Trip Report: Singapore, Part One
Jul 26th, 2010, 04:53 PM
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Trip Report: Singapore, Part One
DH and I recently returned from a wonderful trip to Asia – 5 nights in Singapore and 8 in Japan, mostly Kyoto. This was my first trip to Asia and we had a wonderful time. I will do separate trip reports for Singapore and Japan, and split this trip report into a few sections as it is so long – hopefully not too long!
First, a little background: Singapore has been jokingly referred to as "Disneyland with the death penalty." It is truly lovely, with sleek buildings, sparkling waters, and lush, landscaped tropical greenery and flowers everywhere we looked. It is very clean, partly due to pride, and partly due to strict laws regarding littering. The people are very friendly and English is one of the four official languages so it is quite easy to get around. Public transit is very easy to use and the system is excellent. Taxis are relatively inexpensive, as well. I found Singapore quite “accessible” and totally enjoyed my time there – could have easily spent more.
Singapore is only about 250 sq. miles and has about 5m people, so it is densely populated. It is an economic powerhouse with a very high standard of living. It has a diverse population - predominantly ethnic Chinese, followed by Malaysians, Indians and others. There are wonderful ethnic neighborhoods and differences appear to be respected. There are mosques, Buddhist and Hindu Temples, and churches nearly side-by-side.
One observation, being so near the equator (about 1 degree north) and in early summer, days and nights are almost equal in length and the sun rises and falls rapidly. Our home in Seattle is fairly far north and we enjoy long summer days and much longer periods of sunrise and sunset. Also, as one would expect, being near the equator and at sea level, it was doggone hot and humid.
We started our trip early Friday afternoon in Seattle, changed planes in Narita, and arrived in Singapore late Saturday night (crossed the International Date Line. Time difference from Seattle was 17 hrs.). On the Singapore customs declaration form we were warned that drug traffickers would get the death penalty and it was illegal to import chewing gum for distribution. I got the point and resolved to restrain from both.
We arrived past midnight at our hotel, which was good timing, as we were ready for bed, as you can imagine. We slept well and, to my surprise, I experienced no jet lag. On the downside, I somehow managed to damage the radial nerve in my arm when I slept against the side of the plane, and it was paralyzed for several days. Found out this is called “Saturday Night Palsy.” (I did get it on Saturday night, coincidentally, but not from being dead drunk with my arm slung over the back of my chair….) Fortunately, my hand is slowly recovering and almost back to normal. It was a very weird experience, to say the least.
DH was in Singapore for work, and his work put us up in the fabulous Millenia Ritz- Carlton. The hotel was fantastic and our room was wonderful. We were greeted by fresh fruit in our room and a personal note from the management welcoming us. Service was amazing. The staff knew our names in no time flat and were always friendly. The concierge were always helpful. The lobby is full of Chihuly glass, which was familiar to us as Dale Chihuly is from Tacoma WA, just down the road from where we live.
We had great harbor views from our room, including Moshe Safdie’s new $4.5b hotel complex! It includes 2500 rooms, 3 50m pools, and a casino. Our bath had a great view of the Singapore Flier (big Ferris wheel like the London Eye) and came equipped with bath salts. That came in quite handy as I soaked every evening after sweating all day in the tropical sun. It was wonderful to get a chance to soak my feet!
Our first day, DH had off of work and we took the Singapore Airlines (SAL) hop-on/hop-off bus. We jokingly called it the “hop off” bus, as it left us waiting once...missed coming. This was irritating given our limited time and blazing heat. In retrospect, public transportation would have been easier, but it was still nice to be driven the entire route and get a feel for the layout of the city.
Our first stop was the Asian Civilization Museum to get some background on SE Asia. It is an excellent museum. We lucked out and were able to go on a docent tour, which enriched the experience. It includes information on the different cultures nearby – set a great context for our visit.
In the afternoon, we visited Chinatown. It is amazing, with great sights, sounds, food, and shopping. We visited the “Chinatown Museum Heritage Center,” which gives an excellent overview of the history of the community. It is housed in a real “shophouse” where the early immigrants crowded to live and work. The rooms of the shophouse were restored with information on each of the residents, so you got a feeling for what life was like in the early days, where entire families lived in one room, with many families on each floor.
We had a great lunch in a Chinese restaurant with strange things on the menu, like pig’s intestines and chicken feet. We found things we were more used to and had a feast.
We also visited a nearby Hindu Temple near Chinatown with statues of cows and Gods up the roof.
Stay tuned for part 2, which starts the next day.
First, a little background: Singapore has been jokingly referred to as "Disneyland with the death penalty." It is truly lovely, with sleek buildings, sparkling waters, and lush, landscaped tropical greenery and flowers everywhere we looked. It is very clean, partly due to pride, and partly due to strict laws regarding littering. The people are very friendly and English is one of the four official languages so it is quite easy to get around. Public transit is very easy to use and the system is excellent. Taxis are relatively inexpensive, as well. I found Singapore quite “accessible” and totally enjoyed my time there – could have easily spent more.
Singapore is only about 250 sq. miles and has about 5m people, so it is densely populated. It is an economic powerhouse with a very high standard of living. It has a diverse population - predominantly ethnic Chinese, followed by Malaysians, Indians and others. There are wonderful ethnic neighborhoods and differences appear to be respected. There are mosques, Buddhist and Hindu Temples, and churches nearly side-by-side.
One observation, being so near the equator (about 1 degree north) and in early summer, days and nights are almost equal in length and the sun rises and falls rapidly. Our home in Seattle is fairly far north and we enjoy long summer days and much longer periods of sunrise and sunset. Also, as one would expect, being near the equator and at sea level, it was doggone hot and humid.
We started our trip early Friday afternoon in Seattle, changed planes in Narita, and arrived in Singapore late Saturday night (crossed the International Date Line. Time difference from Seattle was 17 hrs.). On the Singapore customs declaration form we were warned that drug traffickers would get the death penalty and it was illegal to import chewing gum for distribution. I got the point and resolved to restrain from both.
We arrived past midnight at our hotel, which was good timing, as we were ready for bed, as you can imagine. We slept well and, to my surprise, I experienced no jet lag. On the downside, I somehow managed to damage the radial nerve in my arm when I slept against the side of the plane, and it was paralyzed for several days. Found out this is called “Saturday Night Palsy.” (I did get it on Saturday night, coincidentally, but not from being dead drunk with my arm slung over the back of my chair….) Fortunately, my hand is slowly recovering and almost back to normal. It was a very weird experience, to say the least.
DH was in Singapore for work, and his work put us up in the fabulous Millenia Ritz- Carlton. The hotel was fantastic and our room was wonderful. We were greeted by fresh fruit in our room and a personal note from the management welcoming us. Service was amazing. The staff knew our names in no time flat and were always friendly. The concierge were always helpful. The lobby is full of Chihuly glass, which was familiar to us as Dale Chihuly is from Tacoma WA, just down the road from where we live.
We had great harbor views from our room, including Moshe Safdie’s new $4.5b hotel complex! It includes 2500 rooms, 3 50m pools, and a casino. Our bath had a great view of the Singapore Flier (big Ferris wheel like the London Eye) and came equipped with bath salts. That came in quite handy as I soaked every evening after sweating all day in the tropical sun. It was wonderful to get a chance to soak my feet!
Our first day, DH had off of work and we took the Singapore Airlines (SAL) hop-on/hop-off bus. We jokingly called it the “hop off” bus, as it left us waiting once...missed coming. This was irritating given our limited time and blazing heat. In retrospect, public transportation would have been easier, but it was still nice to be driven the entire route and get a feel for the layout of the city.
Our first stop was the Asian Civilization Museum to get some background on SE Asia. It is an excellent museum. We lucked out and were able to go on a docent tour, which enriched the experience. It includes information on the different cultures nearby – set a great context for our visit.
In the afternoon, we visited Chinatown. It is amazing, with great sights, sounds, food, and shopping. We visited the “Chinatown Museum Heritage Center,” which gives an excellent overview of the history of the community. It is housed in a real “shophouse” where the early immigrants crowded to live and work. The rooms of the shophouse were restored with information on each of the residents, so you got a feeling for what life was like in the early days, where entire families lived in one room, with many families on each floor.
We had a great lunch in a Chinese restaurant with strange things on the menu, like pig’s intestines and chicken feet. We found things we were more used to and had a feast.
We also visited a nearby Hindu Temple near Chinatown with statues of cows and Gods up the roof.
Stay tuned for part 2, which starts the next day.
Jul 27th, 2010, 11:57 AM
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That's Engrish not English for: Won't it be friggen hot? You probably know that already,lol.
Dew point temp is real important in the tropics and anything over 65 degrees is uncomfortable to say the least
http://tinyurl.com/3ymn53p
Dew point temp is real important in the tropics and anything over 65 degrees is uncomfortable to say the least
http://tinyurl.com/3ymn53p
Jul 27th, 2010, 01:33 PM
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Guys - it's always friggin' hot in Singapore. Our primary destination is Malaysia/Borneo where the weather is also hot, but somewhat tolerable in July. Because of our Kauai trip in October, we decided to forgo our usual 2-1/2 week trip in February and postpone 'til July.
lcuy - the ishoot website looks yummy.
lcuy - the ishoot website looks yummy.
Jul 27th, 2010, 03:26 PM
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Thanks for your comments. Smeagol, I loved Singapore. I'd return in a heartbeat. It is very hot there! When I got out of an airconditioned car, my glasses would fog over, like in the coastal plain of Georgia. Still, it's a great destination. I finally learned the subway. If I'd figured that out earlier, it would have saved me a lot of walking in the heat.
Singapore, Part 2. For the rest of the trip, DH had to work, so I was on my own. The next day, I went on the Colonial Walking Tour sponsored by “Original Singapore Walks.” Their tours are similar to the good walking tours in London, where you just show up at a subway stop at a certain time and join in. The only other Americans on the walk were a couple from Florida, and it turns out they were fodorites! I did not know this until my return, when I read this board and saw Florida1's trip report. Small world!
On the tour, we learned about the early European colonists and the history of the British settlement. It was excellent. We visited some of the related sites, including St. Andrews Cathedral, an Armenian Church, a former convent and ended up in the Raffles Hotel, famous for the invention of the Singapore sling.
After the tour, I visited the National Museum of Singpore, which was getting decked out for a laser show for the upcoming 44th birthday celebration for this young nation. The National Museum had an excellent history exhibit of the country with lots of great displays. I wore an English language headset and could control the stories as I walked through the exhibit. I got so engrossed that I lost track of time and got back to the hotel later than expected.
Tuesday, I went to the Botanical Gardens – very lush, as you would expect in the tropics, and very, very hot. In fact, they have a “Cool House” instead of a “greenhouse.” The cool house has orchids, carnivorous plants and other plants from higher elevations in the tropics (like from S. America). If they'd had chairs in the cool house, I don't think anyone would have left....
In spite of broiling, the gardens were so lovely that I couldn’t stop visiting the different areas. There are lakes, hills, cacti and rain forest. The National Orchid Garden is lovely. There is no need for greenhouses – they thrive in the tropical heat and humidity. There is also a special garden featuring plants related to ginger that has a waterfall and is quite beautiful. Also, I have to say that the school kids touring were very cute.
After the botanical garden, I went on a short boat ride from Clark Quay. There are lots of boat rides that go out on the little river and into the bay. It's not too exciting, but a great view of the harbor and also relaxing. The boat had a piped in sound system that included some sites and the history. It was interesting to see so many outdoor restaurants along the water. After that, I saw some crazy kids do the bungee-type jump near Clark Quay and walked around Port Canning. Honestly, it was hard to walk up hill, and I'm in good shape. I think my feet were swollen by then. I was totally beat by the time I returned to the hotel.
Singapore Part 3 coming up.
Singapore, Part 2. For the rest of the trip, DH had to work, so I was on my own. The next day, I went on the Colonial Walking Tour sponsored by “Original Singapore Walks.” Their tours are similar to the good walking tours in London, where you just show up at a subway stop at a certain time and join in. The only other Americans on the walk were a couple from Florida, and it turns out they were fodorites! I did not know this until my return, when I read this board and saw Florida1's trip report. Small world!
On the tour, we learned about the early European colonists and the history of the British settlement. It was excellent. We visited some of the related sites, including St. Andrews Cathedral, an Armenian Church, a former convent and ended up in the Raffles Hotel, famous for the invention of the Singapore sling.
After the tour, I visited the National Museum of Singpore, which was getting decked out for a laser show for the upcoming 44th birthday celebration for this young nation. The National Museum had an excellent history exhibit of the country with lots of great displays. I wore an English language headset and could control the stories as I walked through the exhibit. I got so engrossed that I lost track of time and got back to the hotel later than expected.
Tuesday, I went to the Botanical Gardens – very lush, as you would expect in the tropics, and very, very hot. In fact, they have a “Cool House” instead of a “greenhouse.” The cool house has orchids, carnivorous plants and other plants from higher elevations in the tropics (like from S. America). If they'd had chairs in the cool house, I don't think anyone would have left....
In spite of broiling, the gardens were so lovely that I couldn’t stop visiting the different areas. There are lakes, hills, cacti and rain forest. The National Orchid Garden is lovely. There is no need for greenhouses – they thrive in the tropical heat and humidity. There is also a special garden featuring plants related to ginger that has a waterfall and is quite beautiful. Also, I have to say that the school kids touring were very cute.
After the botanical garden, I went on a short boat ride from Clark Quay. There are lots of boat rides that go out on the little river and into the bay. It's not too exciting, but a great view of the harbor and also relaxing. The boat had a piped in sound system that included some sites and the history. It was interesting to see so many outdoor restaurants along the water. After that, I saw some crazy kids do the bungee-type jump near Clark Quay and walked around Port Canning. Honestly, it was hard to walk up hill, and I'm in good shape. I think my feet were swollen by then. I was totally beat by the time I returned to the hotel.
Singapore Part 3 coming up.
Jul 27th, 2010, 07:05 PM
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Here's the final part of Singapore. One reason I'm splitting it up is that it takes time to write. I'm working on Japan now, but it will take a few days for me to have the time to write it all.
Part 3. Wednesday, I went on another Singapore Walks tour called “Dhobis, Saris & a Spot of Curry.” The guide was fantastic and it was a great tour through the “Little India” section of Singapore. We started in a wet market, where we saw all kinds of foods I had never seen before. There were stalls of eggs, lamb, chicken, fruits, bamboo leaves, spices, and all kinds of exotic foods. Our guide picked out a fruit that was new for me, a mangosteen, and showed us how to open it. It was delicious. (To be honest, I had tried one at the hotel and eaten the wrong part, at first – very bitter. Then I’d discovered the delicious white center, but I still didn’t realize how easy they were to open. I felt like a babe in the wood with all this new fruit and different foods!)
We walked through the markets of Little India and visited a sari shop where one of us volunteered to try on a sari. Again, I was a babe in the wood. I had no idea how saris worked before. We also stopped at a henna painting shop, where this was explained to us and one of the men in our group had his hand painted with henna. We were given Indian sweets to try. We heard of the history of the Indian community. I highly recommend the Singapore walking tours.
After the tour, I returned to the food court at the wet market for lunch. Again, a babe in the wood. What to try, what to eat? So many unfamiliar choices. I finally got a bamboo leaf of biryani chicken, which was excellent. The drink was something really special, though. I had no idea what to order – did not know what the drinks were. So, this guy fixed something for me - He actually crushed real sugar cane in a little machine before my eyes and made a wonderfully refreshing concoction out of fresh sugar! Mmm. That was another first.
By this time, I had figured out the public transportation so no longer had to kill myself walking from place to place in the heat. After the tour, I took the subway to the Mustafa Center, which is also in the Indian area of town and open 24 hours a day. It was huge. They have a very large area selling 22 carat gold jewelry but I didn’t buy anything. Gold is quite expensive these days!
Wednesday evening, DH and I joined his coworkers at “The Flutes,” an excellent restaurant near Fort Canning. Unfortunately, our cab driver hadn’t a clue where it was and drove in circles. If one wants to go there, I'd suggest getting directions first to give the cabdriver, as we were not the only ones whose driver got lost. The building is old style and lovely. We ate outdoors on the veranda and the dinner was delicious - multi-course and quite fancy.
The next day, we said goodbye to Singapore and took off for Japan, over 7 hrs. away. Lots of people I've talked to think Japan is closer because it's all over there somewhere. Japan is only one hour different from Singapore by time-zone but it is a lot farther north (but not a lot cooler, at least in Kyoto).
I’d love to return to Singapore. It is hard not to be impressed by Singapore when one realizes that this peaceful, wealthy, and modern nation rose from virtually nothing, in such a short period of time.
I will post my trip report for Japan shortly. Stay tuned for more new experiences and two minor earthquakes - Japan rocks in more ways than one.
Part 3. Wednesday, I went on another Singapore Walks tour called “Dhobis, Saris & a Spot of Curry.” The guide was fantastic and it was a great tour through the “Little India” section of Singapore. We started in a wet market, where we saw all kinds of foods I had never seen before. There were stalls of eggs, lamb, chicken, fruits, bamboo leaves, spices, and all kinds of exotic foods. Our guide picked out a fruit that was new for me, a mangosteen, and showed us how to open it. It was delicious. (To be honest, I had tried one at the hotel and eaten the wrong part, at first – very bitter. Then I’d discovered the delicious white center, but I still didn’t realize how easy they were to open. I felt like a babe in the wood with all this new fruit and different foods!)
We walked through the markets of Little India and visited a sari shop where one of us volunteered to try on a sari. Again, I was a babe in the wood. I had no idea how saris worked before. We also stopped at a henna painting shop, where this was explained to us and one of the men in our group had his hand painted with henna. We were given Indian sweets to try. We heard of the history of the Indian community. I highly recommend the Singapore walking tours.
After the tour, I returned to the food court at the wet market for lunch. Again, a babe in the wood. What to try, what to eat? So many unfamiliar choices. I finally got a bamboo leaf of biryani chicken, which was excellent. The drink was something really special, though. I had no idea what to order – did not know what the drinks were. So, this guy fixed something for me - He actually crushed real sugar cane in a little machine before my eyes and made a wonderfully refreshing concoction out of fresh sugar! Mmm. That was another first.
By this time, I had figured out the public transportation so no longer had to kill myself walking from place to place in the heat. After the tour, I took the subway to the Mustafa Center, which is also in the Indian area of town and open 24 hours a day. It was huge. They have a very large area selling 22 carat gold jewelry but I didn’t buy anything. Gold is quite expensive these days!
Wednesday evening, DH and I joined his coworkers at “The Flutes,” an excellent restaurant near Fort Canning. Unfortunately, our cab driver hadn’t a clue where it was and drove in circles. If one wants to go there, I'd suggest getting directions first to give the cabdriver, as we were not the only ones whose driver got lost. The building is old style and lovely. We ate outdoors on the veranda and the dinner was delicious - multi-course and quite fancy.
The next day, we said goodbye to Singapore and took off for Japan, over 7 hrs. away. Lots of people I've talked to think Japan is closer because it's all over there somewhere. Japan is only one hour different from Singapore by time-zone but it is a lot farther north (but not a lot cooler, at least in Kyoto).
I’d love to return to Singapore. It is hard not to be impressed by Singapore when one realizes that this peaceful, wealthy, and modern nation rose from virtually nothing, in such a short period of time.
I will post my trip report for Japan shortly. Stay tuned for more new experiences and two minor earthquakes - Japan rocks in more ways than one.
Jul 27th, 2010, 07:09 PM
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Oh, I get what you are saying about posting on one thread. I am planning to post Japan on a different post, as people might be searching just for Japan. I wound up putting all of Singapore on one thread. I think my title wasn't the best. Japan will be a separate thread, and be part 2.
Jul 28th, 2010, 02:08 PM
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http://ieatishootipost.sg/
Last year he had a crab fest where they prepared 8 types of crab. He wais he was going to do it again this year with 8 types of crab, prepared 8 different ways. I would love to go. I recently asked when it will happen, and he said he hopes to do it in November. Apparently he is coming out with a book though, so that comes first.
Last year he had a crab fest where they prepared 8 types of crab. He wais he was going to do it again this year with 8 types of crab, prepared 8 different ways. I would love to go. I recently asked when it will happen, and he said he hopes to do it in November. Apparently he is coming out with a book though, so that comes first.
