9.

I never saw one cop.

The whole time I was in Singapore, I never saw one cop.  I don’t think I even saw a cop car. Obviously, this is puzzling, given Singapore’s reputation.  And it isn’t an inaccurate reputation.  People do obey the law.  I had to encourage my Singaporean co-worker to jaywalk with me.

And I jaywalked all summer. Because there weren’t any cops in sight.  I also chewed gum. (Ok, I never spit it out onto the street, but if there weren’t trashcans every five feet, I probably would have.)

I wasn’t scared but Singaporeans do seem to still be scared to break the law.  I don’t know why that is.  Maybe the streets used to be teaming with cops.  Maybe the cops are undercover and just never decided to arrest me.  Or maybe Singaporeans tell on other Singaporeans…