Singapore Part 2

Finally getting items
mailed after Nepal and
India did not work out

Today I finally got to the post office and mailed the items I’d been carrying around since Nepal. It was clean and efficient as expected for Singapore. I was surprised that the stamps were ones that you lick not peel n press, so they must have chosen this to reduce trash or some other good reason. The post office was a short but hot walk from my hotel and I found myself envying the people I saw who were wise enough to have these sun umbrellas. Not a lot of people had them, but I managed to get a picture of four of them when they passed near each other (see pic).

Post Office in Singapore

It was quite hot out and these four ladies had the right idea

On the ferry to Pulau Ubin

Then I decided to check out Pualu Ubin, an island with wetlands. It's what Singapore used to be like before all the big buildings and modern stuff came in. You take all little boat over and then you rent a bike to ride out to the wetlands. There was no good way to the ferry terminal using public transport so I took a Grab car. Then I followed the signs downstairs where a man kept count of all the passengers. When we got to 12, we boarded the boat and left. It was an old wooden boat, but it got us there just fine. Once on the island, I didn’t see the bike rentals right away, but I finally spotted them up the road to the right. Reviews had said to avoid the first company (#18) so I went with a different one, #25.

Getting off the ferry was a little tricky as it moved in the water

Nice welcome sign as we enter Pulau Ubin island

View down the street to the right as you walk onto Pulau Ubin

Bike Rental Lady 25

Butterfly at Pulau Ubin

I pedaled along and it was so much fun just riding the bike! I hadn’t done any exercising since Nepal and that was painful exercise so it was really enjoyable to exercise with no pain. When you get to the wetlands area, there's a nice walk over the water and through some mangroves. There is also a tower you can climb to a platform where you get a nice view out over the water. On the way back I encountered several monkeys and a couple wild boar. They were right on the road in front of me so I stopped the bike and watched them awhile. The monkeys didn’t mind me or the boars but when a boar got too close they vocalized their displeasure and the boar toddled off in another direction, his nose on the ground searching for food. One boar seemed curious about me. He kept looking up at me as he zigzagged closer, but his fear won out at the end and he followed his friend along a wide arc around me through the woods.

Nice view part way up the tower in Pulau Ubin

Wild boar getting a little too close to the monkeys

Friendly farewell sign on Pulau Ubin

Monkeys and wold boar:

Delicious pork adobo that I inhaled

From there I took a taxi back to Lucky plaza and was able to get my Filipino food at Kabayan. I didn't think I was that hungry but I devoured that pork adobo and rice in about 30 seconds! It was so good! Then I got another drink from the boba tea place outside Lucky Plaza. This time I got a peaches and cream drink that was basically a peach slushie with vanilla ice cream and lychee at the bottom. The peach and vanilla mixed so perfectly it was incredible. I think I need to put ice cream in all of my drinks!

Great Filipino food at Kabayan

Kabayan Filipino Restaurant in Singapore in Lucky Plaza

Peaches and Cream is a peach smoothie with ice cream and lychee cubes which I would gladly eat every day if I could

Late night Supper food center that I went to
with Sherilyn and Jake

Earlier that day I had texted Jake and Sherilyn who I had met at the Oslob whale shark swim, to ask about Pulau Ubin. They wanted to meet up and I realized I should have texted them when I first got there, not my very last full day. They asked if I was free for supper, which I was. Then they said that would be after 10pm since they had dinner plans. What? Food is so good in Singapore that they add an extra meal, supper, between 10pm-2am. Cool! And perfect for my late night tendencies. They picked me up around 10pm and took me to great late night food center. Parking was hard to find and they were careful not to park in unauthorized spaces (though we need to be careful here too). I made a comment that in Singapore everyone likes to follow rules and Jake countered saying everyone like to look for loopholes!

Getting supper with Jake and Sherilyn

My late night supper was delicious as expected
in Singapore

We waited in line and I looked at the options. You just tell them what you want or pick a preset platter. Since I didn’t know the names of anything I just pointed to a platter that had everything I wanted and had them add an egg on top. It was a busy place with several ladies behind the counter shifting around each other filling orders. Mine had shrimp wontons, rice with an egg on top, and a bunch of other things. It was really good! I think Jake was disappointed that I avoided everything spicy. I found out that Sherilyn works as stewardess at Singapore Airlines! What a great job, getting to fly around to different places. I showed her the pictures I took of the stewardesses on my plane and one of them is a friend of hers! She also explained why Nepal Airlines looked like they had 3 different uniforms: some airlines wear aprons when serving food so without the aprons there were only two uniforms

Late night food options

The ladies filling everyones orders

Ferrari at Shangri-La
for a Monday wedding

In Singapore people have to pay heavy fees to get a car. Sherilyn and Jake’s “regular” car cost $100k to buy and get licensed. Of course I later took a look at their “regular” car and it is a BMW sedan, my dream car when I was in college! Worse yet, after 10 years the government takes their car and destroys it…you can’t even sell it to a less fortunate country like the US. I can’t even imagine how much the fancier cars cost like the McLaren I saw or the Ferrari that was parked outside my ritzy hotel. However, while they tax the heck out of luxuries, they also supplement housing and there is a lot of public housing available to meet the needs of all citizens (rentals for lower income or elderly and 99-year leases for finanically secure citizens).

Lamborghini at Shangri-La

Jake and Sherilyn took me to their secret view of Singapore. It is an amazing view of the city, including some of the main neighborhoods and even the Marina Bay Sands with its iconic boat observation deck that spans across all three towers. And its from a high floor of a public housing building! I have no idea which one so their secret is safe with me.

The very best view of Singapore from Jake and Sherilyns secret place

The next morning I had my last massage, this time a one hour relaxing massage since I was still a little tender from my last deep one. The facilities were still fantastic, but the massage (different person) was not as good. Again, my main complaint was that she did the strokes too fast for the depth of the pressure, which was more uncomfortable than relaxing.

Clear Windows in Money

At check out, they had not given me the $100 credit for the second stay, so the guy helping me needed to ask someone else. The other guy said in reply to his question "can" and showed him how to make the adjustment. I had heard people say that to me here and in other countries, but I always thought it was a form of broken English. I love that they use “can” just as one word by itself. It just seems so positive and enabling, like an embodiment of the little engine that could. I also love their money with the little clear window and the fact that it is crease resistant. If you try to fold it, it will unfold (see video). It is probably stain resistant too.

Singapore money

Crease resistant money:

The Jewel waterfall with me

I grabbed a Grab to the airport. The Jewel at Changi Airport had its waterfall operating so I admired it and took a few pictures before checking in and going to the airport lounge to await my overnight flight to Fiji.

The Jewel in Singapores Changi Airport

Singapores efficient automated immigration line

Buffet at Airport Lounge

Casino Robot that rolled around with free drinks

The last place Marilyn had recommended, Lau Pa Sat, was a place we had gone to last time so I felt okay that I did not get to it. The following are all pictures from my first trip here 2 years ago that really should be included as must-see sights of Singapore. We did a lot our first trip here including a visit to see the Merlion fountain and take pictures “drinking” from the fountain and a boat sightseeing trip. We were able to watch the nightly laser show that projects onto fountain sprays then from there we walked up and across to the Gardens by the Bay light show. The “gardens” of Singapore are giant LED trees that light up to music with two shows a night though apparently there are also actual plants there as well. Of course I also had to check out their casino, which is free to enter for foreigners, but locals must pay $100 to enter just to discourage them from coming in. Inside there are 4 stories of tables around the sides and one gigantic ground floor filled with more gaming tables. A cool robot wanders around offering free drinks including some delicious orange juice.

Me drinking from Merlion fountain

Laser light show on fountain spray

Laser light show 2

Sands hotel towers

Giant metal and electric trees in Gardens by the Bay

Gardens by the Bay light show with giant lit trees and lit eggs in a lake

Sands Casino ground floor

Sands Casino