Eight nights in Singapore

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Happy New Year’s Eve!

We all got MMR shots and new passports. It's time for a 17-hr flight with a 9-month-old! This will be Y’s first international trip. I researched about baby jetlag and long-haul flights. I guess the bottom line is to bring plenty of food and surprise toys. The rest will really just be up to Y’s mood. In hindsight, I didn’t feel the 17 hours. Perhaps because I was hit with a mystery body ache ~6hrs into the flight. I think it was a reaction to the MMR shot but who knows. I had Y in the carrier when I was feeling my joint go slowly but surely. It peaked with nausea and I was a useless dead weight for the next 5-6 hours. Everything was a blur. I was SO glad it eventually subsided. Y had a tough time as well. He was so tired but wasn’t able to sleep. And that bassinet thing? I think we’ll skip next time as it was taking up the precious leg room. He slept either in the carrier or in our arms. Thank god we had each other to be able to eat or go to bathroom.

A word on Singapore weather. I had been watching the forecast for some time and all I saw was thunderstorm every day!! When I think of thunderstorms, it dumps heavy all day. Apparently, in Singapore, it means there is a short spur of rain somewhere on the island. So there is a great chance that you won’t even see it. Let’s see! The flight left at 10:30 am in California and arrived the next day at 8 pm in Singapore. We got to the hotel ~10 pm and rental stroller and play pen were waiting for us, sweet! PramShare was super responsive and the price was very reasonable. Quickly organized our stuff, cleaned up, and hit the sac.

Thursday: Feeling things out

None of us had a good night sleep and finally gave up at 5am. We had a cup of coffee, changed, put sun block/bug repellent on, and out the door before 7 am. There was no agenda for today. I left this day to get oriented, run errands, etc. I learned not to jam pack the trip while traveling with Y.

Ya Kun Kaya Toast was right around the corner but didn’t open until 7:30 am. We took a detour to get mangos and avocados for Y at FairPrice. Kaya toast was definitely on the list of things to eat. I even YouTube’d how to eat it. I mean who came up with dipping jam butter toast in soft-boiled eggs with soy sauce and white pepper?? Genius! It was surprisingly good! I especially liked the kaya spread. I can lick it straight out of a tub! It was also pleasant to find that the opaque black coffee was actually mild and very drinkable. Kopi here comes with 3 options: black, with sugar, or with condensed milk. This cream-only person joined the condensed milk camp.

I realized that we were very close to Haji Lane, sweet! Stores were still closed and it was nice to have the street essentially to ourselves. It was a nice photo op for Y although it took no time for a few tour groups to show up. We went to Bugis Junction mall for Singaporean desserts at HarriAnns Nonya Table. So many firsts on this trip! Kueh were mildly sweet and had nice soft chewy texture. At that point, we were in need of a place to nurse but no luck. Luckily, we accidentally found the National Library next block. Libraries have been blessing with Y at home and here. There is a parenting room equipped with sink, changing station, and hot water. The children’s section was so cute, decorated to be a forest. Y got to stretch his stroller legs for some time 😊.

We continued walking westward toward Chinatown via the Old Hill Police Station and Song Fa bak kut teh. Bak kut teh was yum! By that time, Y was heating up quite a bit. He had to trade pants and socks for a layer of sun block. He got a juicy mango for lunch to hydrate. Chinatown was decked up with the Lunar New Year decorations and cute pink rats. Of course, Chinatown isn’t China without the trinket stores. We ended up in Chinatown Complex Food Centre. The food court was hot and stuffy. It’s open air and the fans were the saving grace. Y passed out shortly after getting a bowl of chendol. So. Good. Shaved ice with coconut milk, red beans, pandan, and brown sugar sauce! We let Y sleep near the fan while we went through other stalls like Michelin-stamped 50’s coffee for a buck. Seriously, we could just plant our butt here and eat the day away. Nice on tummy and wallet!

We made our way back before Y woke up. We thought Chijmes would be a good pit stop being fancy and all. Gotta have a nice family room, right? Wrong! Of course, that’s when Y decides to wake up. Luckily, the library wasn’t too far and it saved us once again. Our hotel was better than I thought. It is also very close to the Michelin bak chor mee. In an unassuming mini plaza, there it was, a small stall accompanied by a line of people. Each bowl is put together right there so having 10 orders in front of me took about 30 min. First time eating bak chor mee. Set the bar high already. It is interesting with shrimpy vinegary flavor.

Friday: Day at the Marina

Y had the worst night yet with a stretch of outburst cry. He was fed, had clean diaper, didn’t wanna play, didn’t wanna sleep. All we could do was to hold him until the storm passed.

To kick things off, I had booked a 9-am tour at Marina Barrage. MRT would have taken the same time as walking so walk we did. Of course, after a pit stop at Ya Kun. The walk wasn’t too bad. Going over bridge by the Flyer even gave us a good view. Jogging the last stretch put us at Marina Barrage on time. Surprisingly, we were the only ones on the tour but they can take up to 80 people each hour. It was pretty informative and totally enjoyed it but I’m a bit of a science geek so... ??‍♀️ I guess it was a bit dry for Y and he lost interest quickly. The unintentional private tour ended on the rooftop which is apparently and understandably popular. It’s a nice green open space with a view of Marina Bay Sands (MBS) and Gardens by the Bay (GbtB).

After keeping Y in check, we left Marina Barrage shortly before 11 am. Satay by the Bay should be opening. We were hungry and this was like the only eatery out here. I had heard that the satay isn’t bad here. Amazingly, food wasn’t a tourist price at all! We made our way through the GbtB toward MBS. Y slept and missed the entire grove. The mall was huge, starting from high-end stores, through the mall regulars, ending at the food court. Having access to a nice nursing room at the mall is always a plus. We grabbed lunch at the food court where the food was a mall price.

We continued our way out toward ArtScience Museum, Helix bridge, and Merlion. It started raining while snapping pictures at Merlion. Since I was expecting thunderstorm every day, it was a nice surprise that it took this long to see the rain. It didn’t even last long but we all ran to the under path. It gave Y a chance to stretch his legs and us to rest our legs.

We were exhausted by the time we got back to the mall. The only place we could take a break was the food court. Maybe that’s why it’s been so hard to find seats! After dinner, we braved the crowd to Garden Rhapsody light show at the supertree grove. Stroller doesn’t handle crowd well though, especially at the elevators. Please, take the stairs if you’re able! We sent off many rounds of the elevator cars full of abled people!! The light show is definitely worth watching, better than expected! Y was passed out and missed the whole grove thing again.

Saturday: Singapore’s Nature

I booked a guided tour of Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve at 9:30 am. Unlike the tour at Marina Barrage, this is being held every Saturday for up to 20 people on the first-come, first-served basis. It was little ways out to the other side of Singapore but it would be a good chance for us to discover Singapore outside of malls and food courts. Public transportation connected just fine. It even gave us the chance to experience taking bus with a stroller.

We thought to get here early so Y can be fed before the tour but, of course, he decided to sleep until 5min into the walk. I left the group and returned to the visitor center to get an access to the nursing room. The staff opened the room for me and warned me that it’s not in great shape as it hasn’t been used for some time. Right…some time meaning years. Whatever, any private space will do. The volunteer guide was super knowledgeable about every little plants and animals there and it was really intriguing. Did you know that the mangrove in Singapore has 50% of entire species and other large mangrove, say in Australia, has only a few? Mangrove germinates before it falls off the tree. There are swimming crabs and those who cannot etc. etc. Unfortunately, Y didn’t find it all that entertaining and V kept distance from the group as not to disturb. An amazing part of the whole walk was that none of us ended up with a single mosquito bite! That is a total miracle as I’m super sensitive and they normally bite me right through the repellent! They were definitely there because I saw bites on others. This was seriously the first in my life. What’s more, we ended up getting zero bite throughout the entire trip! We did wear wrist bands and non-DEET repellent but I’ve been bit through DEET like nothing. We even had a stroller net but didn’t even get to use it. I was still attracting critters though. If it wasn’t mosquitos, it was ants. I’d sit on the grass and they’d be creeping up and biting me, just me!! Whatever bit my ankle at the Botanical Gardens became a couple plump blisters, ouch!

When the walk ended at the end of the trail at 11 am, it was getting hot. We walked back to the entrance and took a breather in the air-conditioned gallery. We talked to a local family with a 10-month old. The mom was happy that we were exploring the island 😊.

It’s been a long morning. Lunch was overdue. We finally got to Tiong Bahru Food Centre at 1:30 pm. Straight to stall #1 for Hong Heng Fried Sotong Prawn Mee while V got Jian Bo Chwee Kueh. S$6 large plate of prawn mee was a big pile of tasty mess. Chwee kueh here seems to be famous along with Bedok in Chinatown. This one was greasier imo. We made our way through a few more noodle stalls for V. Bean curd and kopi for me. A buck each...incredible. Fed Y in between and made our way to the Botanic Garden at ~3:30 pm. Picked up the red pastries from stall #2 and stopped by Galicier bakery for the road. Their sweet potato huat kueh, mmm mmm. Right up my alley.

People were rolling into the park although not everyone was going to the concert. People were here to just picnic. Walking ~1km got us to the concert area. While we waited for the show to start, it rained a few times with one stretch being a dump. Luckily, we were sitting right by the sound guys and were able to take refuge under their tent. It’s a pretty nice venue, very similar to Shoreline Amphitheater except relaxed (or lack thereof) rules. The youth orchestra opened the show with T-Square and that just made my day.

Sunday: The east side

We left at 8:30 am to meet Miles who we know from back home. It took about 1hr with MRT but not having to transfer and look for the lift made it an easy trip. It was nice catching up after some years on the other side of the globe and to see his hood. He showed us the shoreline park where there are lots of wildlife and recreational users. I saw a bunch of tents in an open area and it didn’t occur to me that they were recreational campers. Apparently, families hang out here after dark. Sadly that is unthinkable where we live.

We got to Eunos station at 1:30 pm to check out the east side while we were on this side. Without WiFi, I couldn’t figure out the bus on a whim so we power hiked 2 miles to the shore. The sun was beating down pretty hard and I ended up with literal red neck where I missed putting sun block. Of course, that’s when I wore the shirt with the biggest neck opening, grrr!

We made it to Roland restaurant at 2 pm before they closed for lunch at 2:30 pm. We were the last customer and the order was the last order. We did have the full attention of the staff though. My tea was being filled literally every few minutes. Chili crab came in unbelievably ginormous pot full of thick red sauce. But you have to eat it fast because it’s not quite the same once it’s cool. I’m not a crab cracker so V had to hook me up while I gave Y kiwi. So. Full. Never had anything like it. I was in for a surprise when the bill came though...ha ha...

We noticed library on the way and decided to stop by to give Y his time. After regrouping, we made our way to 328 Katong Laksa. Laksa after that chili crab?! Crazy, I know. But Laksa was super smooth and light! Even I was able to go beyond one scoop! Celeb pics were covering the wall for a reason. A quick stop to wash V’s palate at Birds of Paradise, a popular gelateria, a few doors down. Then we swung by Koon Seng Rd where there are pretty and colorful traditional houses line both sides of the road.

MRT debacle #1. I swear I read in FAQ that you can get off on the way and get back on to the purchased destination without added fee. Apparently, this wasn’t the case. We bought round trip from Lavender. But the ticket had nothing left after stopping at Eunos. Essentially, we overpaid to get off at Eunos and had to get another trip back to Lavender. The cost is not linear with distance and every added trip is a bump up.

By the time we got back to the hotel, it was already 7 pm. We had to do laundry today! A laundromat by Golden Mile Food Center was so convenient and clean. As we were waiting, the owner(?) came and cleaned the whole place spotless. It was also fun getting a bunch of lambutans from the street vendor and eat them with fresh squeezed ice-cold sugar cane juice at the food court before finishing the chore at 8:30 pm.

Monday: DNF (did not finish) on 10k

Today, we’ll tackle the Southern Ridges. Of the walks, this seemed to be the best suited for strollers. We should be able to do 10k in 3hrs, easy. Right. We had breakfast at 7:30 am at Bugis Junction. I wanted lapis from HarriAnns but of course they don’t have it. Story of my life. What about pandan chiffon set? Don’t have that either, grrr. I didn’t have my come back that deep so I ended up getting set A with savory yam cake that I didn’t like. Glad V liked it.

The trailhead was right next to the station. 9 am start. About 100 yards into it, it was nothing but stairs until we reached the top of the gondola. That didn’t stop us from carrying the stroller but that was tough. We took an advantage of the gondola facility to take care of Y. Through Henderson Wave, we reached the Forest Walk, sticking through some more stairs. The Forest Walk was awesome. The metal trail went through the lush forest in the air and was totally stroller friendly. We called it a day at Alexandra Arch at ~11am. All those unexpected stairs took a toll on us and it was getting hot. We didn’t even make it through 10k, ha!

Since Hawker Chan was closed due to sellout last time, we definitely wanted to hit it today. We got to the wrong exit at Chinatown station and ended up picking up the stroller to the overhead bridge. One of many stroller inconveniences. We got to Chinatown Complex at 12:20 pm. At first glance, there was no line at the stall. I thought it was strange given that they sold out early last time. Sure enough, the lady didn’t let me finish my breath and pointed behind me where the long line was, doh! It ended up taking about 30min to get through it. I wasn’t the only one making that mistake. Some are in denial that the lady, who is the tiniest and the skinniest, was giving them the stiff arm. Since we waited so long, we added pork rib plate to the famed soy sauce chicken. V, the meat connoisseur, liked the pork more, ha!

After feeding Y and getting a bowl of Chendol again, we moved to Maxwell Center at 2 pm. That’s where the battle of Hainan Chicken is. Michelin-stamped Tian Tian was closed on Monday but Ah Tai, which is supposed to have pulled the chef from Tian Tian, was open. Set the Hainan Chicken bar high right off the bat. 75 peanut soup was an impulsive choice that paid off big time. Never had anything like it. The soup had peanut flavor but light and had super soft mochi balls filled with peanuts and black sesame, mmm mmm. Eating continues. We hopped over to Amoy Street Food Center for the Michelin curry puff. Sardine one was good. Very similar to Pastizzi from Malta. I prefer pastizzi though for its crispness. The last stop in Chinatown today was Tong Ah Eating House. That’s when we were finally hit with the first real rain dump. We had to take refuge under a garage for a good 30min. Tong Ah was a super retro hole-in-a-wall. A ceiling fan was barely spinning and the place was hot and stuffy. That didn’t stop us from ordering hot kopi. Their steamed kaya toast was yum 😊.

Tuesday: Hodgepodge kinda day

It’s the picture day! Since Y turned 9months on this trip, we booked a photo session. The photographer and we agreed to do it at the Gardens by the Bay at 8am before it got hot and crowded. It was a nice morning! Photo session went well except Y started getting cranky the latter half of an hour session. In hindsight, it might have been because of a tummy issue. After the session, we had much-needed breakfast at the mall food court. While Y was eating mango, he had a major diaper blow up that led us immediately to the baby room. Hefty amount of seed from all the kiwi he ate to stay hydrated had to be unloaded.

We decided to try fish head curry at Muthu’s in Little India. The establishment was fancier than we thought and it had Michelin blessing. As if an order of rice each wasn’t big enough to fill us up, the fish head came in a huge pot full of curry with okra and pineapple. I’m not much of a curry person but it had nice flavor and it didn’t sit in my stomach afterwards. But I guess I’m speaking too soon here. We swung by Tan Teng Niah and its surrounding. It’s just a colorful single house at a corner but very photogenic.

From there, we went toward Orchard to Killiney Kopitiam on Killiney Rd. Legit! I saw that there was a library on Orchard but there was no kids section. The whole place was pin drop quiet. We took care of Y at ION and found out that there was a playground at Paragon, a few buildings down. On the way, we picked up that ice cream sandwiched. It’s nothing special (i.e. I think you can totally make this at home) but not disgustingly sweet or colored either as I expect from a street vendor. Y got a chance to do his thing at the playground. He even had a company of curious girls 😊. One last stop in this area: orange ciabatta kaya toast at Good Morning Nanyang Cafe at Far East Plaza around the corner. This plaza was a hedgepodge of non-fancy shops which didn’t fit in with the rest of Orchard Rd. The cafe was way in the back. A nice breather while Y caught up on some Z’s.

The last on the agenda was the Satay Street at La Pau Sat Food Court. From what I understood, it’s a daily satay stall pop up from 7pm to late. Sounds cool, right? The verdict? “A” for idea, “B” for ambiance and food, “F-“ for experience! You’re just bombarded with "touting" throughout! Just as we were leaving the food court, I was hit with rumbling stomach. Very very painful ? Must be the curry...

Wednesday: Reinforcements

Today is the last day in the city and it will be the reinforcement day! The breakfast repeat was Killiney Kopitiam. I had to forego condensed milk because of tummy ache but we enjoyed French toast with kaya spread and egg dip with French loaf toast, mmm mmm. Y’s kiwi seed unload was still going strong and he was not a happy camper on the subway. We finally got to the baby room at Haw Par Villa station. He was exhausted and missed the entire Villa despite our effort to get through some stairs. It’s the quirkiest and retro-looking place. Not the best art work and a lot of it needs repainting but what’s missing in quality was covered by the quantity.

Lunch repeat: Hawker Chan’s pork! This time, we skipped the famed soy sauce chicken and went straight to pork rib and char siu. Both were very good. Of course, we couldn’t leave without yet another bowl of chendol from Old Amoy. We also repeated Hainan chicken at Maxwell. Since both Tian Tian and Ah Tai were open today, we put them to test. An old lady at the table was also curious of our experiment. They were not the same but both were good in their own right. Maybe I don’t know the dish well enough to have the preference. One thing for sure though, V made sure he got dark meat. The guy automatically gave me white meat last time. Definitely a huge improvement.

Library had to be repeated for Y too 😊. Y passed out right after leaving the library and the adults went to Ah Chew dessert. This would be a good time to grab a bowl of mango sago and black sesame paste..mmm. More reinforcements were pandan chiffon cake and lapis from Bengawan Solo and bak kut teh from Founders. Today was the last chance to see the light & sound show at MBS. We tabled this one until now but I’m so glad we made it! C’mon, it’s Singapore! This wasn’t gonna be some cheesy water fountain show. Bellagio needs to up their game! Y was mesmerized in the beginning but it got too loud.

The adventure continues to part deux...

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Photos

Bak chor mee
from Hill Street Tai Hwa Pork Noodles