Day 25 - Raffles/ Night train

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A trip to Singapore is not complete without a visit to the tourist overrun Raffles Hotel, visited by many famous names in its time.

The bar is famous for its Singapore Sling...

Type: Mixed drink
Primary alcohol by volume: Gin
Brandy

Served: "Straight up"; without ice
Standard garnish: Maraschino cherry, pineapple
Standard drinkware: Highball glass
IBA specified ingredients†: 4.0 cl (8 parts) Gin
2.0 cl (4 parts) Heering Cherry Liqueur (cherry brandy)
0.5 cl (1 part) Cointreau
0.5 cl (1 part) DOM Bénédictine
1.0 cl (2 parts) Grenadine
8.0 cl (16 parts) Pineapple juice
3.0 cl (6 parts) Fresh lemon juice
1 dash Angostura bitters

Preparation: Pour all ingredients into cocktail shaker filled with ice cubes. Shake well. Strain into highball glass. Garnish with pineapple and maraschino cherry.

It's a killer!

The bar is covered in monkey nut shells where they are just thrown on the floor. I had my first decent glass of wine in a month here. The wine in Asia is generally appalling so a NZ Sauvingon Blanc was a welcome relief!! Unfortunately, not drinking for a month meant that I was pissed after one large glass. Before I realised what had happened, I was in Aldo with 4 pairs of heels and a pair of sunglasses in my hand!! Sanity clicked in and I didn't buy them but apparently my tolerance is shot! Sadie, if you are reading this, I am hanging my head in shame!)

Back to the hostel to collect my bags for the night train. It seems my (parent's) suitcase had mysteriously broken while I was away. The wheel had bent out and I didn't realise when I got back the other day, so there was a mad rush to get a new suitcase and get the station on time. No worries!!!

On the train, the carriages were made into upper and lower bunks with pillows and sheets, but there was no space for the bags so the alleyway was filled with rucksacks and suitcases! I had just settled down with my book when the train stopped and a few (experienced) people got off. Us newbies on the train sat around looking at each other waiting for something to happen. Eventually someone came and got and and told us we were about to leave Singapore and needed to go to passport control. We started picking up our suitcases but were told to leave them. Hmmmm. Not only was there no security here, we ended up leaving our bags on the train while we were all held in immigration waiting for everyone to have their passport checked. I found another couple of backpackers who were equally concerned about their bags. Not only could they have been stolen, anything could have been added!!! In a country with the death penalty for drug trafficking, this was a worrying thought. About 20 minutes later we were let back on the train and a quick check showed things looked ok. I fell asleep dreaming of customs officials asking "Did you pack that bag yourself madam?".

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