The first week of my abroad experience consisted of visiting Singapore and Malaysia. After the long travel, we landed in a climate of intense humidity and greenery, noticeable even as close as the terminal departure to customs. Additionally, I noticed early on that, due to their smaller available space, the use of skyscrapers was heavily prevalent.
The entire trip was action-packed with activities, even starting on the first day when we visited the Peranakan Museum and Merlion Park. We learned about the culture and were able to participate in fun interactive events. I enjoyed the planning that came with the faculty-led trip and the ability to connect with other A&M students on the trip.
The culture in Singapore is extremely different from what we are used to seeing in the U.S. Not only is it smaller, making everything walkable using public transportation, but it is also a very efficient and orderly culture. There were more restrictions than I would have expected, such as staying quiet on the MRT (the train system) or not drinking water on the bus. Although these rules were sometimes an inconvenience, the country was extremely clean and safe everywhere we went. I even felt comfortable riding the MRT alone a couple of times!
Another thing that surprised me was the westernization of the Asian culture. I was expecting more modesty and conservativeness based on research and overall experience with Asian culture, but there was a lot of Western-style influence everywhere we looked.
I hoped to gain some insight into the global supply chain, as Singapore is a major trading hub. I was able to learn a lot about this through activities like the Maritime Bay exhibit and our presentation with APAC Advisors. I didn’t realize how much of an impact the U.S., especially in politics, can have on other countries like Singapore, and I came to understand there are so many more details when it comes to logistics and operations globally. This experience confirmed that I want to continue on the path I chose, pursuing a master’s in international business, and I can’t wait to see what else I can learn from this trip to help me better understand this field.
