Looking Back: 6 Days of Surreal Adventure in Then Singapore (Day 1-4)
'Welcome to Singapore'
- Captain Sao Feng (Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End)
From the sizzling, mouth-watering foods in Newton to the ever-lively shop-lined Orchard Road, Singapore always has something to offer its visitors, and it has always been a major getaway destination for many Southeast Asian travelers, including those from one of its neighboring countries, Indonesia.
We may have to agree that more and more Indonesians are getting hooked on this country, which houses the iconic and picturesque Marina Bay Sands. Either for spending our hard-earned money, meeting relatives, or even for a more serious purpose like getting medical treatment, we, Indonesians, always have a reason to visit this bijou, self-reliant country, or city-state to be more accurate.
For some Jakartans, it doesn’t necessarily have to be during a long holiday for them to drop by the recurrently visited, yet cliched Universal Studio or shop at the extravagant Takashimaya complex. Many would casually come and visit Singapore at weekends to have a brief escape from their daily monotony — you read that right: arrive Saturday and leave Sunday. Gosh... I can’t understand these people. I mean come on! Why would you need two days if u could just go there in the morning, grab some uncle ice cream, double your money at the casino in the afternoon, have your lunch at your favorite hawker stall, take a dip in the infinity pool until the sun sets, have your dinner at one of the most luxurious restaurants in the Marina Bay Sands complex, and finally return home by catching the 11 pm flight? All in one freakin day! Sarcasm aside, it is just mesmerizing how such a small country can captivate so many people all around the globe with its own charm and peculiarity.
In July 2013, I got the chance to visit this magnificent city-state and stayed there for 6 days. While most people think that a couple of days are enough “to do” Singapore, I believe that even months are still not enough to fully explore the cities.
DAY 1 - ARRIVAL
Arriving at 9.30 pm, we began the journey from the well-known, action-packed, the best airport in the world, Changi International Airport. This airport is the real deal. It has a cinema, a gaming station, swimming pools, a giant slide for kids, copious beautiful gardens, a giant waterfall, reclining chairs, and many other facilities that are too many to be reeled off one by one, but more importantly, it has McDonald's. Now I know what you think, but hold that thought for later. You will see how Mcdonald's saved our asses ― twice.
First of all, upon arrival, as soon as the others got their luggage, without delay they made a slipshod move, which explains why from that long list of attractions above only the last did we get the chance to experience. I was still waiting at the baggage carousel for my luggage, and before I could even get my luggage, I saw those three simpletons—yep my fams—not knowing anything about the airport, walk out of the inner rest area. For those who have no idea, the inner/ transit rest area is where all the magic happens. Hence, if any of you plan on spending a night at Changi, do not go outside the inner area! I repeat, do not go outside the inner/ transit area!
Anyway, there we went! We were outside, it was 11 pm, we were too cheap to go to a hotel, and we still had to wait for someone who would eventually arrive at 10.00 am the following day. So what did we do? That’s right! McDonald's! At first, we were kind of abashed to think of the idea of spending the night there. However, that thought got blown away when we saw many unfortunate others, who probably did the same loopy move, having the same zany idea as ours. First meal in Singapore? BigMac!
Day 1 Expense
BigMac $2
DAY 2 – THE SINGAPORE FLYER
Although some of us did actually manage to rest our eyes after gobbling down some BigMac, I gotta say my mind was alert all night long. At around 6, while the two others decided to get another BigMac for their morning snack later, Lil sis and I finally decided to look for a proper breakfast. After scrambling around through the airport, with such limited choices early in the morning, our choice fell on a Vegetarian Indian restaurant, called Ananda Bhavan.
Lil sis ordered the classic Roti Prata set for herself and a massive Masala Dosai for me. The prata came with two different dipping sauces, one being spicy and another being mild. The batter was both flaky and crunchy, and inside the curry, there was some generous amount of vegetables. The masala, however, was something else. Considering myself as a big eater, it was quite a shock that I almost couldn’t finish this giant triangular meal. The masala came with one tiny bowl of daal and chutney. Personally, despite how tasty they were, I would say it was quite pricy for two meals. Still, it was way better than having another french fries and BigMac.
Done with our business, we rushed to the MRT station, bought our EZ link cards, and were off to our hostel in Geylang.
The plan for this day was to get to the often-forgotten symbol of the city, The Singapore Flyer. As soon as we finished our lunch, we hopped onto one of the city buses and hopped off at a bus stop close to the Millenia Walk mall. Nothing much to see here, really, except for a couple of cafes, restaurants, boutiques, and your everyday housewares shops. The mall, however, has a unique architecture designed by Pritzker Architecture Prize-winning architect, Philip Johnson.
Having waited for the sun to ease off, we walked all the way to the Singapore flyer. From quite a distance, the slowly moving giant Ferris wheel was already visible to us. Once there, we went to the City Tours booth to show them our online booking of the 1 Day Hopper Pass + Singapore Flyer combo deal. The package provided us with an unlimited ride on open-top buses, a free boat tour from Clark Quay cruising across the Singapore River, and an unforgettable “flight” on the flyer itself, and with just 30$ for this complete set, it was a considerably good deal. The bus brought us past the newly rebuilt Gardens by the Bay, Marina Bay Sands, and Chinatown before stopping at Clark Quay to join the cruise.
The cruise took us along the Singapore river, occasionally making a brief stop whenever there was an interesting view. After around 30 minutes, we could finally get a good look at the long-celebrated icon of the country, the Merlion, before our very eyes. At the pier, flocked by hundreds of tourists, there it stood mightily at 8.6 meters tall, relentlessly spouting jets of water into the Marina Bay.
Done with the river cruise, off we went to the Flyer via the Helix Bridge. Thanks to its unique design the bridge is so conspicuously noticeable even from far away. At the Singapore Flyer, the entrance leading to the flyer itself served as a mini art exhibition. It was dark and full of glimmering light that came from laser and neon projectors.
And finally.... the main event!
The view was brilliantly breathtaking! From the zenith, we could see the MBS and the Garden by The Bay. When peering down at the towering skyscrapers, the bustling traffic, and the open water from above, I couldn’t help but ponder on how big this city-state actually is and what other cool things it would offer in the upcoming days.
The day, however, hadn’t ended yet. We were almost at our wit’s end looking for the correct bus that could take us back to, well, any bus station close to our hotel. We tried asking every bus driver (they spoke Mandarin!) that stopped by the station using the best hand gestures and of course the majestic google translate – to no avail. After two failed attempts at trying to communicate with two bus drivers, at long last, we knew which bus we had to take. All thanks to a lady that helped us ask the next bus driver that came.
On our way back, we picked up some cheap chicken rice at a small stall near the hotel for dinner at only 2.5$ each. Although the food was tasty, it was not anything special, yet the generous portion was more than enough to please my empty stomach. And that was a wrap for day 2!!
Day 2 Expense
Masala Dosai $4.50 and Prata Set $9
Chicken Noodle $2
Chicken Rice $2.5
EZ Link Card $15
1 Day Hopper Pass + Flyer Combo Deal 30$
DAY 3 – JURONG BIRD PARK
The agenda for the day was Jurong Bird Park. That day we had to move to our new lodgings at the Lucky Plaza Apartment in Orchard. And so we did without further ado so early in the morning. Instead of taking the MRT, this time Lil sis and I decided to take the local bus and got off at the Orchard bus stop while my mom and bro had the liberty of taking a taxi - a little bit unfair I’d say.
After we had secured our new lodgings, we immediately took the MRT to the Jurong Station, which is connected to the Jurong Mall, from the basement of which we hopped on a bus that took us straight to the Bird Park.
It was a later past two that we arrived at Jurong Bird Park, so the heat was pretty unbearable back then. We then took a quick shot and got in right away after we had bought the tickets. The ticket to the park costs 26SGD per person. Apparently, we missed the eagle show that had started at 1 pm. Make sure you come before 1 whenever you are visiting Jurong Bird Park so that you can enjoy the attractions it has to offer to the fullest.
The eagle shows aside, the park still has tons to offer to the visitors. We were particularly mesmerized by the gigantic aviary in the middle of the park that housed hundreds if not thousands of exotic species of birds with colorful plumage. While some were kept in their respective houses, some were seen roaming the aviary freely, such as a peacock and an agile small bird that looks like a chicken on a beauty pageant. There were also a Breeding & Research Centre where you can see how the hatchlings are taken care of and witness the egg hatching process, a Penguin Coast where you can meet adorable cute penguins, and a dimly lighted area called “World of Darkness”, and as the name suggests, it houses some interesting nocturnal birds, such as the owl and its variants.
Other exotic birds you may encounter here include cockatoos, toucans (my favorites!), bald eagles, flamingos, and pelicans, which managed to fly out of their exhibit, surprised by my bro’s sneezing (LOL) – I wonder whether we just helped them escape.
We soon found ourselves back at the Jurong station where we had some cheap yet fulfilling chicken rice for dinner before taking the MRT back to Orchard. To get from the Bird Park back to the Jurong Mall you just need to take a bus from the bus stop across the park. It was pretty easy and fast. And that’s that - the third day of our short adventure!
Day 3 Expenses
Rice with side dishes $2.5
Chicken Rice $1
Jurong Bird Park Fee $26
Snacks and drinks $2
DAY 4 - SENTOSA ISLAND
Exploring Singapore for the first time will never be complete without a visit to the ever-popular Sentosa Island, on which the ever more popular Universal Studio Singapore lies. To begin our journey we headed to Vivo city by MRT. Vivo City is the largest shopping mall in Singapore and is in the southernmost part of the Singapore main island that serves as the terminal of the Sentosa Express monorail. The station is located on the 3rd floor just adjacent to the food court. The single-day Sentosa Pass, which costs 4SGD, allows unlimited rides on the Sentosa Express and an entry to the island. You can just come back and forth to the island provided that it is still within a day.
The first thing we did upon our arrival on the island is to pose in front of the Universal Globe of Universal Studio (LOL) It is probably one of the most iconic pictures you could ever take when visiting Singapore, with or without an actual entry to the theme park itself. Next time for sure!
Done pampering our narcissism, our next destination on the island was the gigantic 37 meter-tall replica of the Merlion, the Sentosa Merlion – almost 2 times bigger than its mainland counterpart. Inside there are two viewing galleries that allow you to have a clear vantage of the Sentosa island with a small fee and a souvenir shop.
We, however, didn’t get to both since our time was really limited, and we opted for the Tiger Sky Tower to get a full vantage of the island instead as it provides you with a 360 degree viewing angle of the island. The view was, as you’d expect, superb! The large disc-shaped viewing cabin slowly rotates as it goes up to the top, giving you a clear view of not only the island but also Singapore itself. When the sky is clear parts of Malaysia and Indonesia can also be visible to the naked eyes
Since it can be really sultry at noon, make sure you stay hydrated. As for us, if I remember correctly, we spent almost 30SGD throughout the entirety of our day on Sentosa just for drinks! The heat was intense, man! Anyhow, we made sure not to miss one of Sentosa’s most thrilling attractions: the Luge! It’s like a gigantic track slide on which we make our way down on a unique machine-less, moped-like ride that will take you straight to the beach area. Sadly, since my mom is that of the faint-hearted, it was with deep regret that we had to opt for the alternative, which was the Skyride. It wasn’t that bad though. It was more of a chairlift that took us down to the beach area, from which we could get aerial views of the beaches and the Luge track below us, filled with laughter and excitement (I'm not complaining ok!). Well, we took it easy from there.
While waiting for the main attraction, the Songs of the Sea, for which we came to Sentosa, we spent most of our time relaxing at one of Sentosa’s many beaches, the Siloso beach. The beach was sandy white, lined with sundry shops. The view from the beach itself, however, wasn’t anything special, as it was filled with oil tankers and house-sized ships that were blocking the horizon. Nevertheless, it was such a relaxing spot to just chill and enjoy the vibes.
Our main attraction, the Songs of the Sea, wouldn’t start until 7 pm, so for the time being we took a brisk walk around the area, played briefly at a random playground near the beach, and dashed in and out from one souvenir shop to another. The show itself is a water-based performance with a simple plot supported with cutting-edge neon technologies and other spectacles, which together brought such a deep impression on us. Truly recommended and worth the wait!
With that, our little adventure on Sentosa had finally ended, and so we took the Sentosa Express back to Vivo City, from which we took the MRT back to the Orchard station and on to our lodgings. Quite honestly I have no recollections of what foods we had during our trip to Sentosa (LOL). All I can recall is that I had carrot cake as my dinner at the food court in ION Orchard.
Day 4 Expenses
Sentosa Entrance $4
Lunch: around $5
Tiger Sky Tower $12
Songs of the Sea $10
Carrot Cake $5.5
Since it would be too long to include our fifth day and last day in Singapore, I have broken it down into two parts! Be sure to check out the next post where the adventure continues...