{"id":4825,"date":"2017-09-18T15:00:34","date_gmt":"2017-09-18T05:00:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.qut.edu.au\/qut-exchange-students\/?p=4825"},"modified":"2020-06-23T12:49:22","modified_gmt":"2020-06-23T02:49:22","slug":"cultures-of-singapore","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.qut.edu.au\/gone-global\/2017\/09\/18\/cultures-of-singapore\/","title":{"rendered":"Cultures of Singapore"},"content":{"rendered":"

Aakanksha – Nanyang Technological University, Singapore<\/h3>\n

Semester 2, 2016
\nBachelor of Information Technology \/ Bachelor of Mathematics<\/h4>\n

In the heart of South-East Asia, Singapore has more to offer than its incredible airport. Spending five months at the Nanyang Technological University as an overseas exchange student, I have learnt an immense amount about Singapore and myself.<\/p>\n

Singapore has most definitely established itself as being one of the most advanced cities in Asia, if not the world. So much so, it is the preferred location for many leading companies to have their regional APAC headquarters.<\/p>\n

If regional culture is what you want to experience, Singapore is where you should end your search. Singapore is home to four main ethnic groups: Chinese, Malay, Indian and Others (which everyone else falls into and is roughly 3.3%). As a result, of these four very different groups, it seems like there is holiday or festival every few weeks.<\/p>\n

While on exchange, I experienced: Singapore National Day, Diwali and the Hungry Ghost Festival, with each festivity bringing its own traditions. Being originally from India, it was awesome seeing how big a celebration Diwali is outside India. Going to \u201cLittle India\u201d on this day, I felt like I was back in any Indian city.<\/p>\n

If you are a foodie, or if you just want food that is cheap and tastes good, you can\u2019t go wrong in Singapore. From hawker centres to high end restaurants you will never go hungry. NTU campus had over 19 food courts each having various cuisines. In most cases you may only need to spend $10-$20 a day, even if you are on campus. Cost of living in Singapore can vary. In terms of food and transport, it is significantly cheaper than Australia. The maximum you could pay for a trip would roughly be $4; this would only happen if you go from one end of Singapore to the other (which I had to do when going from NTU all the way to the airport). Transport within Singapore isn\u2019t the only thing that is cheap, even going overseas is. For example, I was able to make a trip to Thailand to see Krabi and the beautiful Phi Phi Islands, which was most definitely a highlight.<\/p>\n