Singapore

Arriving to Singapore from Kuala Lumpur is very easy on an 8 hour over night train. It just means that at 6am you are in the city after very little sleep if any. We went and found a hostel in little India to drop our bags and have a shower. After this we walked into the heart of the city via Fort Canning Park.

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We then headed to the river front where we met Andrew Hardwick, one of Dans old school friends and grabbed a quick lunch. Now Singapore does great Indian food, it’s not that cheap but this meal cost less than 20 Singapore dollers (£13), including a drink. mmmmm mango lassie.

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After this the tiredness hit me like a steel girder in the face. So I found a sofa outside a bar and had a 30 minute snooze. This is the view from street sleeping quarter.

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Singapore is pretty small both as a country and as a city so a great way to see some of the architecture is on a short river tour. Going through the CBD you can see the massive skyscrapers, then you see the science museum which shaped like a flower. Also the lions heard that squirts water is famous as Singapore means lion city in Sanskrit.

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One of my favourite buildings is huge concert hall which is shaped like the smelly Durian fruit.

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We headed to china town which is much like any other china town. However this Market you can by ornate blocks of marble with you name in Chinese etched into the end so you can use it as a stamp. It also has a temple which is famed for containing one of buddhas teeth.

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Also had a prawn cracker like you have never seen. Firstly it was huge and it had two actual prawns on it. It tasted nothing like the strange White puffy things I am used to, it was like a meal in one and delicious.

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They have a stunning botanical gardens which is beautifully landscaped and intensely vibrant it both colour and fragrance

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At night you have to head back to the CBD and the waterfront to enjoy a plate of fresh fish. It’s not cheap but it certainly is tasty. Walking along the river from there are countless fish restaurants all showing off their fish in giant tanks where you can choose the exact fish you want to eat.

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Managers taut for custom which give the opportunity for a little bartering, we managed a free beer to start us off and then a free Singapore sling cocktail. I kind of made friends with a fish in one of the tanks so couldn’t actually eat that one but we did have one of his snapper cousins.

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I managed to stumble upon something which I would tell anyone to do if they had a few hours free in Singapore. The Ritz Carlton hotel ( 7 Raffles Avenue, Singapore 039799) has about 2million dollars worth of art in it’s lobule and surrounding rooms. If you go there and ask for the iPod art tour at the front desk. They give you an iPod preloaded with a half hour tour of the art.

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They have works by Frank Stella, Andy Warhol, David Hockney’s and Henry Moore to name a few. It doesn’t take long but is pretty interesting purely because you are surrounded by guests at the hotel who wander by paying no attention to the works.

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One final thing to do which is a must is go to the world famous ‘Raffles Hotel’ named after Sir Stamford Raffle, who is the founder of Singapour. The Colonial hotel built in 1899 is famed for it high brow guests, Victorian theatre and still today you will find a man dressed in traditional colianl attire greeting guests at the door.

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Singapore has , if it is possible, a beautiful airport. I even got a free foot and leg massage as well as having electronic bottom cleaners in the toilets.

Thanks for travelling

The Kid

NOTABLE THINGS.
- hotel art isn’t always bad
- people in Singapore slings in Singapore taste great.
- they do amazing curry Singapore.

My blog: which you are reading.
Twitter: @thekidtravels
Flickr: thekidtravels

127 thoughts on “Singapore

  1. I haven’t been to Singapore yet, but it looks incredible. Thanks for sharing your stories and your photos! Especially the prawn cracker one…I’ve never like those puffy white ones, but it sounds like the people in Singapore do it right. :)

      • We are Melayu people call prawn cracker with “Bakwan”. It is traditional food from Indonesia. Thanks for sharing. I think I will visit Singapore next summer. :)

  2. You can get good food at level 4 of Wisma Atria on Orchard Road at very reasonable prices. Steer clear of the Japanese food and western food. Everything that doesn’t look familiar to your blue eyes should taste good. The Hokkien Prawn noodle is phenomenal. Spize along River Valley Road has pretty good local fares too.

  3. Woah!! That is the prawniest prawn cracker I’ve ever seen! Also love the shot of the whole snapper. Awesome. Keep it up & happy travels!

    P.S. Mango Lassie? He saves Timmy from the burning barn AND comes in flavors now?! (Kidding. But actually, lassi is spelled without an e. :D )

  4. The city area between Fort Canning and the Esplanade (the durian-shaped theatres) is fun to explore. The architecture goes from shophouses to 1990s commercial to restored colonial to totally new stuff. You’ll also be near the river.

  5. I Lived in Singapore for 18 Months, it was one of the greatest places i’ve been to…
    Singapore is like Asia for beginners.. And it’s so easy to travel around, not to mention that Changi Airport is amazing.. I wish that every airport was like Changi…

    Here is a Post with one of my fauvorite pics i’ve taken there… http://mauoscar.com/2010/08/13/o-que-ver-e-fazer-em-cingapura/

    +My Blog is written in Portuguese

  6. some of the best food in singapore is really cheap. good indian food for $20 is abnormal. maybe you shld have wandered a bit further into the heartlands! the hawker centres have delicious meals for 2-3 quid.

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  8. Singapore has been truly blessed with its nature’s beauty. Even the city development despite of its smallness. Anyways, I even felt the wonderful experience in Singapore just by looking at the pictures! Love it! makes me feel that I wanna go in there too. I also have to buy books for travel tips for me to fully enjoy my trip in Singapore. One of my prospect for that would be the online site that offers free tips and I’ve learned a lot from it.

    Here is it,
    http://www.globetrottingtips.com/singapore-2/singapore-s-chinatown

  9. I too loved Singapore. The Bird Park and the Zoo were my favourites……and Holland Village. Miss it terribly. If only it weren’t so far away from Toronto. Enjoy!

  10. If you are in Singapore you should definitely check out the art deco heritage estate of Tiong Bahru. It’s not really on most tourist itineraries but it makes a complete change of scene. The architecture is beautiful and there is a laid-back feel to the place – the estate also has one of the island’s best hawker (food) centres. We made a film about the community and the estate there last year (all of the cast, 150 of them, are volunteers). Check out the trailer and info here: http://civiclifetiongbahru.com/2011/05/27/interview-with-joe-and-christine-about-civic-life/

  11. I love Singapore, and you’ve captured such wonderful shots! If you have time you should consider going to the Sky Garden at Marina Bay Sands – the view is absolutely breathtaking, especially at night. The Botanic Gardens is lovely too!

  12. Singaporean here!
    saw your post featured on the freshly pressed page.. nice pictures!
    Just want to say that be careful when you’re shopping here, especially electronics for those who’re coming for visits!
    Trust only the big stores and small ones unless you’re with a local :)

    Cheers!

  13. Greetings from Singapore! I hope you had a chance to go into the heartlands where all the cheap and yummy food are! Glad to know you enjoyed your travel… and the curry here! I hope you will find even more pleasant surprises and adventures the next time you are here! Cheers!

  14. wow 20 dollars for indian food is a little expensive! but i’m glad you liked it. (: perhaps next time you can try visiting the non-city areas for better and cheaper food, as well as different sights! yes, I’m a Singaporean. it is always interesting to read what foreigners think of your own country! :D

  15. Those are beautiful photos. I particularly like that greenish spiral thing.

    Singapore is the first foreign country I’m planning to visit since I have a relative there (Saves money for I won’t have to rent hotel room)

  16. I love Singapore, and have been there a couple times! It feels very clean there, and yes the Indian food is yummy and so is the fish!!
    Thanks for sharing these beautiful photos, and next time I go I would love to see that art hotel tour!

    xox

  17. “I kind of made friends with a fish in one of the tanks so couldn’t actually eat that one” — laughed out loud at this. I’ve been there.

    I’m also visiting Singapore and have seen many of the same places. Haven’t done China Town or the Ritz Carlton yet, though. Definitely agree on the “amazing curry”!

  18. We lived in Singapore for about a year and a half and loved it (our youngest was even born there)!

    One thing you’ll need to try on your next visit out is a good chicken rice which can be bought at nearly any hawker centre or some traditional chilli crab—I recommend the crab from Jumbo Seafood—see picture below.

  19. I’m from Singapore and am glad to see my home through your eyes! Yes, I didn’t even know that the hotel has such precious art housed in it, and I’ve been there a few times….

    By the way, the prawn cracker is part of a meal collectively called ‘wu xiang’ in Mandarin, it’s one of my favourite things to eat!! I’m missing all this all the way from London.

  20. Oh my goodness, I have always wanted to go to Singapore. Your pictures are amazing and I envy you because I am such a travel bug myself. Have you been to Taiwan before? It’s one of the most amazing places in the world. :)

  21. Very cool… I totally agree Singapore has one of the nicest airports in the world.

    I like the images and the quality of the images is very clear. You must have a pretty amazing camera!

    Great post and congrats for making it to freshly pressed.

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  23. Lucky you! I love your photos and report! When I went to Singapore this year the merlion was under construction, I wish I could see it! The photos are beautiful and makes me wanna go back there again! xx

  24. Awesome pictures! If you are ever here again, you really should check out 1-Altitude – the world’s highest al-fresco bar. From there you can see the city stretching out around you all the lights and roads like toys from that height (about 63 floors up?) It’s pretty cool.

    Also, it’s cheaper to have a meal by the River if you go to Makansutra behind the Esplanade (that durian concert hall), where you can have local food.

  25. Looks great!

    If I want to visit Singapore how many days do you think I’l need? Everyone keeps telling me a week is long enough. I”m the kind of person who loves wandering the streets and getting lost and going to non-touristspots. So maybe two week would be good?
    I kinda feel that one week would be a waste of money since the trip is so expensive….

    • As a Singaporean I definitely think a week is enough. I know people who have done it in 3 days – but those were the people who really did just hit the tourist spots. You can stay as long as you like and wander as much as you like, but I think the general stuff you could get done in a week or so as a visitor.

      Perhaps you could think about Singapore + somewhere else? A lot of travellers use Singapore as a launchpad towards going to explore Malaysia and Thailand in the north, or further south to Indonesia.

      • Yeah, that was what I was thinking too! Maybe go to Malaysia or South Korea or Japan from there on.
        But that’s still a long time away so I’ve still got loads of time to think about it!

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