The Ham Nomads

2 Aug 2019. <SG> Singapore —

First task for the day — to go to the post office (just round the corner) and send off a batch of postcards.

Then we made our acquaintance with the MRT — Mass Rapid Transit, their Metro. Three comments …

1. new (the first part of it opened only in 1987!)
2. efficient
3. air-conditioned — very welcome in hot and humid Singapore!

(The dotted lines are in the planning stages, and the Circle Line will be completed.
The grey 'butterfly wings' are LRT (light rail) connecting out to dormitory suburbs.)

We bought a 3-day tourist card each, which gave us unlimited access — great value! — probably the fastest way to zip around the city. The extensive rail network means that most of Singapore’s key attractions are within walking distance of an MRT station.

We took the MRT out to the Singapore Botanic Gardens, one of the most visited sites in the city. They were buzzing! We walked round the Eco-Lake, passed the Children's garden, went through the Ethnobotany Garden, explored the rain forest area, then went down to the Visitor Area for morning coffee before continuing on to the National Orchid Garden, the main attraction within the Botanic Gardens, houses the largest orchid collection of 1,200 species and 2,000 hybrids.

Our time at the Botanic Garden was running out, so we walked down past the Symphony Lake, an artificial lake, featuring the large Shaw Foundation Symphony Stage built on an islet and surrounded by water. It is here that the Singapore Symphony Orchestra's monthly SSO in the Park open-air concerts take place.

We made our way to the MRT, and took the train to the Little India MRT station, where we got out to explore one of the ethnic districts of Singapore, Little India (two others are Chinatown and Arab Street, but decided against visiting these two because our time was limited, and because we had visited similar areas in Xi'an). Little India has streets full of little shops, with numerous goldsmiths, Indian sari shops and Indian restaurants, especially along Serangoon Road and Race Course Road, and in the Little India Arcade. And we couldn't visit this area without dropping into the Tekka Centre, Singapore's largest indoor 'wet' market, selling an incredible array of produce and rare ingredients, and also a large collection of small food stalls where you can get almost any kind of Singaporean or Indian fare — and it was here that we had lunch, amidst crowds of Chinese and Indian diners. It really gave us a feel of what it must be like in the crowded streets of Mumbai!

Also in this area are a couple of famous Hindu Temples. We went up to the Sri Veeramakaliamman Temple, one of Singapore’s oldest Hindu temples, and a distinctive landmark in the heart of Little India. It was closed at the time, so we could only look at it from the outside, before we returned to the MRT and made our way to Marina Bay.

It was here that we took the cable car across to Sentosa Island, a playground area for Singaporeans and tourists alike. We went down past Madame Tussaud's and a photographer taking happy snaps of people with his Macaws, down to the Merlion Plaza. The place was full of people just having a good time! The large (37-metre) cement Merlion here is a larger copy of the one (8.6-metre) installed at Merlion Park on the edge of Marina Bay (which we will visit on Sunday, the day we fly out).

We also took advantage of being in Merlion Plaza to take a trip on the free Sentosa Express (the monorail) down to the Sentosa Boardwalk and back.

We then got on the MRT again, and went round to the Bayfront station, where we got off and walked over, via the Dragonfly Bridge, to the Gardens by the Bay. This area is dominated by the overlooking Marina Bay Sands Hotel, a major landmark in Singapore! (We will be visiting its viewing platform tomorrow.) The main reason for this expedition is to take in the Garden Rhapsody Show, an entrancing light-and-music show that brings the Supertree Grove to life each evening at 7:75 and 8:45pm. Worth the effort. The Supertrees are 18 huge (25 to 50 metres tall) steel tree-like structures which provide shade during the day and a canvas for the light show at night. 12 of the 'trees' are grouped in the Supertree Grove, and there are two smaller groups of three near the Flower Dome (which we visit tomorrow) and the Golden Garden. Here is a link to film of the show as it was in March of this year — the music has changed since then!

After having our minds blown away by this amazing light show, we returned to the MRT and made our way back to the hotel for the night.