Singapore guide
Sampans and Skyscrapers
In this dynamic island republic East merges with West. Strategically located between the Indian Ocean and the South China Sea, Singapore basks in high year-round temperatures and an impressive prosperity.
The city-state covers an area of about 630 sq km (245 sq miles). The north is lush with equatorial foliage, while the centre has reservoirs and a nature reserve. And then there is Singapore City, crowded with most of the Republic's nearly 3 million people-a spick-and-span "garden city" and thriving financial centre for all of South-East Asia.
Sweeping modernization and urban redevelopment (including an underground transport system, the MRT, that is a model of efficiency) have resulted in an unlikely skyline of highrise buildings unimaginable during the century and a half of British colonial rule. Sir Stamford Raffles would never recognize the city he founded in 1819.
The sights may not be venerable but Singapore fascinates all the same. The Republic boasts an extraordinary mix of races, languages, religions and cuisines. There is a preponderance of Chinese citizens, with sizeable Malay and Indian contingents. Four languages-Malay, English, Mandarin Chinese and Tamil-have official status, while Buddhism, Taoism, Islam, Hinduism and Christianity are the major faiths.
