Singapore Day 1

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My most painless flying experience ever. Singapore Airlines check-in at Sydney International Airport was completely empty so I had a full 3 hours to relax before boarding time. Flight was boarded in a timely and orderly fashion and straight away I was impressed by the service level of the flight attendants. The thing that struck me first was the number of FA's. There was 4 to cover less than 20 rows in economy compared to the 2 to cover twice as many on an Australian airline. As it was, you were promptly taken care of and meals were quickly served and cleaned up. The food was the best I ever had on an airplane and I was actually full by the time I got to Singapore. But the most important thing that made this whole flight painless was how quick baggage arrived on the belts and how efficient (easy) immigration was at Changi airport. From the time the plane stopped at the gate until the time I was sitting in a taxi was a mere 15 minutes. It is a shame really as Changi appears to be such a pleasant airport to visit.

$17SGD later I was at the foyer of the extremely classy Mandarin Oriental which was an inspired choice for a single night splurge. Everything about this hotel reeks of class, service and money. In all seriousness, I felt a little uncomfortable by the attentive service from the hotel staff. But sadly there was no time to dally, so I hit the streets to do some sight seeing and was instantly hit by the oppressive humidity. After a mere 2 minutes outside, you would be sweating and looking for a cold shower but sadly one cannot spend all day in the shower! The Mandarin Oriental is at the middle of Marina Bay so I headed west first and across the river which looked towards the fantastic Marina Bay Sands. The Merlion was on this side and it was a tourist magnet. I managed to get a few cool photos before further downtown. I found numerous food courts with cheap traditional meals before stumbling across Lau Pa Sat Hawker Center. This was a large complex with probably 50 food vendors ranging from traditional Singapore Chinese fare to Indian Curry to Middle Eastern food. I had my first (of many) meals which was fish ball noodles which was a dry noodle dish accompanied by mince meat, chilli/spices and of course fish balls. It was very simple yet oddly satisfying.

Next I ventured towards the bustling Chinatown and scoped out some shops, venders, temples and food courts. I found the famous Maxwell Centre which contains the Tian Tian Chicken Rice stand which has been made internationally famous by Anthony Bourdain. The queue snaked past the side of the stall and outside which was a little too long for my liking so I picked another Chicken rice vendor and ordered this national Singaporean dish. It was good with the flavoured rice complemented by the moist chicken dipped in a saucy concoction of soy, chilli and garlic. After this meal I criss crossed Chinatown checking out the sites and smells and was constantly reminded of the cleanliness of Singapore. Every country should enforce capital punishment to bring citizens back in line and promote simple disciplines.

Before long I had made it to Clarke Quay where I found a Starbucks which would be the only source of coffee for me for the next few days. Coffee and drinks in Singapore are certainly expensive - my large coffee was the same price as 2 plates of food! Anyway, Clarke Quay is a touristy area along the river with numerous 'exxy' restaurants and bars. The area is a good place to stroll but not for me as it was certainly targeted at western tourists. By this time I was saturated in sweat so decided to go back to the hotel for a bath and rest before the night began.



Singapore is much more pleasant to explore after dark when the temperatures drop a few degrees. This is a city that has no qualms about burning electricity, the whole city is lit up brightly. I strolled from the Esplanade Mall across to the magnificent Marina Bay Sands. This resort is a architectural gem - and is certainly a massive attraction judging from the amount of people around the area. The casino highlights Singapore's strict social structure - residents must pay and go through checks upon entering and exiting the casino while foreigners must present a passport to enter. The casino is massive and well lit and reminds me of a few of the casinos in Las Vegas. However the gambling action looked too serious, didn't have the fun light hearted attraction of Las Vegas so I didn't make an attempt to win some money!



Outside on Marina Bay, there was a laser/light show which was quite entertaining to watch with the bright lights of Singapore downtown as the backdrop. It was a show for all ages and there were people of all walks of life. It highlighted to me just how safe Singapore is and again - how clean! After the show finished, I walked around the Marina Bay mall and took plenty of photos before walking back towards Marina Square. Had a traditional Laksa as a supper dish before hopping on the MRT (an extremely easy system to navigate) out to Orchard Road and it was crowded and a sea of bright lights. All the street side cafes were packed and so was every other eatery that I could see! The shops were open until at least 10pm before everyone started looking for a late night feed and a place to hang out. I caught one of the last trains back to City Hall and headed back to my hotel before crashing after a pretty active day sight seeing.

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