We knew coming to Singapore that it had one of the finest, if not THE finest airport in the world. Changi International is a world of wonder and on our outbound trip to Bali we had a chance to explore it for several hours during DestinationUnknown game. However, coming back into the airport, we had a chance to experience the efficiency to see if it was all that and a bag of chips. Let me tell you, this airport is the best experience of any International Destination we have experienced. Efficiency, cleanliness, spectacular amenities aside, this airport was amazing for how they greeted you into the country. Yes, the immigration officers, all up and down the isle were smiling and greeting guests. When you were standing there and they were looking at your passport, they cheerfully asked the normal questions and smiled back. Then they offered you candy and welcome to Singapore. They were actually joking with eachother and it made waiting in line so much more cheerful. Now I’m not saying any names… but hey there Western countries of the world.. there are some lessons to be learned here. So that’s how it started…
Driving into the city was pristine. Seems it turns out everything is pristine. We have been here over a day and a half and walked hours upon hours, and have yet to see a piece of trash on the street anywhere. It’s almost out of the twilight zone when it comes to cleanliness. Perhaps we haven’t seen enough, but I’ll update as we go. Our hotel is an entertainment and architectural world of wonder and I will dedicate a full set of pics once we have explored it enough.
This city seems cosmopolitan, but at the same time, it does not have the same feel as other big cities we have been. With just under 6 million people and only 50 square miles for the city/country, you would think it would be much more impacted and crowded in it’s feel. Everything seems completely orderly and NO, NOBODY crosses a street unless that walk sign is on. I mean nobody and doesn’t matter that there hasn’t been a car by in the last 5 minutes.
A couple more observations…. No stray animals of any kind, every building appears to be in good condition and not worn (small to skyscrapers), did not see ANY parked cars on the streets. There are big signs for parking lots and space availability. The architecture is mostly modern, but you can still see signs of the original colonialism of the British East India Trading Company days. There are security cameras everywhere and only occasionally will you hear a car honk despite some places where we saw continuous traffic. Finally, we tried the Metro and it was the easiest 1st try for a subway anywhere in the world. It encompasses the city with many lines and pretty much get anywhere.
Overall first impressions? = We are in perfection land… Stay tuned, we have many different explorations ahead…