Third Day in Singapore - Orchard Road, Funan Square, Clarke Quay

I was left to my own devices again. Hubby's off to work and I'm off to Orchard Road, the shopping mecca of Singapore. I wasn't really planning on shopping but I wanted to see the famous road nonetheless. I opted to take a cab this time since my muscles are still sore from the previous day's long walk.

Oh boy, cabs in Singapore are much more expensive than Manila. Way more. But I was glad that I didn't have to walk going to the MRT station.

I was very pleased with the shops along Orchard road. Everything was on sale! I started from Centerpoint Mall up to Tang Plaza. Our vacation/business trip was in time for the Great Singapore Sale. It's such a shame that I'm on a tight budget :-(

One thing that I've noticed in Singapore is that the shoe selection (heels and pumps) is fabulous! I know a lot of my friends would love to buy several pairs of shoes. I resisted buying a pair since I'm at home most of the time and I already have some heeled shoes that lie unused in my cabinet. Although some shoes were screaming my name :-)

As I happily walk along Orchard Road, I came upon a row restaurants street hawkers' style. Wow! I was very excited. I've been wanting to try Laksa, a local noodle dish.



As I set foot inside the collection of stalls, it rained really really hard. It was as if the clouds were waiting for me to seek shelter before unleashing it's heavy burden! I had no complaints since I had a bowl shrimp Laksa waiting for me at the counter. As expected, the broth was spicy but flavorful. It had some vegetables, noodles and tofu in it. Interesting albeit a bit spicy for my taste. The laksa was just SGD4!



Mynah birds are like the brown sparrows back home, they're everywhere. This mynah even decided to have some Laksa too.



After the rain let up, I went on with my leisurely walk. Singapore I think is like the New York of Asia in a way. Everywhere you look, people of different race, color, and nationalities walk its tree lined streets. Very nice and comforting. It is a small world after all and every citizen of the world seems to converge in this little country.

After a few hours of walking, I make my way to the nearest MRT station and proceeded to go back to the hotel to rest, freshen up and meet hubby for dinner.

And a long walk it was. This time though, I really enjoyed my walk. After alighting at the Central station, (the nearest MRT in our hotel), I decide to buy some Indian pastry (which I forgot the name) with a chicken curry filling to be eaten at the hotel while waiting for hubby.



As I walk and admire the views from the river bank leading to our hotel, I decided to check out Clarke Quay since it was on the way. It's a very colorful "mall" or group of high end restaurants clustered along the river bank. A pastry shop caught my eye, Nectarie. The Tiramisu looked absolutely delicious and since I have not baked for the past few days, I was craving for sweets. The Tiramisu was very light and absolutely divine. That's the best SGD8 (P180) that I've spent today. Yummy!



Clarke Quay is a very interesting place. Here's a picture of me by the fountain. The holes that you see on the posts are allow fresh air to circulate within it's streets. Huge umbrella-like canopies protect the people from getting wet when it rains yet allow natural sunlight and/or moonlight to shrine through. Very ingenious. Maybe they should do that in Greenbelt Mall. Just an idea :-)



When hubby finally came to the hotel, he informed me that he wanted to go to Funan Square and check out the electronics. It's a bit far from the hotel but still within walking distance (if you're planning to join a walkathon, he he he). Took us over half an hour to look for it while getting lost a few times. All part of the adventure, I guess. When we got there, I saw a bookstore that has the Harry Potter 7 book in chains. I wanted to rip out the chains and read it already. Grrr... a few more days before the box is unleashed :-)



Most of the shops in Funan Square closed early and we were not able to buy electronics. Hubby was a bit disappointed. Yeah, major let down for an IT (information Technology) guy :-) Poor baby, he wasn't able to buy some toys.

Dinner was at Clark Quay since it was on our way to the hotel. We wanted to eat somewhere nice and unusual and we chose Marrakesh. The place was nice and comfy.



Here's hubby and moi in our little table.



The food isn't particularly good though. We were sorely disappointed. We had a seafood platter of fish kebab, prawn kebab, hummus, moutabel, olive chermouleh and Arabic salad grill and Dolma, vine leaves rolled with herbed rice, pine nuts and Arabic spices. Yuck! If you're in Clarke Quay, don't waste your money eating there.

After our disastrous dinner, I told hubby about the dessert place, Nectarie. He was game and wanted to eat the Tiramisu too. Unfortunately, the Tiramisu was sold out when we got there. We decided to try the Chicago cheesecake and the Jack Daniel's ice cream instead.



The Chicago cheesecake probably got it's name because the cake itself is like the Chicago deep-dish pizza in terms of thickness. It was very thick and very very delicious. Not too sweet yet it melts slowly in your mouth. Yum with a capital "Y"!



The Jack Daniel's ice cream is the shop's specialty and it was absolutely delicious. There is just the perfect amount of Jack Daniel's in the home-made vanilla ice cream.

The desserts from Nectarie and our moonlit walk by the river certainly made our night.

Second Night in Singapore-Merlion Park and The Esplanade

A holiday to Singapore is never complete without a visit to Singapore's famed Merlion fountain.

Designed by Mr Fraser Brunner, a curator of the Van Kleef Aquarium, the lion head represents the lion spotted by Prince Sang Nila Utama when he re-discovered Singapura in 11 AD, as recorded in the "Malay Annals". The fish tail of the Merlion symbolizes the ancient city of Temasek (meaning “sea” in Javanese) by which Singapore was known before the Prince named it “Singapura” (meaning “lion” (singa) “city” (pura) in Sanskrit), and represents Singapore’s humble beginnings as a fishing village.

From www.visitsingapore.com



Another must-see landmark is The Esplanade.

The Esplanade is a waterside building located on six hectares of waterfront land alongside Marina Bay near the mouth of the Singapore River, purpose-built to be the centre for performing arts for the island nation of Singapore. Taking its name from the nearby Esplanade, It contains a 1,600 seat concert hall and a 2,000 seat theatre for the performing arts. The library@esplanade is located on the third floor of the building. There are outdoor performing centres, and retail and food space at the Esplanade Mall. There is an outdoor open space on the fourth floor of the building.

(from Wikepedia)

Hubby fondly calls it The Armadillo because of it's spiny shape. But it's actually designed after the fruit, Durian.

It was quite late when we arrived to both landmarks way past dinnertime. A particular restaurant caught our eye, it's called "No Signboard Seafood". The name itself caught our attention. The place was jam-packed with locals and expats alike. A winning combination.



The place is quite pricey and we were on an extremely tight budget. It's only the second day of our trip, after all. We settled for simple and cheap dishes of sauteed asparagus, homemade tofu and a Salad You-Tiao. Appetizers of peanuts and chili come for "free" (SGD2 is added to your bill)









The asparagus were typical stir-fry, crisp and yummy. The tofu was a bit different, it has some sort of wet crust on it that tasted bland. The You-Tiao or squid "logs" with sesame crust was good and can easily be re-created by using good quality squid balls dipped in sesame seeds and then quickly fried. The dipping sauce that went with it was just plain mayonnaise.

I guess the specialty of the restaurant were crabs and lobsters, sold per 100 grams and we have plenty of that in Manila. And as I mentioned earlier, we're on a tight budget. Our meal for the night was SGD46 (P1380 or US$29). That would have bought us 7-10 varieties of viand from Chinatown!

Oh well, maybe tomorrow night we can find a better restaurant.



Hubby snapped this photo as I was walking in a deserted basement hall on our way to the MRT station.

Second Day in Singapore - Little India and China Town

After browsing through the net prior to our visit, I was really interested in seeing both Little India and China Town.

After hubby left for work (he's on business and moi on holiday, he he he!), I eagerly got ready. To play it safe, my game plan was to take a cab to the "nearest" MRT station which is Clarke Quay (pronounced as kee). The cab driver refused to take me since according to him, it is very near our hotel. "Very" being the operative term here. Ok, I'll give it another try. The driver told me to just cross the river and I'll find it. The very near turned out to be a 20-minute hike along the river bank. I got lost a few times but I managed to find the damn station. It's still quite a walk from the hotel but the view is spectacular, river boats quietly pass though, several parks and high end condominiums and hotels and a sprinkling of lovely malls. My walk wasn't too bad and the weather was a bit cloudy this morning, perfect walking weather.

Little India

My first stop is Little India. I wasn't sure how the MRT works so I ask a customer representative for directions. It was very easy. The ticketing system is computerized and easy enough to follow. Using a touch-screen, simply pick your destination, put your money on the slot and get your ticket and change (if any). Easy as pie. Fare is SGD2 from Clarke Quay to Little India. The ticket is like a proximity card that you place on top the scanning machine and the turnstile will open. Upon reaching your destination, return the ticket by inserting it on the ticketing slot and SGD1 will be refunded to you. It's sort of a deposit on the proximity card.

As I make my way towards the exit, this Indian guy approached me and hit on me and wanted to "get to know me". Sorry pal, already married. May asim pa ang lola n'yo :-)

As soon as you alight from the MRT, you will immediately be assailed by the smells of curry and spices. You have arrived in Little India.

Little India is a collection of quaint little shops hawking brass ware, gold, handmade jewelry, sari fabrics, perfumed oils, fruits, garlands, and Indian food food and desserts.







The place certainly is colorful and interesting. You'll find a lot of lovely sari fabrics here. I was very tempted to buy some but I still have 4 yards of unused sari in my closet (a purchase from my Indonesian trip). I did manage to buy 200 grams of fresh plump cherries for just SGD2.40. Much cheaper here than in Manila. I might go back again another day to purchase more. Too bad we can't bring some home.

My trip to Little India wouldn't be complete without eating some Indian food. It was quite early when I arrived and I wasn't hungry so I just opted for some puri bread with egg. It's a cross between a tortilla and an omelet. It's always served with home made curry sauce. I love Indian food and this one is really good. It's light and not too spicy and for just SGD1, it's a great deal. Of course I had to wash down the puri bread with the quintessential Indian beverage, Teh Tarik, or Indian tea with goat's milk and some condensed milk as a sweetener. It also costs SGD1. The tea "barrista" cools down your tea by "stretching" the hot liquid onto another cup. The Teh Tarik is traditionally served hot. Now, you can have it cold and since it was a hot day, I opted for the latter. This is the first time that I've had this beverage and I love it. I hope I can come back another day to try out other dishes and have some more Teh Tarik.



Puri Bread with Curry Sauce



Teh Tarik Barrista



Iced Teh Tarik

Just a word of caution, make sure that what you are eating or drinking is served piping hot to assure cleanliness. My Tek Tarik was piping hot and was poured over a cup of ice. Indians do handle their food with their hands, so be choosy.

From Little India, I take the MRT again to China Town. Fare is the same SGD2.

China Town

Between the two ethnic communities, I was very eager to see this quaint little town. I've certainly seen a lot of pictures and have read quite a bit about it. Some of the most memorable Singaporean images were from China Town. It's historic shop houses are carefully preserved and is very pretty, painted with bright colors. They are called shop houses because the building is a place of business at the ground floor and a family home on the second floor.

It's quite easy to find. Take the MRT and alight at Chinatown, Pagoda Street exit. As soon as you exit the MRT station, you will be assailed by the scents of incense burning, colorful Chinese lanterns and tiangge-style stalls waiting for you to browse it's hallways. Pagoda street is closed to vehicular traffic. It certainly is very lovely but a bit "Disneyfied" due to the bright colors of the shop houses. Locals who have been to Manila say that our Chinatown is more authentic. But I kinda like Singapore's version too. You can safely walk the streets while happily bumping into expats and tourists all over the world. It's interesting and fun.



The goods are quite similar to what we have at home. I did manage to buy my a souvenir from this trip, a Chinese box, with a compass inside. I know it's not a real antique but who cares. I like it. I bought it for SGD25. This is my one indulgence for the house (Yeah, right).





I did find an apothecary store there complete with weighing scales and traditional Chinese herbs and medicines.



What Chinatown is famous for is the food. Oh my golly, I too bad wasn't hungry when I got there so I just went to this hole in the wall vegetarian stall. I ordered sauteed spinach, rice with curry sauce and a tofu ball. The food wasn't particularly good. I won't show a picture because it looked awful too. I want my SGD2 back! After eating a few bites of my tasteless meal, I roam the streets and found more interesting food stalls where most menus were in Chinese, sayang. I'll go back another time and try out other dishes from other stalls.

I'll go where the expats and the locals dine, fore sure the food will be good. There's a food stall there that sells nothing but dim sum! Hubby would love it.

I figured since I'll be walking back to the hotel from Clarke Quay, I'd better buy some food to eat in my room. I saw some expats and locals dining in this particular kiosk called Flavours Food and ordered Fried Oyster Omelet (SGD4), take away (as opposed to the Western "to go", or Manila's "take out"). There was a lot of choices but I happen to like oyster omelet so I ordered that. After my disastrous vegetarian venture earlier, I was more inclined to eat dishes that I've tasted and liked.





Singapore is also famous for orchid pins. These are real orchids preserved in a mantle of 24K gold. Very pretty. I remember my grandmother had one as a gift from my aunt many years ago.

After leaving Chinatown, I headed back to Clarke Quay and walked back to the hotel. Learning from my directional mistakes this morning, I took the most scenic route, I followed the river under the fierce heat of the sun. Thankfully, I brought a small foldable umbrella with me and provided a bit of comfort from the heat. The route that I picked, turned out to be scenic as well as the easiest route. Why didn't anyone tell me this earlier? Sheesh! I took some pictures along the way, you like?






After burning off probably 500 calories from the walking under the sweltering heat, I finally reach our hotel. Haaay, air-coned bliss.

After resting and freshening up a bit, I eat my Oyster Omelet in the comfort of my hotel room. The omelet was absolutely divine. Perfectly cooked, the oyster was still juicy, the egg was light, some vegetables were fried with the omelet and a generous sprinkling of cilantro is perfect foil for the egg. I didn't take any pictures because it wasn't pretty when I opened the box. What it lacked in looks, it made up for in taste a hundred fold. It was the best SGD4 that I've ever spent!

Fully sated, I go down to the hotel lobby and write this blog :-)

Our First Day in Singapore - Singapore Zoo and Night Safari

My first impression of Singapore is that it's very clean, traffic-less and main highways are very colorful due to the assorted varieties bougainvilleas that line its main highways. What amazed me the most is that for a densely populated nation, they have managed to preserve a large percentage of it's forest land. Large trees abound all over the hilly terrain of the city. I was truly impressed and a bit envious because the Philippines is a much larger country and more interesting terrain-wise but we have managed to crowd our streets, polluted our land and water and cut down most of our forests.

For our first day in Singapore, Hubby and I decided to go to its most famous tourist attractions, The Singapore Zoo and Night Safari. Hubby will be working all week and this is one of the few times that he can explore Singapore.

After checking into our hotel and dropping off our bags, we asked for directions to the neared MRT (Mass Railway Trans) station. People here at the hotel are not very adept in giving directions, the map isn't very helpful either. After walking for 15 minutes or so and still not finding the nearest MRT, we figured maybe we should turn back and hail a cab directly to Singapore Zoo to save time. Now, hailing a cab here is much more civilized that what we have in Manila. You can only hail cabs in designated areas where as back home, you can practically flag down a cab even in the middle of a highway!

Singapore Zoo

The cab ride takes about 25-30 minutes from our hotel. It's not cheap. We shelled out around SGD18 (P576) one way. Upon reaching the zoo, hubby was adamant that we eat immediately for we haven't had lunch yet. The first restaurant that greeted us was Kentucky Fried Chicken. It's no culinary adventure but our grumbling stomachs were not very choosy. We were surprised that they don't serve rice with their chicken dishes. It's like we're not in Asia, strange. They do have coconut pie which we don't have in Manila. I tried it, it's like macapuno filled pie. Nothing really special. Our macapuno wins by a landslide.



With our hunger appeased, we glance to the next stall. It's Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream! Hubby's excitement cannot be measured. We were both so eager to buy some since it's not yet available in Manila and the nearest that we can get it is in Hong Kong. Hubby ordered one scoop each of Strawberry and Chocomint. I ordered Chunky Monkey which is banana ice cream with walnuts and chocolates. All flavors were yummy and my favorite by far is the Strawberry.



We finally buy our tickets. We got the Park Hopper's Special which costs SGD38 that provides entrance fees to both the Singapore Zoo and Night Safari with unlimited tram rides to both. We got SGD5 savings per ticket. Both a bad deal.

The zoo is our first stop. I was greatly impressed with the zoo. Mature trees abound and it was really like walking through a rain forest (in most parts). Monkeys run free and if you're lucky, they will sit still for a short period while you take your picture. Snap fast because they don't still still for long.

Many animals can be seen throughout the zoo, mostly mammals and reptiles. They have a wide collection of big cats like lions, tigers, puma, leopard, African jungle cats named Tango & Cash and the creme de la creme, two white tigers, our favorite.



For the first time in my life, I've seen a huge polar bear up close (well, my nose pressed into the glass kinda close). They truly are magnificent creatures. Do you know that they don't have natural predators except man?



Hubby and I took turns having your picture taken with a life-sized image of the polar bear.





Hanggang pusod lang ako :-)

The weather was a bit freaky. One minute it was sweltering, the next it was raining. Always bring a small foldable umbrella with you when you're visiting. It is after all, part of the rain forest. So, expect a bit of rain and moisture at the end of the day. Be prepared to smell animal dung throughout your visit, it is a zoo after all. There are very few toilet stations in the whole zoo. One is in the park entrance and one in the middle of the zoo where some of the restaurants are.

Some of the attractions are not accessible by tram so be sure you have the energy to traverse the zoo's hilly terrain. Keep yourself hydrated at all times. Singapore is a tropical country so it's weather is hot and humid. Wearing sunblock is not a bad idea too.

You will only take 2 hours or 3 hours at most to see all the animals. There's no need to for you to come very early if you're going to the Night Safari as well.

The Night Safari

Make sure when you buy your ticket for the Night Safari, get the one with unlimited tram ride for some attractions are only accessible by tram. For a donation of SGD5 you can get your picture taken with an owl, an African jungle cat and a python.



Start your journey by taking the tram. An English-speaking guide will "walk" you throughout the park. The information being shared are both helpful and trivial. You will see a variety of animals like Tapir, Water Buffalo, Asian Rhinos, Jackals, Bearded Pig, Hyenas, Lions, Sloth, Bat-eared Fox, Hippo, Babirusa, Tigers, Flamingos and a host of other exotic animals. At the end of the trail, a huge elephant will provide a wet send-off by spraying the tourists with some water and a playful wave from its trunk.

A variety of deer roam freely throughout the safari. These are wild animals and should not be touched or petted. Flash photography is strictly prohibited. Flash from your camera damages the animals' eyes and would eventually blind them. Some people despite being constantly being reminded not use flash photography continue to do so. If you do visit the safari, please refrain from using the flash.

There are several areas in the safari where you can take a walk inside the enclosures. One of which is the flying squirrel enclosure. The squirrel doesn't actually fly but rather glides between treetops using their "flaps" or skin between their arms and legs. They didn't actually parachuted while we were inside, darn. But one came down and watched us pass by. Very surreal.

Another such enclosure is the bat trail where several species of fruit eating bats live. Don't be afraid, they don't bite humans. They're quite friendly and unafraid of humans. The keepers place fruits near the trail so that the humans traversing it's path will have a close encounter with one of the bats. A must see when you're there. Please no flash photography. Commit the images that you see to memory instead.

The leopard trail also provides an interesting walk for the more adventurous. The trail is very dark and the animals found there are just barely illuminated by artificial lights meant to shine like moonlight. Just imagine yourself taking a moonlit walk in the jungles of Africa, Sumatra or Brazil. Some animals that you might see are Otters, Golden Cats, Clouded Leopard (my favorite), Porcupine, Owls, Tarsier, Badgers, Malayan Civet and a lot more depending if they're not hiding in the brush.

Our evening was capped with an animal show. Very entertaining specially if you're bringing children along.

Singapore Zoo and Night Safari, a must-visit when you're in Singapore. Should you decide to go to these places, start by mid to late afternoon at Singapore Zoo. The zoo will only take about two to three hours (at most) to traverse. Night safari opens its doors at 6pm. Your time will be better spent if you proceed directly from the zoo to the safari. Not to mention huge savings on taxi fare and park fees.

With that, hubby and I trekked back to our little hotel. We were both dead tired. I fell asleep as soon as my head touched the pillow. Poor hubby still had to work until past midnight answering emails and such.

The Gallery Hotel

We are staying at The Gallery Hotel at Nanson Road. It overlooks the river and is located very near hubby's Singapore business office. We're quite far from Orchard Road, darn! Our hotel is near the new Clark Quay Mall and Central Mall so it ain't that bad. The nearest MRT station is about a 2-kilometer walk, per way. Oh boy!

We were booked at one of the suites. The room has been provided with your standard toiletries and towels, sewing kit, hairbrush, complimentary bar, coffee and tea making facilities, ironing facilities, plasma TV and there's underfoot lighting that automatically lights up when you get up at night, cool!



Bathroom's quite small though, there's a step-up tub, I mean really step up, I think it was made for people over 6 feet tall. I feel that I'm going to fall over every time I get out of it. No bidet but water pressure on everything is great, hot water. The bathroom is enclosed in frosted glass. It's nice but there's any hardly privacy when you're staying with a friend. The frosted glass wall that you see in the picture is the bathroom wall.





The best part is the king-sized bed with a firm mattress. The bed has industrial wheels under them, cute but We've never tried pushing it around, yet.



The hotel also has a pool, spa and several restaurants (which we haven't explored yet), gym, and free internet access in all of the rooms and free use of computer at the lobby.

My only complain aside from the long walk from the MRT station is that the lighting in the closet area is highly inadequate. It's dim and I often find myself fumbling in the dark while browsing inside my suitcase looking for stuff.

My Plane Ride

For someone who's so queasy when flying, I love to travel whenever I can. Flying is just a necessary evil to reach my destination. Hubby suggested that I fly on an empty stomach and it might help. No idea what's the science behind it, but it worked. I didn't feel nauseous and dizzy as I used to before, despite waking up at an ungodly hour and having less than one hour's sleep!

Maybe because we flew via Philippine Air Lines (PAL). The flight was smooth and turbulence free. Yipee!





The plane food also improved compared to the last few times that we flied. Hey, it's not gourmet or anything but it was ok. They served boneless na bangus with fluffy scrambled egg, rice, wilted tomato, green beans, ensaymada, bread with butter and jam and a bowl of prunes, pear and peach. Hubby got the beef tapa. The bangus was better.

We touched down very smoothly. PAL pilots rock!

Off to Singapore

I'm so excited! Hubby and I are currently at the airport waiting for our flight to Singapore. It's both our first time there where we will actually venture outside the airport. Technically, hubby had set foot on Singapore eight times already but mostly for stopovers to other destinations. I've been to Changi myself last year as a stopover to Jakarta.

We are finally going to see the sights for one whole week! Yipee! Well, at least I am. Hubby's on business, I'm on a holiday. He he he :-)

Watch out for my upcoming posts!