Farewell Singapore, one year later

It was always going to happen but I never expected to happen like this. In less than a week I’ll be leaving Singapore after a wild year of traveling Southeast Asia, stuffing myself with hawker food, and of course, living through the COVID-19 pandemic in a foreign country.

It’s bittersweet to leave in this strange time. The friends and colleagues that I’ve gotten to know in the last year that welcomed me to Singapore, taught me Singlish words, and recommended me restaurants have truly made my experience in the Lion City. I won’t be able to say goodbye in person to any of them and I might not see some of these people ever again. But, as a famous teddy bear once said, “How lucky I am to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard” (Winnie the Pooh).

My farewell party

I’m grateful to have had the opportunity to be an expat in Singapore at my age, and I’ve learned so much in the last year. I want to share some of the lessons I’ve picked up from living and working abroad.

Understanding and respecting the concept of saving face.

This is a huge aspect of many Asian cultures and it is important to avoid humiliating others. The American way is to be direct and confrontational. Here, this approach doesn’t work as well when trying to solve problems. When negotiating, always be willing to “give” a little to the other side in the end result. When delivering tough news, do so privately, give people time to absorb it all, and let people be “cameras off”. This will ultimately help you build rapport and stronger long-term relationships.

Adapting to different standards and learning to be uncomfortable.

I knew that learning the metric system would be a challenge, but I underestimated how much date formatting would drive me crazy. Here, the day of the month is listed before the month, e.g. 4/5 is the 4th of May. This makes for confusing expiration dates on food packaging, depending on where an item is imported from. No one ever confuses a weather forecast in Celsius with Fahrenheit. I’ve since learned to write dates based on my audience’s preference (I do work in client services after all!) and while it takes some mental effort for this code switching, it makes communication smoother.

Timezones taught me to learn to stick up for myself and my team.

With the smallest team at the agency, it’s easy to be forgotten. I pushed for our APAC team to get visibility in front of our executives and get sent company All-Hands recordings in a timely manner. I shared praise from our clients so everyone knew the great work our team was doing.

A huge thank you goes to my team in Singapore for their patience as I’ve learned the ropes in the last year. If you’re ever in the States, I hope you’ll visit me in Chicago (or wherever I end up). I’m already looking forward to the day I return to Singapore and see the island nation transformed on my way to queue for a plate of hokkien mee 🙂

18 things that make me feel American

Living in another country challenges you to think about your own identity, and how much of it has been shaped by your cultural and environmental surroundings. This can make it hard to imagine how someone can grow up without [insert dryer/dishwasher/air conditioning unit] that you have always had. Becoming an expat makes you appreciate the things you miss and realize the tastes & preferences you have that will never change.

In the following list, I tried to avoid the obvious differences (politics, weather) to focus on the cultural elements of what makes me feel American (or Western in some cases) because it’s different from Singaporean locals or residents.

Work & Money

Explaining the concept of unlimited PTO. This wouldn’t even be legal in Singapore.

Being able to quit a job with two weeks notice (the average is TWO MONTHS in Singapore and it’s written into your contract).

Using my non-contactless American credit card because the rewards are better than those offered by Singapore banks.

Paying with credit cards and not having to worry about payment processing fees because the merchant will cover it. Budget airlines are notorious for tacking on ridiculous fees ($8 per person per flight).

Food

Defending pizza to those who haven’t had a good foldable slice in NYC (you don’t want to know what blasphemous toppings I have seen on pizzas in Asia).

Ashley holding a slice of pizza

Asking for ice water at a restaurant (if you ask for water, it might be room temperature). Being annoyed when they charge for water.

The joy I get from not having to tip at a restaurant.

My obsession with eating mangoes all the time because it’s so hard to get good ones in the US.

Cut mango

Craving crunchy/crispy snacks or corn based snacks. Not a huge fan of rice crackers.

Craving soft, chewy cookies and not the dry shortbread ones that can be easily found in Singapore. Never thought I’d see a Famous Amos stand at the mall…

Life

Talking about (American) football and attending games at the Big House (second largest stadium in the world).

Cheering for a specific sports team like my alma mater instead of a country’s team.

Having to think twice at the gym about which dumbbell to grab because they’re all in kg.

Wearing bright colors or athleisure when I’m not working out.

Sentosa Sandsation

Missing massive supermarkets where you could truly one stop shop.

Explaining the concept of trick or treating on Halloween or exchanging valentines on Valentine’s Day. 

Missing the convenience of a dryer.

Running the air con while I sleep.

What are some things that make you feel American?

Celebrating National Day in Singapore

Earlier this month I had the pleasure of experiencing my first public holiday in Singapore: National Day. Every year Singaporeans celebrate on August 9 their independence from Malaysia in 1965. For Americans, this holiday would be similar to Fourth of July, although it seems like a bigger deal here.

In the weeks leading up to National Day, I saw Singaporean flags and Happy Birthday Singapore banners everywhere. Many companies latch on to this holiday and run National Day specials, from special crab buffets to Singapore exclusive items. I enjoyed a very yummy chicken satay bun from Wu Pao Chun, a Taiwanese bakery, and also a kaya cream puff from Bread Talk, a local bakery chain. Too bad these items are limited time only as I would order both again.

 bun from Wu Pao Chun
Satay meets bun

Singaporeans have a ton of national pride and also work hard to get things right. As a result, they hold weekly rehearsals for the National Day Parade, including fireworks displays, which are ticketed events! If you ask a local what they think of these extra shows, they will say it’s like watching your tax dollars disappear.

The morning of National Day we head to the Singapore Sports Hub for their National Day Fiesta. It’s cool how Singapore promotes exercise and staying active with free events like these. We participated in the RED-X challenge, a series of 5 different workouts, so we could get free dry bags. No photos because we were a sweaty mess by the end of it. Shuttle runs in a sandy court are so not fun.

National Day Fiesta @ Singapore Sports Hub

For lunch, we stopped by nearby Old Airport Road Food Centre, only one stop away on the MRT. What better way to celebrate Singapore than to enjoy local hawker food? It looked like most stalls were still open, despite it being a holiday. I ordered the wanton mee (spicy noodles with dumplings) at Hua Kee Hougang Famous Wanton Mee for only S$4 (US$2.89)

We didn’t attend the actual National Day Parade, as you need to be a Singaporean citizen or Permanent Resident and score tickets through a lottery months before. Instead, we did the next best thing and watched part of the live stream at the National Museum, which was open and free for the weekend.

Red Lions parachute team
I spy the Red Lions parachute team!

I also got a crash course in Singaporean history and was delighted to find they had a small teamLab installation, Story of the Forest. If you’re not familiar with teamLab, they are a digital art collective out of Japan and you have to check out teamLab Borderless if you’re ever in Tokyo.

teamLab Story of the Forest @ National Museum

Oh, and I scored a free funpack! Inside the convertible tote/backpack were a flag, water, snacks, stickers, luggage tag, visor, and tissues. All necessary if you’re sitting in a stadium for hours.

Ashley wearing funpack

On Saturday, we visited Gardens by the Bay to see the nightly light show in the Supertree Grove, Garden Rhapsody. The show is absolutely worth seeing and changes every month. This month’s theme was National Day and featured covers of Singapore songs that any local would know by heart.

Garden Rhapsody National Day

Following the light show, we checked out the free National Day concert at the Meadow. It was nice to sit out in the (relatively) cool air at night and we scored goodie bags full of local snacks, plus a free plant.

Overall, National Day weekend was a fun time and I definitely felt the Singaporean pride. I’m already looking forward to the activities and celebrations around the next holiday, the Mid-Autumn Festival in September.

A day in the life of an expat – month two

I’m already one month(!) in living in Singapore and it’s been interesting to see how I’ve adjusted into a new routine. Here’s a snapshot of my day today.

7am – Wake up.

7:30am – First meeting of the day is a call with the global team based out of Denver & San Diego. Working across time zones can be tricky but having these internal syncs is incredibly helpful as we’re able to get immediate responses to our questions.

9:30am – Lighting contractor shows up to check out my flickering room light. Turns out nothing is wrong with the light; it’s just not compatible with the preset dimmer on the wall. I am told to only use the remote to change the brightness (yes, the light is remote-operated).

10:30am – Walk to the client office at Marina Bay Financial Centre. On paper my commute is short but when you factor in time waiting for the “lift”, it doubles. First world problems.

11:30am – Eat lunch at the “canteen” aka the cafeteria. In the salad bar today the roasted eggplant is labeled as zucchini when really it should be “aubergine”. Still delicious! I’ve also been eating watermelon every day and am still not sick of it.

12:30pm – Drag my team out to Marina Bay to take a photo for the company website. It’s quite hot on the walk back but one thing I’ve noticed in Singapore is that people don’t talk much about the weather because it’s always the same. Instead we complain about how cold the air con is!

3Q Singapore team

4pm – Meet with the tax firm that will be handling the tax equalization while I am on assignment. I learn about how the Singapore tax year is paid in arrears and how if you try to leave the country with an overdue tax notice, you will be stopped at the airport. They do not mess around here!

5pm – Pick up letter during mail hours at our coworking space. I am offered a brownie and get invited to the Delegate birthday party on Saturday. There will be free food so I am tempted.

5:30pm – Drop-in for a weight lifting session at Platinum Fitness. Gyms here are very expensive and I miss paying $65 a month for Chicago Athletic Clubs. I started a free trial through ClassPass Singapore and used 5 credits to book this drop-in session. The monthly subscription is S$59 (~$43) for 25 credits, which would be about $8 a drop-in session, cheaper than a full-time gym membership.

Some things don’t change, like me being one of two ladies lifting weights in a gym full of dudes.

Platinum Fitness gym

6:45pm – Treat myself to dinner at Amoy Street Food Centre. Taking my time to explore and try food at hawker centres is one of the best things about living in Singapore, versus visiting. I see black bean sauce on a menu, which tastes way better than it sounds and is one of mom’s signature dishes, so I order it. So shiok! (That’s Singlish for delicious/good.)

chicken in black bean sauce

8pm – Stop by FairPrice for some groceries. I buy peaches, cauliflower, maitake mushrooms (the cheapest item at S$1.50!), and frozen gyoza for S$14.

9pm – Write this blog post.

There you have it! 

The first two weeks: highs and lows

A lot can happen in two weeks. A lot has happened in two weeks.

Singapore has been full of adventures so far! Overall I’m enjoying life here, particularly the food and walkability of this city-state.  I’ve been busy getting logistics in order but hope to share more blog posts once things simmer down. For now, here are the highs and lows of my first two weeks.

Highs

  • Registered for my employment pass – I can now legally work in Singapore!
  • Signed a lease for a condo unit! Apartment tour to come once I actually move in…
  • Met up for dinners with a former colleague I haven’t seen in 4 years, a freshly new expat couple I befriended at the gate in Newark, and a colleague’s older sister who happened to be traveling in SE Asia.
  • This sunset. Wow.
  • Ate a lot of…Japanese food. I’ve been staying in Clarke Quay and discovered the nearby Liang Court mall has loads of Japanese restaurants. So far I’ve eaten unagi, ramen, udon, and sushi. Lots of Japanese expats live in the area; that’s how you know it’s legit.
unagi hitsumabushi style @ Unagiya Ichinoji
unagi hitsumabushi style @ Unagiya Ichinoji
  • Booked tickets to Taiwan in August to visit extended family and reunite with my younger sister before she starts her fall semester in Shanghai.
  • Seeing the gorgeous Singapore frangipani tree for the first time, which looks exactly like a magnet I bought at Daiso (Japanese dollar store).
Singapore frangipani tree
Singapore frangipani tree

Lows

  • Learned of the many things you cannot sign up for without your physical employment pass, which I do not have yet. This includes utilities & Internet, a bank account (I’ve made three trips and learned of new required documents every time), Grab (the Uber of SE Asia), and my Gardens by the Bay resident membership.
  • Everything is on the left!
  • Being drenched in sweat after a nighttime run.
  • Every document needs to be printed and signed in person. No joke.

Other thoughts

  • People are nice here but in a polite way, not a Midwestern go-out-of-your-way-to-help way.
  • Word of the day: chope. It’s how Singaporeans reserve their tables at hawker centers by leaving a pack of tissues behind. It’s also a popular app used to make restaurant reservations.
  • NFC readers are everywhere, notably contactless credit card payments. The US is behind!

Every day I learn something new and my experience gets a little better. In the next two weeks, I have much to look forward to: moving into my new apartment, my first visitor, and a birthday trip to Chiang Mai!