Singapore Features

Singapore For Sale

Shopping Singapore style

Singapore is a nation of shoppers (well, eaters, too, but that's another story). 'Cheap and good' is the motto of many avid shoppers although the more discerning and affluent will insist that quality and variety are key. With 'sales' on throughout the year, and shops open morning to night, any time is a good time to shop in Singapore. The fever peaks annually in the Great Singapore Sale. This year, the event lasts six weeks from 25 May to 8 July. With the whole country caught up in the frenzy, discounts of up to 70 per cent or more can be expected at hundreds of stores nationwide.

Expand your horizons

Orchard Road is world famous, yet the shopping experience can be enjoyed almost anywhere in Singapore ¨C one just has to know where to go. Take a train or bus to the city fringe and new towns; suburban shopping centres stock as attractive an array as their counterparts downtown, besides which you get a glimpse of the true Singapore lifestyle. Choose among the Western, Northern or Eastern MRT (train) lines and over a dozen shopping malls and neighbourhoods beckon. Along the Western route is the huge IMM complex (Jurong East); head North for Junction 8 (Bishan), Northpoint (Sembawang) and Causeway Point (Woodlands); or go east to Eastpoint (Simei), Century Square and Tampines Mall (Tampines) and White Sands (Pasir Ris).

Back alley bargain

Major chain stores have outlets in these spacious, air-conditioned shopping centres. But do comb the little shops amidst the blocks of public housing, where multiples actually cost less (two T-shirts for S$10) and negotiating on 'regular-priced' items is part of the fun. Casual wear, sports goods, music CDs/DVDs, household products, costume jewellery and knick-knacks are the best buys. Shopping is also easy when things are so well planned and organised. For instance, Sim Lim Square and Funan, The IT Mall stock all types and makes of electronic goods and computer equipment. Ethnic fare also goes by precinct ¨C Arab Street, Chinatown and Little India. For convenience and local colour, check out Yue Hwa Department Store or the old People's Park Complex and Centre in Chinatown and crammed Mustafa Centre in Little India.

Haute couture

Trendy apparel for women at unbelievably low prices may be found at over 40 This Fashion outlets around the island. Haute couture, however, is still the preserve of Orchard Road, at Palais Renaissance, The Promenade and Hilton Shopping Gallery, although every major shopping centre also has designer-label retail shops. Those with stamina will enjoy the two kms of shops lining Orchard and Scotts Roads from Tanglin Mall to Plaza Singapura. The most comprehensive selection is probably at Suntec City, Singapore's largest shopping complex. For a detour, stroll underground through CityLink Mall joining Suntec City and Raffles City.

Singlish

Get with the lingo

Singapore is an easy country to visit and get around; almost everyone speaks English, say the guidebooks. Do the locals know what you are saying? Or, more important, do you understand them? Ostensibly, they are speaking English, then why does it sound so strange? Chances are you¡¯ve run smack into Singlish, the lingo that binds Singaporeans of various ethnic origins. While Singaporeans may read and write English, when they speak it, the vernacular may creep in, resulting in some rather strange and unintelligible variations! It is conversational English that has absorbed words from Chinese (mainly the Hokkien dialect), Malay and occasionally Tamil.

Singapore English

The debate rages in the local media and now on the Web too over whether all should speak a uniform, correct brand of English, or should people be comfortable, even proud, of their uniqueness. Singlish is the hot topic in political speeches, situation comedies, cocktail-party conversation and coffee shop (kopi tiam) talk. There are even a few websites devoted to the subject! Visit www.talkingcock.com and www.uncle-mark.com for some enlightenment and a few laughs.

The finer points

How does one recognise Singlish? From the lack of grammatical structure and coherence - and the omnipresent 'lah'. Variations include 'leh', 'meh' and 'lor' at the end of a sentence. These words have no particular meaning ("let's go, lah") but add emphasis or express some surprise, e.g. "He got come, meh?" Another trait is brevity: verbs are often absent, or other parts of speech are used in place of verbs; as in "on the light" and "off the TV". Travellers may be 'blur' about such nuances. If you don't get the meaning, "don shy" (pronounced "dohn" with 't' silent), just utter "say again" ¨C it's not considered rude. What is rude is the number of Hokkien words that actually refer to various parts of the anatomy but now serve as colloquial expressions. To avoid offence, you "don anyhow say" things.

Kiasu

But ask about food, and you may get a list of where to find all the "shiok" (truly satisfying) dishes; the really helpful chap may be even "fetch" you there. To query authenticity, the stock question is "where got", and if the sales assistant is unable to find apparel in your size, she'll simply tell you: "don have". By the way, she could well be Ah Lian or Ah Huay, sister of the much-parodied Ah Beng. He is the loud, course Hokkien youth with died hair, kinky clothes and carrying a mobile phone that he shouts into. Lots of jokes revolve around him. A final word: Singaporeans are said to be 'kiasu' (Hokkien, afraid to lose). So just remember this and it may make things easier.