Singapore

Just like that, our time in Singapore is over and we are flying overnight back to Port Moresby. Even though the haze was really bad and we couldn't get outside as much as we would have liked, it was still a great week. We only had one day when the haze cleared a little bit and the air quality moved out of the Unhealthy range and into the Moderate range. For most of the week, my nose thought it was back in Southern Ontario during ragweed season. Lots of sneezing and coughing for me.

Singapore is a city-state in Southeast Asia that started as a small Malaysian fishing village before it was colonized by the British in 1826. This year marks the 50th Anniversary of their independence from British rule in 1965. Singapore is 1° north of the equator so the climate is extremely hot and humid. It's a major financial centre and that is the biggest part of their economy. The population is around 5 million made up of 3 main ethnic groups; Chinese, Malaysian and Indian, so if you're a fan of Asian food like I am, it's a great city to eat in.

It's a city that feels very new because of all the modern office towers and hotels. There aren't many buildings left over from the colonial days, except a few hotels. This is the Raffles Hotel, where the Singapore Sling was invented and no we did not have one.

This is what a new hotel in Singapore looks like. It's the Marina Bay Sands.

There is an infinity pool with a bar on the portion that looks like a surfboard. You have to be a guest of the hotel to use the pool but you can get to the observation deck or have a drink in the bar. The view is supposed to be incredible but we didn't go up because the haze was so bad. Next time.

They have other attractions in the Marina Bay area. This is the Art Science museum and you can see the Singapore flyer in the background.

Not sure what the purpose of the painted hippos were, but they looked cute.

Like I said earlier, Singapore is a great city to eat in. Not only did we eat incredible Chinese and Indian food but we had Vietnamese, Spanish, German and some good old fashioned pub grub. Some of the best and cheapest food is found in the hawker centres. A hawker centre is like a food court and it's a way to control food stalls and street vendors. This is the Maxwell Road Hawker Centre.

We ate dishes from 3 different stalls and the grand total for both of us was $12. The food was simple street food but it was really good. The coolest thing was the banana fritter. It was essentially a battered and deep fried banana. So good.

Singapore is the head office for the Asia-Pacific region of Total, so Lori will be back here a couple of times a year while we are in Port Moresby. We will have lots of chances to do the things we missed this time.

We don't have any other trips planned until Christmas. We will be in Canada for Christmas for the first time since we left 3 years ago. I'm leaving Nov 20 and Lori will follow a few weeks later. We are looking forward to it.

db