The Comfortable Circle: Living Among Other Foreigners in Singapore

Life in a bubble can feel like a long, pleasant stay in a hotel.

By Neil Solomon · 2 min read

Picture a couple named Helen and Philip. They moved to Singapore from Britain. Their building has a pool and a gym. Their friends are from a dozen countries, all working or retired from jobs like theirs. They go from cool lobby to cool car to cool restaurant. It is easy, and for a while it feels like winning.

Then one evening Philip realises he has not had a real conversation with a local person in weeks.

I think this is a very honest worry, and one that people who describe it tend to raise with a smile, almost embarrassed. They are not unhappy. They are comfortable. But they sense that comfort has a shape, and the shape is a bubble.

What stands out to me is how reasonable the bubble is. When you arrive, you need friends fast. The easiest ones are people who also just arrived, who also want to meet. They share your questions. They have the same sort of home, and they understand your jokes. There is real warmth in that. For a retiree who left a long-standing circle, it may be the thing that makes the first year bearable.

The cost is slower and less visible. Life in a bubble can feel like a long, pleasant stay in a hotel. You know the food, the language, the routines, and little changes. The place you moved to becomes a backdrop.

Helen might say to Philip:

"We could be anywhere, couldn't we?"

"That's what I like about it," Philip says. "And what I'm starting to mind."

Both feelings belong together. I would not tell anyone to leave their circle. I would ask what they are hoping the new country will do for them. If the answer is comfort and convenience, a bubble may serve perfectly. If the answer is to learn something, to be changed a little, the bubble may need some doors.

Doors can be small. A class in something you have always wanted to try. A regular spot where the staff learn your name. A neighbour you greet each morning. None of this means giving up your friends. It means letting a few local threads join the weave.

I think the real choice is not between bubble and no bubble. It is how large a window you want, and how often you want to open it.