Returning from throbbing Asia to dull Singapore is difficult. A mass of contradictions fill you.

It doesn't instantly charm you or display great obvious beauty. The challenge for Singapore is letting people in to see the bits that can inspire affection.

Tourism brings in lots of cash, making it popular with the Government. A more active and involved tourist board could not be wished for. Laws have been changed and millions invested to ensure Singapore remains unique. But most of what's done seems to be about Singapore remaining generic. Self consciously aware of its global position it seeks to emulate the attractive features that suck up the tourist dollars in other nations.

Malls filled with the likes of DKNY, Chanel and Fendi are not exclusive, they can and do exist anywhere. They lack any distinctive culture that is specific to their location. Whether designed by international or local architects, personality is rarely achieved, seemingly not even desired. Hotels and resorts suffer the same fate. What does a Singaporean Hilton have that a Malaysian one doesn't?

You can attract visitors because you have the biggest, currently most fashionable, modernised malls and resorts. And much cash can be made by those that own such places. But you never stay at the top, you have to constantly renew and extend yourself. Changi's recent drop in popularity shows just how fickle the consumer is.

Shopping is no longer enough, we want gambling. What will you refuse the market? If it requires luxury developments on already sparse land, will you deny citizens a decent amount of space to live in? As much as people travel with the intent to buy handbags they also do it for the sake of adventure and discovery. They seek to see what's different, to feel another energy, to experience new sensations and tastes. They want to see people living different lives, sharing different ideas, expressing themselves in different ways.

Cities are visited by millions of tourists because of their personality, the way their inhabitants imbue the air and all the activity with a certain, particular feel. They become great Cities because people remember that feeling. When they talk the recollection flashes in their eye and their smile. In these moments you can share their enthusiasm and be inspired to go seek the same hit.

When I talk with love of Singapore in my heart I talk of its inconsistencies and its duplicity. The life that goes on behind the façade, in between the office blocks, in the darkest corners of as yet un-modernised malls, in the coffee shops and on benches below the shadow of a housing block. Singapore always seems to want me not to look at the bit that's most pretty. Instead I'm asked to spend time with birds, merlions and monkeys; to walk designated tourist trails. To avoid the shabby sleepy old streets of Lavender and the politely subtle brothels nestled behind historic frontages on the edges of Chinatown.

Singapore doesn't need to keep tourists occupied, what's here in day-to-day life is inherently interesting. Attempts to control, describe, demarcate and restrict what people should see perpetuate the idea of Singapore being dull. A certain degree of disorder is healthy, real life contains dirt. But control freaks find it hard to have fun. If restraint is all the eye-witnesses it's hard for the heart to believe anyone is enjoying the party.