Singapore: Difference between revisions
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{{Useful Notes}} |
{{Useful Notes}} |
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[[File:singapore-map_6544.gif|frame|Don't be fooled by the map. It's all one big city.]] |
[[File:singapore-map_6544.gif|frame|Don't be fooled by the map. It's all one big city.]] |
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''Clearly you've never been to Singapore...'' |
{{quote|''Clearly you've never been to Singapore...''}} |
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Clearly, the writers of ''[[Pirates of the Caribbean]]'' hadn't either... the place is depicted as a large town at the close of the era of pirates, when it was in fact a swampy island until being bought up at the start of the era of empires by Sir Stamford Raffles, who was just about the opposite of Lord Cuttler Beckett and quite a guy. To be fair, though, they got other things right: Chinese formed a big part of the population of Singapore when it did exist and the Straits of Malacca by which its sites are even today a (comparative) pirate hotspot. Also, prior to becoming a Crown Colony in the latter part of the 19th Century, it ''did'' had a reputation of being a [[Wretched Hive]] with crime, corruption and opium rampant; a derisive nickname given to it at the time was "Sin Galore." |
Clearly, the writers of ''[[Pirates of the Caribbean]]'' hadn't either... the place is depicted as a large town at the close of the era of pirates, when it was in fact a swampy island until being bought up at the start of the era of empires by Sir Stamford Raffles, who was just about the opposite of Lord Cuttler Beckett and quite a guy. To be fair, though, they got other things right: Chinese formed a big part of the population of Singapore when it did exist and the Straits of Malacca by which its sites are even today a (comparative) pirate hotspot. Also, prior to becoming a Crown Colony in the latter part of the 19th Century, it ''did'' had a reputation of being a [[Wretched Hive]] with crime, corruption and opium rampant; a derisive nickname given to it at the time was "Sin Galore." |
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A British colony for a while, it was captured by the Japanese in 1942 after they came in via the jungle on bicycles - the naval guns were pointed out to sea. [[Winston Churchill]] called it the worst disaster in British history. |
A British colony for a while, it was captured by the Japanese in 1942 after they came in via the jungle on bicycles - the naval guns were pointed out to sea. [[Winston Churchill]] called it the worst disaster in British history. |
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Similarly, '''Singapore''' is not [[Tom Waits|made of iron ore, although it probably isn't a good idea to fall asleep while you're ashore]]. |
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Singapore is an island city-state in South-East Asia, about 700 square kilometers in total land area, splitting from Malaysia in 1965, a state it still has some disputes with. Ties between the citizens of both countries remain extremely close, since almost everyone has friends, family, and/or business on the other side of the causeway. |
Singapore is an island city-state in South-East Asia, about 700 square kilometers in total land area, splitting from Malaysia in 1965, a state it still has some disputes with. Ties between the citizens of both countries remain extremely close, since almost everyone has friends, family, and/or business on the other side of the causeway. |
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