10 Facts About Singapore That Even Singaporeans Don’t Know

Think you know Singapore like the back of your hand?

As Singapore celebrates its 53^rd National Day on the 9 August, read on to find out interesting facts about Singapore that even Singaporeans don’t know!

1. Singapore is a city of not just one island, but 63

You might not know it but Singapore’s land area includes as many as 62 offshore islands that surround the main island. These include Sentosa (the largest of the 62 offshore islands),  Pulau Ubin, St John's Island and Sisters' Islands.

2. Singapore hosts the world’s tallest (man-made)waterfall

According to the Wildlife Reserves Singapore, the first man-made waterfall was built at Jurong Bird Park in 1971. Dropping from a height of 30 metres, it is said to be the tallest waterfall in an aviary to date.

That’s not all. You’ll also find the world's tallest indoor waterfall (35 metres) in Singapore at the Cloud Forest, Gardens by the Bay.

In 2019, there will be an even taller indoor waterfall, to be built at Jewel at Changi Airport.

3. Singapore pioneered the first F1 night race

The first Singapore Grand Prix was held in September 2008 and was the first F1 night race.

Philips, one of the world’s largest electronics company, worked with Valerio Maioli S.p.A. to develop an extensive lighting system for the world’s first Formula One™ night race in Singapore 2008, consisting of nearly 1,500 lighting projectors to achieve near-daylight conditions at night.

 4. Singapore is one of only three surviving city-states in the world  

The other two city-states that don’t have a capital are Monaco and the Vatican City.

5. Singapore: World’s Fastest Walkers

Singaporeans are the fastest walkers on the planet. Singaporeans have the fastest walking speed of about 6.15km per hour. (18 metres in 10.55 seconds!) That’s also how fast bumblebees fly.

6. Singapore’s tallest building is 290m high

Buildings in Singapore cannot exceed the height limit of 280metres. There are 3 buildings of that height: UOB Plaza, Republic Plaza and One Raffles Place. In 2016, Tanjong Pagar Centre was completed and claimed the record of being Singapore’s tallest building after permission was granted for it to go beyond the usual height restriction.

7. Singapore has changed its timezone 6 times

Did you know that Singapore has changed time zones 6 times since 1905? For 36 years, Singapore was 7.5 hours ahead of Greenwich Mean Time (GMT). In 1982, Singapore Standard Time was redefined to be 8 hours ahead of GMT.

8. Singapore has more than 3000 kilometres of roads

Stretched from end to end, they would cover the distance from Singapore to Hong Kong!

9. Singaporeans can vote in the British elections

We can even run for public office in the United Kingdom. Because Singaporeans are Commonwealth citizens, they are entitled to certain rights in the UK and other Commonwealth countries.

10. Singapore’s public buses come from Europe

Public buses (such as those from SBS Transit and SMRT) are mainly shipped over from Europe and the United Kingdom. For instance, Volvo and Scania buses are from Sweden and Mercedes-Benz’s Citaro and MAN buses hail from Germany. Before you board the public buses next time, check out the logo at the front of the bus and you will know where it is from!

We hope that this article is helpful. Do you have any tips you would like to add?

Let us know in the comments and please share this post with a friend/colleague if you enjoyed it!