Upon arriving to Singapore for my education abroad program, I was amazed at the physical beauty of the surrounding environment. Trees and plants were integrated coherently with the city infrastructure, and I think it was the first time I saw no urban blight within the first day of the city. To add on the city infrastructure, I was very impressed by the public transportation system. The subway and bus system was very efficient and effective. It was unlike anything I had seen in the United States, especially in New York City as the experience was ten times better in Singapore. The entire city was just extremely walkable in general despite also having adequate infrastructure for cars, which is pretty unique as the city was developed in the age of the automobile. I would say that Singapore was everything an urban planner could ask for.
In terms of the culture, I would say that Singapore is more like small-town America than urban America, even with its residents being from a variety of backgrounds. Anytime I went into a street store in a dense district, I noticed that everything that was for sale was just out there in the open even though the foot traffic was extremely high. Back in Houston, the Walmart’s and CVS’s in the rougher parts of town would have desirable items locked up so that you had to notify an attendant to retrieve it. It was a pretty stark difference to how business is conducted in Singapore.
Overall, Singapore has a high-trust culture, which is quite similar to Aggieland. The residents of Singapore seem to live by an honor system, although there is noticeable camera surveillance throughout the city. I am eager to learn more about this place and how it functions. Perhaps there are qualities the United States could learn from and even implement to improve our own communities.