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As is usual with a holiday, our final day consisted of travelling, shopping, and eating airline food. With me still taking antibiotics, there was of course no alcohol, but I was determined to enjoy our day at Changi Airport.
Checkout from the Furama Riverfront was at midday, but with Changi Airport being probably the best airport in the World, and our flight not leaving until 7pm, we decided to leave earlier. Changi has many facilities and experiences to enjoy, so because we had so much time to kill, we made the most of our opportunity. This is an airport that Singaporeans use all the time, even when not taking a flight. Every weekend the place fills with locals, just wanting to relax, shop and enjoy everything this amazing place has to offer.
The Furama was the ideal hotel for our stay and explore Singapore. It was centrally located and only a two-minute walk from the MRT station. This hotel was pretty dated in places, and the room certainly wasn't up to the high standards of the Aira Hotel in Bangkok, but it was superior in many respects. The bed was the best we had slept in; neither of us suffered with back problems here, unlike the two previous places. The room had a bath and shower and more importantly, the water was piping hot. Also, out of all the hotels we stayed in, The Furama served the best breakfast, with a huge choice of local and western cuisine on the buffet menu.
Unfortunately, the lifts were terrible, and I did find myself going up and down in them for ten or fifteen minutes at a time, as our electronic key card failed to register our floor. There were also a lot of children about, as it was school holidays, which didn't make for the most relaxing experience ever. Nevertheless, the pros outweighed the cons, and yes, I would stay at The Furama again for sure.It took half an hour to get to the airport, at a cost of S$30.00. On arrival, we checked in and dropped off our bags within twenty minutes. It was a dream navigating the modern, vast, terminal 3, and without our luggage we were free to roam as much as we pleased. The Singapore Airlines representative who helped us with our check in, directed us towards the famous Jewel, within this vast complex, and after a quick coffee at Starbucks we made our way there.
The Jewel consists of a large waterfall with vortex at the bottom, along with what I can only describe as an indoor rainforest, surrounded by a ginormous shopping centre and restaurants. Unless you actually go there yourself, you just have no idea how spectacular this venue is. The scenery is breathtaking and the waterfall awesome. I just stood there dumbfounded at how this place was even constructed — it was a site to behold.We spent a good hour at The Jewel, before navigating our way towards departures for a long five-hour wait for the flight. This wasn't too much of a problem for me, since there was so much to do. After a Burger King lunch, (not my idea, Darrell wanted something western before the long flight) we took the monorail to terminal 1 and 2, to take a look at the shops. There are of course a lot of stores, and surprisingly, most of them are competitively priced, unless of course, you are looking for designer bands.
I am definitely not a label person, and would rather waste my money on souvenirs, not expensive clothes and jewellery. If you want that experience, however, there are plenty of designer shops to choose from. Airports always promote rampant consumerism, so even I bought some Jean Paul Gaultier aftershave from the duty-free shop. That was it, mind you. After shopping for ten days in Asia, I was all shopped out. Darrell, however, was spending more money than ever, looking for various Asian toys and memorabilia to take home with him.
To be honest, I think we both love the Asian way of life. Part of the charm of holidaying in this part of the World, is the enjoyment of cultural experiences. Heritage and history aside, there are plenty of plastic toys, and kitsch retro memorabilia to enjoy as well. Society, customs, and traditions in this part of the World are so different to the west, that both of us are enthralled and captivated by its gentle, often juvenile nature. Even at 55 years old (nearly) I love Hello Kitty, manga and the almost strange vending machine culture that exists in abundance.
​Changi Airport is full to bursting with the most colourful, gaudy and childlike items and is a joy to walk around. Both of us did buy some of the tackiest items we could find, to add to our collection, but why wouldn't you. We are only in Asia once or twice a year, so bringing choice objects home is just part of the course.By the time 7 pm came, we were both particularly tired and ready for the four and a half hour flight home. We flew on an Airbus, unlike the Boeing that took us to Singapore twelve days before, and you could immediately tell the difference. There was noticeably less legroom and the whole experience felt cramped and stressful, compared to the first flight we arrived on.
With Darrell watching the inflight entertainment, I sat happily chatting with an Australian gentleman, living in Indonesia. His name was Cathcart and like me was very politically aware. We chatted contentedly for the duration of the flight, covering every topic, from politics, religion, travel and gay rights. Cathcart wasn't gay, but as a left wing, Green party activist, he was aware of the difficulties both Darrell and I had gone through over the years. He was knowledgeable, full of advice and made the flight a hell of a lot easier to deal with.
The flight itself was a little turbulent at times, and I did feel rather ill on occasion, as the plane jostled from side to side. Cathcart was also physically sick. This was unusual for him, since he was used to flying regularly, unlike me, but this is how bad the return journey home was. This was one of the worst flights I had ever been on, and I am thankful we arrived in once piece. Apart from that, I thoroughly enjoyed flying with Singapore Airlines, it was an almost perfect experience.
Our 30th Anniversary trip was exhausting. Once again, we saw things we could have only dreamt of before now. We visited new places in Bangkok, which is always a wonderful experience. Bangkok, of course, always remains my city destination of choice. It isn't as polished as Singapore, but it is far more down to earth, a bit gritty and always an enjoyable place to stay.
Thai people also remain the most welcoming in the World. Darrell and I have always enjoyed the hospitality in Thailand and just can't fault anything about the city or people who live there. If I had my way, I would move there at the drop of a hat, it gives me a warm feeling inside, and is perfect in every respect.
Singapore was a very different adventure. The cleanliness, organisation and polished exterior was a joy, and I did feel safe staying there. However, the city is full of designer shops and appears at times to only cater for the richest people in society. After staying there for four days, I had, had enough of the glitz and glamour and was ready to go home.
We did nevertheless fall in love with China Town. This historic quarter gave us a more authentic Asian experience. The people who live and work here were far more honest and approachable. Situated in the older part of the city, it was more characterful and attractive to look at, and thankfully there wasn't a designer shop in sight. This was the real part of Asia I wanted to see. You can keep the tall glass buildings, imposing skyscrapers and pristine streets.
I would of course return to Bangkok tomorrow, but I'm not too sure about Singapore. I would like to stay there again, for its sheer ease of stay. It is quick and easy to get to and only a short distance from the airport. The underground is uncrowded and very simple to use, and it makes for a very convenient location to stay. As a stopover it is perfect, staying beyond four days would, however, be pushing it a little, but as a short break, I would go back.
This was a holiday about reliving old experiences and remembering our 30 years together. Bangkok is my favourite city — Singapore Darrell's — this was the best of both worlds for us. It was an exhausting trip and as we look forward to our next holiday, our advancing years, dictate a more relaxed break, with far less travelling. No matter what we do in the future, we are grateful for the memories we made, the people we met and of course the quality time we had together. After our 30 years together, in our favourite part of the World, we couldn't have asked for a more enjoyable time!
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After flying 10000 km from the UK for the briefest of time, Justin was gone. It was lovely to see him, even if it was short, and it made me realise just how much I do miss home. From London, Justin is flying onwards to Spain, two back to back holidays in a two-week period. There would have been a time when I could have done that myself, but these days I would rather not!
Since leaving the UK in 2015, Justin has visited us in Spain and the far east, and he has always been a tremendous source of support. Don't get me wrong, we have had our ups and downs in life, but we have always been there for each other. I have said this many times before and will say it again, I do have the deepest respect for Justin and for all he has achieved in life. His successful career is a tenotomy to his hard work over the years. Both of us have had periods of inactivity, but we have got through the worst life can throw our way and have become the success we both are today — well him more than me, but who's counting.
I am of course sad to see him go, but life goes on and we both have our own lives to lead. I'm sure we will all see one another again in some other part of the World, until then we have the memories to take with us on our journey!
With Justin safely on his way to London, Darrell and I spent a relaxing last full day in Singapore. We made our way to our favourite part of this great city, China Town, where we browsed around the many stalls and shops, buying yet more stuff to take home with us. We, we do have a 30 kg limit each, so why not fill it.
Darrell and I have a lot of collectables from our travels all over the World, sadly most of them now lost, as we moved countries three times over the years. In some respects, I think I collect stuff, because of the items I lost over our 30 years together. The nature of our relationship is such, that we have never stayed in one place too long. Consequently, we haven't been able to establish ourselves in one place long enough, to accumulate the things most people have built up over many generations. Having said that, I am giving it a good go now though. I do love things around me, it does make me feel somewhat secure in my surroundings. Australia is still, even today, unfamiliar to me, so I am doing all I can to settle into my new home; buying items on our travels helps create memories and connections with our recent past — important when you are building a new life!China Town is such a down to earth place and despite not loving Singapore as much as I would have liked, I do adore this area. I am not a pretentious old Queen, who loves designer brands — I like a bargain, something cheap and cheerful that lifts my mood. China Town offers bargains galore in a relaxed setting away from the super rich side of Singaporean life. Yes there is a lot of money, in this low tax ex British colony, but there is also the normal side of life, with people doing their best to survive in this harsh money making environment.
Having said that, there is a harder sell culture in this area. With money tight, street vendors do fight for every customer, which does make it very difficult to relax and browse, without being hassled to buy something. I am pretty easy to give in and buy anything, whereas Darrell isn't. He will walk away, I generally won't.
After China Town, we made our way towards the city centre, where we stumbled across a huge hawker centre on Cross Street. Now why is it, you always find the best place to eat on your last day. This vast centre is full of different stalls serving a cosmopolitan array of food, from all over the World. The smells as you enter this place are unbelievable and really does play with your senses. This large building is impressive, and I just wish we had found it earlier.
The prices here are also unbelievably cheap. On our first night, we had a meal on Marina Bay, which cost about S$200 for two of us. It was nothing out of the ordinary, although the food was good, but I mistakenly assumed that this would be the price we would pay throughout our brief stay. However, in this popular hawker centre, we paid S$17.00, yes S$17.00 Singaporean dollars for two of us. Now that is impressive, and the food tasted great as well.
If we do return to Singapore in the future, this will be a first port of call for us, as we navigate the World's most expensive country. For all my criticisms of Singapore, the hawker centres and China Town make up for the overpriced, designer, pretentious side of this place, which I absolutely hate.
Tomorrow we leave for Australia and the end of another interesting few weeks in Asia. As is usual with me, it hasn't turned out in the way I would have hoped. After getting another infection, I have had to adjust my itinerary to cope with my change in circumstances. Nevertheless, I have been delighted to do all I have done and hope to learn from the mistakes I made, returning to this special part of the World in the future!
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With only a few days left of our trip to Asia, Darrell and I decided to take it easy and avoid the more tourist areas of Singapore. Instead, we decided to go shopping along Orchard Road, where I had heard there were many British shops and goods to choose from.
Now I haven't actually been back in Britain for over three years now, so imagine my excitement, finding Marks and Spencer, in this rather plush district of Singapore. This used to be my go-to, feel good shop, when I lived in the UK. The food was always a family favourite, and I was so happy to stumble across this most British of all British shops, in the middle of Asia. Darrell and I bought a few choice reminders of our UK past, and it was delightful, just walking around, reliving some old memories.
Sadly, Australia doesn't have M&S, although I am able to order online. Even then, you cannot get food, and the homewares section is pretty limited. When you are living abroad, far away from your country of birth, it gives you a warm feeling inside, when you come across shops you've grown up with since childhood.
Of course, this isn't a reason to fly to Singapore alone and even though I could pick up an M&S Mountain Bar and a packet of Percy Pigs, I still don't like this country that much. Singapore has not been the destination I expected, and I won't be sad to leave here on Thursday.
The prices at Marks & Spencer, Singapore, are pretty high as you can see from the photo's below. With a bag of potatoes approaching $10 a bag, this wouldn't be a place I would shop at too often, even if I did live here. This expat staple is in Singapore to cater for the large, wealthy ex-pat community that reside here and for that reason, you can understand why it was so busy. There is a huge British/western population living and working in the country; you can see it as you walk around the Orchard Road area. It would certainly be an impressive place to be located, especially if you had the money. Certainly not a place for me to stay long term — Bangkok is more my thing!Just around the corner from Orchard Road, I did manage to find a Fair Price Supermarket. Now I remembered from my reading on Singapore, that this is where you can buy Marmite, so I took a chance and wondered in to have a look. This distinctly western style supermarket had a lot of British products on the shelves, so I expected to find one in the international food section. Low and behold, after ten minutes of searching, I found one. For S$7.70, I picked up a large jar of the black stuff, to take home as an unusual souvenir. The price here was also a little cheaper than Coles or Woolies in Australia, which just goes to show how much we are ripped off down under!
For lunch, in keeping with our British themed day, we managed to find a Pizza Express. This is a place I haven't eaten in, for over ten years — the last time I lived in Southampton. It was always a restaurant I enjoyed going to, especially drinking a large pint of Peroni, with a pizza or pasta dish. This time, however, there was no Peroni, because of the antibiotics I am currently taking; so I made do with a Coke Zero instead.
The food was OK, not like the Pizza Express I remember, but it was tasty enough and not overly pricey!At a cost of S$105 for the two of us, I was pretty impressed. This probably would have cost far more in the UK, and I remember paying a lot more than that ten years ago. Back in the 2000s, Darrell and I used to frequent Pizza Express several times a week. This was always a favourite of ours, especially with our love of Italy. Although not as authentic as eating a pizza in Rome, this restaurant chain offered a pretty close experience in a setting that we loved.
After lunch, we spent a few hours shopping in the beautifully air-conditioned malls. Now, here's my final moan of the blog today: I am fed up with the high-end designer shops in every mall. There are literally no normal shops, that don't involve taking out a second mortgage. Everything in Singapore is expensive, aimed at the super rich. Normal, average Singaporeans and tourists, like me, can't afford thousands of dollars.
The Malls themselves are magnificently designed, and a cool retreat from the heat of the day, but even here you can't escape the expensive nature of these places. There is very little seating for older people like me to sit down and rest, and after another, 20000 steps, I do need to take the weight off my lallies occasionally. The shopping centres want you to spend money, not sit and recuperate from the heat outside.
​I find Singapore rather pretentious. There isn't much to do here, if you are a peasant like me, and I find the people rather rude and entitled. As stunning as this country is, it lacks character, kindness, and a soul. I would never return here in the future, it just isn't for me! This may well seem harsh to you, but having stayed all over this region, there are far better countries to explore. I am glad I visited, but could never see me returning again — We are all different after all!
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The Singapore MRT is unlike anything I have seen before. Apart from anything else, the platforms, stations, and trains were virtually empty, as we made our way to Marina Sands. The system its self is orderly, exceptionally clean and above all safe. There is one aspect of it I find particularly strange, and it is the lack of advertising. In any other public transport system across the World, you will see posters on every wall and train - in Singapore, none! There is no advertising whatsoever; I don't know if that is part of the Singaporean culture, but the walls of the MRT system are empty, and it makes for a very dystopian and eerie feel.Our first stop was Marina Bay Sands and the Merlion. Now, so far I haven't been particularly impressed by Singapore. It isn't my usual destination of choice and I do find it just a little boring, for want of a better word. Bangkok is the complete opposite of this place. It is manic, disorganised, and full of history, heritage, and people — lots and lots of people. In Singapore, the streets are empty; perfectly sanitised, but completely empty.
This isn't what I expected of Singapore — I really thought it would be busier than this. It was a bit of a culture shock going from Thailand to here, and Singapore appears to be completely different to any other South East Asian country we have visited. I don't dislike it, I am just finding it rather difficult to adjust to!
Marina Bay Sands did look impressive if I am honest, but in the end it was just another large modern building in a sea of other modern buildings. I sound a little downbeat about Singapore, don't I? But it does get more positive throughout the day, I promise, and it is somewhere to tick off my bucket list. It was possibly an anti climax coming here after Bangkok; If we had done it the other way around, it may well have been different!
Photo opportunities over, we walked along the front and headed into the city, where we had a quick coffee before heading to China Town!
China Town was my sort of place. It was colourful, vibrant, and full of life. This is what city life should be about and a thoroughly enjoyed walking around the streets, markets, and shops in this popular area of Singapore. Where the city was quiet, China Town was heaving with people and tourists, and it's easy to see why.
Singapore is such an expensive place, that the sad reality is, it only caters for the rich and more affluent members of society. This is especially the case in the CBD itself, where there are mainly high-end designer shops. China Town offers an alternative vision of the city and even though prices are still relatively high, by Asian standards, bargains can still be found.
Darrell and I bought a lot of stuff, but then we always do on holiday. I have been wanting to buy a small jade pendant for a long time and found one for S$160. It wasn't cheap, but it was perfect and certified real Jade. You certainly get what you pay for.
The market stalls also has their fair share of tat, which I absolutely love. The more kitsch and retro the better, and in China Town there was plenty to choose from. S$800 later, I was completely shopped out and ready for some lunch!
Darrell wanted McDonald's, but I persuaded him to stay in China Town, where we had authentic Chinese food from a small family run restaurant. We had plenty to eat and drink for the reasonable price of S$75. I am actually enjoying Chinese food over here. It is unlike the western style food you get back in Australia and has a real depth of taste. I think Darrell has had enough of it, however, demanding a western food day today. All good, I can't completely eat Chinese food every day myself, and I did spy a Pizza Express, while walking around the city after my trip to hospital a few days ago!
Finally, we made our way to Gardens by the Bay, a destination I have wanted to see for years. This amazing structure was out of this world, with the backdrop of Marina Bay Sands Hotel behind. The gardens have other attractions, but in the heat of the day, neither of us wanted to explore too much. Instead, we had a bite to eat, ice cream and refreshments before the light show at 7.45pm in the evening.
There was great anticipation as we were waiting for the light show to start. Thousands of people had by now arrived, setting up their cameras for what is advertised as the best light show in the World. To be honest, I never expected it to be as good as it was.
At 7.45, the lights in the park dimmed and the spectacular display of light and music began. I was absolutely awe struck by the whole event and judging by the gasps from the audience, they were also. It's not often I can say I am overwhelmed by something, but on this occasion I was. The light show hasn't changed my views on Singapore, as an overrated destination for the rich, but it has allowed me to look at it in a more positive light. It is worth coming to Singapore to see China Town and the light show alone. Leave the rich to do their thing in the fancy air-conditioned malls, and instead, explore the more down to earth places like us. We are all different, and as hard as it is for me to admit, Singapore does have something for everyone, whoever you are, you just have to look hard to find it!
