I come from Singapore, which has many different races; Chinese, Eurasian, Malay, Indonesian...etc. The cultures may differ from our race but I'm from the Chinese culture. Though my family isn't really deep into the Chinese culture, we still celebrate some Chinese events like Moon Cake festival and Chinese New Year. Those are probably the only celebrations related to the Chinese culture that I celebrate.
During Chinese New Year, we would have a family reunion where all my cousins and my aunts and uncles come together at my grandparent's house. When we get there, we would have to present 2 tangerines to the grandparents and wish them a happy new year. We would eat and hang out and the elders would give red packets or 紅包 to us. Then our parents would just store them in our banks.
On Moon Cake festival, it isn't so intense as it is here. We would just buy moon cakes and eat them and when we were young, we would get lanterns and walk around the block at night with all the other children. I didn't actually get why we had this but I appreciated the moon cakes and their sweet savoring taste.
Singapore has a lot of religions and it usually matters on your race. Then again, you could be from Indonesia and still become a Christian at your choice. My family is Christian because my grandfather (on my dad's side wanted to go to church after one of his friends brought him there). Originally my ancestors were probably believers of those Chinese gods. But both of my parents' side became Christian on my grandparent's generation.
Transportation in Singapore. Singapore is really small and it's pretty easy to get to places. Most people use the public transport like the MRTs, or the buses. The taxi fares has raised since the gas prices rised and more tourist became interested in Singapore. Though people use the public transport a lot, slightly more than average families have at least 2 cars. Well- at least where I lived, I lived in the city.
The arts of Singapore. We don't actually have a specific way of design, we follow the arts and music of, like, America. There are very few popular bands in Singapore and I, for instance, always listen to the American broadcast on the radio. The way we dress can either be really expensive and fashionable or those dis-colored cheap second-hand clothing you buy in super markets. Most kids my age don't really get the chance to buy clothing because they're always so busy with work and they only spend an average of S$150 on clothing the whole year. But the normal clothes fit for Singapore is probably a tank and shorts with flip-flops.
Education in Singapore means everything. The schedule of an average Singapore student would be:
7:00 - 1:00 = School
After school = ECA (extra curricular activities...mandatory)
Evening: Tuition or Swimming or Music
9:00 - Arrive home and eat.
9:30 - Study
1 am - Sleep.
This is why you don't see much Singaporeans go into high classes colleges. Everyone gets such a good score, who can you pick is the best to go to your school? Friends are hard to find in Singapore, even at work, because everyone is trying to beat each other out and get to the top.
Economics: Singapore's money. I'm not all sure about it. We're known to be really rich from the outside, but while you're in Singapore, you seem really poor.
Food: Yes. We have a lot fo famous food. The Chili Crab. The Hainanese Chicken Rice. The Ba kut teh. The Chili crab is known to be really good but really spicy. Chicken rice is not just chicken and rice, the rice has a certain flavor that makes the dish unique. The Ba Kut Teh, most people know as drinking/eating in the morning is a bitter and sweet herb soup we drink. It's really deliecious with various veggies, herbs, and meat.
Singapore is pretty okay. It the place I feel the most comfortable.
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Culture of where I'm from
Posted by Jen at 10:58:00 AM
Labels: culture, Humanities, Singapore