Supertrees, Satay, and Singapore Mode
I possibly got up at 4.30 am this morning and when I wanted to check out at 5.30 at the front desk, I found no one there and there’s also no response after I asked for help. OK, so early in the morning it makes sense, but what I am going to do now? Just when I was hanging around inside the main hall, I noticed a man sleeping on the sofa getting up, so I asked for him to help me check out (sorry to interrupting your sleep). I was worried that in this early morning there would be no Grab driver but luckily a driver came to pick me up to the airport. The road was pretty empty and well-lit by roadside lamps, so the ride was very smooth though we nearly didn’t chat at all.
I arrived at the airport so early that no restaurant was open and check-in was not started yet. I ate chocolate cookies as my breakfast on a chair waiting for the check-in to begin. The check-in process was similar to what I experienced in KLIA except that I was asked to show my departure flight ticket from Singapore. One new achievement I unlocked was that I was the first one to board the plane! Our plane was also the first to take off in the airport on the day! I sat next to two girls from London and they gave me a chocolate which was so good! The plane was so empty that the girl next to me went to the row in front of me and lied down there. OMG!
OK, enough for the boring recount. Upon arrival at the airport, I connected to the airport WIFI and ordered my last Grab ride in my entire trip (because it’s so expensive and Singapore has an excellent public transport network). The driver helped me get acquainted with some basis of Singapore, like languages spoken, streets I lived, how to use public transport and so on. The first difference I encountered in Singapore was that Grab ride was required to be paid by cash while in Malaysia the expense was automatically deducted from the account. I quickly settled down in my tiny little room, bought the EZ Link public transport card in 7-11 nearby and took a bus (which was a double-decker bus, commonly seen in Singapore) using the card, where I encountered another challenge – I didn’t know how to take a bus. I randomly asked a passenger on the bus who was very friendly and helpful and explained to me how to tap in and tap out using the card, and recommended me to use CityMapper instead of Google Maps in Singapore, which turned out to be a very useful advice because Google Maps was very inaccurate in Singapore. After alighting the bus, I went straight to Penisula Plaza and it took me a while to find out where Simba Store was located, since it was hidden behind a money changer. Here I bought my Sim Card and was glad be connected to the Internet.
When I was taking a photo of the money exchange rate at the money changer near the sim card store, as I usually did in Malaysia, I was told by the stallholder that it was not allowed. Then I realized I needed to switch from Malaysia mode to Singapore mode because there were a lot of differences between these two countries. For example, I noticed that crossing the road randomly was more strictly regulated in Singapore and nearly all the pedestrians would wait until the light turned green to pass the zebra’s crossing, which were technically not zebra’s strips as in Malaysia and China but two dotted lines enclosing an area for pedestrians to walk across. Also, at crossroad, sometimes there’s no pedestrian’s crossing to the opposite side and to obey the traffic rule, I needed to cross the road 3 times or make a long detour to go to overpass or underpass to get there, which was a little bit annoying to me at the first time but as I gradually understood the way that Singapore builds its country, I actually quite respected the strict rules imposed to residents and people are willing to follow them for the greater good of the country.
My first meal was at True Breakfast, a Taiwanese Café, where a local elderly couple filled me with stories regarding the history of Singapore and how their family migrated to Singapore after learning that it was my first day in Singapore. Though I didn’t quite understand what they said (My English listening should really be improved!), it’s so nice of them to tell their background stories to a stranger who was still struggling to adapt to the new life!
My first meal in the Café was its signature – a toast with different variety of meat and sauces. It tasted so good but was also quite expensive compared with the meal I had in Malaysia, especially due to the stronger Singapore dollars. After purchasing a large bottle of pure drinking water at a budget store for only 1 dollar (the plastic bottle of which were used for my entire stay in Singapore!), I decided to go to Gardens by the Bay. On my way there, I walked into National Gallery Singapore and happened to know that it would be International Museum Day the next day during which the entry would be free (What a good timing!), so I decided to come here the next day.
Walking along Helix Bridge to cross Marina Bay to Marina Bay Sands, I was greeted by a series of visually appealing architecture along the way - ArtScience Museum, like a big white lotus budding under the sun, Singapore Flyer, a spectacular Ferris wheel, and Marina Bay Sands Hotel, like a huge ship supported by three magnificent and curved columns. At the end of the bridge was the entry of the Shoppes at Marina Bay sands, an air-conditioned upscale shopping mall, which provided a perfect escape from heat at the midst of the day. The interior design of the shopping mall was very eye-catching and impressive with glittering lights, reflected walls and an indoor canal! I followed the instructions to Gardens by the Bay but it took me a long walk to get there, during which I could see the iconic Merlion from the opposite side of the bay on person for the first time.
Gardens by the Bay is the perfect realization of the concept of “City in the Gardens” of Singaporean government, with various visually stunning artificial constructions surrounded by a large garden with different varieties of flora and fauna. Accompanied by the clear and blue sky and the soft and fluffy clouds, it’s like a heaven for naturalists who can be fully immersed in the greenery forgetting every trouble of the life.
During my visit, the excruciating heat in the afternoon made me sweaty and uncomfortable, so I decided to go to the two indoor conservatories equipped with AC after taking in the greenery by a peaceful DragonFly Lake (possibly due to there are 2 dragonfly statues in the lake?) in the garden.
The first conservatory I went was Flower Dome, housing exhibitions of plants around the globe, dotted by some interesting status. Aside from learning about these plants, I didn’t know what I could do inside because I didn’t have the intent to take any beautiful photo here. The AC inside was also so over-compensated that I felt cold even I put on my light jacket. When I left Flower Dome at 6.30 pm, the heat had faded so it’s actually pretty enjoyable to wander around the garden at this point. Since the lush garden is free to access, a decent number of locals walked, jogged or cycled along the waterfront against the backdrop of the pink sunset, creating a relaxing and chilled atmosphere, which I quite enjoyed. I had my dinner at Satay by the Bay, a hawker center, which was very crowded and filled by smog from the grilled Satay sticks. The prices of food were more affordable compared with the restaurants in the area but still quite expensive compared with Malaysia. The food I tasted was Fried Hokkien Mee, featuring succulent prawns and thick yellow noodles bathed in a savory broth enriched with the essence of sea food.
After dinner, I visited Cloud Forest, another conservatory near Flower dome and was greeted by a huge vertical man-mand waterfall upon entry. The conservatory was immersed in a mysterious mist and featured a walkway from the dome to the ground. I was not particularly excited about these artificial scenery after admiring the magnificent natural landscape in Langkawi, and rushed to go down along the walkway since it’s going to be closed, so it’s a very overwhelming attraction to me especially considering that it’s frequently featured in the must-visit place of interest in Singapore.
On my way the nearest bus stop back to my room, I seemed to come across the two London girls next to me on the plane, which made me realize that how small Singapore is!
