Jup, Holland, Jup!

Probably one of the biggest perks of spending my summer in Amsterdam was getting caught up in World Cup fever. While I held out hope for the US team, I was more than happy to cheer for Oranje as they powered through the Cup. Though, I think the real reason I wanted the Dutch national team to win had to do with lengthening the celebration as long as possible. Thanks to a very understanding and enthusiastic boss, my colleagues and I were able to see every game among the crowds of Dutch supporters. Below are some pictures and brief remarks on each game. Enjoy!

Game One: Netherlands vs. Denmark, 2-0, Leading up to this game I was concerned that I would not be able to watch it—as it was scheduled for a 1:30pm start. However, come game day, my colleague (a native Dutchman who was FAR more excited than I was) came to collect me at 1:30 to go watch at a nearby terrace. Our boss gave us permission for a long lunch hour, so off we went to join the scores of soccer fans lined up at Rembrandtplein. It was one of the first sunny days in a while, so everyone was outside gathered around the big screen TVs in front of each bar. Unfortunately, the umbrella on top of the TV wasn’t quite enough to stop the glare, so the first half was a bit bright. Things were tense until the second half when Denmark scored an own-goal and everyone burst with excitement. Holland won, 2-0, and our return to the office was met with cheers and hugs from our boss and colleagues who had heard all of the cheering with each goal.

Game Two: Netherlands vs. Japan, 1-0, Instead of watching game two, my colleagues and I spent our Saturday in The Hague attending teachings from a Tibetan Buddhist lama. Throughout the teachings on non-attachment and impermanence, I couldn’t help but wonder what the score was in the match. Mid-way through the teachings, was a short break in which everyone headed upstairs to the hotel lobby. A small group of Tibetans was already gathered around the only TV in the lobby watching the final minutes of the match. We were able to see the Dutch walk away with another victory 1-0, before heading back into the teachings—where it was suddenly much easier to focus on the present moment.

Game Three: Netherlands vs. Cameroon, 2-1, Promises of a giant outdoor screen and 1Euro beer specials lured me to a club in the northeastern part of Amsterdam for the 8:30pm game on Thursday. Sitting outside with another Dutch colleague of mine, there was little trace of any giant screen. We soon found out that because it stays light so late (until around 11pm during this time of year) we wouldn’t be able to see anything on the screen, so they’d moved the party inside to one of the dancefloors. We joined about 50 other people sitting in folding chairs and bleachers watching the game without too much interest. At this point, the Netherlands had already qualified to continue onto the next round and were not playing very hard. They still won, 2-1 and people were pretty psyched by the end. It was surprisingly entertaining to hear the vuvuzuelas blaring indoors. The post-game celebration went on for quite a while, with crowds gathered outside long after sunset.

Group of 16/Game Four: Netherlands vs. Slovakia, 2-1, As the Dutch continued to advance, each game grew in intensity and importance—after all, if they lost now, we would not be able to see them play anymore. Our boss appreciated this and made sure that we left the office no later than 3:30 to get to the 4:00pm kickoff. I sat on the back of one colleague’s bike as he pedaled as fast as possible to get to the bar in Vondelpark in time. We raced our other colleague only to arrive and find no where left to stand, let alone park the bikes. Pedaling on a little further we ended up at a bar just outside of the park. The grill was going and crowds were gathered around TVs inside and outside. We found the perfect spot outside with a great view of the indoor TV. This crowd was especially excited to see their hero Robben score the opening goal of the match. Another win for the Dutch and another evening spent outside enjoying the long sun as we celebrated with a cookout by a lake in Vondelpark (not bad for a Monday!). We noticed that the crowd grew very thin after an hour or so—when Brazil took on Chile.

Quarterfinals: Netherlands vs. Brazil, 2-1, Again, our boss recognized the historic significance of the day and let us go early—this time at 3! She was so jazzed about the match that she gave us each 10Euros for beer! This time we headed to the west, and watched the game at Westerpark. Hundreds of people were milling about, and by the time we got to the outdoor screen at 3:20, they had already reached capacity and were closing the gates. We made the best of it and stood on a ridge just back from the fence, where we watched in horror as Oranje stumbled through the first half—the first time they had fallen behind in the cup. During the second half they picked up their game and things got going when Sneijder scored two in a row. Though, when the TV blanked out everyone got very anxious. Minutes later, there was a great cheer when the image returned to the screen again. By the time the ref ended things, everyone was hugging, high-fiving and wandering around with big grins on their faces. Jup, Holland, Jup!!! Apparently beating Brazil is kind of a big deal.

Semifinals: Netherlands vs. Uruguay, 3-2, The semifinal match between Uruguay and the Netherlands fell on the same day as the Dalai Lama’s 75th birthday. Our office was spending the day at a Tibetan birthday picnic out of the city at a hippy art compound, the Ruigoord. The day was filled with Tibetan songs, Tibetan food and Tibetan beer. With full plates we headed over to join the hippies where they had set up three TVs and some sort of seating arrangement resembling bleachers. This was by far the most diverse crowd so far—a mix of middle aged dread heads sprinkled with teenage Tibetan kids and young Tibetan families. After defeating Brazil, the concern among Dutch fans was that the Dutch team would get complacent and cocky, as they have done many times in the past. These fears weren’t unfounded, as even though Holland came on strong with the first goal, Uruguay’s team came back to tie it before the half, leaving us all a bit nervous. Our ride was leaving to watch the second half with her boyfriend in the city, so we joined her and jumped out near a large crowd gathered in front of a giant Dutch flag. A few anxious minutes later Sneijder managed to put one in the net and the crowd exploded. No sooner than everyone regained their composure did Robben score! A 3-1 lead in the semi-finals and beer was flying through the air with people already discussing the final match. Uruguay slipped one past in extra time, but it didn’t seem like anyone noticed. Soon we were all cheering and hugging again to celebrate the 3-2 win and the trip to the finals. After meeting up with a friend to celebrate for an hour or so, I returned to the bar where we’d been watching the second half. The crowd had stuck around and was screaming and cheering at each car that went by, crowding into the street at each red light. The line of cars and bikers didn’t seem to mind the slow going, as everyone was honking and ringing their bells. Hours after the game, as I rode the tram home, crowds were gathered at each stop, banging on the tram cars and singing with joy. The celebration went on well into the night, and as I went to sleep around midnight I could still hear horns honking.

Finals: Netherlands vs. Spain, 0-1 overtime, For the final, both of my soccer watching colleagues were out of town and I didn’t feel like braving the crowds on my own. In fact, I was a little worried about what would happen at the end of the match (win or lose), so I watched the game on my own at home. I opened all of the windows in my apartment so that I could experience watching it with my neighbors. Each play evoked a different guttural reaction from my community. I skyped with my boyfriend back in DC who was watching with some friends. As soon as we realized that they were at about a 30 second delay from me, we had to end the conversation so that my cheers didn’t give anything away. At halftime there was quite a bit of noise in my neighborhood and something that sounded like fireworks. Everyone grew quiet during the second half, and in the final minutes of extra time you could almost hear a pin drop. When Spain scored in the 116th minute, there was a big “Awwwww” and not much else.

Despite the loss, people were still thrilled when the players returned to the Netherlands two days later. The streets were still decked out in orange, red, white and blue, and all day long we could hear the sound of vuvuzuelas and bike bells ringing. The street in front of our office was the main route people were taking to the celebration on Museumplein, where the team went following their welcome parade on the canals. While we actually stayed at work until the end of the day for once, we were still part of the celebration as we hollered to fans as they walked past. Despite the loss, everyone was still VERY proud of their team—including me! Oranje!

Research, Read, Write, and Repeat

This past month, I have been extremely occupied with doing research for my professor. In three weeks, I completed 3 research assignments of varied scopes and content, all of which as in research memo format. The first assignment is to collect Ho Chi Minh’s quotes and writings on his vision of Asia as a region. This is a section in my bigger project spanning the whole summer on Ho Chi Minh’s ideas of nationalism, colonialism, governance and regional unity, and part of Professor Acharya’s book project on nationalist leaders of Asia. I find the project rewarding because not only did I learn about the leader and founding father of my country, but I also gathered much useful information on my country’s history. It has been as much an intellectual enlightenment as personal enrichment.

The second project is on the Mekong River regional cooperation. I explored the history as well as the recent developments on the Mekong hydropower construction, the political implications and long-term problems at stake. In doing so, I looked into both the institutional role of the Mekong River Commission and other functions by the Asian Development Bank, while explaining the challenges ahead with the change of leadership after the MRC’s CEO Jeremy Bird’s tenure expires in 2012.

The third project that I completed is on the successes and failures of 5 regional economic institutions: APEC, the ASEAN Free Trade Agreement, Chiang Mai Initiatives, ASEAN-China Free Trade Agreement and ASEAN-India Free Trade Agreement. This research benefits Professor Acharya’s report to the Asian Development Bank on the evolution of Asian regional institutions, in which he also writes on regional security and political institutions. Undoubtedly, the project helps me understand the effectiveness of these economic institutions and how the academia has proposed them change or reform. These small steps are when I see academic research and recommendations can be useful for policy making.

Currently, I am working on another task, conducting research on the bilateral trade between the US and Japan, the US and China, China and Taiwan. I look for the latest data and trend of trade agreements between these countries and economies and how these commercial links affect their bilateral diplomatic relations. The project promises to be highly interesting.

World Cup fever with Arshvin, Russian team captain

Huong Nguyen

Speaking Up

As member states finish their statements on the joint report on enforced disappearances, I begin to notice my heart rate increase. As observer states make their comments, I have a look at the speakers list and attempt to calculate when NGOs will speak, my palms begin to sweat a little. There is less than an hour before I am to deliver my first statement to the UN Human Rights Council and I still don’t even have the text I’m supposed to read! As the list of observer states shrinks, I focus on my breath and remember that the guy helping me has done this for almost 20 years and he knows the limits—but I’m afraid he doesn’t know my limits.

Really, I’ve been a tightly wound ball of nerves ever since I learned that I would go to Geneva by myself to deliver statements at the UNHRC. Some of that stress lifted after the first few days of meetings, but my long-held fear of public speaking was keeping my stomach in knots. Since my first statement was not supposed to happen until Thursday, I figured I would have ample time to practice it in the days before I had to speak. However, other meetings and shifting schedules meant that my guide was still fixing the draft on Thursday morning.

Finally, about 25 minutes before I was supposed to go, he came into the room with the statement and the requisite 20 copies for the translators. I stood in the back of the room reading and re-reading it out loud, all the while timing myself to see if I would be able to read it all within my two minute time limit. Just as I am about to sit down in the section for NGO speakers, my other guide lets me know what to do if I am interrupted—just mark my spot and continue on once the President gives me the go-ahead. This gave me pause, as I had not even imagined that possibility. I asked if it was likely to happen, to which he replied that he didn’t think so.

The chairs are quite heavy and unwieldy, and I was concerned for the elderly woman taking her time to get out of one of the only two NGO speakers’ seats. The speaker ahead of me on the list was using the other chair, and I waited nervously for this other lady to clear out of what would be my spot. Sometimes compassion is hard to come by when you’re consumed with fear. As I finally sat down and got situated the President gave me the floor. I pressed the button for the microphone and waited what seemed like minutes for the red light to turn on for me to speak.

How loud did I need to speak? Was I speaking too fast? Am I going to finish in time? Was that a gavel I just heard? I didn’t have my earpiece in, so it was difficult to hear when the President asked me to stop after just 30 seconds. I marked my spot, put on my earpiece, and waited to hear the member state’s point of order. The delegate said I was off topic for the discussion. The President asked that I please stick to the topic at hand then let me continue. It suddenly seemed as though I had everyone’s attention, as a point of order—only the second of the session—is some of the most excitement one might see during a day of otherwise dry diplomatic delivery.

I continued. Soon, I finished with some time to spare. Despite the struggle out from behind the heavy chair I felt as light as air. I did it! I actually did it! And the worst had happened, and it wasn’t even that bad! In fact, I think it actually helped my cause, as most listening agreed that it was a rather bogus point of order since I was on topic.

I rode on the rush of adrenaline all day. Any fears that I had about delivering the other two statements quickly dissipated. While it was frustrating and nerve-wracking to not have the statement earlier, I think it was probably for the best so that I didn’t overdo it. Later in the week I delivered my other two statements without interruption, and with fewer nerves. It felt great each time I could directly confront representatives of the country responsible for silencing so many of its citizens. Two minutes is not much time to confront a world power, but it is far more time than the thousands of silenced and disappeared have to face their captors. I’m willing to get over some sweaty palms and tight nerves for that.

First Impressions: UNHRC

*Due to technical issues, this posting is arriving a few weeks after the fact...

Earlier this year when I would daydream about my summer internship, the extent of what I could imagine included getting to better know my European colleagues, strolling along the canals in Amsterdam and learning how my office’s European branches work—simple, but new.

I have now been in Europe for less than two weeks, and while I have indeed strolled along some canals in Amsterdam and become acquainted with some of my European colleagues and their office-life, I have also exceeded my greatest expectations by more than tenfold. After just five days in Amsterdam (my home base), my supervisor has dispatched me to Geneva, to take part in the 14th Session of the United Nations Human Rights Council. And while I had an idea that she might be sending me to the UN, I had always just assumed that she would be here with me. Instead, she has put me in the capable hands of two close connections she has in Geneva, and I have been responsible for carrying the torch for my organization.

I have now made it through the first week of the session. With the assistance of my guides, I have met with Special Rapporteurs and have even given a statement during an Interactive Dialogue. Initially, my impression of the United Nations was based on my 7th and 8th grade Junior Model UN simulations, in which I made a number of rookie mistakes and missteps—thankfully, it was all pretend and the Irish did not actually mind that I had written a W.H.O. resolution in their name expounding the benefits of universal birth control. Needless to say, I entered this real-life United Nations with much trepidation, aware of the real-life consequences to my actions.

Diplomacy in action is really quite amazing to watch, and take part in. While my guide calls it “the jungle,” there is a level of trust and mutual respect within HRC Room XX (the hall in which the HRC meets) that I haven’t seen outside of a meditation retreat in which participants take a vow to respect each others’ space and property. Certainly, it can seem like a jungle at times, with points of order, interruptions, and wholehearted disagreements; but at the heart of it is decorum and order. Somehow just about every voice has an opportunity to speak (assuming the voice is accredited and representing a state, NGO, or NHRI with UN status), and these voices are most likely heard, at least out of one ear. Magically, translators in 6 languages simultaneously translate each delegate’s remarks into the ubiquitous grey earpieces dangling from everyone’s right or left ear.

Initially the prospect of listening out of only one ear was daunting. However, I have quickly come to appreciate the incredible acoustics of Room XX, and have come to see that listening out of just one ear allows one to multi-task to no end. I can take part in a quick strategy discussion using my free ear, then look something up online, send off a quick email and begin drafting a statement for the following day—all the while keeping an eye on when the country or NGO I am paying special attention to comes up on the speakers list. Cell phone conversations are not uncommon, and the acoustics of the room make it so that you only hear the happenings of those closest to you.

I’ll leave it at that for now, with another report from the UN to come soon.

What is Singaporean identity?

Among the homogenous Asian societies, one stands out to be quite culturally and ethnically diverse in its composition. Singapore is made up of Chinese, Malay and Indian ethnic people; and this is what makes Singapore unique. Many people question the traditional values and the existence of a common identity shared by these groups; while others contend that Singapore has lost its Asian characters in the process of modernization trying to catch up with the West. It appears that the focus of the government has been tilted more towards economic development than cultural preservation and cultivation. With this said, the effort to do so is not non-existent. As I navigate for an answer, I see the merit in its government’s policies in trying to construct something distinctly Singaporean and observe the bottom-up evolution of a culture among the people. These two forces are interlaced and mutually reinforcing.

Culture itself is not a static concept, neither is “identity”. Constantly evolving, it is shaped by the people within it. Along with the fast-paced development in Singapore within the last 50 years, this island has created tremendous economic opportunities, hence attracting people from across Asia. It draws people who are willing to work hard to change their lives, people in search of a cosmopolitan lifestyle and of a multifaceted society as peaceful as Singapore. Immigration has constituted and continued to define and redefine Singaporean culture. Looking all around in the region, the countries that accommodate the cohabitation of multiple ethnicities often have a hard time keeping them together, i.e. China and India. The size of the country does matter, as a bigger population breeds a wider range of views and conflicts, but government policies do have a huge impact in creating a nonviolent environment and a rule-based system that would be able to diffuse conflicts and channel opposing viewpoints into something productive and progressive. The system is designed to be able to correct itself to adjust to a balanced midpoint for the good of its people. From here I can tell some observations that I see as uniquely Singapore.

Singlish, or Singaporean English, is the national language, which serves as a medium for its diverse ethnic groups, as well as the medium of international business, science and technology. It is used as an integrative medium bridging these ethnicities, and a typical Singaporean is bilingual. While the use of dual language in school helps ethnic cultures and carry out traditional rituals, it becomes the link most Singaporeans have to their heritage.

In the years that Singapore was striving to achieve economic success, the concept of a “rugged” society was espoused by then Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew to extol Singaporeans to be tough and resilient, to be rugged enough to face the many challenges on the way to success. I find such guiding principle for developing human capital quite similar to the South Korean way, in which children are raised with the mentality that their nation is still very poor, hence each and every individual is charged with the utmost task of learning, being educated and helping to build the country to match those strong economies in the world. This has produced meritocratic individualism in Singapore today. Singaporeans are developed to be hard working, commerce-oriented and obedient to the law. Under the leadership of an omniscient government, the locals and expatriates alike rely on the rule of law to fulfill their own goals, while respecting the needs of others. Singaporeans don’t only share a language and a well-justified, functional legal system; they also share common institutions such as electoral politics, public education, military service, public housing and so on. Through these social encounters, they strengthen their bond as a community and as a nation. More importantly, these acts of socialization don’t seem anyway to bleach the distinct languages, religions and customs of each ethnic group. Rituals, traditions and simple the way of life as we see in Singapore today can be traced back to the pre-colonial India, Chinese and Malay worlds.

While most countries would rely on a national ideology, such as socialism, libertarianism or kingdom to guide its national values, it seems to have been absent in Singapore. The nation is recognized for its miraculous economic growth, a stupendous system of infrastructure and virtually a cosmopolitan, downtown feel common to any urban city of the West. However, as people are organized into housing blocs, the Asian culture of having nearby food court, newspaper or fruit stalls and “everything” supermarkets never changes.

How has Singapore changed so completely its landscape in such as short period of time anyway? How have the slums of the 1960s turned into modern sterile buildings since the end of the century? How have a Third World turned into one of the First in terms of its per capita income, IMEX, foundation of financial institutions? There is no lack of challenges. Singapore faces the dilemma of how to capitalize on its geography. “Insular” from the world as an island, its small size impels certain dependency on the outside world so as to ensure not to lag behind global movements. Singapore is actively engaged with the Southeast Asian region as well as with the West as one of the financial centers of East Asia. Lee Kuan Yew continues to be of paramount influence in the development of Singaporean culture, as he called for a cultural renaissance in Singapore, where there will be more art exhibitions, jazz bands, museums and alfresco dining. The green city has never lost its charm in my mind since the first time I came. A little bit of adjustments here and there, but it still feels like living in an Asian country with a base of modernization.

Indian girls blowing bubbles in Holland Village

Street restaurant on a nice afternoon

Night restaurants along the Singapore River around Clarke Quay

Food Republic is a chain franchise made up of an array of food stalls. This one is at Vivocity, one of the biggest shopping malls. It is modeled after a scenery at a Chinese market.

Nightlife at Clarke Quay

Huong Nguyen

A day in a life

Your brain registers so much information everyday. As much as we are all so dependent on computers, the Internet and other electronic devices for news and entertainment, it has been the little observations I remember that help me reflect better on the changing of the quotidian life. When the train of information comes and goes too fast, it takes away your time to think deep about everything that comes across our mind. That is why I enjoy jotting down my loose thoughts or pieces of memory I have during the day.

How about www.catchcheatingspouse.org above the driving plate of a cab?

How about old people picking up trays and cleaning up the tables in restaurants and food courts?

How about a construction worker ordering a drink in a canteen, hands holding on to his little pouch? (How about when your family depends on you as an immigrant worker overseas and how about your life depending on as little as your bare hands?)

How about: Singaporean women don’t cook anymore?

How about that twenty-something who has trouble talking because her jaw seems out of place, and how about that friend of hers who still lends her both ears and listens very understandably?

How about a pedi-manicure treat from your friend?

How about the million-dollar flats and pent houses in the Sentosa islands and private yachts parking nearby?

How about a new friend sharing her thoughts with you about your future? And how about you being so comfortable sharing yours? How about you immediately thinking of her as a mentor figure?

How about BreadTalk, right now? (if you read my last post on food)

How about your future?

How about: tomorrow is Vesak Day when everyone does something good and moral? How about you?

How about…

Huong Nguyen

Fresh midnight summer breeze: reflections on food

Living on the 17^th floor is nothing short of a delight for the cool waves we enjoy every night, something that is more luxurious than the conditioned air. Hot sunshine during the day soon turns into murky sky and dusk, leaving the rays dragging on the roofs of all buildings. Stretch your view towards the horizon and feel the heat evaporating. I heard it was raining by Changi Airport tonight, not yet our turn. But soon, the weather forecast promises.

Initial culinary experience

As I look back on a first week experimenting with new dishes prepared by the different ethnic minorities in Singapore, I think I would give myself a stellar record. Having a sea opens up for Singapore the opportunity to have not only a busy commercial port, a beautiful coastline for golf courses and expensive resorts, but most importantly, an abundant source of fresh seafood for the common people. If you merely think of Geylang Street as a place for “frog porridge” or “call girls,” then you have gravely overlooked everything else in between, including the No Sign Board seafood restaurant. Six of us tried the white pepper crabs, the chili crabs (supposed to the best) and cereal prawns. What gives chili crab its unique flavor is a slightly sweet and spicy seasoning prepared in a gravy sauce made of egg yolk. After the crab, you could also dip your han-bao into the sauce or pour the sauce gingerly over the white rice for best taste. Cereal prawns are fried with cereal flakes, which make it crispy- crunchy. My favourite for sure. The dishes fill you up with happiness and guilty pleasure. Though so much calories, they all tasted wonderfully.

Cereal prawns (image from google)

The famous Chili crab (image from google)

Another day, we treated ourselves right with Steamboat by Sunset Way. Steamboat is the Singaporean version of the Japanese habachi, the Korean hotpot or the Vietnamese lẩu. The restaurant serves you a boiling, already-seasoned stew, while you can pick up the “ingredients” like fish, clams, mussels, along with tofu, seaweed, mushrooms, vegetable to complete your meal. The most interesting thing about the Singaporean steamboat is the division of spicy and non-spicy seasoning broths, to accommodate non-spicy eaters. I have to say that Singaporeans have a very high tolerance for spiciness, which I failed to take up.

Seafood Steamboat by Sunset Way

A lunch in the city took my girlfriends and me to Hock Lam Beef on China Road. The restaurant is nested in the central commercial district of Singapore about a 10-minute walk from the Raffles Place MRT station. On the opposite side is a building with French architecture, which I found quite curious- in a former British colony. We each had a noodle bowl with a variety of different preparations of beef, which made up its peculiar taste.

The girls with the pleasant and joyful owner of the Hock Lam Beef Noodles

I have a slight obsession with BreadTalk, which so far has been the paragon of delicious bakery. More delightfully, these breads are fresh and affordable. So no guilty, only pure pleasure with these breads. What's more, the creativity and arts of making such scrumptious desserts make me adore the brand, as well as the Singaporean entrepreneurship. They have a very diverse population of different ethnic backgrounds, but they know how to draw the best out of each culture. It feels like a little New York in many ways. After the trips, you know I’ll be hunting for this brand in the US of A. I miss this mouth-watering bread already when I don’t have it. It is something truly to remember.

Huong Nguyen

Good infrastructure is a basis for the living

I had come to Singapore one week before my internship started to give myself enough time to adjust to the new environment and lifestyle. Living with a couple of good friends from high school, who are working here, is the best accommodation you could find as a newcomer in a foreign country. Singapore has rules and laws for everything and a distinctive way of life. In order to survive, you’d need to know where the markets, the library, recreation center or the shopping mall is. Albeit an Asian at heart, I still encounter culture shock once in a while. Having somebody explaining to you points of cultural differences helps you sympathize with the culture of the locals and adapt more easily. As an old saying goes, when in Rome…

Strolling leisurely across the Singapore River

Urban infrastructure

What distinguishes Singapore from its Southeast Asian neighbors is its outstanding urban planning. While one would argue that it has the advantage of small geography, which might make it easier to govern, the space constraint has actually been an obstacle to accommodate the large population of its size. The objective of its urban development has been to arrange housing blocks for maximum density without compromising the transport efficiency. With urban planning being a highly centralized government function, the two bodies responsible for drawing up and overseeing this “masterpiece” is the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) and the Housing Development Board (HDB). With distinctive roles, these two agencies have mutually reinforcing power to assure prudent national land use.

View of downtown Singapore with abundant trees and a railway above the ground

Even though it is similar to Vietnam in having state control over public land use, judicious practices and sound policies of Singaporean government have contributed to its social cohesion and ensured smooth transfer of goods and other commercial activities. The effective use of the public transportation, namely the Mass Rapid Transit System (MRT), allows far-apart districts to be linked to one another without having to rely on road extensively. The MRT is constructed up above the ground, which reduces strains on traffic and economizes on space. The extraordinary aspect of their MRT system is that they can afford to supply air-condition on all the trains and inside each underground station. Yes, think about all the government subsidies or imports of electricity that they need yearly. Meanwhile, public amenities are also strategically placed in order to benefit the most number of people while minimizing wastage. Housing blocks are connected to one another by walkways with overheads and sunshields, which are supposed to keep you from the rain and the brutal sun. That’s right, they have a year of summer and sunshine. It’s always a good time to have a summer vacation in Singapore, no matter what month you go.

A typical residential block with parking lot and playground

Urban planners in Singapore always look for ways to improve on their master plan to satisfy its diverse population’s needs and seemingly competing uses: residential, commercial, industrial, transport, recreational and so on. Among many drawbacks is its lack of pavements for pedestrians, enhancing the heavy reliance of public transportation. Walking on the streets of Singapore with one step off the margin and you will be on the same lane as the cars. I have seen foreigners, myself included, struggling with finding a way to cross the street without having to walk an extra mile.

Driving on the left side, a British legacy

Among the Asian countries that I have visited, the level of sophistication in urban planning in Singapore most resembles that of South Korea and Japan. And these are all developed and newly industrializing countries (NICs), go figure eh? The ability to “manage the nature” is a feature of advanced nations. If it seems impossible in developing countries to flattens a little “hill” to make roads, it is likely in the case of the developed states to make a road on that hill and put in signs of safety instructions for different types of car. The point is, the architects of these incredible urban infrastructures make the living seem so feasible and sensible.

Eastern coastline, approaching Changi Airport

All of these stella projects would succeed on the condition that corruption is minimized. True story.

Huong Nguyen

Singapore! ♫♫♫

Downtown city over the Singapore River

Dear Readers,

My name is Huong Nguyen and I am here at the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies (ISEAS) in Singapore for my internship. I will be assisting Professor Amitav Acharya on his book project on Nationalist leaders of Asia. I enjoy writing on this blog because it allows me to share with you some reflection on my experience abroad and hopefully it will ignite your own interests and lead you to new adventures.

Why Singapore?

A graduate student from the School of International Service at American University in Washington DC, I am originally from Vietnam. This trip actually brings me closer to home, as Singapore is only a 3-and-a-half-hour flight from Hanoi, the capital of Vietnam. Try to get this straight- while Singapore is a truly Asian country for its history, culture and social composition, the business working style is very Western and the structure of society, in terms of legal system and urban planning, has been a result of visionary and conscious leadership. As a hub-and-spoke of ASEAN dialogue (Association of Southeast Asian Nations), Singapore plays a major role in coordinating cooperation efforts among the diversities of Asian cultures, languages, religions, systems of governance and economies.

ISEAS is a leading think-tank in research and publication of writings on the interaction among ASEAN members as well as the organization’s relations to nation states in South Asia, Northeast Asia and the Pacific. It has hosted renowned scholars and research fellows from all over the world on a year-round basis to come, research and write. Most understandably, Professor Amitav Acharya worked with this prestigious institution in his early scholar and professorial career.

Singapore also carries personal memories. I first visited the city-state in 2003 and 2005 for summer vacations with my friends. Going on typical tourist prowl, we only surfed on the very surface of its society, although brief talks with university friends and the trying of new delicacy did leave insightful thoughts. That was when I got the first dip of Singapore. Not until 5 years later when Hanoi has become so heavily polluted with its significant imports of cars and the overall industrial changes, did I come back to a green and fresh Singaporean air to appreciate it profoundly. The 3.5-hour flight did take you to a different world, so to speak.

I really believe this is a good place to be this summer, for my continued study about Southeast Asia, its leaders and its people, its economies and its environment, urban infrastructure- what worked and what failed, ethnic minorities and culinary, youth and lifestyle, and probably everything in between.

Huong Nguyen

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