Singapore!

We had the FABULOUS opportunity to see Singapore for a day and a half before departing on a CRUISE to see the area!  Man, if you're looking for a place to visit, Singapore is truly lovely.  We ended up arriving in the airport somewhere around 6 AM.  It is truly one of the most wonderful airports I've been in.  Apparently there's a butterfly garden inside the airport!  Unfortunately, we missed that little perk.  But we did get to see the Christmas trees that were still up (in early January) and statues near the exit. 

We grabbed a taxi to get us to our hotel, and managed to get the chattiest cabbie in town, which was fantastic!  She told us all about the sites to see and gave us information about the city.  As we drew near to our hotel, however, she grew a bit quiet and asked us if we knew where we were staying.  We told her the hotel name again, and she repeated her question.  When we looked confused, she looked at us and exclaimed, "you're staying in the red light district!"  Oops...  Not exactly what we had intended...  The good news, however, is that apparently some of the BEST food in town is in the red light district!  Seriously.  When we visited my friends in the area, they even gave us an article telling us which restaurants are frequently visited by folks who otherwise would NOT be patrons of the area.  So, when we dropped our bags off in the room and set off to find food, we were pleasantly surprised at our dumpling soup that we ate for breakfast - praise God!

Like we said, we were only in town for a day and a half, so these were the sites we decided to see:

- The Botanic Gardens (they are renowned, but have the added bonus of being open super early in the morning)
-  Little India
-  Arab Street
-  Bugis Market
-  the Night Zoo
-  and the cable car to Sentosa Island (and a brief look around the island)

One quick note - we couldn't figure out where we were on a map, but PLEASE don't make the same mistake as we did!  The metro system is robust, super easy to use, and clean.  I highly suggest using the metro over taxis.

Once we finished our dumpling soup and wandered around a bit, we hailed a cab and headed over to the Botanic Gardens, which are open from 5 AM until midnight daily.  As we neared the park, the houses got noticeably more extravagant.  Once we entered the park, we also found that it was more diverse than other areas we'd been to.  We found out later from my Singaporean friends that the area just around the park is mostly for expats, and most folks from Singapore aren't actually able to afford the area.  It is especially known for it's orchid garden, which costs $S5 for an entrance fee.  We opted to not spend the extra $S5, and just wander the park instead, which is -definitely- big enough to enjoy without seeing the orchids.  The park has several restaurants inside it, which looked nice, but we had already had breakfast.  There is a lake with swans and fish in it (so bring a loaf of bread!), and a beautiful statue in the center.  We even arrived early enough to see folks doing Tai Chi on the lawn!

Next, we headed over to Little India!  Little India is an amazing experience if you just want to wander around, see the sights, do some off-beat shopping, even.  They have a huge market at the entrance called Tekka Market where you'll find a huge food market with restaurants, fruits, vegetables, meat, and seafood on the ground floor.  Up above you'll find sari dresses and tailors.  It's fun to just wander through and see all the beautiful fabrics available!  In the food market there are a few folks who will try to sell you their wares, but if you politely decline, they'll generally lay off.  As you continue down Serangoon Rd., you get to see loads of different shops that include 22k gold shops for the high-fashion folks, cheap jewelry stores, used clothing stores, money exchangers, pawn shops galore (we kept thinking the pawn shops were money changers...), and many more!  I got some sunglasses there for $S4, and was tempted by some beautiful gold earrings. We also saw Veeramakaliamman Temple, a Hindu temple, from the outside.  It wasn't immediately clear to us whether it would be completely appropriate for us to enter, so we decided to look at it from the outside.  The architecture was extremely ornate, and quite interesting. 

We walked from Little India to Arab St. where we visited Sultan Mosque.  This Mosque holds regular visitor hours where they provide appropriate clothing for those without enough covering (they weren't too strict, as I was allowed in with jeans and a decently modest shirt - it wasn't necessary for me to cover my head).  They also have people inside who are willing to discuss Islam and the history of the mosque.  We spent quite a bit of time speaking to two of the guides there about Islam and Christianity.

In the Arab area there were some fantastic fabric stores, a store with pure essential oils and beautiful glass perfume bottles and tea sets.  We ate lunch at a Turkish restaurant recommended to us where the power went off twice, the waitress forgot about us, they had to run out to the bank to get change, and the food was expensive (and small portions).  Stick with the red light district for food!  Actually, I'm sure some of the other restaurants in the area would be better, we just happened to hit a doozy (which, of course, now I can't remember the name of - sorry!).

Next, we stumbled into the Bugis Market - SO MUCH FUN!  As soon as we got in, we quenched our considerable thirst with a limeade juice, watermelon juice, and strawberry milkshake - all for under $S4!  Then, we started our quest for t-shirts and purchased 3 shirts for $S10 (not the best deal you can get, but seriously - 3 t-shirts for $S10).  AND, I love mine - it's super comfortable.  There are TONS of things to buy in this crowded street market - souvenirs, cute clothes, shoes, food, drinks, handbags, etc. etc. etc.  Definitely work a look :)

 That evening, we got to have dinner with our sweet friends from back home in the states who are now serving in a local church.  It was so wonderful to sit down with some fellow Christians and hear them talk about their current ministry, get the low-down on what to do, and eat legit Singaporean food!  What a sweet reminder that Christians are meant to be in fellowship with one another!

That evening, our friends joined us at the Night Safari!  When we arrived, we got the rare treat of 5 minutes with the foot doctor fish!  Mr. A and I had never done this before, and it was QUITE the experience.  I'm a bit ashamed to say that when I stuck my tootsies in the water, all the fish left the other patrons and got straight to work...  I suppose I need to do a bit more regular foot care...
We then hopped on a trolley where we got to see wolves, lions, deer, and various other animals hangin' out at night.  It was a well set up zoo with lots of walking trails that you could take (especially if you didn't arrive as late as we did...) to see various other cute nocturnal animals.  My pictures aren't particularly awesome (it was night, folks), but at least get to see the foot doctor fish goin' to town!

The next morning we had dim sum for breakfast (lots of delicious dumplings!), and then went wandering for a bit.  We saw several fruit markets, shrines, and even a pair of big Buddhas outside one building.  My friend bought a durian, a fruit that smells truly terrible, but they say tastes quite delicious.  I have yet to try it as the smell drives me away.  It smells SO BAD that they actually ban it from the metro and taxis!  As we were walking, we even saw a sweet bird shop.  I got a couple pictures in before they told us we weren't supposed to be photographing the birds - oops.

 

Our last adventure before boarding our ship was to take the cable car over to Sentosa Island.  The cable car was SUPER fun, and had gorgeous views of turquoise waters, skyscrapers, and lush forest.  Sentosa Island, one end of the cable car system, is essentially a resort island.  It is absolutely pristine.  The famous Merlion, the main flair of Singapore, is actually on Sentosa Island, and can be seen from afar as you make your way by cable car to the island.  Universal Studios, as well as many resorts, spas, a zipline adventure course, beaches, and other attractions all lie within this small paradise island.  While we didn't stay on the island for long, we did get to see some fabulous parrots and the Merlion up close and personal :)

 

 What an adventure!  We loved Singapore and would do it again in a heartbeat.