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Other entries in Singapore

The Silence of the Frogs

Flights to Singapore are very long. Very, very long. We had an 8 hour flight to Tokyo Narita, during which we watched "Miracle" and "Agent Cody Banks 2". Then a 4-hour layover, during which we bought our "Youthful 18 Passes" to use when we come back through Japan, and also during which we ate tasty Udon Soup for very cheap. Then we had a 6 or 7 hour flight to Singapore – watching "Miracle" once again. :( Not that it's not a good movie, but come on…

We arrive about 1am Singapore time. Changi Airport is spotless (as is the rest of Singapore), at about the same time as an Emirates Airlines flight. Their flight attendants are incredibly stylish, with tan pantsuits, red hats, and white hajibs (I'm sure there's a more correct way to pluralize hajib…).

We take a taxi with a chatty driver to our hotel – New 7th Storey. Apparently, it used to be a very hip hotel amongst 1950s Brits and 1990s traders. Then the Asian market crashed, and now it's just hip amongst budget travelers like ourselves. The hotel is unusual, in that it sits on a block of its own, while every other block around it is crammed with skyscrapers.

Having ganked some walking tours from another hostel's website, we set out the next morning to the train station to check our bags at left luggage, since we're leaving on the 10pm train to Kuala Lumpur. The train station in Singapore is technically in Malaysia – they retained ownership of the land and the tracks when Singapore became a separate country. The left luggage counter turns out to be some kid and a cleaning supply closet. But, hey, that works. We take our cardboard receipt, and head to Chinatown.

First stop is a Buddhist temple, the first of many places of worship we'll encounter on our trip. We then decide we need water, or we'll die, and head to a 7-Eleven. We go to a small bakery, and have fried shrimp rolls and BBQ pork buns for breakfast. Then we go to the Chinatown market. A true Chinese market it is as well – fish heads, turtles, squid, and skinned frogs (yes, still alive, an image that will forever haunt my dreams…).

A few more (not as interesting) stops, then we head to the Fullerton Hotel. The Hotel used to be the post office, I think; now, it's a 6 star resort right on the river. Very plush! We use the underground walkway to go see the Merlion Statue. The Merlion is Singapore's national symbol; a fish with a lion's head. This one is huge and spits water into the river. The breeze through the spray makes it a great place to stand for a bit.

Next, we go to the Asian Civilizations Museum, which is brand new and very high tech. Since we're short on time, we take the 1-hour tour. The museum covers every aspect of Asia, from the Middle East to Japan. Our docent is from Ontario, Canada, and bases the tour on her studies of a Chinese trader sent by the 3rd Emperor to establish contacts with other countries – the only time before the present that China had really been open to outsiders. We wish we could stay longer, because there's so much to look at here…

A quick walk-by the Parliament Building and Supreme Court. Then we stop in to Funan Mall to see if we can check email. Let me first say, the malls we've seen so far put US malls to shame. Funan Mall, in particular, is 5 stories tall, and dedicated solely to computers and computer accessories. Nothing else. We encounter several such gigantic malls.

We then head to Little India and the Mustafa Centre (a huge mall that has a lot in common with a market – displays crammed full with gold watches, electronics, you name it). Very crowded. Then we head to the Sri Veeramakaliamman temple, the oldest Hindu temple in Singapore. Some sort of rite is going on, so we don't stay long.

By this time, we're thinking dinner. So, we go to Little Arabia. Next door to the Sultan Mosque is a quite delicious restaurant. What it lacks in ambiance, it more than makes up for in food quality. We have the murtabak and chicken marsala. Really, really tasty. And incredibly cheap. While we're there, the Mosque does its Call to Prayer, which is just lovely.

Now we have to fill time. We take the MRT subway to Boat Quay, and go to an Irish pub. The bars seem to cater to the Western crowd (mainly Aussies), so pub it is. Beer is incredibly expensive – we paid about $7 for each pint.

Okay, so time to head to the train station. The station isn't near an MRT stop, so we try to hail a cab. And then we try some more. At least 30 cabs go by, and still no luck. Every single cab is hired. After getting very frustrated, I finally grab one, and we head to the train station to clear Malaysian immigration.

The train is nice, but extremely bumpy. We take 2nd class to Johor Bahru, Malaysia, and then switch to our 1st class sleeper to KL. By buying the sleeper tickets in Malaysia instead of S'pore, we save about $50 (because, for some unknown reason, the price is the same, but in S'pore you pay in Singapore dollars and in Malaysia, you pay in ringgit). Good thinking on Evan's part, as he figured this out before we left the US and bought e-tickets then.

Final thoughts: Singapore is really nice and really clean. Mainly because the citizens are taxed out the wazoo if they litter, or have the appearance of being capable of littering (e.g., no food on the subway). English is the official language, so it's easy to get around. Lots of westerners live and work there (due to banking and oil). We agree that Singapore is very liveable.

Tomorrow: KL

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