So, I touched down from The Land of Dim Sum barely 3 hours ago and before any form of sadness that my holiday was over – and all that jest- hit me, all I felt was the heat. YES THE SCORCHING HEAT.
Once I stepped out of the air conditioned airport into the afternoon sun, my sweat glands hidden under my thick layer of knitwear started crying and protesting at the drastic change in temperatures.
Nevertheless, after being on holiday to Hong Kong for the past week or so, I have realised HOW MUCH I love my country *hugs and kisses and more hugs and kisses* . Much as I love my dimsum, nothing NOTHING can bribe me away from Singapore to HK.
“Cabin crew, 10 minutes to touch down.” was the best thing I have heard today
And so -with my ceiling fan on full blast, curtains drawn and on the verge of turning on air conditioning- these are my Top 3 reasons why I Love my Lion City, the pea sized island sitting at the equator on the tip of Malaysia.
1. Hygiene
Welcome to the typical eateries in Hongkong! Where food going topless to bask in the midday air being a common sight. With levels of API (Air Pollution Index – http://www.epd-asg.gov.hk/eindex.html) NEA wouldn’t approve of to boot.
This picture was taken at one of the many eateries we visited- with food items placed in the open air situated along the cluttered, drain-lined roadsides. Let’s not talk about the grime-stained plates and the dubious sheets of transparent film shall we?
Well, at least this is one sight we wouldn’t get to see in our sunny island.
“If it’s like that in Singapore ah, nobody will dare to eat!”
came a comment from my travel partner.
That’s pretty true, considering how pampered we are by the government who clams down hard on hawkers who don’t meet certain hygiene standards.
2. Attitude
Yes, I know this topic is highly controversial, but in my opinion, Singaporeans are definitely more polite and friendly in general (save for a few black sheep). Cue the many incidents that happened to us during our trip there.
- You go to a public toilet and before you can unzip your pants the next person waiting for the toilet comes banging on the door and turning the door knob vigorously as if a fire broke out screaming at you to hurry up.
- You peer through the polished glass to ogle at the shiny display watches and jewellery. A service staff comes out and is about to approach you, sees your dressing, walks back in/treats you as transparent. (this is the part where the phrase ‘Don’t judge a book by its cover’ needs to be ingrained into some people’s minds)
- You ask for directions and get ignored / receive a patronizing answer complete with a black face.
- You try to slash the exorbitant prices they charge, and receive a string of insults in Cantonese, or for the nicer ones, a black face.
I’m not saying that ALL Singaporeans are nice and courteous akin to Saints or that we could be voted as the Friendliest country or that ALL Hong Kongers are not (I’ve met a couple of reaalllly nice ones), but put in comparison, there lies a noticeable difference we cannot deny.
3. Environment
According to the residents there, it is common for a space of 1000 square feet to be shared between 5, yes FIVE, couples while they wait for their application for a housing flat. That’s literally enough space for a little bathroom and 2 small beds. The wait would generally be about 10 years before they can get their flats- that’s 10 years staying in our storerooms for us Singaporeans.
Also, not forgetting that the prices of housing and rent in Hong Kong being sky high due to the housing shortage.
“If they were to come to our houses here in Singapore, it would be considered mansions to them.”
my travel partner reiterated time and again.
It’s pretty obvious which flats belong to which country eh?
Patriotism put aside, Singapore still and also has many things to learn from our Asian counterpart.
But for now, let me enjoy the crisp air, clean streets, lovely neighborhood and definitely, my comfy bed.
