From simply knowing to actually observing is the whole point of the educational trip last 23rd of September 2016. By pressing nine letters on the keyboard, a whole map and all things one might want to know are readily available in the internet. One can tour a whole country by watching travel vlogs and reading articles. What is the good of being in the country subject for your observation? I can use all my five senses to compare other country to my homeland. Find which to adopt and which ones to prevent.

Three days, starting from the afternoon of the 23rd to late noon of 25th. Read along as I share bits of my experiences from this 3-Day Singapore Trip.

The first day is when the class attended TMC Academy where they have prepared us a presentation about Singapore. But before going there, I wanted to point out how Singapore looks picturesque in the naked eye. The city is covered with greens that taking photos of the intricately designed buildings scattered in its small but well-utilized land would be a real struggle inside an ordinary air conditioned bus. Traffic is also not so bad either although it needs some getting used to with the right-hand side driving.

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            Going back to the presentation, it was concise and informative. They managed to show us a good and substantial comparison of Singapore business industry and the Philippines. The Philippine land area is much larger than that of the Singaporean but the latter has outnumbered Philippines in terms of imports and exports. The part when Prof. Loh, one of the speakers, said that having a large volume of import and export is a double-edge sword- it is both a contributing factor of a booming economy and a sublime indication of being too dependent of international ties. According to him, Philippine economy is stable enough which is what enables us to stay in good position despite a weaker import-export activity. I also came to learn how Singapore is the data center of many big names in the business. They are one of the world’s largest exporter of oil not because they have the resources but the plants are based in Singapore. To make things short, Singapore as a little giant of the world is encouraging investors into their country and intends to keep strong international ties with powerful countries.

 

The class wouldn’t end the day without, food and place exploration. Everywhere going to Chinatown is clean and organized. Roads are not crooked and doesn’t look undone. Buildings are evidently bid by design which is also discussed in the presentation. The food in that one Chinese restaurant we ate at was serving huge portions which we totally did not expect at one bit. I loved how the food is quality and, at the same time, offered in a satisfying quantity.

(Foods we ate will be in a separate post/vlog)

The adventure continues the next day. Considering it is a free day for all of us, we have taken our time to go to as many places as we can to experience the most out of Singapore. Walking around the streets is not much of a hassle if I deduct the heat wave of the sun.

Cars are fewer, in observation. I was not as surprised anymore since owning a car in this country is no joke. Based from a very interesting discussion between our class and the speaker, the wealthy ones are the only people who can own a car in Singapore. Not only that cars are much expensive due to imposition of taxes, paper requirements won’t be less than 20. It is a strategic way to prevent traffic congestion which is one of the crisis in the Philippines. In addition, cars that are 10 years of age are no longer allowed to be driven on the road which explains why no matter how one sweat in Singapore due to the weather, it will be wiped off dust-free. Bus stops are organized and time bound. It is awesome!

Singapore has six lines of LRT/MRT which connect to many different places. The stations in SG are wonderfully landscaped and automated. The whole place is air conditioned which is very much appreciated after long hours of staying under the sun.

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Mixed culture of Chinese, Malay, and Indonesian is visible as we stroll around Little India. There are more beautiful places we visited and all I can say is that there’s just so much to see in the little country such as the Singapore.

The trip is, in a nutshell, an adventurous one. Singapore, in a few words, is a Philippine-feel-alike. During the time I spent in Singapore, I never felt that I was away from home. Most things are similar but I cannot deny that SG is well-invested. I have hoped that Philippines can, one day, leap from stagnation and develop as much or even more than Singapore. It is plausible, I believe. Just like how I did not even think or see myself taking pictures in Merlion Park to close a memorable first-ever international trip of mine.