Singapore 'less of a country to play in, more of a country to make money in', says Japanese woman living here

A Japanese woman living in Singapore recently shared her opinion online that some immigrants leave our sunny island because they find the environment "boring", sparking a lively discussion among netizens.

Lifestyle content creator @naofromjapan_, who moved to Singapore seven years ago for work, uploaded a short clip titled, "Things nobody tells you about living in Singapore" to social media on Oct 21.

In the video, she writes that many people think that life here is "glamorous", but she says that this vision of Singapore is curated, adding that the city-state cannot compare to other countries in terms of "natural beauty".

While appreciating the "higher salaries" here when compared to Japan, Nao said the reality is that "layoffs are also quite common".

"I think many foreigners move to Singapore because they admire this country, but quite a few end up saying it's boring and leave after a few years," she said.

"In the end, Singapore is less of a country to play in and more of a country to make money in."

She highlighted in the caption of her post: "But I still love Singapore though."

@naofromjapan_ But I still love Singapore though💓 . . . #シンガポール生活 #singaporelife #singaporelife🇸🇬 #sglife ♬ Piano, sad, touching, majestic, nature, movie - arachang

Nao, who declined to reveal her full name and occupation, told AsiaOne that the video is a "compilation of the voices" of the Japanese expats in Singapore whom she had met during her time here.

"I was quite surprised that it went viral among Singaporeans, because for us Japanese, the things mentioned in the video are just ordinary and already well-known," she expressed.

The content creator acknowledged that it is "expected" for people raised in a different environment than Japan to have opposing opinions about her video. 

"Everyone is different, and that's what makes life beautiful. This is how I choose to live, no matter which country I'm in," she added.

Nao frequently uploads videos about life in Singapore and has a series sharing the cultural differences between Japan and Singapore. She told AsiaOne she started her account as she thought it would be "unique and interesting" to share about Singapore through the eyes of a foreigner.

Her Oct 21 video has garnered over 110,000 views on TikTok as of Wednesday (Nov 5) afternoon.

Several netizens claiming to be locals agreed with Nao's point of view.

"Just wanted to say I agree too as a local, we work extremely hard to curate our image but if you look hard enough you can see the cracks everywhere," commented a TikTok user.

Another claimed: "Singapore is not a warm home that I recognise from the 80s. it is only work, earn money and pay taxes..."

Replying to the above comment, Nao expressed that tax in Singapore "is still okay" as compared to Japan.

A third TikTok user termed Singapore a "corporation rather than a country".

On the other hand, a netizen said that life in big cities across the world, no matter whether Japan or Singapore, is similar.

One commenter wrote: "It's really what you value, millions have lived and still living here, we call this home [because] our roots, our family, our friends are all here."

[[nid:676034]]

lim.kewei@asiaone.com