So much time has passed since I made my last post that I really do not know what to post about anymore. I think I’ll just make a general post about Stockholm.
There is just no comparisons between Singapore and Stockholm because they are just so distinct. Stockholm does not have many if any tall buildings at all. It simply doesn’t have the need to build any tall buildings because it has so much land for a country with 9 million citizens. Sweden also hasn’t been in any wars for over 200 years so much of its old architecture is very much in tact. This means that the streets, houses and churches never fail to emit a faded, rustic and cultured flavor. Sweden is also a pacifistic country, war never cross the minds of anyone here and its almost as if the city is shrouded in vail of calm.
The place where I work is in Sveavägen, the city centre of Stockholm. If we compare it to Singapore then it’ll be a cross between Shenton Way and Holland V. Although there are quite a few offices located here, all of them are these old short houses which are probably just 4 or 5 stories tall and when they line up together along the road, they will remind you of Holland V.
Running through Stockholm are the veins of this city, the subway. Driving is generally unnecessary and people who drive big trucks or SUVs are frowned upon by the people here, where environmental preservation is very much ingrained within everyone’s minds. Unlike Singapore where the 5th or 6th question asked of you is: “Do you drive?” (Everyone is hoping for a free ride on a car from someone else), driving in Stockholm is definitely not a prerequisite to be the popular guy among girls. I can also now say that Singapore is a really tiny and congested city. The only reason why we end up complaining about the time it takes to travel around Singapore is quite frankly because the MRT is too slow, takes too long to arrive and that the roads are too congested and too complicated. People in Stockholm are pampered by trains that arrive every 2 to 3 minutes, the buses here are always half full (even during rush hour) and they actually arrive at a fixed time, which is predetermined by a time schedule. Amazing, everyday I have to remind myself that this experience is only going to last a year and I ‘ll have to one day return to mighty crowded Singapore.
Seriously though, Singapore is really not as bad as many Singaporeans make it out to be, its hot… yes. Its crowded, yes. It has an artificial style of colonial architecture, yes. Our political environment is ********, yes. But! It is without doubt a very unique, modern and cosmopolitan city and I don’t think that any Singaporean should be ashamed of staying in a city like that.
All right, there just isn’t time to finish talking about Stockholm, I will resume another time.
