Singapore

Our plane arrived promptly and we were on our way to Singapore by 10 PM. In my previous trips, I usually do my cross-country via overland. In fact, the family's previous crossing from Thailand to Cambodia was through a 10-hour bus ride. I was grateful for the plane ride. Of course it was way comfortable. That, and the fact that it cuts the travel time considerably.

Ate and the kids have previously been to Singapore and so they were in charged of the itinerary (to my delight! Hehe) and I was totally clueless as to what's in store for the next few days. All I know is that it would purely be in pursuit of the usual touristic trail.

We arrived at around 11 PM. As expected, Changi Airport and their collection of orchids and many flowers charmed the old's. There were a few stops for photo ops.

It took a while before we were able to get a taxi. We were directed to Terminal 2 but there were hardly any taxis around. At a little before midnight, we were finally on our way to our hotel.

Backpacking Accommodations. We stayed in suites while in KL but Singapore is way, way expensive and so our accommodations got a "bit" downgraded. Booking the same accommodations in Singapore could have cost us more than an arm and a leg.

We were all tired and the hostel we booked was not exactly very easy to find. We had to take separate taxis and though the instruction was for the two taxi's to be in a convoy, ours took off like a jet, losing the other taxi along the way. Good thing I kept a printed copy of Ate's email and so I was able to give the taxi driver the number of the hostel when he asked for it. The address indicated a particular street but it turned out it's located in an adjacent road off the "skyway." The driver had to call them up and they conversed in the local dialect before we were able to find the exact location.

We got bunk beds accommodations but we got the whole room to ourselves. The consolation was that the room was clean and cozy. And got great wifi connection which was the primary consideration by our tweens hehehe. The only misgiving was the shared bathroom. While there were only three guests there beside us, it was a bit disconcerting bumping into one of them bare-chested and wearing a somewhat, skimpy pair of shorts hahaha. Well, at least the old's were oblivious to it. (Must have seen enough bare chests and bare legs in their lifetime hahaha) It was our single, young adults who were uncomfortable about it. I totally understood. I've been in that stage during my time.

But I liked that it came with a shared pantry as well. We were welcome to use all the kitchen facilities. Used them we did, alright for breakfasts and sometimes, even for dinner. We usually bring in some takeout food at night that we heat for breakfast the next day. Or we ended up bringing takeouts for dinner since it was way cheaper that way.

Oh, and yeah, the added bonus was that the hostel was able to offer us discounted tickets for Universal Studios. The old's even got additional discounts for being senior citizens. So, there.

Off to the “Road” We Go. The morning of day 1 was a blur of taking turns at the bathroom and getting ready to go out. First on the list was a ‘trek’ down Orchard Road. Lian had to meet up with some of her friends there from Oz who were on their Asian Tour as well. Their destination: the more trendy and high-end shops of this famous go-to in Singapore. The olds and I were already happy with browsing through Lucky Plaza. Tunga and Bodok -- despite being of the younger set -- tagged along, happily. They’ve seen enough of the trendy shops during their last trip here. (Or was that just my assumption? :P)

Early on, the olds already shopped for souvenirs. For Mama, this translates to mugs and commemorative “little plates.” For the rest, these are t-shirts, bags, ref magnets. Watches and belts were also bought for the tweens back home. Auntie Artem came across a Chinese cheongsam dress and bought it for Baby Bene.

Filipino Lunch in Singapore. Jollibee was not open yet at that time. Tunga, Bodok and Lian would have preferred that for sure since they’ve wanted one to open in Oz. But, it was amusing to note that Lucky Plaza is littered by ‘Filipino’ shops selling Pinoy goods. Tunga bought a pack of chi-chirya (junk food) that they usually buy from the local sari-sari store here. I think this is an indication that we have a lot of Filipinos living now in Singapore. The best part though was chancing upon a couple of Filipino “kitchenette,” reminiscent of carenderias back home. It was surreal. We had kakanin for dessert, imagine that.



Open-decker Helter Skelter. There wasn’t a clear IT prepared for the day so we went to Suntecc City Mall for the Hop-on-hop off Tour. Mama and Ate Tata (yup, a namesake. There are actually 3 of us cousins sharing the nickname. And all three are beautiful nyahaha), are tickled pink about getting on board a double-decker bus. They said they’ve always wanted to ride one.

We availed of the Original Tour. It took us first to Clarke Quay. There, we took the river tour which had us pass by a lot of Singapore’s tourist attractions: Singapore Flyer, Marina Bay ands, the Art Science Museum, Fullerton Bay Hotel, Merlion Park Raffles Landing, Victoria Theatre and Concert Hall, Esplanade Park, etc. To me, what’s interesting about that tour was that it would initially be passing by the old, quaint, (albeit refurbished) two-to-three story buildings of the old business district and then slowly inch it’s way until we eventually come “face-to-face” with the massive, towering skyscrapers that make up Singapore’s central business district of today. It was like watching a timelapse video.




We went full circle, returning to Clarke Quay. It is worth mentioning that there were clean and well-maintained toilets that tourists could avail of. it come complete with tissue and soap for sanitation purposes. Our country can learn much from this. This is where a portion of our taxes should go to and not in the pockets of a few :P We can't expect to just generate income from our tourism industry without investing on putting up support facilities :P But yeah, this is a different issue altogether.

As if to drive home the point, while waiting for our designated bus so we could "hop on" again, Tunga pointed to two street sweepers. Inconspicuously, they pick after the trash left by some tourists. I spied one picking up a water bottle. Tunga said this is one thing she appreciates the most about Singapore. I think back at home and realized we have two cities doing just that and I live in one of them. It's Davao and Puerto Princessa. (Looking forward to the family trip in the latter, soon!)



Touching base with "Merly." Hopping back on, we passed by the Raffles Building and their very colorful facade. We also passed by the Botanical Garden but did not anymore spend time there. The ultimate goal (only because the olds are so looking forward to it) was actually Singapore "flagship" bearer - Merlion Park :)

It rained by the time we dropped by Fullerton Hotel. From there, we immediately proceeded to the Merlion Park. The rain did not stop us from taking photos. Marina Bay Sands served a picturesque backdrop. Merly sure did got photographed countless of times. It was a perfect conclusion to our day.

Chinese New Year Dinner. Dinner was a quiet affair. We went to a Chinese restaurant which was a stone’s throw away from our hotel. There was another family there composed of elderly husband and wife, a young couple with a Baby and what appears to be an “unattached” adult. It was obvious it was their reunion dinner to celebrate the Chinese New Year. At one point, they all gathered together, and using chopsticks, they tossed a plateful of salad at the center of their table. I’ve read about that while I was in Kuala Lumpur. The salad is known as yu sheng, and also goes by the names of yee sang or lo hei. The act of tossing ayu sheng is popularly believed to bring luck to participants - and the higher you toss the ingredients, the more luck you're believed to bring in!

Yu sheng is a raw fish salad, and is usually composed of the following ingredients: raw fish, sliced into thin pieces; shredded vegetables, pickled or fresh; bits of pomelo or candied citrus peel; chopped nuts; spices; and sauce - plum sauce and hoisin sauce.

What a way to conclude our first day in Singapore. Looking back, it was auspicious for us to be there. Oh! On a more interesting note, the menu was mostly in Chinese characters. While there were English translations for some, they were worded in such a way that we do not know whether they were literal translations or what. Seeing two choices that indicated “chicken” and “fish,” we finally ordered. A good number of us opted for fish. Our tweens chose chicken. We also ordered rice separately. It turned out, what we ordered where rice toppings. Each is a “platter-full” of rice, fish/chicken in thick sauce. Imaging having a dozen of that! And a platter of rice separately! We hastily motioned, “Enough.” We cancelled the other orders while we still can. Having 7 of those served could actually feed us for the next three days already. Good thing the restaurant owner understood and did not insist on serving us the rest. Talk about being “abundant” alright!

Jam-packed Day-Two. We again went back to Suntec City for the Hop-On-Off. We arrived very early and so we had to wait till they open. The other stores opened first, among them, Zara and the Athlete’s depot. It bore holes on our pockets :P Ended up buying football shoes, socks, Grendha sandals that were on sale :P

We took the route that would take us to Sentosa Island. First stop, however, was at Marina Bay Sands. At the MBT Waterfront Promenade, we all took turns tossing coins and wishes at the “wishing well” there. It was actually a rain oculus which can circulate 6,000 gallons of water per minute. A site referred to it as an acrylic and stainless steel art installation that functions as a kinetic sculpture, a skylight and waterfall for the retail mall below, and it’s also part of the building’s rain-collecting system.Two storeys below is a canal where water that falls down the atrium is collected when it rains. Unexpectedly, it also collects coins that visitors tossed into the Rain Oculus.

Well, there goes my feeling lucky. From all of us, I was actually the only one who managed to shoot a coin right at the center. I thought I would be granted my wish in the process hehehe But I guess all that faith worked because it has been over a year now and I’ve been very blessed indeed.




Universal Studios was next on the list. We practically spent the entire day there. The funny thing was, Ate was quite choosy when it came to the rides. She was quite content sitting in a corner while waiting for our tweens enjoying the rides. The one ride she did participate in, despite the verrrrrry (took us more than an hour, in my estimate, before we got to the beginning of the line) long queue – Ancient Egypt Treasure Hunt – got stuck while we were in the middle. So we sat it out for another 30 minutes or so :P

To me, however, the highlights were: Sesame Street show (which practically had me ‘choked’ with emotion, with the kids not joining us on the trip), the Transformers(!) and the Special Effects Stage. Well, we did enjoy the Madagascar waterboat ride and the Far Far Away and the Shrek 4D show. The olds loved the Hollywood Avenue. They posed a great deal with Marilyn Monroe and the vintage police mobile car. We capped our day there watching “Monster Rock” which to me was perfect and somewhat completed the experience for me. I’m not one for refusing theatre plays, that’s for sure.



In hindsight, I must have been holding back at that time, not allowing myself to enjoy it as much (out of guilt?!) since the kids were not with us. Well, when they are a lot older and able to appreciate the experience more, then will definitely go back.

As if to assuage the guilt, I bought the kiddo’s some Transformers tumblers. They were not the usual tumblers. They came with a 3D replica of Optimus Prime’s head. Imagine that!

Peace and Tranquil. According to Wiki, the name Sentosa translates as "peace and tranquility" in Malay (derived from Santosha in Sanskrit). And in some ways it still is, with its long stretch of beaches. There was a “Flower Festival” of sorts when we were there. There were displays of flowers, orchids of every kind. They were a delight to look at but we were not overly enthusiastic over it as displays and exhibits like that is also nothing new back home. Now, Garden by the Bay is another thing but will be getting to that later.

Lights and Sound Show. A trip to Sentosa won’t be complete without seeing the light and sound show which was totally “de-light-ful.” I loved how the audience’s area was set up by the beach. To me, it made the whole set-up somewhat intimate. The show was beautiful as well. It’s amazing how technology made it possible to super-impose light images on a ton of pumped water.

Efficient Transport System. After the show we took a leisurely walk and retraced our steps back to Sentosa’s equivalent of Merlion Park. Every now and then we would stop to take souvenir photos. There simply was a lot of beautiful nooks that’s worth capturing on photo.

We rode the Sentosa Express, a light rail system (for free) to get us back to the main island. Now, that’s another testament to how efficient the entire tourism system is, in Singapore. Again, I can’t help but wish that we have something similar back home.


Now, taking a taxi back to the hotel was another matter. There was a very long queue outside. If not for a Filipino staff of a company that offers pakyaw services, it would have taken us a long time. We were quite wary at first since he approached us while we’re in the middle of the line. We thought the price would be steep but he assured us it’s actually a lot cheaper than us having to take separate taxis. So yeah, thank God for kababayan’s who offers to make things easy for his/her fellow kababayan.

Flowers Feast and Last Minute Shopping. The third day was a feast for the eyes (and the soul, come to think of it). A large part of the day was spent at the Garden by the Bay. I had to catch a flight back to Manila for an important pre-meeting for an activity I attended also last year in Sri Lanka (next blog). So, I wasn’t really able to join everyone at Garden by the Bay. They were quick in updating photos in facebook though so I knew exactly what I was missing. I was eating my heart out looking at all their beautiful (could not even begin to describe them) photos. The flowers, plants and landscaping were amazing. Ate bought me a souvenir fridge magnet from there though so somehow I was like part of all of that as well.

I heard they capped the Singapore adventure with a shopping spree at Bugis Street. Now, that sure made me envious :) Can’t wait for my next trip there, hopefully with the kids in tow already.



There are a lot more photo's that I would have wanted to share but it would certainly be an overkill already. So, I would rather choose really special ones. I'm ending this blog post with this particular photo. That vacation was spectacular in every sense and I believe this photo would express just how much :)