Singapore

It was the first time I had stepped out of Changi Airport in Singapore. I often transit through Singapore en route to Perth, so it was exciting to explore what was happening in the town. Our stay was only one week, but it was still enough time to see and experience the city, as it is a compact place with punctual public transportation. I assumed everything would be pricey, but the food was exceptional, so a variety of affordable cuisine awaited us!

The weather was hot, humid and rainy around 1 - 3 pm every day, so going outside without Ponchos was essential to avoid getting wet.

Merlion and Marina Bay hotel tower.

The Marlion is a bit larger than I expected as I had heard it's quite small, and the eternity pool took my breath away! The pool on the rooftop of the three buildings brews my mind! I was so amazed at the idea of bringing it to the top!

We wandered off after taking a couple of pictures because it's too hot!

Supertree Grove.

The light show was fantastic, the lights wrapped around the trees changed in sync with the music so they looked like they were dancing with it. The tunes started off with classic, then retro pop and dance music. The unique vibe here reminds me of Disneyland! I loved it. It was such a big park filled with plants, flowers and lakes, and water is recycled, so it is very eco-friendly.

Clarke Quay.

Coming here at night is our recommendation because the multicoloured lighting-shining world was stunning, and restaurants and bars lined up along the street. It was quite packed, but a cool breeze came in, so it's quite pleasant. We headed down to the less touristy street for dinner and drinks at an affordable price, and had Mexican food for a change because Asian/Indonesian cuisine was our everyday meal. We often have questions about price setting, for example, the same beer was sold at different prices, like more than double in Clarke Quay, while quite reasonable in a local alley. I know it's because of the gap between touristy and non-touristy areas, but more than double the tax and service fee on top. Really? It's rep-off.

Singapore Botanic Garden.

It is a massive, beautiful garden with sculptures and a significant collection of tropical trees, and is registered as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. I wasn't into history/UNESCO at all because I believed I didn't need to know as I lived in present, but knowing the background and stories of places and architecture fascinates me now. The more I learn, the deeper understanding I can have, which broadens my world.

Anyway, we were caught by heavy rain likewise and were trapped in the arena stage with a roof surrounded by a lake and slop with grass. Then we saw a massive stream of rain running down the small hill. 

Cathedral New Sanctuary.

Raffles Hotel.

The top-ranked hotel in Singapore, and I fell in love with the classical design. I do wanna stay next time if I can afford it!

These pictures are not from Raffle's hotel but still gorgeous interior deco so I couldn't help take some shots.

Kampong Glam.

It is known as Singapore's Muslim Quarter and the busy Arab streets. So many colourful murals caught my eye. We bought wraps at an Arabian stall with high tables to eat outside, so we tried to have them over beers that I bought at a convenience store to enjoy the meals. However, the shop guy told us we must not have them there as it's banned.... We didn't know it...

Little India.

We came here to have curry for dinner, and the main streets were full of local people. So many shops selling goods, clothes and groceries were packed with customers at night. I saw the jewellery shops with a big crowd getting gold. If I had a chance, I wanna ask local people why so many people are just standing outside not doing anything in particular. Even in the dark side of the roads, there were people just standing. Why?? It scares me. Please tell me why.

Hawker's market.

This was definitely our go-to spot with a variety of local stalls such as noodles, porridge, fried rice, etc. The breakfast for the last day of our stay here was fish porridge for about AUD$5. The cakes tasted so yummy and there were a couple of fillings like peanuts and sweetened beans. We wanna come back here again! 

These pictures below were taken in different shops. The top one... I ordered spicy chicken, but it came out in a huge portion. It's almost twice as long as his hand!

The bottom one was a shot at a local bakery. We had peanut toast with half-boiled eggs. There are 2 eggs in a bowl, and dipping them in with toast is their way to eat. For some reason, the combo of flavours worked!