Singapore from a Korean's lens
As I gazed out at Singapore from the windows on my flight, I had no idea that the city in view would become my current home and idealized city. I had no idea what this city had in store for me, nor how much I would become attached to the island – but to be fair, I had no inkling about anything at all in general. I was 10 after all.
In short order, I graduated primary school here, and departed for my home country of Korea for a brief 15 months or so before coming back to attend local school. Technically speaking, my real local experience thus only began when I was 14. I became proficient in Singlish (although I hardly knew the actual meaning of all the curse words my peers were throwing around in various languages) and proudly still pretend I can do it today. I still don’t know the actual definitions, and I only just asked my buddy today what KOPI-C and KOPI-O actually mean. Local school taught me absolute manners, which I still display today automatically. Sir, Madam, Boss and occasionally Auntie, and Uncle.
Having grown up in the states and Hong Kong prior to this, I have to say I cannot claim to really represent an authentic Korean-Korean lens. Rather a more westernized/internationalized one, considering I spent 7 years including my college years later on in Canada. But, as always, I hope my writing serves to be interesting. When asked if I could write about financial planning for this blog, I did a little homework and figured out that, quite frankly, something like that would probably not suit the blog’s concept. I keenly felt that this would be more relevant, and thus took it upon myself to provide these ramblings for you folk who still read more and Youtube less.
In short order, I graduated primary school here, and departed for my home country of Korea for a brief 15 months or so before coming back to attend local school. Technically speaking, my real local experience thus only began when I was 14. I became proficient in Singlish (although I hardly knew the actual meaning of all the curse words my peers were throwing around in various languages) and proudly still pretend I can do it today. I still don’t know the actual definitions, and I only just asked my buddy today what KOPI-C and KOPI-O actually mean. Local school taught me absolute manners, which I still display today automatically. Sir, Madam, Boss and occasionally Auntie, and Uncle.
Having grown up in the states and Hong Kong prior to this, I have to say I cannot claim to really represent an authentic Korean-Korean lens. Rather a more westernized/internationalized one, considering I spent 7 years including my college years later on in Canada. But, as always, I hope my writing serves to be interesting. When asked if I could write about financial planning for this blog, I did a little homework and figured out that, quite frankly, something like that would probably not suit the blog’s concept. I keenly felt that this would be more relevant, and thus took it upon myself to provide these ramblings for you folk who still read more and Youtube less.
I love Singapore. There is no doubt about it. I am here after my further studies because I grew up here, had my best memories here (first love, being popular, being absolutely unpopular, etc). I am here because this country is composed almost entirely of Asians who speak English, which is the closest thing to what I truly am. Asides from a few quirks and possible mild discontent with government (anywhere you go, this is true anyway), nowhere compares to this “tiny red dot”.
When I was in school, I sang the Singapore national anthem. Majulah Singapura. I pledged myself to Singapore as a citizen. So as to achieve happiness, prosperity, and progress for our nation. And then I rebelled, and refused to do so because I wasn’t Singaporean. This wasn’t my nation. I remember my teachers patiently dealing with me as a “problem child” who just refused to be like everyone else – and to be fair, none of them knew how to handle the situation. Yet ironically, here I am, planning my future life here.
I even recently attained my permanent residency status, which, for those in the know, is now in high demand. Why would foreigners want PR status so badly in Singapore? My parents had become Singapore citizens several years earlier. Asides from the obvious identity crisis issues (to make matters more confusing, I am now a Canadian Citizen), there are only two places I feel at home at. There is a surefire way of knowing where you belong - you feel that belonging as you gaze out of airplane windows on approach – Korea, because it is in my bones that this is where I am from, and Singapore, because this is where I grew up and want to be.
So where does this love come from. What basis do I have to form a reasonably valid opinion? For starters, I grew up all over the world. As my father labored away at his Ph.D. in the states, I lived in the states. As he got his first contract in Hong Kong, I lived in Hong Kong. As he then started his work at NTU, I lived here. In addition to this, I’ve lived in Korea, Vancouver, and Toronto. I remember reading somewhere at the time that Vancouver was considered the best city to live in, in the world. I couldn’t help myself when I thought no, Vancouver is nice, but Singapore takes the cake. This was when people thought Singapore was part of China.
When I was in school, I sang the Singapore national anthem. Majulah Singapura. I pledged myself to Singapore as a citizen. So as to achieve happiness, prosperity, and progress for our nation. And then I rebelled, and refused to do so because I wasn’t Singaporean. This wasn’t my nation. I remember my teachers patiently dealing with me as a “problem child” who just refused to be like everyone else – and to be fair, none of them knew how to handle the situation. Yet ironically, here I am, planning my future life here.
I even recently attained my permanent residency status, which, for those in the know, is now in high demand. Why would foreigners want PR status so badly in Singapore? My parents had become Singapore citizens several years earlier. Asides from the obvious identity crisis issues (to make matters more confusing, I am now a Canadian Citizen), there are only two places I feel at home at. There is a surefire way of knowing where you belong - you feel that belonging as you gaze out of airplane windows on approach – Korea, because it is in my bones that this is where I am from, and Singapore, because this is where I grew up and want to be.
So where does this love come from. What basis do I have to form a reasonably valid opinion? For starters, I grew up all over the world. As my father labored away at his Ph.D. in the states, I lived in the states. As he got his first contract in Hong Kong, I lived in Hong Kong. As he then started his work at NTU, I lived here. In addition to this, I’ve lived in Korea, Vancouver, and Toronto. I remember reading somewhere at the time that Vancouver was considered the best city to live in, in the world. I couldn’t help myself when I thought no, Vancouver is nice, but Singapore takes the cake. This was when people thought Singapore was part of China.
All this being my personal opinion, the reason Singapore is my perfect city is because it is the closest thing to heaven on earth. What I mean by this is that if you were to search for a perfect city, you’d find none, yet Singapore would be the closest thing. Nowhere else in the world do you have a city so beautiful, modern, and rich with a well-educated population and a government that appears to be running things the way textbook-style. This is a country that was easily glossed over in the past, but now represents a powerhouse in the South East Asian region, and it is possible to consider it the symbolic capital of the region itself. I was there when this place was relatively unknown to the world, and saw its inevitable fame grow.
My cousins followed my footsteps here and studied locally, yet not in local schools. Despite this, I still hear from them saying how they miss Singapore, and the lahs and wahlaos. I hear people talking about how Singapore is so small, work stress is so high – valid points. But would it be so perfect for some like me if it were bigger, and achievement/productivity weren’t so central to the culture? Something like this requires a visionary with forward thought – someone who makes a clear divide between what is right and best for the country, and what the people think they want.
From my eyes, there are some bizarre things to this place too. People seem to talk similarly, and about similar things. What I mean by this is that people seem to simply not know how to just relax and make each other comfortable when making new connections. People are far more logical here, and follow what they’re taught in school. Contrast this to how people in the west stress individual thought and opinion, and you have – interestingly enough – a more efficient general population who are more open to learning from words and saving time as opposed to learning from time spent directly experiencing why certain things are done best in certain ways. You would have to see it from my eyes to understand, but none of this undermines my experience here. 11 years of Singapore, and I too feel its small size. But by being here you’re in a prime position to go anywhere in South East Asia – The city-state itself was never the limit. Believing it is makes it the limit. Treasure what you have, Singapore.
Writer : Michael Kang is an entrepreneur with experience in the Korean Celebrity industry and financial advisor with AIA.
My cousins followed my footsteps here and studied locally, yet not in local schools. Despite this, I still hear from them saying how they miss Singapore, and the lahs and wahlaos. I hear people talking about how Singapore is so small, work stress is so high – valid points. But would it be so perfect for some like me if it were bigger, and achievement/productivity weren’t so central to the culture? Something like this requires a visionary with forward thought – someone who makes a clear divide between what is right and best for the country, and what the people think they want.
From my eyes, there are some bizarre things to this place too. People seem to talk similarly, and about similar things. What I mean by this is that people seem to simply not know how to just relax and make each other comfortable when making new connections. People are far more logical here, and follow what they’re taught in school. Contrast this to how people in the west stress individual thought and opinion, and you have – interestingly enough – a more efficient general population who are more open to learning from words and saving time as opposed to learning from time spent directly experiencing why certain things are done best in certain ways. You would have to see it from my eyes to understand, but none of this undermines my experience here. 11 years of Singapore, and I too feel its small size. But by being here you’re in a prime position to go anywhere in South East Asia – The city-state itself was never the limit. Believing it is makes it the limit. Treasure what you have, Singapore.
Writer : Michael Kang is an entrepreneur with experience in the Korean Celebrity industry and financial advisor with AIA.
