Parts of this story originally appeared in Philippine Daily Inquirer
Just recently, someone asked me if I ever think of going back to Manila or if I consider Singapore my home now. I thought the question was passé.
Filipinos, more than anyone, have become global citizens. In this day and age—especially for Filipinos who work overseas—there’s not just one home. We work abroad, we assimilate into the culture of our host country, but we retain our Filipino identity.
When I first lived here in Singapore in 2001, I worked as one of eight foreign sub-editors in the country’s biggest publishing company. I learned how to produce at least three newspaper pages a day.
I decided to work again in Singapore exactly a year ago. By then my masochistic side had resurfaced: I missed the daily grind of the newsroom.
Another question I am asked often is if Singapore has changed since the last time I lived here. A lot, I say. It’s like an entire generation has grown up and taken over.
My colleagues, most in their early 20s, are more relaxed and open-minded than the generation before them. The bars are open until early morning, people are smiling, and you see more foreign faces on the streets.
The influential Monocle magazine, for the second year running, has named Singapore as one of the world’s Top 25 Liveable Cities and praised it for having “leapfrogged to First World status in barely two generations.”
Singapore is intent on becoming a major power, and it is doing something concrete to achieve that.
How about you, what brings you to Singapore?
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