April 2
Singapore
Breakfast as usual at the Sidewalk. There was no queue at the drinks stall, so I sampled a local coffee - kopi - which was thick and sweet. Quite unlike the coffee that I normally drink but I rather enjoyed it.
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Laksa was the main dish, a whole $4 and with lots of oysters in it. I hope that won't prove to be a mistake! Feeling the need for some fruit, I bought a piece of pineapple for $1. Excellent.
The plan to go up the Marina Sands at 09.30 went out of the window as I remembered that I had to do my on-line check-in for the flight from Singapore to Hong Kong at 10.10. I stayed in the café writing post cards and watching proceedings. One of the stalls had a huge delivery of ingredients. Many of the vegetables were pre-prepared in plastic bags. More UK than Singapore.
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Over the road is the Armenian Church of St Gregory, a beautiful building. Unfortunately, it was closed at this hour, so I had to content myself with a tour of the churchyard, looking at the statues and the amazing trees. I went inside a few years ago and it was a haven of peace in the bustle of the city. |
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Back at the hotel, I completed my on-line check-in without difficulty and left again to set off on the train, a slightly difficult process as the Circle Line, just like its alter ego in London, isn't actually a circle. I emerged at Bayfront Station, straight into the bowels of the Marina Bay Sands hotel. This place is amazing. Even the corridors ooze money.
I found my way to the ticket desk, was warned that I could only go onto the observation area, about 15% of "the boat" which sits on top of the three towers which, themselves, were modelled on playing cards leaning against each other.
The remainder of the area is restricted to hotel guests, a rather well heeled bunch. There was no queue so I bought a ticket and entered the lift.
We rose 56 floors in about 30 seconds with absolutely no feeling of motion. Quite amazing. The views from on top surpass description. I hope the photos do them justice.
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I wandered around taking photos of buildings that I have admired from beneath. This time I was looking down on all of them. Even St Andrews Cathedral could be seen in all of its glory.
After about half an hour of enthralment, I took the lift back down to earth, got lost in the hotel and its vast atrium and decided to return to the station in order to find my way from there.
The Gardens by the Bay, like the hotel, almost defy description. The best that I can come up with is Kew Gardens crossed with the set from Avatar and all on steroids.
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Natural wonders grow alongside man made ones and all in the hottest weather since I arrived in Singapore. The artificial trees are part of the power generation system and the authorities go to great lengths to emphasise the environmental aspects of the park.
I decided to forgo the high level walkway - far too scary - and the two covered plant houses, which could wait until after lunch.
Around the edge of the gardens, alongside the bay, is Satay by the Bay, an upmarket hawker centre.
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I perused the options and decided on green beans with deep fried baby squid. The latter, somewhat unnervingly, had the texture and flavour of pork scratchings. The food wasn’t particularly cheap by Singaporean standards but it was very interesting.
Thinking that I was running out of cash, I ordered some more from an ATM and then remembered that I had put some in my phone case. I may have to change some into Hong Kong dollars at the airport.
Having gone into ecstasies about this morning's activities, I have to do the same about this afternoon's. The two cooled houses are quite amazing, very similar to those at the Eden Project in Cornwall. My research suggests that the Cloud Forest here is about half the size of the Rainforest Biome in Cornwall. This one replicates the high mountain tropical forests found in tropical mountain regions between 1,000 metres and 3,000 metres above sea level, in South-East Asia, Middle- and South America. The Flower Dome, at 1.2 hectares is twice the size of the Mediterranean Biome, and displays a similar climate and flora.
Once inside the Cloud Forest, everything becomes slightly damp. There are machines blowing cold damp air and water vapour all over the place. There are flowers everywhere. Running down from the top of the 35 metre mountain is a huge waterfall.
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A lift takes you up seven floors from where you walk gradually downwards. I took dozens of photos in the hope that some will be decent. At basement level, is a display on environmental change and global warming. Very hi tech, it explains all the possibilities and makes me very glad that I'm an old man with not many years to go.
The second enclosure has a Mediterranean climate. More flowers together with oranges, olives and grapes. Above all there are loads of cacti. This isn't as exciting as the Cloud House but is well worth seeing. Visiting the two houses costs £15, which s pretty good value for nearly two hours of entertainment.
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The route back to the station goes past a couple of exciting bridges and another of the refurbished pianos.
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It then passes through the gigantic shopping mall attached to the Marina Bay Sands hotel. This not only contains very expensive shops and restaurants but also an ice rink (I have seen one of them in a Hong Kong shopping mall) and a Venetian style canal, complete with boats full of people being rowed about in the full gaze of dozens of fascinated people.
I caught a train, made straight to the Sidewalk and wrapped myself round a gratifyingly cold Tiger.
With a smart dinner in prospect, I changed into some smartish clothes, even wearing the tidy shoes that I had carried half round the world but never worn. Being a Saturday night, it was busy outside. I walked in the direction of the restaurant, taking photos as I went.
Chijmes is an old seminary converted some years ago into an entertainment complex. Increasingly, the shops have closed and it is now almost exclusively a food and drink centre. Many of the older architectural details have now been enclosed in glass and plastic. A shame. There are still some parts of great beauty, including the old church.I located the restaurant, where I had originally planned to have a cookery course, on the first (they call it the second) floor, climbed the stairs and announced myself. It was a very elegant place, not what I have been used to on this trip. |
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The food had wonderful flavours but the presentation was woeful. I think the problem was that the menu was designed as a series of tasting plates, to be shared amongst a number of people. As a result, the food was piled high onto small plates, which did nothing for its appearance. After three small courses, I felt surprisingly full, a sure sign of good food. It had been a mixture of styles, including Turkish and Malay. I'm not sure where the avocado ice cream fitted into the gastronomic world.
I asked for the bill and the maitre'd came up and said that he had just heard the saga of my cancelled cookery course. In recognition of this he said that they should give me a free dinner. Whist that was an attractive proposition, I felt that it would be unjust and suggested they we split the bill 50:50. A nice gesture by the restaurant. It has to be said that even 50% of the bill was more than all of the other meals that I ate in Singapore.
I walked home through the new theatre mall, which is rather splendid. It even has a craft beer bar but the prices would make anyone take the pledge and there didn't seem to be any local beer. I thought about a kopi at the Sidewalk but it was very busy to I returned to my room.