to the "Singapore Stories" series after reading this commentary on Channel NewsAsia. The commentary was a response to the Time Out City Life Index which ranked Singapore 31st of the 32 cities that were surveyed. The survey was conducted on 15,000 respondents across 32 cities. "Time Out" scored 32 cities on criteria such as food, drink, culture, friendliness, affordability, happiness and liveability. Being ranked second last naturally means Singapore is a "boring" city.
I am unable to find more details on the methodology of the survey nor am I able to find the actual survey questions. So I am going to talk about Singapore based on the scoring factors from the survey.
Food (My score: 9/10)
Personally, I think Singapore is one of the best places for food in the world. You can complain about many things being expensive in Singapore, but the food is affordable here. In which city can you get a meal completed with drinks at under S$5? Due to our cultural diversity, we also have a wide selection of food available. I will write about my top ten favourite food in Singapore soon. So stay tuned!
Drink (My score: 7/10)
I assume "drink" refers to alcohols. On this, I agree that Singapore is not the best place for alcohols. This is mainly due to its high price after taxation and licensing fees. A pint of beer can easily cost S$15 in most pubs versus under S$5 in cities like Bangkok or Ho Chi Minh City. However, due to our security, Singapore is probably one of the few cities where you can drink like a fish and still get home safely :)
Culture (My score: 7/10)
Ranking culture is difficult. Singapore has a very short history (only 52 years) since our independence. So on our own, we can never claim that we have a strong culture. However, if you consider our heterogeneity in terms of race, language and religion, you will realise that we have a unique "rojak" culture which is difficult to find elsewhere.
Friendliness (My score: 6.5/10)
Objectively, I think we are not the friendliest nation in the world. I think the problem with most Singaporeans is that we are usually more reserved and we keep a straight and cool face to the public. We are generally not the kind of people who will openly ask if you needed help. But we will most likely help if you ask us for it first :).
Affordability (My score: 6.5/10)
As mentioned previously, Singapore is one of the most affordable of the 32 cities for food. The Singaporean government made it such that everyone is able to afford basic necessities such as food and public transport. On the other hand, the luxury goods are pricey. For instance, it is really expensive to own a car in Singapore. Even a normal Japanese make sedan will set you back by almost S$100,000.
Happiness (My score: 6/10)
I think Singaporeans are generally in a state of discontent and unhappy. The main reason is likely due to our high competitiveness. We often like to compare with someone else and put ourselves down. This is a double-edged sword. Ideally, we like to remain competitive, but at the same time, being over competitive leads to more stress and dissatisfaction. It is difficult to strike a balance.
Liveability (My score: 8/10)
Overall, I think Singapore is a great city to live in. We may not be the most exciting and fun city, but we are among the safest and stable cities. We have affordable transport, food and housing. We are given fair opportunities in education and jobs. Singaporeans like to whine and complain a lot but I think deep in our hearts, we love this place!
I scored Singapore 50 out of the possible full score of 70. I think that is a decent score. Fellow #teamsingapore Steemians, what is your take? How will you score the various ranking factors in the survey? Travelers who had been to Singapore, please share your comments as well.
**Pictures from Pexels