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This is the last blog entry for our 2010 winter adventure. We are actually at home now, (and were at home for the last entry-sorry to confuse you!)but I wanted to share the last few pictures with you.
Our next stop on the cruise was Brunei. This country is ruled by the Sultan of Brunei, who was at one time, the richest man in the world.
Rather than take the expensive ships tour, we decided to do our own thing yet again. After a short although VERY HOT walk from the ship, we found a local bus stop. For $1.00 each, we were able to catch the local bus into the city. The taxi ride we had priced out at $25.00- so already we were feeling pretty good!
Once in the city centre, we did spend about half an hour trying to locate a tourist information centre with ads everywhere. Unfortunately, the ads neglected to say that the place had closed down! Oh well! We walked to the nearest hotel instead and asked at the front desk. The stop here was wonderful- it meant air conditioning, an “Americanized” bathroom…..and information to boot! Triple success!
All of the major sites
in the city we wanted to see were within walking distance- of course, if you don’t melt along the way! We visited the Sultan’s museum, where many artifacts are displayed- his coronation gown, his gold chariot, all of the presents given to him by various countries- we couldn’t find one from Canada though……..
Everything was over the top ornate with gold everywhere- there are many pictures of him with every dignitary you could imagine. Of course, you are not allowed to take pictures in the hall, only the ones shown of his chariot. Trust me when I say money is no object for this guy!
From there we were able to visit the inside of a local mosque, where it was requested that we cover our unsuitable clothing with black gowns, and remove our shoes. It was very impressive standing inside the building, which has tons of rugs rolled up on the side for the men to kneel on when praying. When the service is actually happening, they broadcast the sound out over the town- I guess everyone is supposed to be inside taking part!
Next stop was the floating village, with its “stick houses”. We wandered thru houses; schools
and stores, all built on stilts over the water- which was very brown and disgusting looking! Upon reaching the end of one of the walkways, a bumboat pulled up and the guy asked us if we wanted a ride. We managed to work out a deal, and for $25.00, he took us on a tour of the area. It was a great ride- and best of all, cool with the breeze! Yippee! We went way down the river and saw some proboscis monkeys, and then he returned and toured us thru many more of the water villages. It was a great trip!
For another $1, we returned to the boat in time to set sail for Singapore.
We had two days at sea before arriving in Singapore, our final stop on this cruise. In total, we cruised 9,700 nautical miles and visited 11 countries in 32 days.
We had arranged to spend 4 days in Singapore before leaving for home. We had booked our hotel over the internet before we left Canada, and were not sure what we were going to get for the price we paid! A very pleasant surprise- it was a lovely place- right in
the middle of town- with good access to everything!
The subway system in Singapore is very complex, and efficient. Mark likes to say that Singapore is a model city. It was indeed very well laid out, but I think it was just “another city”. It is quite crowded, with shops everywhere and of course- it’s VERY HOT! Too hot for me- I don’t do “extreme heat” so well! I splurged and bought myself a Chinese fan for $1. - which I carried everywhere!
We visited the famous Raffles hotel, where Singapore Slings were invented- BUT if you can believe it, we did not end up having one! It just didn’t work out with the timing- so I guess we will have to go back!
Check out the picture of the soon to be finished hotel and casino. Yes- it does indeed look like a ship on top of the multi story hotel. The ship is where the casino is to be located.
We visited the zoo, a laser light show at the local amusement park, and generally walked and walked till I thought I could walk no more! It was a great city to tour around- and we
enjoyed our stay.
For Mark, it was all too soon time to leave- but for me, I was happy to be heading home. Enough traveling for a short while!
Funny enough- these experienced travelers (us) did not think to check our return flights until fairly late the night before we left. When we did, we found that it not only left 2 hours EARLIER than we thought, but was rerouted totally and arrived home 6 hours before the original schedule!!! Go figure! How often does that ever happen!
Our first class seats were once again, wonderful, and thank goodness for them- as the plane had to make an unscheduled stop in Anchorage, Alaska to allow for a very sick passenger that had to be hospitalized. It added two hours to the 15 hour flight, and just imagine what that little stop cost Air Canada????
We finally arrived home, on the same date that we left, after having spent 24 hours traveling. It’s not often you get to “re-live” a day over!!!
That’s it for our winter adventure. Hope you enjoyed our stories and the pictures. Stay tuned for whatever travel adventure we come up with next!
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Nance
non-member comment
You both look good in your gowns-Mark really looks like he would fit right in!