This is a work in progress and will new sections will be added as I discover more things.
A very useful blog that I used several times: Daniel’s Tips & Tricks to Life in Singapore; very good overview of the main questions you can ask when you just landed in Singapore.
- Food and deliveries:
Cold Storage is a good place to buy groceries and there are shops everywhere. Sebastien went to the one in the basement of the Takashimaya shopping centre; he said it was awesome! But you can also check Le Petit Depot for some French goods and RedMart for some deliveries right to your door.
- Restaurant and take-away:
The list would be long! But I am keeping it simple. For take-aways, Deliveroo works like in HK. There is also Grab but I haven’t tried yet. We only tried a few restaurants so far but we really liked Ristorante Takada, a Japanese chef who lived a long time in Italy and is cooking Italian food but with a Japanese touch!
- Taxis:
It’s nearly impossible to hail a cab in Singapore! I tried and failed. Best thing is to have the Grab app on your phone. It works like Uber and is very reliable.
- Bus and MRT (= underground)
Public transport is very good in Singapore but the MRT is a bit slow compared to other cities. I am a big fan of public transports! Two options to pay for fares: buy an EZ-Link card and top-up whenever necessary, or use your Singapore credit or debit card. Always touch in and out of buses and MRT so that you pay the correct fare. You can download the EZ-Link app on your phone to check the balance or top up. A good app to go around in public transport is SBS Transit. You will need mobile data to use it but I find it very helpful. All bus stops have a number and you can enter it in the app and see all the buses of this stop and when they arrive.
- Phone:
Best thing to do is buy a prepaid Sim card and when you have your EP pass, you can get a contract. Important to note, you need a passport to buy prepaid card(s) as the number(s) will be registered to your passport. And you can have a maximum of 3 numbers under a passport. The main phone shops are Singtel (long queue and incompetent staff in my own opinion), M1 and Starhub. We chose M1 as they had the best deal and were nicer than the other 2 providers. There are other providers, but I don’t know them. My advice is to buy a prepaid card and then shop around for the best deal, even if you have to get a different phone number.
- Shopping:
Singapore is the city of shopping! Literally! Endless choice for all price and quality. My advice is walk around and see what’s on offer. You will find super posh shopping centres (e.g. ION Orchard) next door to more modest ones (e.g. Far East Shopping Centre). M&S has a very good choice in about everything, Ikea is here too as well as Decathlon.
- Beauty:
So far I got a pedicure and a leg wax. So I can only advise on these 2. For mani / pedi, I went to Bugis Street Shopping Centre. The second and third floors are full of nail salons. They all propose the same services and at the same price. Just pick one you find nice and with availability, sit down and enjoy! For the waxing, I went to D Beauty Zone, a very small salon in Tanjong Pagar with a fair pricing ($25 for half-leg wax). There again, there were a variety of other salons doing waxing and other hair removal treatments. Watch this space for my quest to a correct hairdresser!!