I've just put the last load of washing on, made myself a cup of coffee, have the air-conditioning turned right up so i can put a jersey on. It's pouring with rain outside and with the tint on our windows, I've managed to convince myself that its cool outside and that being cosily snuggled up on my bed is the best place to be at the moment. Who said you can't create your own reality??
I've been massaging my shins with Deep Heat since yesterday afternoon - we completely exhausted ourselves this weekend and my legs are finally saying that they need a break! The Titanic Exhibition at the Art Science Museum on Friday evening was fantastic - they've created true to size areas of the ship so that you can get a sense of what it was like on board. The famous wooden staircase and the "Leo and Kate" moment on the bow of the ship are the designated 'photo shoot' spots but I decided it's not so much fun posing by yourself...
The artifacts were really impressive with beautifully written personal stories about some of the passengers. On entry you receive a 'boarding pass' with the name of a real passenger and their details. At the end of the exhibition you find out whether you (your designated passenger) survived or not. I found it quite haunting actually, I'm not ashamed to admit that I even shed a tear or two during the 2 hours I spent in that beautiful museum. I met up with Nick and some of his colleagues for a quick drink afterwards. I was very jealous as on of his colleagues was going to see Shakespeare's Richard III with Kevin Spacey playing the lead at Singapore's Repertory Theatre! We however, had the privilege of meeting up with other real live actors at the Marina Bay Sands Hotel, namely Alan Lane and the rest of the Slung Low company members. Such a treat to see Alan and sent home with him back to Leeds big kisses to my lovely friend Luce. Alan and Luce will be back in Singapore in May to do some work so we'll get to catch up with them properly then. Very exciting! Ruhann Du Plessis was also in town so we met up with him too.
The view from the top of the Marina Bay Sands Hotel is magnificent! We were spoilt to be sharing the evening with friends but even more so with the magnificently clear night which meant we could see for miles. You can literally see Malaysia and the surrounding islands from up there - its incredible! Unfortunately my little camera doesn't take such great shots but Ruhann had his larny camera and he's promised to send me the pics. We ended the evening with dinner at the food centre across the road from Raffles Quay and managed to get the last bus home.
Nick and I had been toying with the idea of going to Sentosa Island the whole week and we decided that Saturday was the perfect day to go! We got up early, headed to Vivo City where the Express Train to Sentosa leaves from and made our way onto the island. We paid a hefty $69 dollars each for a 'Full Day Pass' and headed onto the train. Little did we know that it costs you only $3 to get onto the island and you can pay for the rides/activities that you want to go on without a 'full day pass'. BUT you live and you learn and we decided to get our money's worth and participate fully! 
This resulted in some fun 4D simulation movies; hiring bikes and getting drenched in the rain; a trip up to the head of the Merlion, 
the half lion half fish mythical symbol of Singapore who is said to bestow good luck upon you; a ride of the Tiger Sky Tower which is Singapore's tallest observatory tower which rotates to give you 360 views of the surrounding area; entry into the butterfly and insect park; and a couple of other theme-park highlights for all ages and sizes! 
Of course, the highlight of our day was the 2 hours we spent at Fort Siloso which is Singapore's only preserved coastal fort that is home to the nation's largest collection of World War II memorabilia. I had forgotten that Singapore was so badly bombed in WWII and Nick and my high school history came flooding back to us as we read about young British soldiers arriving off a ship in Singapore and observing their recreated living quarters and daily activities. Ruhann came to join us at around 4pm and we headed to Siloso 
Beach for some sand between our toes and a sun downer. The beaches are magnificent and again we felt like we were really on holiday with bikini clad volley-ball players running past us and Ibiza style restaurants and night clubs starting to come alive with the setting sun. We joked about the party we'd be up for if we were 20 rather than 30 and then reminded ourselves that we probably wouldn't be able to afford 'the party' if we were 20. 
We said our goodbyes to Ruhann and headed home with the bag of droewors and Christmas pudding that Vics had sent with him and he had loyally carried around the whole day in his back-pack.
This resulted in some fun 4D simulation movies; hiring bikes and getting drenched in the rain; a trip up to the head of the Merlion, 
the half lion half fish mythical symbol of Singapore who is said to bestow good luck upon you; a ride of the Tiger Sky Tower which is Singapore's tallest observatory tower which rotates to give you 360 views of the surrounding area; entry into the butterfly and insect park; and a couple of other theme-park highlights for all ages and sizes! 
Of course, the highlight of our day was the 2 hours we spent at Fort Siloso which is Singapore's only preserved coastal fort that is home to the nation's largest collection of World War II memorabilia. I had forgotten that Singapore was so badly bombed in WWII and Nick and my high school history came flooding back to us as we read about young British soldiers arriving off a ship in Singapore and observing their recreated living quarters and daily activities. Ruhann came to join us at around 4pm and we headed to Siloso 
Beach for some sand between our toes and a sun downer. The beaches are magnificent and again we felt like we were really on holiday with bikini clad volley-ball players running past us and Ibiza style restaurants and night clubs starting to come alive with the setting sun. We joked about the party we'd be up for if we were 20 rather than 30 and then reminded ourselves that we probably wouldn't be able to afford 'the party' if we were 20. 
We said our goodbyes to Ruhann and headed home with the bag of droewors and Christmas pudding that Vics had sent with him and he had loyally carried around the whole day in his back-pack. 
Sunday's are for chilling! Nick's been keen to go and check out this 6 story electronics mall so we decided to head in that direction and left the house at midday after only waking up at around 10am! OH MY GOODNESS! Even as a non-techie I was in awe! I have never seen so many gadgets and gizmo's in my entire life! We spent about 2 hours window shopping and making lists of all the things we intend to buy before we go back to SA. Due to my aching shins, we decided to have a coffee break and indulged in some DELICIOUS treats at an unassuming spot called Coffee Corner. The carrot cake was to die for! It was raining cats and dogs outside when we decided to head home so we dashed in to Raffles City to get a couple of groceries before heading home on the train. A piece of fresh salmon is becoming our favourite Sunday night dinner and I made a nice big salad which was just what the doctor ordered!
Today marks 3 weeks that we have been here - I can't believe it! What are we missing the most about home so far? Our dogs and our cars. Although the public transport is more than impressive and super efficient, when you are tired and want to go home the last thing you want to do is stand on the side of the road, wait for a bus and then get on a train!
What are we most enjoying about Singapore so far? Its' cleanliness, efficiency and the fact that you can come and go without worrying about putting the house alarm on, locking the house and stressing that there might be unwanted visitors on your property when you get home.
Sounds like you guys are having an absolutely
ReplyDelete"other" world experience! You are really making me jealous of all the amazing sights and sounds you are experiencing!