Checking in, checking out.

Managing the last day of a trip is always tricky, especially when the flight time is late evening.  We’d checked in for our BA flight to London before turning the light off last night and checked out of the hotel this morning.  Though we’d requested a late checkout, we had no intention of paying extra for the privilege, so we booked the “hospitality suite” instead and packed up early, leaving everything at the hotel for later.

What works for us is to leave something significant for that last day.  On this occasion, it was the new “Gardens by the Bay”, which was still under construction when we were last here.

We walked over from the hotel after breakfast, hoping to get there before the heat built up too much.  Hah!  Some hope!

Though tickets aren’t needed to wander about through the park, we wanted to go inside the domes and so on, so our first stop was the visitor centre to work out what to do and when.

The whole place is pretty big, so we took one of the audio tours first, just to get our bearings and get a feel for the place.  The aerial walkway up there in the “Supertrees” looked fun and it was to there which we headed first of all.

On the way there, though, we had to stop and admire some of the gorgeous flowers.  Though I imagined this one would smell divine, you know, it smelled of nothing!

These Supertrees are pretty special and provide all manner of services for the park.  The whole place is build upon environmentally sound principles and some of these structures contain hot air vents, solar panels and one has a restaurant inside.

Once up at treetop level, there are spectacular views of the distant harbour and the surroundings.  Sometimes, my hero gets a bit wobbly in such places but this was all perfectly stable and fine.

Thankfully, there weren’t so many people up here at this time and it was pleasantly cool, too.

Though it takes hardly any time to walk the pathway, it was really great and well worth the effort of getting up here (no effort at all, there was a lift inside one of the tree trunks!)

I imagine that, during the coming years, the framework of those trees will gradually be covered in climbing plants, but for now, I rather like the bare boned structure.

Once down at ground level again, we decided to leave the lunchtime heat outside and head into the Cloud Forest.  This was one of the areas which needed a special ticket, the other one being the flower dome which was sadly closed today for maintenance.

As soon as we stepped inside the Cloud Forest, the cool, damp air hit us!  The whole dome is misted every two hours and had just completed one cycle about ten minutes before we went inside.  The huge – seven storeys high – waterfall was the first sight we saw.  Wow.

(I waited for quite some time until everyone had taken their selfie, a picture of their girlfriend, a selfie with their girlfriend….and so on and so on.  People in Asia take even more photographs than I do!)

From the ground floor, a lift takes visitors to the sixth floor, from where a flight of stairs leads to the highest point.  The “mountain” is simply covered in orchids and rich, lush planting and is absolutely stunning.

By covered, I mean…..

There are some exotic species in there, too.

As we walked down hill, following the pathway, I recognised some of the flowers – not that I knew the name, but these pink blooms had featured in one of our National Park visits last week.  But which one?

Actually, it was these funny Lego plants which reminded us of where – we’d seen the pitcher plants growing wild in Malaysia, on Mount Kinabalu.

And as if the designer had been reading our minds, sure enough, guess where this “cloud florest” had been based upon?  Sadly, we’d not has a view like this because, surprise surprise, when we were there it was covered in cloud!

Here and there, there were some magnificent set pieces where plants and props had been used to create a very photogenic scene.  But you know what happens then, don’t you?

Out come the selfie sticks.

then a queue builds up and what had been a nice, empty space in which to stand back and admire becomes a pushing contest.

Never mind, there were always the flowers to admire.  (Don’t these look articifical?)

Oh, and the men cleaning the roof!

The walkway descends four floors and then links with another one lower down.  It’s all so clever, so accessible and absolutely fascinating.

And unlike the real thing, this “Mount Kinabalu” has got a hollow core with exhibitions and displays inside.

The last stretch took us behind the waterfall where we’d come in.  Beautiful.

You know where the exit was, don’t you?  We could resist

Popular titles right now included these two. You know who Harry is/was, right?

Even though we’d not been able to go into the second, flower dome, we felt our visit had been a great way to spend most of the day and in what was left of the afternoon, we thought we’d hop on an MRT and do just one or two last minute shopping errands.

There’s a bright, shiny new station just across the road, so it was easy to do just that.

The place was deserted, save for one or two folks taking photos of themselves!

Oh my!

Just one man wasn’t concerned with taking photos – he was sitting at his desk hard at work!

We took the MRT to Orchard once again and I got to spend an hour or so in Kinokuniya – I’d forgotten about that yesterday!  I also got to take a photograph of the fretwork patterns on these panels where a new branch of the British India store is about to open.

When we got back to City Hall Station, there was just one thing left to do – to reclaim the deposit on our Tourist cards.  But no-one was at home!  Thankfully,  it was about 2.44pm when we stepped up to the window, so we stood and waited until the blind was raised and business was done.

No thank you.  Though we’ve eaten durian in Thailand, it’s not a favourite.  We sat and enjoyed cold drinks before returning to our hotel and making our way to the Hospitality suite to shower and change.

Before long it was time to retrieve the other three suitcases and the painting Tra Giang so kindly gave us and await our car to the airport.

Tonight, as I sit in the lounge at Changi Airport, I can’t tell you how much I’m looking forward to sleeping in my own bed tomorrow night!  It’s been quite a while, hasn’t it?

In Singapore

Having celebrated our anniversary with our friends in Signatures last evening, we decided to call it a day.  We said our goodbyes, bid everyone Goodnight and headed to our suite.

Any thoughts of doing those final bits of packing before placing our luggage outside the door were forgotten, because Manu, Derlen and Made had been busy…

Champagne on ice, cards, flowers and balloons all over the place.  How sweet!  My goodness, this will certainly be an anniversary to remember!

We managed to push those suitcases out of the door in time and though we both woke up in a panic, wondering if we’d packed some vital piece of clothing and find ourselves without a stitch to wear today, we were actually rather well organised.  A slow steamy breakfast in the already humid Singaporean morning air, followed by a controlled disembarkation and transfer to our hotel.

Bye Bye Voyager!  Tonight she sails for Kuala Lumpur without us…

But we plan some fun here and of course the first task is always to equip ourselves with travelcards.

I had a couple of things on my list, the first one needing a trip to Arab Street, via Bugis MRT station.  You know, it’s twenty or so years since we were first here and I can still remember making this exact same journey with Edward as a little boy.  The road names are still familiar and some of the landmarks haven’t changed either.

It’s an old bit of Singapore amidst the new, high rise.

But some of the modern features are there to be seen amongst the old ones too.

It was the fabric stores which were on my list, needless to say.

Looking through batiks, Indian cottons and silks, my mission was soon accomplished.

I wish I had this kind of resource on my doorstep at home!

I must say, we were both feeling the heat rather by mid morning and it came as a relief to get back into the cool station and on another train, this time heading for Orchard, the main shopping street.

Though rain had been forecast, none was forthcoming so far, thank goodness.  But a few dark clouds were gathering and we wouldn’t have been surprised had there not been a downpour.

My mission this time was to FabIndia, to buy a top or two, perhaps.  Don’t you love those colours?!

Across the road in another shopping centre we came across a really incongruous sight – Swiss menu anyone?

Then right next door, a Garretts Popcorn shop, straight from Chicago!  Did you need a reminder of how international a city Singapore is?

We made another MRT journey to a different mall, in the hope of a wider selection of FabIndia clothes, but it turned out to be fruitless.  Never mind – we’d kept going until mid afternoon and by now, surely, our hotel room would be ready?  Whilst on the train, I spotted this sticker on the window and noted how many “encouraging” notices there are about the city. 

I wonder how long before we’d tire of being nagged to behave?

Thankfully, yes, our room was ready and we were glad to take the opportunity to put our feet up for a while.

But both of us were getting hungry by 5.30 – 6-ish and so we walked over to the Marina Bay Sands Mall in the hope of finding something to eat.

Now, at this point, I couldn’t help but remember the last time we were here.  It was such a memorable evening that it would have been marvellous to recreate the whole affair once again.  But things like that don’t happen over and again and needless to say, this evening we simply enjoyed a pizza and a mooch around the shops.

It’s a pretty soulless centre, really, with flashy shops and no-one buying anything.

Coming outside again to wait for the sun to set, we looked up.  Ooooer!  The “boat” on the top of the Marina Bay Sands Hotel loomed over us rather!

Walking back over the Helix bridge, we stood and stared.  What a fine city this is!

Much of it isn’t to our taste – we don’t gamble, buy designer clothes or lead a flashy lifestyle.  But we can stand and admire the whole chutzpah of the place, the can-do attitude and the sheer energy.

Not that we were feeling one jot energetic at this point!

It’s great to be back in Singapore.

(But oh, what creatures of habit we are.  I just read this post from the last time we were here!)

Homeward Bound

Our last day in Singapore and it’s pouring with rain.  A late night and an altogether overwhelming day yesterday has left us both feeling rather slow to get going and it’s nearly 10am before we turn up for breakfast.

I forgot to bring my camera down to photograph those bamboo screen patterns but my hero decides to return to the 18th floor to fetch it for me.  Whilst he’s gone, I go in search of breakfast cereal and can’t find my table again!

We decide to visit the Museum today, since we’ve had enough of shopping malls and still have our MRT tickets in our pocket.  We gather up umbrellas and joke with the concierge about his singing before setting out to the station.

Through the shopping mall.

Still thinking that I hadn’t picked up any star anise, I pop into a Korean supermarket right there by the hotel entrance.  Though there’s plenty of all kinds of things on the shelf, there are no spices I can spot.  Mind you, I had to look very hard at the pictures to work out what was what – several different brands of Kimchi, of course!

Oh yes, how are the balloons coming on?  Taking shape nicely, I’d say.

Though there are lots more to go.  Once more, we speculate on how they’re keeping count.  Empty packets, do you think?

We carry on through the mall to the MRT station, down the escalator.  Still haven’t needed those umbrellas.

 

Esplanade station isn’t a busy place at this time of the morning, but people still follow the markings on the platform, so we do the same.

Arriving at Bras Basah station, we walk under an awning, passing this Irish pub.  Had totally forgotten about St Patricks Day until now.

We still haven’t opened our umbrellas but think we might need to do that shortly.

We’re heading for that white building down the street opposite, but need to cross the busy road first.

As we do, we spot the toll barrier for the ERP .  Each car here has a small black box on the dashboard which keeps a tally of the number of times it’s used in the central business district by means of these automatic barriers.

Once inside the museum, we wrap our dripping umbrellas in the plastic bags provided and begin our tour.

The building reminds me quite a lot of the Wallace Collection in London, in that the old building has a modern glass extension to include a cafe.  This glass roof has a row of swinging red chandeliers, controlled by an electric motor, we see.

The museum is awfully well done and the exhibits arranged in a most attractive way.  But it depends heavily on the audio guide which demands constant attention and carrying umbrella, handbag, notebook and pen, camera and this blinking machine is a little overwhelming.  Next time, I’m coming empty handed!

Anyway, we learn a lot about the history of the city before calling it a day and heading back to the hotel.  The bikes, by the way, represent the Japanese invasion force who stole bicycles to get around the island and overcome the British in 1942.

Sadly, it’s still raining but our trusty umbrellas will see us as far as the station.

Returning to the hotel through the mall, we can see a large presence at the end of this stretch of shops.

The robot is almost finished and the activity seems to be limited to a few last minute bits and pieces.  He’s suspended by strings from the roof of the atrium and is swaying ever so slightly in the air conditioning breeze.  This makes for a rather spooky “breathing” motion!

He’s not exactly the prettiest robot and a little out of proportion.  But hey, it’s created a fair bit of interest over the last few days and with school holidays approaching in Singapore, he’ll attract a crowd for sure.

We shower and change, pack our bags for one last time and await our car to take us to the airport.  We’ve had a marvellous trip and are ready for home, that’s for sure.  But how pleased we are that we chose to extend our stay in Singapore for a couple of days to rediscover this amazing city.

We’ll be back!

Defying Gravity

Now where were we?  Oh yes, we’d had a short break back at the hotel and dropped off a couple of small bags of shopping.  Ready to go again?

But look at the rain!  Somehow, whilst we were in the shopping centre, the heavens opened and there was a downpour.  Oh well, we can grab a couple of umbrellas from the concierge.  Can’t let a drop of rain spoil our plans!

Let’s turn left out of the hotel and walk towards the Singapore Flyer.  That’s the equivalent of the London Eye, but as one of our guides told us with a grin, “ten metres higher”.  It’s more or less stopped raining now, so we’re ok. The view of the Marina Bay Sands from here is super.  Perhaps we’ll go over there and take a closer look later?

Oooops!  Did you feel that spot of rain on your head?  A few more spots and then a huge crack of thunder.  I wonder what riding that wheel is like in a thunderstorm?!

Sadly, we’re not going to find out, because it’s closed “due to bad weather”.  Oh, shame!  Sorry about that.

What to do now?  Shall we walk over the Helix Bridge?

But oh my, those clouds are pretty overwhelming.  The tops of the skyscrapers are in the mist and we’re going to get drenched if we carry on, in spite of those umbrellas.  Let’s stop a while under the road bridge and take in the view for a while.

It’s pretty good from here – if only there were a couple of seats, we’d happily sit and gaze for an hour!

There’s the low, white Fullerton Hotel and behind it, the serried ranks of the financial district’s  skyscrapers. The little white Merlion fountain can be seen in front of the hotel.  To think,  that’s Beach Road, once the seafront of this amazing city.  All the land where we are standing, and quite a bit beyond is reclaimed and has been added during the last thirty years or so.  Incredible.

I think the rain’s eased off, so let’s venture a little further.  At least the top of the Sands hotel is out of the cloud and the Lotus blossom shape of the Arts and Science Museum is looking good.

Hang on – let’s take a picture of our hotel, the square box there behind the yellow seating area of the stadium.  My goodness, I hadn’t realised there was a full sized football pitch out there in the harbour!

Ha – thanks for pointing out that girl’s shoes!  Whilst she takes a picture of her boyfriend, I’m a bit more interested in trying to see if it’s Ernie from Sesame Street?

The Museum is a stunning shape, isn’t it?  there’s a Titanic exhibition on right now – not exactly something we’re eager to see.  How about you?

Anyway, let’s go inside the Marina Bay centre and see what’s what.  This rain isn’t so comfortable and makes looking around rather difficult.  We’ll step inside the doors and take a look around.

First sight – a skating rink!  Well, of course – what else would you expect when coming indoors from 32C?  They’re preparing the ice right now and a man is driving a small machine around it, so no skaters at the moment.

Oh my goodness – look to the right and see those three floors of shops!  How many shops can Singapore support?!  Well, rather a lot it seems.  People are wandering about here, in and out of Hermes, Louis Vuitton and suchlike.  Not quite our style I’m afraid, but we’ll wait and watch a few people for a while, perhaps?

Before going further, we’ll tap into what one of my friends at home calls “the bottomless pit”.  Sadly, that’s not 100% accurate but for now, let’s see if we can get some bun money* from it.  Getting cash here is easy as putting a card in a machine at home.  ATMs are all over the place and accept our cards readily.

(*reference to Paddington Bear!)

Whilst my hero deals with the machine, I gaze over to the area outside, where they’re filming a couple of local TV stars.  I’m afraid I don’t recognise either of them but judging from the level of interest around me, I guess that other people know them well.

Oh, look, there’s another branch of British India, recommended to me by our neighbour Sue on the ship.  What a beautiful screen there is in front of the shop – what a wealth of patterns in that wood!  It reminds me that in our hotel, there are lovely bamboo screens, woven in a variety of patterns too.  I must take my camera into breakfast and take some photographs of them.

From here, we’ll follow the signs to the hotel – turn left and go down a few escalators.  I wonder how many of those there are in this city?  Hundreds, for sure…and I wonder how easy it is for someone to use a wheelchair to get around?  I’m not seeing obvious signs to lifts/elevators.

Stepping inside the hotel lobby, we both have the same reaction.  This is not so much a lobby as an extension to the shopping mall!  So many people, so noisy and full of comings and goings.  I think I prefer the cool, calm of the Mandarin, personally – and this hotel is equally expensive, we’re told.

Now, we want to go and take a look at the Skypark and have been told we’ll need tickets.  Hmm.  What do you reckon?  This is really one huge theme park and we’re not sure whether we want to play along.  Shall we spend $40 (about £20) to go to the top and share the experience with crowds of people?  It might rain.  We might not see anything in the clouds. What do you reckon?

Of course!  You’re right – we should go for it.  Hit that button for the 57th floor, will you please?

Oooh – you were right!  Not many people up here and quite a comfortable walkway too.  Not only that, but hang on a minute,

Look at the view!

All that reclamation of land continues and there’s still more development.  I’ve no idea what those glass domes will be, nor what’s taking shape over there with those metal pillars, but all of those ships in the harbour and the planes taking off from Changi airport just to the left leave us breathless.

How are your knees?  It’s surprisingly comfortable out here, isn’t it?  No shakes or wobbles and a perfectly firm base on which to walk.

Look – down there’s the Singapore Flyer!  Hmmm…I think they did us a favour by closing early, didn’t they?  Can you see the golf course on the other side of the river?  The blocks of flats stretching out as far as the eye can see, because all these millions of people have to live somewhere too.

Oh look, there’s the stadium again, with our little cube of an hotel behind it.  There’s the more rectangular block next door, in the gardens – the Ritz Carlton, where I think our friends Mary and Ellis are going to stay when they return from Angkor Wat.  And once again, see all those apartment blocks, way into the distance.

I think about my friend Maggie, who grew up here, as I look over the older part of the city and wonder if she’d recognise it at all?  The little old buildings at the Boat Quay look dwarfed by all those modern buildings, don’t they?

Now we can see what pays for all of this.  The SkyPark stretches out towards the docks and the vast quantities of containers, hidden from normal view by the modern city.  The other source of some of this cash is laid out on sunloungers by the rooftop pool, where we can’t go because we’re not resident in the hotel, sorry.  The mostly Chinese gamblers are taking an afternoon nap, dipping into the warm water in the infinity pool here at 57 stories high.  Shall we leave them in peace and wish them luck?

I’m hungry anyway.  Whilst we were down in the shopping centre, my hero spotted a familiar name above one of the restaurants – Mozza.  Mario Batali’s pizza is one of our all time favourites and I’ll bet you’d enjoy it too!  Come on – I know we’re in Singapore and ought to eat local, but hey, I’m not altogether sure that being in this environment even counts as “local” anyway!  That seat by the window is free and we could people watch as we enjoy an Aperol Spritz, too.

Our window seat is directly opposite the theatre box office and we’re squinting to see what’s showing.  A Queen tribute concert, A Chorus Line and Wicked.  Never seen that – have you?  I understand it’s pretty good.

I wonder what time it’s showing?

What time is it now?  6.30pm.

I wonder if there are tickets?  Shall I go and see?

There are! 

Two tickets in the Grand Circle please (sorry, we’ll have to smuggle you in!)  Better be quick eating that pizza, whilst we try and remember the name of the hit song from the show…

Would you have imagined that this vast lobby was hiding behind that modest entrance off the mall? No, neither would I. The theatre is as spectacular as the rest of this complex, don’t you think?  Large, open spaces with cool marble and mirrored walls.

From upstairs, there’s a great vantage point where we can enjoy gazing over the hundreds of youngsters arriving for the show.  It’s a rather younger crowd than we’d see at a London theatre, for sure.

The show is tremendous don’t you think?  All the more so for being something which we hadn’t even though of doing until an hour ago. Sorry we can’t share it with everyone else but they can catch a glimpse here.  The mainly Australian cast are fantastic, especially the two young women playing  the leads who had fabulous voices, and the whole experience quite magical.  We can hardly believe what we’ve just seen and heard.

At 10:30, stepping out into the warm, tropical night, here are more surprises.  Look at the Museum wall!  The projected image is part of the Singapore ilight Festival.

Walking back along the helix bridge, we’re quiet.  There’s really not a lot to say.

Is that you humming “Defying Gravity”?

What a wonderful day..night…experience!

How incredibly lucky we are, aren’t we?

Enjoy Singapore with us

We’ve had the most amazing day.

The weather didn’t look too promising when we got up, but after the most amazing breakfast ever – remarkable even by Asian top-class hotel standards – the sun was shining in our hearts regardless. 

Let’s go and explore the city, shall we?

First stop is Watsons, a favourite from the old Hong Kong days.  Throat lozenges are needed and so we can have a quick look around to see what’s what in there.

Well, first of all, isn’t it amusing that whilst we English buy Nivea body lotion with a hint of self tan in it, the ladies here are after “whitening” products.  It’s a funny old world, isn’t it?

Of course, there’s no chewing gum here, so there are shelves and shelves of mints.

Let’s go for a familiar package in a rather exotic flavour, shall we?

Anyway, I want to know how the balloons are coming along.  Just a bit further along this route we’ll be able to see.

Quite nicely, it seems.  There’s a kind of hairnet and a small team are inflating balloons to fill it.  I hope someone is keeping count?

The girls are inflating four balloons at a time for the young men to stuff inside, we see.

But look, there’s a pair of feet underneath!

One of the young men is inside there, rearranging balloons – rather claustrophobic, I’d imagine?  Rather him than me.

On then through the deserted shopping mall (about 10.30am by now) to the City Hall MRT station.  Things are really well signed and we can find our way more easily since we’ve discovered the letters as well as the names.  We’re aiming for “G”.

The station is very much like a Japanese station, clean and well signed.  We’ll need to buy tickets before we can do anything though.

Now, you didn’t bring your large screen TV with you, did you?  I hope not!

Right, 2 day tourist pass in hand, we’re ready to go.

Behave, now. Stand where you’re told and don’t get in the way of people getting off the train.

We’re heading for Orchard station, clearly signed in the train and announced over the loudspeaker.  We can’t go wrong.

Ha, first stop Kinokuniya, probably the best bookstore you can imagine – and Jordi, you’d better not get lost in all those magazines!  I’ve found one or two bits in the stationery department and am just off to the cashier…

Calamity.  My credit card is declined.  Have you got an alternative we can use?

Let’s go and get a drink in this cafe and telephone the helpline, shall we?

Hmm…someone might have told me they’d put a block on it on the 16th February because it was used somewhere suspicious (?Australia maybe?)  Never mind, we’re sorted and ready to go again, aren’t we?

We’ve been to Singapore several times and when we’ve stayed in an hotel (as opposed to calling in on a ship) we’ve stayed on Orchard Road at the Mandarin, so shall we go and see if it’s changed at all?

But look at that – the Thai restaurant where we enjoyed a really great Thai meal 17 or 18 yeas ago with a very crabby 8 or 9 year old boy who would really have preferred to eat in McDonalds!!

Oh my, look at those shops though – the hotel has disappeared behind them and the entrance is now in a side street.  I don’t think there’s anything to interest us here, is there?

Oh, but here’s an art shop!  Now we’re talking!

Another small purchase?  Surely, I can use these rubber stamps in my travel journal?  You can borrow them if you like.

Anyway, it’s getting a bit hot and sticky and we think we might catch the MRT a couple of stops rather than walk, if that’s ok with you?  Let’s go to Bugis station.

I wonder if Maggie can guess where we’re headed now?

Can you spot the mosque from yesterday at the end of the street?  There are old shophouses here, though some of the roads are wide and the traffic is moving very quickly.  Watch your step and don’t get run over.

We were heading for Arab Street and the fabric shops!  Now we’re going to have some fun.  Tablecloth anyone?

The batiks are pretty even if we don’t really believe they were handpainted.

Every second shop is a fabric shop, mostly selling very elaborately embroidered chiffons and silks for elegant Indian ladies rather than for us.  We’ll keep moving along until we spot something.

Hang on….worth stopping here?

I’m looking around here anyway – I know, I can hear you reminding me that I still have some pieces of fabric at home which were bought here all those years ago!

I wonder if someone bought wedding dress fabric here?  What do you think?

It’s getting very hot and sticky now, though – let’s get back on the MRT and go back to the hotel on the train, shall we?  The airconditioning in the station and on the train will be a relief, I know.

3.15pm already.  No wonder we’re feeling a little weary.  I’ve got most things on my list but was hoping to get a large bag of star anise somewhere out here.  I haven’t spotted a food market, though.

Someone has spotted a sign to a supermarket however, so he will go back and put his feet up whilst we continue shopping, ok?  We might sneak another look in that papercraft shop whilst we’re out, but because they don’t allow photographs, we’ll have to keep that quiet.

Hah!  No star anise but plenty of Waitrose products on the shelves.  What a swizz!

The Mall’s deserted as I head back to our hotel again.  Now, don’t get distracted by any of those nail bars, beauty salons and fashion shops, will you?

I promised not to be long and of course, I’ve got to take a look at how the balloons are shaping up.  My feet are tired, however, and I’m looking forward to freshening up when I get back to the hotel, which is attached to this mall.

The peace and quiet of the Mandarin Oriental awaits us and  we’ll soar in the elevator to the 18th floor – once we get the key card to work, that is.  Stick with me and put your feet up for a few minutes whilst I sort out one or two things – we’ll head on out again shortly.