The Singapore of the 21st century, with its three million inhabitants is a far cry from the tiny fishing village Stamford Raffles found in 1819. With its polyglot society, full employment, 90% home ownership and general all-round efficiency, Singapore is seen by many as a model city state. The opium dens and rickshaws of its colonial past have been swept aside to make way for a brave, new civic utopia where the streets are safe and clean, everything is air conditioned, and an automated taxi system means you’ll never wait more than four minutes for a cab or pay much more than a pound. Precision is what it’s all about, and the city runs like a Swiss timepiece. Singapore is known as ‘The Fine City’ as much for its rigorously enforced penalties (jaywalking, failing to flush the toilet or importing packs of chewing gum that are surplus to personal use) as for its splendour. Singapore is non-seasonal, but the humidity makes you feel like you’re walking out into soup as you leave Changi Airport. Many people take a spare shirt to work and peel off the moist one upon arriving in the office.
Work: Singapore is much more developed than its ASEAN counterparts, and is considered a safe option for many foreign investors. Trainees are mostly involved in litigation, project and asset finance, corporate and debt restructuring work. Given its historical importance as a port, the major shipping players like Clyde & Co and Watson, Farley & Williams are also here in force. Always a highly popular choice as a secondment, trainees felt that they had the responsibility equivalent to that of an associate. Office hours here are usually a reasonably hectic 9am to 6.30 or 7pm, though you’re not asked to stick around if there’s no work. The atmosphere can be “still quite hierarchical” though for one trainee, the extra responsibility they saw “really helped me gain an understanding of how to develop client relationships.”
Rest and play: Singapore living is an “easy existence, once you get used to it.” For one, accommodation is “well sorted” as you usually get your own apartment as well as a salary top-up to cover expenses. As the mass transit here is so effective, distance is never an issue and many of the apartments are within walking distance of Orchard Road, Singapore’s version of Oxford Street. If you’re addicted to designer labels, whoop for joy because shopping is the national pastime. Home cooking is nonsensical as you can eat out after work very cheaply while exploring different districts, such as China Town and Little India. Locals usually recommend the spicy Singapore Laksa, a creamy seafood soup. For those who can’t resist (or are hosting Ma and Pa for a week or two), there’s always the Raffles Hotel and their world famous gin slings. There’s a well-established social scene amongst ex-pats and UK trainees, who all arrive within the same three-week window, and group weekends away are frequent. There is usually an informal network among young London professionals that tend to keep people posted on group matters so get into it if you can. You can take a bus to Malaysia in an hour, fly to Oz for the weekend or even hire a private Indonesian island for 25 of your brand new best friends.