Recap: 1st Week
1st week - Mo, 4.7. - Fr, 8.7.
My first week in Singapore is over. Lots has happened. And also my connection to the city underwent lots of changes.
CBD during sundown
Over the first days, I discovered my new everyday life; new way to work, processes in office, food and my new colleagues. With my experiences with Asia, I gained in China, and with all the impressions, friends and family told me about, I had been finding myself having trouble to build up my own connection to the city. It was often described as very clean, advanced and innovative, but it turned out that my expectations were not completely met. Not that this city is not advanced and innovative, but I already experienced situations which reminded me a lot of China´s total surveillance policies which I do not consider as innovative.
One day on the way to work, the MRT-train (mass rapid transit, Singapore´s metro-system) got delayed which barely never seems to happen. We stopped between two underground metro-stations since arrival in the next station was not possible. Immediately, announcements were played saying the train to be delayed and asking to stay calm. In Singapore`s MRT, you are not allowed to talk with each other with the reason not to disturb others. Also in this moment, the whole train was quiet. Obviously, we had no danger to expect, but basically the fact that you are not allowed to speak made me feel suppressed.
Another thing which would make me consider many times living here for a longer period of time, is the amount of cameras and other tracking methods you can find all over Singapore. I already knew this phenomenon from China, but back then I did not feel bothered at all since I knew I will only stay for two weeks each. Now in Singapore, it feels much more strange. Of course, the whole surveillance program is sold as security enhancing etc. But compared to my life in Germany, it always feels like somebody is watching every step I take… Maybe, I will get accustomed to that, but is that good? All this reminds me of the fictive, dystopian stories about Panem.
Ministry of Manpower - those elevators fit into my picture of Panem
But now to the cool, beautiful and new experiences. At the office of Bosch, there are so many other interns from Singapore, China and India. I really enjoy to exchange with them. Something, what I experienced very different to China is that these students are much more interested in dialogue and talking with new people. The interns assumed that main land Chinese students which I mostly met back then, might suffer from language barriers. They showed our small group of German students local restaurants and already gave us lots of hints to visit. So cool!!!
