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Published: April 3rd 2011
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It's time to take a break from a busy work. I spent a vacation on March 27-31,2011. On that period, I visited Cebu and Singapore. With my backpack, I started my travel at around 9 am. I took a tricycle on my way to polytechnic school and a taxi to the airport. Their usual rate is P300 but I got it at P200.It's my second time to see Mactan airport.
After my arrival at Lapu-Lapu city, I asked the driver to bring me to Gaisano mall. I have no place to stay so I inquired. I don’t know how to spent my one and a half day before my flight to Singapore and so I decided to have a tour around the city. I went to different beaches of Maregondon. Since I allot a small budget on transportation, I used the local and affordable tricycle as a way to reach my destination. I found a friend who offers his services to tour me around the city. We went to different places in Cordova. We trespass a private place where a beach resort is being constructed and have a stroll to the beach with a lot of mangroves and big sharp
stones. An exchange for a wonderful sightseeing is a sun-burned skin.
After a long day of tour, I went to the airport at around 5pm. I check-in with Cebu pacific airline and pay a travel tax of P1,600 as a tourist. The documents that they checked are passport, ID and airline receipt. I tried to use a visa card in one of the atm machine located inside the domestic airport but I was worried when it did not dispense an amount. In order to avoid some problems in my arrival, I add an additional pocket money. The flight from Cebu to Singapore is about 2-3 hours. We need to fill in a departure-arrival form. A portion of the form should be kept since it should be presented to the authority before leaving the place of destination. After they have checked my passport, ticket and ID. I went to a small coffee shop to purchase a sandwich.The salesman talked to me in tagalog,a Philippine national language. I have not speak a tagalog word but he already guess that I am a filipina. I was a bit relax when I heard him speak in tagalog. I tried the visa card again
in the atm in the budget terminal of Singapore. Luckily, it dispenses a singapore dollar. The lesson in that experienced is to check whether the atm machine has a visa logo.
It's past 11 pm. Mayla gave an instruction that I should take a metered taxi on my way to the hotel. I was able to get an affordable hotel with her assistance. The place is impressive.The passengers and taxis are in a queue.
Mayla visited me at YMCA in the morning of March 29,2011. She lends me her EZ card for MRT and prepared a one day itinerary for me. I am lucky to have those kind of friends. YMCA has a scrumptious breakfast.We ate a lot since we need it for our busy day. I already booked a hotel and a Universal studio when I was still in the Philippines.
After a heavy breakfast, we have our first destination which is the Singapore botanical garden. We took the bus using an EZ card. Upon entering the bus, the passenger needs to tap the EZ card to a reading machine and tap it again before leaving the bus. Most of the plants in the garden can be
found in the Philippines. Mayla needs to be back to work and so I travel alone.
The Visitor's center and Hippo bus are located in the Orchard road. It took me 3-4 minutes from Botanical garden to Visitor's center where maps are free. I also went to MRT station to get an additional load for the EZ card. Again, I was exposed to the sun when I took the Hippo bus tour. I shopped at Chinatown for pasalubong. At around 4pm, I went to Sentosa Island through MRT station near chinatown. In Vivo City, I purchased a ticket for the Song of the Sea show. I bought a bowl of rice with vegetable at the food area of Vivo City since I already feel the lack of energy. The saleslady gave me a chop sticks but I don’t know how to use it so I requested for a fork and spoon.
I strolled to Universal studio but did not attempt to take any of the rides. I just watched those kids and adults being tossed up and down by a big machine. After the studio, I took the MRT on my way to the beach station to
watch the Song of the Sea. It's a wonderful show. In the seashore where viewers on a bench while the water, lights and ball of fires are dancing and singing. It is past 8 pm and I need go back to Vivo City to meet Mayla. She accompanied me to another wonderful place of Marina Bay sands where we ate our meal for dinner. Most of their foods are delicious. There are many different types of food that one can choose since Singapore has people with different backgrounds.
We are a bit worried when my flight is around 12:20 am and I am still in downtown area at around 10 pm for a long queue to get a taxi .Despite the hectic schedule, I was able to be at the airport before check-in area was closed. I arrived at Mactan airport at around 4 am. I decided to wait for the sunrise in one of the restaurant in domestic area. I filled my stomach with a cup of hot native chocolate and a carrot cake. I stayed in a GV hotel near a public market of Mactan to take a nap. I wake up at around 9 am to
prepare myself for another travel to Cebu city to visit a friend. The front desk clerk told me that I can take a ferry if I wanted to travel fast to Cebu city. And she was right. I visited a church called Virgin de Regla near the port of Mactan. It took me 10-15 minutes through a ferry boat from Mactan to Pier 3 of Cebu city with a fare of P13.Jeepneys and taxis are the most common means of transportation. The city does not have MRT or LRT. I took a jeepney on my way to SM Mall and another jeepney to Ayala Mall. The last time I saw Jen was when she visited Gen. Santos City and that was 10 years ago. We take our lunch together and chat a lot.
We also visited another classmate who worked with water provider company near Santo Nino church. I purchased some low cost garments made from Taiwan for pasalubong. After our dinner, we went to their residence in Basak, a mountainous area. I spent the night with her family. We walked uphill to spend the night chatting and watching the lights of the city.In the morning of March 31,2011,
I have my flight to Gen. Santos City. And in the afternoon,I go back to the office at Koronadal City.
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