We certainly managed to fit in a lot of places and activities in our few days in Singapore. We arrived in the morning on the train from KL which had really comfy beds and pillows and even a window on the top bunk, i don't know what the seat belts were for though! After missing a few buses with the number we had been told to get we ended up on a bus of another number which said it was going to the street near our guesthouse. This was a mistake though as it turned out that this street was very very very long and it actually did not go anywhere near where we wanted to be. Luckily we managed to work this out before had gone to far and were within walking range. Phew. It took a little longer to walk than anticipated as we had our big bags and it was raining and rain and flip flops don't mix, we managed to go a little faster withour them. It was such a relief to get to the guest house especially as it was such a bargain by singapore standards at $25 (singapore) for a double room, it was only a minor dissapointment to end up with bunk beds. After a couple of rounds of toast we went out to explore our local area of little India.
It was nice to walk around despite the weather although it did influence our first choice of destinations. We went to have a look around the huge 24 hour department store near by. It is a massive and very confusing place that seems to sell everything that you could wish for and more. We only lasted about 20 minutes the first time as it was all a bit crazy more so because it was full of people everywhere all the time, it was a bit of a challange getting through it and even more so trying to get out of the maze of overflowing lanes. After escaping we were happy to find ourselves confronted with lots of shops selling dosa and as to be expected loads of cheap indian food. We had thought that KL may be our last chance to stock up but we were proved wrong.
We had arranged to meet Vinod who was in Singapore on business having driven down from KL a few days before. He took us to a restaurant he knew where we once again indulged in some comforting Indian fast food. It was nice to see him again and to be given another mini tour (this time very small just around little India) which was nice as he showed us some things we might have had trouble finding, like the pub! Unfortunatly he was very busy with work and he did not manage to meet us again but i suppose that is what happens when you have a proper job!
We managed to make ourselves comfortable using the fantastic underground system, we were lucky enough to have a stop near our hostel. And explored a little further going to china town and to the river around the historic district. As we seem to have been doing everywhere we did a lot of walking there is always so much to look at.
After we had been in Singapore a day or two we went to meet Sam's parents who flew out to meet us and who we were to continue on to Australia with. We arranged to meet them at there big posh hotel on Orchard road, a little different from our accommodation! it was a good place to wait making the most of comfortable seats and airconditioning. This was when the real sightseeing began. We definately all managed to see Singapore and i think to do it justice.
We all went to little India for a cheap dinner in our side of town to give Phil and Judith a taste of how we had been living. This meant more dosa for me and everyone else had something different, puri, roti and i am not sure of the name of the type of bread phil had but it looked like a puffed up cushion/balloon. We also went to have singapore slings in Raffles which was a little more expensive (!) than our dinner the night before. I am not sure that everyone was impressed by the bar with its peanut shells all over the floor and a few pigeons taking it upon themselves to make themselves at home. The hotel itself is beautiful but the drinks it is so famous for were not so good (soapy tasting was one thought on them).
We spent some time walking around various areas of the city taking it in, all of it very clean, which is one of its claims to fame as is the fact it is very safe. We spent an evening at the night safari which was good but not as good as we had been led to believe. We went to eat at one of the food markets which had been recommended to us by one of the cities friendly taxi drivers and after walking around being accosted by every stallholder we decided on one which looked good (although they were probably all very similar) we chose a tasty looking crab from a cage at the front of the stall. The chilli crab was really good as were the vegetables and the other dishes we had. The beer was very cold as we had been assured by a man selling drinks next door. A meal to be remembered.
Our flights were at the same time (just about) so we went to the airport together and departed to our different terminals ready to see each other at the other end in the next stop and a world away Brisbane, Australia.
