When you walk the streets of Singapore, prowl the malls or ride in the train, it isn’t unusual to overhear conversations in Filipino. There are, after all, about a hundred thousand Filipinos in Singapore. So many, in fact, that inside the Lucky Plaza along Orchard Road, one finds many shops and services that cater to Filipinos. Kabayan Restaurant lists kare-kare, daing na bangus and lumpiang sariwa among its specialties; Hagibis Express offers “padala” services; Nayong Pilipino Minimart sells Growers peanuts, chicharon and barquillos.
One of these hundred thousand or so Filipinos living in Singapore is Malou, a long time reader who resides there with her engineer husband and their four children. We met up with her, she showed us around, we ate, had coffee, talked and talked some more. And the stories she shared gave us an insight that no travel book, magazine or television documentary can.
Singapore, Malou said, is a place where a parent need not worry about teenaged children who stay out late at night. It’s a safe place – you can leave your things on a table in a restaurant while you order food at the counter and no one will touch your stuff. An amazing claim, really, especially for someone like me who grew up in Metro Manila with that instinctive reaction never to let bag nor child nor any belonging out of sight lest they disappear with the blink of an eye.
But Malou wasn’t exaggerating. Nine days after that conversation, at the Changi Airport while waiting to board the plane that would fly us back to Manila, I left a book (where my boarding pass was inserted) on the counter of a dimsum stall. I had forgotten all about it until it was nearly boarding time and I was looking for my boarding pass.
I ran back to the dimsum counter, I asked the attendant if she had seen the book and she pointed to an airport employee to whom she had handed it. The airport employee told me that the book had been brought to Gate 10 where we would board the plane. Apparently, someone had seen the boarding pass peeping through the pages of the book, noted the flight number and dispatched the book with the boarding pass to their most logical destination. And it was at Gate 10 where I was able to catch up with Dan Brown’s The Lost Symbol and my boarding pass. Had the incident taken place anywhere in Metro Manila, I doubt if I would have seen my book again.
Of course, it has a lot to do with poverty. Singapore’s population is much more affluent and petty thefts would be irrational since most of the people there can afford to buy a hardcover copy of Dan Brown’s latest thriller – so why bother stealing?
It’s very different among the poverty-stricken here at home. Just last Sunday, we were driving from Caloocan to Manila along C-3 road and I had totally forgotten that Manny Villar was going to hold some rind of rally in the area. Traffic was bad and there wasn’t much to do except observe what was going on around us including a couple of teenaged boys who forcibly opened the toolbox of a truck (stalled in the snarled traffic like us) and emptied it. Did the driver go down and run after them? Are you kidding? In a place like that, he would have been beaten to a pulp by the associates of the thieves who are likely lurking somewhere near. Worse, had the driver left his truck, he might have lost it altogether including whatever cargo it was carrying.
But it isn’t just poverty that breeds petty crimes like that. It is the lack of effective law enforcement too. Malou told us about this young boy in Singapore, a Caucasian, who was caned for vandalism. The boy was Michael Fay and his caning became a cause celebre several years ago. Fay, along with several expatriate students from the Singapore American School, were charged with more than fifty counts of vandalism and stealing of road signs. Fay confessed, was sentenced to jail time, fine and six strokes of the cane. Appeal failed, the American government interceded, the caning was reduced to four strokes which were delivered at the Queenstown Remand Centre.
(Insert personal comments here about the American government’s position that the caning constituted excessive penalty and the very act of seeking to exempt its citizen from the coverage of the criminal laws of the country where he was residing. Compare that with the United State’s own policies about treatment of detained foreign nationals who have not even been accused of any specific crimes but are mere suspects.)
As harsh (excessive, by Western standards) as Singapore’s penal system may be, it seems to work. The streets are clean, there are no graffitis, people smoke only in designated areas, no one spits chewing gum on the pavement, taxi drivers don’t cheat passengers, drivers and pedestrians observe the rules (although I did witness two incidents of jaywalking and I did wonder if the culprits were Filipinos) and a long-time resident like Malou talks about not losing sleep when her teenaged children stay out late with friends. And I wonder for the nth time if our legal system, patterned after Western models, is attuned with our still largely very Asian culture.
i’ve heard so much about the cleanliness and discipline in singapore…however when i went there , i noticed that areas frequented by pinoys are often dirty…we went to mass in a church full of pinoys…lo and behold not only were the comfort rooms filthy they were stinking even from the outside… yung passage way din andaming trash/wrappers around…
so disappointing
actually ang welcoming committee ko when i alighted from my KL bus were 4 huge rats in the bus terminal
Whoa. Obviously, I didn’t enter any Catholic Church there.
Sad to hear that you didn’t enjoyed SG that much, sunshine.
I was able to attend mass in a Catholic Church last September in SG and it’s clean and organized. Families with babies are even separated with the other attendees so as not to bother the ceremony just in case the babies cry. There are people who assist the attendees on where to sit, to maximize space. Song books and readings were also available.
Hi Connie,
I could say the same thing here about Korea. I am very happy with the security and safety here in Korea. Families can go out walking past midnight without worrying about getting mugged. I can rest easy when our son goes to play outside (without the fear of him getting kidnapped) or when our teenager son goes out to the town with his friends. It is so safe and clean here (only problem is that there seems to be a lack of trashcans everywhere).
And yes, we can leave celphones and bags on the tables in fast food places such as McDonalds’. Nobody takes them. Heck if you leave a celphone in a cab, the cab driver would try all their means to get it back to you. This happened to my son’s celphone that he left in a cab in another city. The cab driver went back to my friend’s apartment to give her my son’s celphone. Talk about honesty.
It is just so depressing back there.
Doddie
Hi Sunshine’
Your comment -
“i’ve heard so much about the cleanliness and discipline in singapore… however when i went there , i noticed that areas frequented by pinoys are often dirty…we went to mass in a church full of pinoys…lo and behold not only were the comfort rooms filthy they were stinking even from the outside… yung passage way din andaming trash/wrappers around…”
We don’t have to go far. You may compare the toilet of, let say, Festival Mall in Alabang or Southmall in Las Pinas. Compared their toilets with RFC Shopping Plaza or even Uniwide – both Las Pinas.
In Singapore, there are many eating places there like in Bedok or Serangoon areas where the toilets will make your stomach churns. I can also include here some of factory toilets in JTC properties. (Some are even making claims that female toilets in those areas are messier than the male’s). Well, those were during the 90s. It might be different today.
An off topic one – this never fails to amaze me. Those Singaporean males who can take a pee inside the toilet without touching their genitals. They have their “string trick” I was told.
They also have this persian style toilet where the toilet seat is flushed with the floor level. You won’t have a choice but to squat with both of your feet on top of the toilet seat if you want to use it.
Cheers!
yai! extra ako. hahaha!
pag open na universal studios balik kayo! next time, ipapasyal na kita ng maayos. =)
All I can say is – welcome back, Connie! And more pictures please!
I’ve always wanted to visit Singapore, someday definitely I will.
Welcome back Ms Connie!
Singapore is what every city should be like. The place is just perfect — and I don’t find it sterile at all (as it is sometimes accused of being).
Japan is also very much the same as far as safety goes. I left my palm organizer on top of the pay phone I was using, and when I came back an hour later it was still there.
Just got back from the U.S. — it was great. People actually follow the traffic rules there hahahaha. I was shocked however at how big Americans are becoming…..even the kids are becoming super sized!
Every nation wants to protect it’s citizens — what else is the government for?
I also read Dan Brown’s book on vacation. What a story! I have never even heard of Noetics. Can’t wait for the movie now
“Of course, it has a lot to do with poverty. Singapore’s population is much more affluent and petty thefts would be irrational since most of the people there can afford to buy a hardcover copy of Dan Brown’s latest thriller – so why bother stealing?”
Poverty as causes of theft? I think its more cultural than economics. Try leaving your stuff in public anywhere in New York City, and expect the ‘same Manila treatment.’ At night time (even during daytime) when you’re walking, always expect to ‘get jumped’ in the corner or dark alleys at anytime (especially in Brooklyn). A lot of cab drivers are cheaters too. All these are still happening even the laws are enforced 100 times more than that of Manila.
i also think its more cultural … or fear of authorities…like in thailand , even roadside temples are adorned with precious stones but nobody dares steal from it…same thing in china…i actually find china (shanghai beijing xian) cleaner and more orderly than singapore…even if they are pre-disposed to spitting all the time you will never see any trace of spit anywhere..heck even fallen leaves or candy wrappers on the streets…NADA!
when i go back to singapore next year i hope to have better experience…i had experienced being yelled at by an elderly crew in mcdo and and lady shopper in Vivo City only because we pressed the wrong elevator button…ka stress!
but the taxi drivers in sing are super efficient, that i’ll agree
I looked forward to your article and it’s refreshing to see you having such a fun -filled all-girls jaunt…that’s what my friends aim to do until we grow old and gray..one major travel per year without the hubby/kid(s)
its alway nice to have such a close circle of girlfriends, right?
I have friends who have become PR’s in Singapore. Some of them often laud the beauty and cleanliness of Singapore, but there are those who, surprisingly, have given up the covered PR status to go home to the Phil.
I remember a friend’s mom telling me how, on a visit to her daughter in Australia, she weeped. For pity for our country.
I’ve never been out of the country, but sometimes, I think that I might weep too once I see the disparity between our country and our Asian neighbors.
should be “coveted”.Please edit. thanks.
Another case of irony: I know someone who studied for a time in Hague. She gets depressed each time she sees the vandalized LRT ticket machines here. But then the only Christmas she spent in The Netherlands, she described it as the loneliest time of her life.
if i were still single and could choose to work in any foreign country, i would definitely choose singapore. the people there are generally super polite, helpful, well-mannered… you could ask for directions from just anyone on the street and they would gladly help you. salespeople, waiters, etc. all have a very good command of english and behave very properly — no screaming, cussing, or ‘nagdadabog’ if you ask too many questions or leave without buying anything (hello, hongkong!). everytime i go there, parang ‘maaliwalas’ ang feeling ko. in other countries, people are too harassed, rushing from here to there, impatient, impersonal. new york is one those countries. we would be taking pictures outside certain buildings and strangers would come up and scream in our faces, ‘WELCOME TO NEW YORK!’ and the taxi drivers, people on the street — just rude, rude, rude!
anyways, there’s still no place like home. wherever i go, i realize that no country compares to the philippines. you have to admit, iba pa rin ang spirit ng pinoy. their hospitality, friendliness, and cheerfulness.
Best time to be in the east coast is October. Have your breath taken away by the colors of the autumn leaves…or…
come to colonial Virginia where men still tip their hats and hold doors open for you (sigh).
sana nakita kita dito at nakapagpa-autograph ako hehehe…
We sometimes call Lucky Plaza “the Filipino Mall”. Halos lahat ng kailangan mong ingredients for a Filipino food eh mabibili mo dun like banana blossoms, atsuete, dried laurel, bagoong, alamang etc.
nakakain ka ba ng mga Singaporean dishes?
Of course! LOL Naimoatso nga kami kakakain hahahaha
A, so it’s called Filipino Mall na pala ngayon, naku the last time I was in Singapore e they referred to Lucky Plaza as Philippine Plaza at the time, naku napaghalata tuloy na matagal na akong di nakabalik dun. One interesting story din of how honest Singaporeans are was when my friend was trying on some earrings in a department store. Then, when she was about to leave the dept store she realized that she forgot one of her diamond earrings on the counter while she was busy trying on some earrings. When she came back and asked the sales lady, the sales lady kept it for her. How honest no?
Hi,
That’s really an interesting article that you have got here. Other than foods and services, what else attracts the Filipinos to lucky plaza? I mean hmm Filipinos love music, dancing, meeting with friends etc so why meet up in a shopping centre instead of other places? Sorry for the thought provoking questing but i’m trying to search for an answer for my school project. Please reply to my email if possible. Thanks a lot
Hithere,
I came across your blog esp. this post you had about Lucky Plaza…. let me comment on your observations regarding this “Of course, it has a lot to do with poverty. Singapore’s population is much more affluent and petty thefts would be irrational since most of the people there can afford to buy a hardcover copy of Dan Brown’s latest thriller – so why bother stealing?” Not all people in Singapore are affluent as you describe them. Not everyone here can afford to buy Dan Brown novels as if they don’t cost anything….. The not-so rich here as in mnay developed countries are in very difficult positions… Some of them are not able to enter secondary schools or universities because not everyone here can do that… Education is not a universal right in SIngapore, it is based on their own version of meritocracy…… SO parents no matter how expensive private tutorials (home tuition) are work their darn best to make their chidlren competitive if not they won’t be able to go to the univeristy…. So the poor people here will be forever poor if we assume that education is a great determining factor for upward mobility…. I hope we don’t fall into the trap of hasty generalizations… ANother point is there are thieves here like everywhere in the world…
My comment on this: As harsh (excessive, by Western standards) as Singapore’s penal system may be, it seems to work. The streets are clean, there are no graffitis, people smoke only in designated areas, no one spits chewing gum on the pavement, taxi drivers don’t cheat passengers, drivers and pedestrians observe the rules (although I did witness two incidents of jaywalking and I did wonder if the culprits were Filipinos)… DO you actually think very low of Filipino people????? I know and I have seen many Singaporeans and non-SIngaporeans who as NOT FILIPINOS who jaywalk here in Singapore especially at night in the not so busy streets…. Another hasty generalization that you made here.
I actually shouldnt have commented on your post… but it is in a public space, the internet, where literally everyone can read it… I hope we dont’t make hasty generalizations about issues not to give wrong information or impression…..
“DO you actually think very low of Filipino people”
It’s not about high or low. It’s about opening one’s eyes to reality.
AS to generalizations, sheesh, is every statement of opinion in the world is to be construed as an uncalled for generalization, there wouldn’t be free speech.
We have a difference of opinion — but that doesn’t mean you’re right and I’m wrong. Or the other way around. Live with the difference. That’s how mature people do it.