Singapore... Monaco of the East?

Singapore just might be hosting a F1 street circuit GP in the not so distant future. The argument for it :- if Monaco can do it, so can Singapore.

Having said that, the detractors have been taking time out from being constipated, to point out that Singapore is not Monaco. It doesn't have the heritage, the panache, the 5 figure flat rentals, the falling signboards that flatten numerous former F1 drivers each year on the streets of Monaco... And right they are. So, what is Monaco then?

Jeremy Clarksons MotorWorld - Monaco

The Home of the Grand Prix of Monte Carlo. And also of every major name of motorsport. Whats it like to live there? Find out.

I think if Singapore plays its cards right (and admittedly, it has to get a very good hand), it has a fair chance of being the Monaco of the East. The Asian 1 million dollar club is growing at 5-10% per year. And the new rich, typically look for places to frolic, buy and spend. The moneyed Europeans and Americans do so in Monaco. But rich Asians can't quite flock to Monaco. Being Asian in Monaco is like going to tuxedo party in a white waistcoat. No matter how rich you are, everybody thinks you're the damn waiter.

Singapore could put an end all that. Let's make the whiteman feel 3rd world and out of place, for a change.

There's another possible Monaco of the East,... Shanghai. It has as much, if not more aristocratic, crazy money heritage than Monaco. It's got the Bund, the buildings brimming with history, the cobbled streets, and more recently the shiny skyscrapers. But it also has... communists. Millions of them. No zero taxation there, mate.

So Singapore... let's see what you can do.

Related posts:

The Proposed F1 Singapore GP Street Circuit