'There is surveillance everywhere': Tourist shares 5 things that surprised him about Singapore

Our little red dot may have a reputation for being a clean and safe country, but it still manages to surprise some tourists, especially those visiting for the first time.

In a recent YouTube video on Dec 17, one such traveller, Adam Karlsen, shared several things he noticed during his recent trip to Singapore. 

One being how safe the city is. 

"As a tourist, it feels safe to be there and to walk around, no matter what time of day it is," shared Danish tourist Adam. 

However, while he felt secure, he was also nervous about accidentally breaking the law. 

"I really didn't want to do anything bad or illegal on purpose or not on purpose as Singapore really has some hefty fines," said Adam. 

"So, compared to many other places I've visited, I was just extremely aware of what I could and could not do." 

He also was too afraid to do things that he was used to doing elsewhere. 

"I didn't even jaywalk, which is admittedly something I do normally," he confessed. 

Adam pointed out that the high safety standards come at a cost. 

"There's surveillance everywhere," he said, without elaborating.

And although he appreciated the sense of security, it all felt a little overwhelming. 

"I kind of prefer the more chaotic countries around Southeast Asia where everything seems a bit more relaxed.

"Singapore does feel like a very strict place where you have to do things in a very particular way," explained Adam. 

Clean with 'not a single cigarette butt in sight'

Another thing that took Adam by surprise was how clean the city is. 

"I barely saw any trash in the streets at all," he remarked, and he didn't see a multitude of "old chewing gums" stuck to pavements. 

"Everywhere looks very neat and organised, and just clean... And my favourite — not a single cigarette butt in sight," he added. 

However, he did add a disclaimer that he was unable to see if the rest of Singapore was like that as he was only there for a few days. 

"I'm sure that the more touristy areas are kept cleaner than some of the other parts of Singapore," he said.

And Singapore is not just clean — we are green too, which Adam loved. 

"There's greenery everywhere. It's absolutely beautiful. It must be such a joy to live in such a green city." 

Adam noticed that aside from our parks, the greenery is all over the city — even on buildings. 

"I'm sure it's great for the environment, for air pollution and so on. But from a completely selfish, touristy view, it's absolutely fantastic as it just makes walking around the city that much more enjoyable." 

Another surprising find for him was how multi-cultural we are. 

"I actually didn't know that Singapore was such a melting pot of different cultures, ethnicities and religion.

"It's really cool and makes a visit that much more interesting," he said, pointing out that different areas of the city have their own "unique feel" to it.  

Not that expensive

With Singapore being a small country, it's also pretty easy to get around. 

"I was actually really surprised at just how walkable Singapore is," he remarked, adding that it was nice to not have to rent a car and worry about parking. 

And when you can't walk somewhere, you can always hop onto the MRT, which Adam described as clean and well-connected. 

"Singapore has the best rail system that I have ever been to," he praised.  

However, one thing that bothered him was how long traffic lights at intersections take to change. 

"You can easily just stand there waiting and waiting for several minutes before the lights turn green," he said. 

Finally, Adam was surprised by how Singapore wasn't as expensive as he thought it was. 

"Singapore is famously one of the most expensive places in the world. This much I did know before coming here." 

He was especially pleased that he, as a budget traveller, was able to explore the city without having to burn a hole in his pocket — a point he'd expanded on in a separate video.

ALSO READ: Can it be done? 2 tourists try spending just US$20 in Singapore for a day

melissateo@asiaone.com