Hello Asia

Location: Singapore
Weather: Humid and warm 24 hours a day

Well, the flight to Singapore was much shorter than I expected and quite pleasant, except they cut short the film The Terminal with Tom Hanks that I was just getting into.

Upon landing at Singapore airport, I got a shuttle taxi to the Orchard Road YMCA - I was recommended this place and it is pretty good, despite it being more like a hotel than a hostel - no kitchen or laundry, not too good for a backpacker.

Anyways, I've now been here for over a week. Many folk say Singapore is boring and 'sterile', because everything is so clean and tidy and safe and hygenic (presumably some people prefer crime, grime, vandalism and salmonella type environmens). Personally my observation is that Singapore's atmosphere isn't what I'd describe as exciting, like Hong Kong. But there is plenty to do/see though. Highlights :

The Fountain of Wealth at the giant Suntec Plaza - Singapore has numerous giant shopping malls called Plazas - but Suntec is the biggest and has a lucky fountain of wealth. You can touch the water and it is said to bring wealth! At night they put on a laser & light show and this is the first thing that impressed me here. A load of kids were also dancing to the music, which was pretty cool.

The Night Safari - this was really excellent - probably my favourite thing of all. It's a zoo you visit at night, you ride on a tram to see the animals and walk on some paths by foot. You get to see Lions, rhinos, tigers, giraffes, wild pigs, otters and exotic creatures like the fishing cat and the slow lorris that are only active at night. They also have an enclosure you can walk around where bats are flying about and flying squirrels leap around the trees as you stroll around - it was crazy, never seen anything it.

Singapore Zoo - next to the night safari there is an excellent zoo where the animals are kept separated by moats of water rather than cages. Spent a whole day there.

Santosa - an island just off Singapore, connected by a fantastic cable car ride. Nice beaches, including one with the furthest point south on continental Asia, a military fort museum and an excellent laser + fountains show at night. Also has a giant Merlion (the symbol of Singapore) statue that offers truly great views from the top - a really nice place indeed.

Me & A Monkey On Santosa

Sipping a Singapore Sling at the Long Bar in Raffle's Hotel - what! what! what!

I've enjoyed my time in Singapore, a lot more here than I was led to believe, food is very good and cheap as (about 2quid for a full chicken curry + rice + pompodom meal). I plan to go to Melaka in Malaysia tomorrow. This is on my way to Bangkok, where I have to purchase a ticket home. I've a good mind to fly instead, as I visited Johor Bahru just over the causeway border yesterday and wasn't impressed with that dump of a place at all, being conned by some taxi driver almost immediately (ok this was entirely my own fault and it was only for about 3.50 pounds) didn't heighten my initial Malaysian experience.

Note: must be a record, first time this blog has been up to date for months!

By JamesReed on 15.01.05 @ 02:33 PM GMT