Singapore Slings

Sorry for the long wait between blogs but it has been hard to get a reliable net connection here in Southeast Asia. I'm actually in Cambodia now, but I will take you loyal readers back to the first days of this trip in the magical land of Singapore.

We awoke probably around 12:30pm Singapore time, keep in mind we got to sleep around 3 or 4am the previous night and we were recovering from some jet lag. We immediately hopped on to a bus to take is into the heart of Singapore. This is probably the most western country in Southeast Asia, a product no doubt of being a Commonwealth country (like Canada or Australia is). It was once a part of Malaysia but ceded from that country to become its own city state.

Enough with the history lesson. The first thing that strikes me as we take a trip down Orchard Road (the city's main drag) is that there is a lot of shopping malls- high end shopping malls. Names like Cartier, Prada, Gucci, Burberry flash at us from all sides. Of course, there is a share of the not so high end names- McDonalds, Wendy's, and KFC as well. The streets are very clean, as you really do not want to litter in a place like this, or spit out your gum for that matter. Everyone knows about caning right? Air conditioning is also a national treasure in Singapore, and you soon understand why with highs above 30c everyday plus the humidex. 

That first day we explored the waterfront near Marina Bay, and took a brief trip into one of the ritzy old hotels, the Fullerton Hotel. This place as the old style opulance of the last century, it used to be a post office and was also the site of Fort Fullerton at one point. If we had all the money in the world, I am sure we have considered staying but alas it was not to be.

After a foray into the Fullerton, we stopped at one of the famous hawker stalls along the waterfront know as Gluttons Bay for some chicken satays and fresh juice. The food here is amazing for what is in all intenses and purposes street food. This is not some shady burrito stand with flies buzzing around.

After filling ourselves with a snack, we walked past the parliament buildings, and a cricket game before making to the Fort Canning. It was and and still partially used as military base, and was Singapore's first botanical garden. The brilliant flowers and towering trees make you forget the military aspect of the place, and for locals a romantic getaway (i.e. make-out point). It was an oasis in the middle of bussling metropolis.

We finished the day doing some shopping, and sitting down to dinner back at Jen's place, and we dropped like flies into bed after that.

Singapore to be continued....