When we were researching flights from New Zealand to Thailand, we came up with many 33-hour travel options. This wasn't ideal so when we found a flight that allowed us to stay the night in Singapore and have a few hours to explore the city before flying out late afternoon, we booked it. It turned out to be perfect!
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| Yup - 3 buildings with a boat-like structure across their tops - harbourfront WOW! |
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| Gardens by the Bay |
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| Gardens by the Bay - water features - checkout these lilies! |
Our 10 1/2 hour flight (the longest of the trip so far...beat Newark to Honolulu by 30 minutes) was the best one yet. Singapore Airlines was fantastic - good service, good food and good entertainment.
We took the local train system to our hotel. All signs were in English and it was relatively easy to figure it out. Like Japan, the trains were very clean with signs describing the hefty fines one would get for eating, drinking or smoking.
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| MTR transit - lots of English |
We stayed in a budget boutique hotel that was tiny but clean...just as described online. After a good night's sleep, we woke early (given the 5 hour time change between NZ and Singapore), ready to explore.
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| Our budget hotel :) |
We grabbed a taxi and our driver recommended his favourite Whampoa Hawker Food Hall to grab a Singaporean breakfast. Mike visited Singapore as a child and enjoyed reliving some memories that the smells and tastes brought back.
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| Neat, tidy and orderly |
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| Some of the eats we enjoyed at 7am |
After breakfast, we grabbed another cab and headed down to Gardens of the Bay- some of the world's nicest outdoor gardens. It was 7am on a Saturday morning so it was quiet. There were few tourists but many locals jogging through the large variety of gardens.
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| These are all lit up at night... live towers... a smoke stack is hidden in each one |
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| Tree stump throne for Parker |
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| Cool modern art in the gardens |
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| A lizard in the gardens - one of many |
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| Gardens by the Bay - Downtown Ferris wheel - Chelsea is getting really strong! |
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| Clean & pretty Singapore! |
It was a sunny, hot and humid day so the kids voted to go directly to the airport without exploring any further. We had some time to wander the massive Jewel Mall attached to the airport- upscale and expensive.
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| Biggest meringue ever! |
Singapore was a great stop to break up the flight. It was clean and just as expensive as predicted...and the rumours are true - chewing gum is illegal in Singapore!!!
The irony of your staying in a hotel called Fragrance does not escape notice!
ReplyDeleteWhen you step out of your plane in Thailand you will really feel heat and humidity such that in hindsight, Singapore's climate will seem fairly temperate. Enjoy!!