The Best Cities for Singles in Asia

By Tiffany Lam

 

If you're single and looking for 'friends,' consider a move to one of these cities, where conversation and contact numbers flow easily

Traveling solo doesn't mean you have to be lonely, especially at these five destinations.

We asked friends, colleagues, and event organizers where best to make a connection in Asia. Here's what we found.

We know we might have missed a few, so feel free to share what you know in the comments section below.

Seoul

Ladies, if you’ve ever dreamt of clicking with South Korea’s jaw-droppingly gorgeous male celebs (and we know you have) then Seoul’s clubs are where you’ll want to head. We hate to generalize, but feedback from party girls at nightspots like Club Eden, Club Heaven and Club Answer was that “there were Korean male celeb look-alikes everywhere.” They’re also known to be “fun to dance with,” and “unafraid of approaching strangers.”

“Thanks to two years of mandatory military training, mostly Korean men I encountered were manly and buff,” another CNNGo lady staffer supplied.

We like.

Unmarried foreign men might have a shot at finding a partner in Seoul too, what with more Korean women seeking inter-racial pairings in recent years.

Indeed it’s safe to say that many South Koreans aren’t coy about their intentions to find a partner, with “booking,” or group blind dating, being a prevalent practice in clubs.

Bangkok

Bangkok is a no-brainer when it comes to top destinations for unmarried types. Let’s look beyond its notorious anything-goes sex industry and focus on its great nightlife. It's not hyperbole to say that by nightfall, Bangkok literally has it all for people of all orientations, from hedonistic, booze-fueled raves to quiet wine-sipping hideaways. Partying with pretty ladyboys? You’ve got it. Gay bars? Bangkok has so much of them, it’s like a gay pride parade every day.

And with Bangkok’s friendly folk, as this CNNGo article suggests, you usually end any night out with more friends than you started with.

Bangkok also has “exotic culture and amazing architecture” to entrance the serious solo traveler, according to Connecting: Solo Travel Network founder Diane Redfern.

Shenzhen

Gone are the days when Shenzhen was known to be a sleazy, dour border town. These days, those looking for love in China might want to start in Shenzhen, a famously young city with the average age of 28. "It’s known to be an immigration hub with migrant workers pouring in from other parts of China, so chances are you’ll find them eager to meet other people," said Brent Deverman, owner of ShenzhenParty.com. 

(Boys take note: Shenzhen has the highest female to male ratio in the country according to a Shenzhen Daily report in 2009. Happy hunting.)

Try your luck at one of the many clubs in the city, some of which are packed with people every day of the week. Among them, Club Viva is known among locals to be a hot singles bar. Alternatively, log on to one of the city's many online matchmaking websites.

For solo travelers who just want some restful time alone, Shenzhen also has plenty of arts venues and al fresco dining options to offer -- check out our guide to the underrated delights of Shenzhen.

Hong Kong

The Towering Hong Kong

Single, career-minded 30-somethings could do a lot worse than Hong Kong when it comes to places to hook up. While so many local ladies are unable to get hitched that television stations are making documentaries about it, the same cannot be said for the expat and traveler circuit, where conversation and number exchanging flows free and easy.

To meet new singles, tag along on a friends’ junk trip during the summer. Clubs like Drop are reportedly great for late-night hook ups while Discovery Bay has been known to have a bit of a reputation as providing married 'game' to singles.

Hong Kong's also great for solo travel, said Redfern, citing its "ease of getting around on your own, shopping, dining, and easy options for day trips via public transport."

Shanghai

With sophisticated clubs and hot young (Chinese) things galore, Shanghai is a great place to have fun if you’re a young foreigner with a taste for the Orient.

Shanghai is swarming with expats and it’s not hard to see why -- clinching a job is easy (if you’re a 'lao wai,' or foreigner), and you can easily find local women who are open to having a good time on any given night out (as long as you’re a lao wai).

With sleek new restaurants and bars consistently popping up in this boom city, you’ll find no shortage of locations for second and third dates.

Read more about Dating TV in China to get a grasp of the dating psyche in mainland China.

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http://www.cnngo.com/explorations/great-cities-singles-asia-655435#ixzz1MDRPni1V

Asia's Most Sinful Cities

By Andrew Willis

The best cities in Asia for indulging the devil on your shoulder. Seven deadly sins -- seven lively Asian cities. We all stray off the path of righteousness from time to time.

So if you're going to end up in hell due to a temptation to eat more than your fair share of stinky tofu, take a detour to Taipei first. Or if pride's your vice, take a turn toward Manila.

These Asian cities take a sin and turn it into a raison d'être.

1. Gluttony: Taipei, Taiwan

Cheap eats, everywhere, day or night.

Taipei sports 18 streets dedicated to nothing other than food. Where you might usually expect a bus shelter, instead you'll find a barbecue. Sidewalks become snack stalls. The pungent smell of stinky tofu fills the air.

Night markets in Taipei have become famous for their snack selections, or xiaochi, literally meaning "small eats."

The dishes may be little, but so are the prices, running around US$1-2 dollars. A fat gut never came so easily. 

2. Sloth: Seoul, South Korea

When South Koreans are not racking up overtime, they're collecting bandwidth fees.

Seoul's Internet has been honed, sculpted, streamlined and sped up to such a degree that no one really needs to move, at all, ever, except maybe when the orc hordes descend in "World of Warcraft" and some rapid double-clicking is required.

South Korea has been ranked the 15th laziest country in the world (and the first in Asia) by The Daily Beast. And there's every reason to assume they'll get even lazier.

A recently proposed government policy seeks to advance digital technology in the capital, partly influenced by demand for online gaming and streaming video, and will take Internet speeds to 1,000 Mbps by 2012.

So if some of the 39 million connected South Koreans wanted to emulate their favourite national soccer heroes, they may as well just do it via "FIFA Manager."

3. Pride: Manila, Philippines

Much is made about the loveliness of the Filipino female. But you wouldn't know it by talking to the Filipino men -- they're too busy gazing lustfully into the mirror.

According to a study from Synovate, Filipino men are the most narcissistic in Asia. A whopping 48 percent consider themselves sexually attractive.

And if the ladies reading this think the guys' encounters with the brow tweazers are for your benefit, sorry -- nine out of 10 Filipino men polled said they liked to look good for themselves, not anyone else. 

By way of comparison, just 25 percent of men in Singapore considered themselves sexually attractive, 17 percent in China and Taiwan and a measly 12 percent of Hong Kong guys think the same.

4. Greed: Shenzhen, China

When everyone else was tightening the belts, Shenzhen carried on regardless, pumping out billions of dollars worth of high-tech products.

Shenzhen is one of the fastest growing cities in the world, with a provincial GDP of US$42 billion -- that's more than some countries such as Guatemala and Lebanon, and four times more than Iceland.

Meanwhile, China's millionaires keep millionairing -- it won't be long before there are 1 million U.S. dollar millionaires in the country, guided by Shenzhen's philosophy: if you can't make a million, make a billion.

5. Lust: Tokyo, Japan

Japan's sex industry is worth an estimated ¥2.5 trillion (US$30 billion), second only to the country's automobile industry. Is there any competition? 

According to "Pink Box" author Joan Sinclair, "Japan offers absolutely everything imaginable."

From gratuitous puke porn (and worse) to the barely titillating maid cafes, Tokyo is like a dirty old man in a teenager's body. But one who celebrates his lewd desires with the gusto of an exhibitionist poodle on heat.

Head here to indulge your fetishes or simply to have yourself bathed by a pretty young thing in a uniform.

6. Envy: New Delhi, India

More Indians emigrated in 2010 than any other nationality in the world except for Mexicans, according to the World Bank's Migration and Remittances Factbook 2011. 

Some 11.4 million Indians headed elsewhere to find a better life, drawn by the lure of things done properly.

India, and its capital New Delhi, has the world's worst case of grass-is-greener syndrome.

7. Wrath: Pyongyang, North Korea

Pugnacious, belligerent, quarrelsome ... the North Korean capital is the moody adolescent of the continent. But unlike most spotty delinquents who express their angry insecurities by piercing body parts or coloring their hair, this one sinks ships and shells islands.

North Korea's national sport is Taekwondo. If there's a food shortage, the military get served first. Propaganda films talk of the "invincible power" of the North Korean army and posters in the capital state, "The way to peace is on the point of a bayonet."

Its army comprises nearly 1 million troops, out of a nation of 24 million.

Still, the Dear Leader Kim Jong Il does claim to have made the world's best ever golf score -- an astonishing 38 under par on a regulation 18-hole course including five holes-in-one. And that on his first ever attempt, too.

Perhaps he's not so bad.

http://ph.travel.yahoo.com/inspirations/279-asias-most-sinful-cities