We hadn't planned on stopping in Singapore on this round-the-world trip, but, as we were traveling through Indonesia, we kept reading and hearing about this city-state sandwiched between Java and Malaysia. While we knew little about Singapore before visiting, we did know it was a financial hub for the region and an architectural marvel. By the time we reached Jakarta, we were excited at the prospect of exploring the Singaporean city for a few days. We booked our tickets on local Garuda Airlines and headed to Changi Airport.

When we arrived, we experienced culture shock, in the best possible way. We had spent three wonderful weeks in the energetic and chaotic swirl of Indonesia. Now, we found ourselves in a carefully planned city of the future.

However, I went in with misgivings about the heavy hand of government in this "benevolent dictatorship," as I knew of Singapore’s reputation as “fine city,” where the authorities punish people for chewing gum. Lee Kuan Yew ruled Singapore for thirty-one years, from 1959 until 1990. In that time, he transformed the country from a small colony into a thriving independent nation state. I could never quite shake the feeling that an invisible hand guides daily life in the city. It's an interesting example of social engineering that continues to this day, although somewhat less heavy-handed than in the past.

From the moment we disembarked at Changi Airport, we took full advantage of the pristine public transportation system to get around quickly and efficiently. We had many discussions along the way about the cute little characters plastered everywhere to prompt passengers to behave in certain ways: #StandUpStacey encourages you to give your seat up to the elderly and disabled, while #BagsDownBenny makes sure luggage is stowed on the floor to make room for more passengers, and #MoveInMartin aims to achieve the same thing by nudging you to move to the back of the car. As an educator, Jona liked the prompts and found them helpful, while I thought they were well-intentioned, but slightly creepy and heavy-handed. Other posters urged citizens to report suspicious activities (just as in Europe or the U.S.) and gave instructions on how to survive disasters. I came to the conclusion that I felt uneasy because these messages are designed by fellow communications professionals, but they go deeper and further than I ever would.

There were also ads for affordable healthcare and education, which made us feel very primitive as Americans. Singapore is a shining example of how big cities of the future will look. It is clean, safe and beautiful. The architecture alone is worth a visit, but the thoughtful city planning that Singaporeans enjoy is equally impressive. A wonderfully diverse population with all ethnicities and nationalities makes it a beacon of hope amid the rising wave of nationalism around the world. Our visit cemented my view that diversity is the glue that binds a society and makes it stronger.

We stayed in Little India during our stay, enjoying the sights, sounds and smells of spices. We were close to one of the main temples and the busiest shopping street. We allowed ourselves one Indian meal, which was both delicious and insanely hot, even for us. Across the road, we saw what looked like a department store, so we headed in after dinner. Little did we know that Mustafa's is a famous market, covering multiple levels and a geographically implausible amount of square footage. Toiletries, food, electronics and media, Mustafa's has it all. And, in multiple locations. There's a floor with toiletries and medicine and toiletries and medicine and…oh, you get it. It's a magical place to visit by day or night. We didn't buy that much, but we spent a good couple of hours browsing and people-watching. When we finally managed to find our way out, it took a while to find our bearings. While Little India is not the must popular place to stay in Singapore, we loved it.

It's just a short ride on the MRT subway system to anywhere in the city, so we bought a tourist pass and tried to see as much as we could during our short stay. We started by walking along the river to the quays. Singapore is beautiful at night, because of the way the buildings are lit, accentuating their dramatic effect. Despite the heavy humidity cloaking the air, we walked all the way to Marina Bay, where the "Merlion," Singapore's official mascot, and the iconic Marina Bay Sands hotel frame the harbor. At night, there are sound-and-light shows and throngs of people mill about having fun. We went to bed every night, exhausted and happy.

In just four days, we saw most of the major museums, visited the main attractions and enjoyed the air-conditioning in quite a few shopping malls. The museums were outstanding, particularly the National Gallery and the National Museum of Singapore. The former is housed in the old Halls of Justice and the latter does a great job of explaining the country's history. We also managed to walk through residential neighborhoods to get a sense of how people live today. The contrast between the old municipal housing projects and the new skyscraper apartments is telling, as Singapore is enjoying its current role as financial power broker in the region.

The different ethnic groups seem to coexist fairly peacefully and productively, despite past differences. All official and public signs are produced in four different languages (English, Malay, Mandarin and Tamil), yet there is also a distinct national identity that binds diverse groups together. For instance, we stayed in a hotel in Little India, spent hours wandering through Chinatown and meandered through the old British colonial area downtown.  

We also thoroughly enjoyed the Buddha Tooth Relic Temple and Museum, a recommendation from our friend Jamie. Spanning five whole floors, this relatively new temple is ornate and educational. There are hundreds of gold statues of the Buddha, both large and small. The titular Buddha Tooth is a supposed relic that was discovered by monks in the 1980s. They then raised money to build the temple, which serves as a place of worship and a museum about Buddhism. The tooth is about six times the size of any of my teeth, so I'll let you make up your own mind about its authenticity.

The other remarkable historical facet of Singapore is its colonial past. After all, the city-state was created by Sir Thomas Raffles in 1831 and the old quarters are very well preserved. The legendary Raffles Hotel, where the Singapore Sling cocktail was invented, was undergoing renovations at the time of our visit, but we still toured the property which afforded us a glimpse of a bygone era. Unlike many other countries in the region, Singapore wears its past comfortably. The only sour note was the Japanese occupation during the Second World War. Even this time of hardship seems to have helped cement a sense of national pride. The city feels familiar to world travelers, with the usual high-end shops and amenities, yet it retains a distinct sense of being Singaporean.

In short, life in Singapore is comfortable. We could easily see ourselves living there, because the quality of life is excellent. Judging by the large numbers of foreign workers from around the world, a lot of people also see a promising future for Singapore and an example of how diverse groups of people can coexist peacefully and profitably. I think there are some valuable lessons we could learn from this diverse country's experience.