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Other entries in Singapore

If Willamina Slater can, so can I !!!!

We crossed the Malay/Singapore border without any problems. The paranoid might like to note that in Singapore, it is an offense even to have any drug metabolites in your system, even if they were consumed outside Singapore. Hippie types may expect a little extra attention from Customs, but getting a shave and a haircut is no longer a condition for entry.... so that was a great relief!

Singapore is a fine city because heavy fines are levied if one is caught committing an offense eg. jay-walking, spitting, littering, and drinking and eating on public transport. Enforcement is however seems sporadic at best, and it is a common sight to see locals openly litter, spit, smoke in non-smoking zones, etc. Chewing gum, famously long banned, is now available at pharmacies for medical purposes (e.g. nicotine gum) if you ask for it directly, you have to show your ID and sign the register. (Importing it is, theoretically, still an offense though.)

Shopping is second only to eating as a national pastime in Singapore. Singapore's nightlife is amazing and very expensive, with superclub Zouk in particular regularly clocking high on lists of the world's best nightclubs - St James Power Station and Ministry of Sound give party animals even more reason to dance the night away. Singapore's nightlife is largely concentrated along the three Quays — Boat, Clarke and Robertson — of the Riverside plus nearby Mohammed Sultan Road.

A visit to the Night Safari was a great experience, it has to be the first safari where you can creep around the dark and spy on the tigers, hippos, giraffes, and numerous four-legged surprises which were carefully lit by just enough light for us to see and for them to think it's still night time. So, instead of wondering around a normal zoo in the day time and watching weary creatures snoozing in the corner, the night time safari shows the animals up close and personal. There is a faux-spooky feeling that the animals could pounce on you at anytime.... sometimes you wonder who's really being watched!

The Clinic bar was a surreal place to hang out, with it's wheel chairs as table side seating it's a place where you really have to think out of the box and it does take you on a new high, it's the place to go if you're 'dying for a drink'! You could question whether using gold-painted wheelchairs instead of normal seating, shortened hospital beds on wheels as sofas, operating-theatre lights, and serving drinks from “blood bags” hanging from hospital-like intravenous drips, as well as vodka-filled syringes, is in good taste. Waiters and waitresses dressed in T-shirts that show X-rays of skeletons deliver drinks – which also include rum served in baby bottles – between tables separated by surgical-style screens, while dance music thuds in the background. Sex on the drip cocktails containing vodka, rum, blue Curaçao, peach and raspberry syrup, and orange and pineapple juice and also 'Morphine X' are served in a blood bag on a drip stand and cost £16.50.

On my last day in Singapore I headed towards Underwater World for a spot of fish reflexology. At Fish Reflexology, I got to enjoy a unique pedicure session done by spa fish, followed by a good massage by a qualified foot reflexologist. Skeptics, no need to fret, this form of spa therapy has its origins in the Middle East, where the Turkish Garra rufa species of fish, native to hot springs, lakes and river basins, are used for the treatment of psoriasis. For a spa treatment with a difference, it felt alien to have fish nibble dead skin off my feet. I had a choice between "gentle" Turkish fish and "aggressive" African ones: neither caused damage, but the African ones were pretty ticklish and I would recommend this treatment to anyone..... if Willamina Slater, one of the highflyers in the US TV series of Ugly Betty, can have it so can I!

After the fish reflexology my feet felt baby soft and smooth, as I wondered around the artificial beaches of Sentosa Island, almost as if walking on air. Returning back to mainland Singapore I headed for Raffles Hotel, an oasis of calm in the midst of the hustle and bustle of city life. Afternoon tea and scones at the Raffles Tiffin Rooms is a real treat if you're into that sort of thing, so instead I spent the afternoon at Raffles Long Bar knocking back their world famous 'Singapore Sling'. The Long Bar is home of the Singapore Sling, the earthy decor is inspired by Malayan plantations in the 1920s.... as you walk through the monkey nut shells covering the entire bar floor, the tradition is to eat monkey nuts and throw the shells on the floor!

Singapore is a microcosm of Asia, populated by Chinese, Malays, Indians and a large group of workers and expatriates from all across the globe. Singapore has a partly deserved reputation for sterile predictability that has earned it snickering descriptions like William Gibson's "Disneyland with the death penalty" or the "world's only shopping mall with a seat in the United Nations". Nevertheless, the Switzerland of Asia is for many a welcome respite from the poverty, chaos, and crime of much of the Asian mainland, and if you scratch below the squeaky clean surface you'll find more than meets the eye.

Useful Information for Travelers:

The Royal Peacock. Keong Saik Road, Singapore 089158. Tel: (65) 6223 3522. www.royalpeacockhotel.com. There is nothing royal about this hotel apart from the lobby area, most of the rooms have no windows but it's ok for the budget traveler.

Royal Plaza on Scott. 25 Scotts Road, Singapore 228220. Tel: (65) 6737 7966. www.royalplaza.com. A great hotel just off Orchard Road, good location for shopaholics.

Raffles Hotel. 1 Beach Road, Singapore 189673. Tel: (65) 6337 1886. www.raffles.co. www.raffleshotel.com. Raffles Hotel stands as a jewel in the crown of Singapore's hospitality industry, renowned and loved for its inimitable style and unsurpassed excellence in service and facilities and is home to the world famous 'Singapore Sling' $23 SGD/$16 USD/£8 GBP. No visit to Singapore is complete without the cool and austere serenity of Raffles Hotel.

The Original Singapore Walks. The walking tours are provided by Journeys Ptc Ltd. www.singaporewalks.com. Pick up their brochure which tells you how to have a fantastically good time on $25 SGD. The Original Singapore Walks operate on a simple principle: to bring people into places most others don't - graveyards, smoke houses, haunted houses, wet markets, gun batteries, funeral shops, archaeological sites etc. Their guides are a rather eclectic bunch, i'm sure you would absolutely adore if you met them in normal life.

Fish Reflexology. Underwater World Singapore Pte Ltd. 80 Siloso Road, Sentosa Island, Singapore 098969. Tel: (65) 6275 0030. Foot reflexology with a difference! The Underwater World at Sentosa serves up massage and reflexology sessions, and with the help of our aquatic friends, no less. Submerge your feet in a warm pool and Turkish or African spa fish proceed to nibble at areas of dead skin. This novel exfoliation process is followed by a foot massage by a qualified foot reflexologist. A 20-minute spa fish pool dip and 20-minute foot reflexology costs $35 SGD/$24 USD/£12 GBP. Fish Reflexology at Sentosa is just 40 minutes away from the city center by MRT and Monorail. The cheapest way is in to take the North-East MRT to HarbourFront and then find your way to Level 3 of Vivocity, where you'll find the Sentosa Express monorail to the island. The train operates every 5-8 minutes from 7 AM to 11:45 PM daily, and an all-day ticket costs $3 (island admission included). You can also take the cable car if you want to arrive next century!

Night Safari. 80 Mandai Lake Road, Singapore 729826. Tel: (65) 6269 3411. www.nightsafari.com.sg. With over 900 nocturnal animals of 130 species inhabiting 40 hectares of dense secondary forest, Night Safari is the world's first wildlife park with a night view. Open daily 6.00pm - midnight. Better viewing when not raining! $20 SGD or $30 if travelling on park hopper.

Clinic. Blk 3c, The Cannery, River Valley Road, 01-03 Clarke Quay, Singapore 179022. Tel: (65) 6887 3733. Set in an expansive 15,000 sq ft of space within The Cannery itself, Thw Clinic is a labyrinth of pill-shaped rooms, all linked to one another. The place is split into two floors. From the entrance on the ground floor, you’ll journey through al fresco bars, lounge rooms, dance club and merchandise shop—all done up in medic-chic. Hospital whites, colourful pills, syringes, drips, test-tubes and paraphernalia in all manner of the clinical, are a tribute to the tongue-in-cheek pop art of Damien Hirst. In fact, 15 of Hirst's original artwork are displayed throughout The Clinic. And a stunning LED wall enhances the stark, edgy vibe.

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