from Morocco to Singapore

 

Hong Kong is our last international destination for this Grand Adventure, so let the trip analysis and synthesis begin!

A quick check of Wikipedia confirms what our experiences suggest;  Of the countries we visited on this trip, Singapore was the wealthiest and Morocco was the poorest.

A lot of what this disparity of wealth means is obvious, in terms of health, job opportunities and education, but I don’t know the specifics, nor do I have pictures to share.

The tourist experience is extremely different in Singapore and Morocco.  On the surface, this means pristine landscaping, safe streets and good public transportation in Singapore and trash in Morocco.  Seeing plastic bags drifting around the Sahara is sad.

Aside from wealth, the difference in the relationship between the state and the individual is considerable.  Granted, Singapore is probably an worldwide outlier that is a world away from any other place except for Disneyland, the happiest place on earth.

Singapore emphasizes benefits to the society as a whole and they have the money to make sweeping changes.  This means urban planning with high-rise housing surrounded by lush green space, many restrictions on car ownership, excellent public transportation, the relocation of fishermen out of the downtown harbor, legal prostitution and of course cleanliness and a ban on chewing gum.  It also means that hawking (or “touting” as they often say) is illegal. 

It is famous for its harsh penalties, like death for drug trafficking and $500 for eating on the MTR (train).  Beyond this, I found it fascinating how they have transformed cleanliness and abiding by the rules into a public virtue.  For example, on the train tracks there are signs saying something like “Respect life. Stay off the tracks!” and many bathrooms had cartoons reminding you that “Clean public toilets are possible.”

Morocco was a place of “rugged individualism” where hawking probably makes a meaningful difference in how much money and comfort an individual will have.   Unfortunately, in some places it has reached a disturbing level where it threatens the whole tourism sector of the economy, which accounts for almost 20% of GDP, I think.  We have complained a lot about Morocco, and I just want to make it clear that, aside from Marrakesh, we did enjoy a lot of the country. 

Although these two countries are quite different, it was interesting to note that both Singapore and Morocco had a lot of large highly visible infrastructure projects.  Singapore, as a rich urban planning machine, appears to build new subway lines in the blink of an eye.  In Morocco, King Mohammed VI is monarch with actual power and he seems to use it well for social projects.  Near our wwoof farm a new highway is being constructed.  The route will pass through a shanty town and the people there will soon be moved into some government flats in a completely new town constructed nearby.  The king also has an artificial insemination program for cows, designed to make the local breed larger and more productive.

<- part of the new road.

Neither country is a place to mess with, as you can see from this helpful Singaporean no trespassing sign.