Travelling Trio

Singapore – blew the budget big time!

• By Denise
• August 27, 2015
• 3 Comments

No problems with leaving Bali on the 18th of August and we arrived in Singapore to a hot, humid 33 degrees. Something we were getting used to in Bali but not that hot! Very sticky hot.

You might remember my last post saying we were not booking accommodation until we knew we were definitely leaving – well we booked accommodation last minute on the 18th when we knew we were going.  Taxis are very cheap in Singapore so we hopped into one and off to our hotel. However, we were in for a shock because unbeknown to us we had booked a budget hotel right smack in the middle of the Red Light District in Geylang.. Yep, that’ll teach us for booking last minute and trying to grab a real bargain. Our room was on the 7th floor and thankfully the air-con worked fine. But the room was small and dusty so not well looked after. Anyhow – we decided that as we were not going to be in the room for much of the time it would be ok and we would put up with it. We did not tell Carter at this point of the actual ‘location’ of the hotel.

It was Carter’s mission to purchase a selfie-stick (something that just didn’t quite happen in Bali) so off to the two places our good friend Marc suggested. The Funan centre and the Lucky Plaza. We were in wonder with all of the high-rise buildings and were amazed at just how clean and green looking the city is. Both Dave and I immediately liked the city. After a lot of walking in and out of the many Plazas we found a shop which was going to give Carter exactly what he needed. A selfie-stick with a Go-Pro remote, stand and other goodies. Carter’s words – he was a good salesman – cause all I went in for was the selfie stick! Lots to learn ay. But – Carter was good with his bargaining as he was able to negotiate a good deal for himself – after all – the payment was coming out of some of the proceeds of his hard earned Egg Selling Business back in Cust.

Food – well where to start – there is jut soooooo much choice. Everywhere you look there is a food station of some sort – whether it be local fare, western, indonesian, chinese – whatever you fancy. Chicken rice is a famous local dish and it is scrummy. Quite plain looking but has a really nice subtle taste – especially good to get you into the Singaporean style of eating. The food is extremely cheap and we were surprised to see that you can get a full meal for SG$5 or less if you wanted. A couple of great night spots we came across were Lau Pas Sat (pronounced Lo Pasa) which is a bustling food court with hundreds and hundreds of people coming and going. Marc had suggested another option too and that was Newton Circus – and yes, his suggestion was right – another excellent eating place.

Sentosa Island –Universal Studios – Tanjang Beach
OMG – what a beautiful island. We were spoilt when we made it to this island. Access to the island is via foot SG$1, by bus $4 or by cable car $28. Our first stop was Universal Studios and straight to the Madagascar Ride – fairly tame…then to the Ancient Egypt site where we took in the scary Mummy ride (twice).  This is where we went forward, backward, sideways, up and down in a small cable car – and all in the dark. We were screaming and screaming but it was cool. I must say though one guy beside me was screaming even when we were stopped – so not sure what was going on there. The photos they take told the story though – I was open mouthed with this weird look on my face, Dave was smiling and Carter looked horrified! Budget didn’t allow for purchasing these photos though –not at $35 a pop.

Carter and a very large Transformer!

Probably our favourite of the day was the live Waterworld Show where actors got to show their acrobatic skills, and other talents using speed boats, jet skis, cable cars, deep water for diving into from huge heights, fireworks and many other things. Here’s our selfie pic of the set before it started.

At Waterworld – Universal Studios – Sentosa Island

Then after Universal Studios it was off around the island – by free bus or tram. The beaches are simply sublime and you can see from this picture the soft white sand. We stopped at Tanjang Beach where Dave went for a swim and Carter and I took the time to catch up on free wi-fi. Just behind us were a group of people playing Beer Pong. A lot of laughs and a quick explanation to Carter as to why they were a bit ‘merry’ and ‘loud’.

Back onto the tram/bus and then monorail to Sentosa Station where we caught the train back home. The transport system in Singapore is easy to navigate, quick, efficient and cheap!  What a great day!

There were so many other tourist attractions we attended such as the Night Safari at the Zoo which was expensive (for our budget concsious family) but in my opinion a bit over-rated.  We spent most of our time in queues – something we kiwis are not used to – well not to this extent anyway!  Having said that, we were able to see hippos, elephants, a rhino and other dangerous animals living in a huge area and all visible by us from a small tram driving through the enclosures with the animals within 40m from the tram.

The Singapore Flyer is the largest ‘ferris wheel’ in the world with it standing at 165m high.  This is 30m taller than the London Eye.  We thoroughly enjoyed our half hour trip on this “wheel” which gave us views of Singapore that only the Marina Bay Sands Resort could rival.  And rival it did – this monstrosity of a structure stands taller than the “wheel” and is an incredible example of what engineering can accomplish in this era.

Marina Bay Sands Resort

Looking at the Singapore Flyer from the Marina Bay Sands

Along with going on the Hippo Duck Double Decker Bus with a ‘hop on hop off’ ticket – we visited Chinatown, Little India and much more.  Oh, did I mention the fresh lemon juice drinks – if not – they are not to be missed.  A blend of sour but mainly sweet fresh juice in ice.  Wonderfully refreshing.

That’s about it for our short stay in Singapore – a fabulous city that never sleeps and has a sense opulence and wealth all around.

Next stop Vietnam…