As far as I’m concerned, there are 3 types of malls in Singapore.

The first is the Orchard Mall, filled with Tai-tais, TWGs, and price-tags which can blind you.

The second is the Strata Mall; a little shabby, a little eclectic, with the forlorn air of an impending en-bloc.

The last is the Capitaland Mall, designed for mass appeal and precision-engineered for profit. They are, by far, the most ubiquitous, but also the most formulaic. There’s a McDonalds squatting by the entrance, a Gongcha in the basement, and a flock of claw machines high above. On the second floor, there’s either a MUJI, a Uniqlo or a Challenger selling power banks on discount. In B2, you will walk past a Boost Juice, a GNC, a supermarket, and probably a Breadtalk. After a while, the different malls blend into one. You feel as if you’ve spent half your life in their arms, without ever developing any real affection for them.