Sleepless In Singapore

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Geo: 1.28941, 103.85

After a sad departure from Anna and a 12 hour flight to Singapore, I landed in a wave of heat, humidity and discomfort where my main priority was to get to the hostel in Lavender and get some much needed rest because as per usual I got limited sleep on the flight in.
I arrived at 2pm but I didn't go out and explore for the rest of the day.
The inspiration for the title of this blog comes from after finding it difficult to sleep in Singapore.
The first night was pretty rough, I managed to fall asleep for a few hours but from 12pm I lay awake till 6am, and to add insult to injury I was bitten by bed bugs,I found and killed two crawling around my feet, but it was too late, itching soon followed. It rained heavy and the thunder sounded like explosions just around the corner and lightning flashed constantly like sirens. Although there was air conditioning in the room, going outside in the middle of the night resembled entering a butterfly enclosure.
The next morning I had heard that the Chilean Volcanic ash cloud had returned to hover over New Zealand and Australia, forcing the cancellations of hundreds of flights, so I was keeping a careful watch on the situation. I set off for the day with a Canadian brother and sister duo from my dorm room. They were interested in seeing Marina Bay and the Marina Bay Sands Hotel and then head over to Sentosa Island. So I tagged along and we took the train in to the city. The train system is very easy in Singapore and I like the idea of returning the ticket for a 1 Singapore dollar refund.

We hopped off a few stations before Marina bay and walked along a main road and on to the Marina Bay bridge and through the Marina Bay Sands shopping complex and in to the Marina Bay Sands Hotel. The top of the hotel is regarded as a boat, a top of three towers standing at 55 floors high. It was only opened early 2011 so it is fairly recent. It is fairly impressive, especially at night but so expensive that live music is required and massive pot plants. The shopping complex has an ice rink and a mini canal running through it, and an opportunity to take a gondola ride. Quite astonishing the amount of money that surrounds Singapore. It was more developed and richer than I had first thought. The architecture is very impressive and unique. Not to mention every second person with a touch screen phone. It's amazing to see everyone on the train deeply entrenched in their phones.

We headed back in to the city where we were off to take a bus to Sentosa Island, but I knew it was a tourist place that has nothing to do with the culture and vibe of Singapore and that's what I look for so I declined to go and instead made my way by train to China town. I really liked China town and the surroundings. The houses were different and the markets are always cool. There were quite a few really nice temples about. Definitely a better decision than Sentosa Island. I headed back feeling quite tired in the early afternoon and just chilled out at the hostel. I took a sleeping pill that night and finally had a good sleep.

The next day I walked from the hostel around Little India and Arab Street. Little India was ok, some nice shops about and a few temples. There was one big market selling all kinds of Indian clothes. I then walked up to Arab Street which just have a few shops down the main street but the biggest attraction would have to be the Sultan Mosque with its big gold spires and beautiful style. Ever since my trip to Morocco I have appreciated the Muslim culture more, so it was great to see these mosques. Singapore has an amazing array of religions, Indian temples, Arabic mosques, Christian Churches. I didn't go inside the mosque because there was a big ceremony happening with hundreds of people attending so I thought it wouldn't be proper to enter.
So instead I grabbed an ice cream and made my way back to the hostel where I kept an eye on my impending flight to New Zealand that was bound to be cancelled.
Later that night I went in to the city to checkout Vivo city and harbor front.
Vivo City is a big shopping center on the harbor, which is a very popular place to go for the evening, and Sentosa Island is just over the ditch. Although I was more interested in seeing the lights of the city and boy was it impressive. The whole city is lit up and is a haven for night time photography, there is plenty of opportunities for reflective shots and the colours produced are amazing. Marina Bay is the best area to view this.

Again I had another horrible night, I slept for about an hour and a half and from 12.30am I never managed to sleep again. Plus I got bitten by more bed bugs, despite moving beds, another two killed. I couldn't believe it. My training in Newcastle helped me find where they were hiding so I was able to kill them, marking the mattress with squished bed bugs and blood.

To add the the frustration of yet another sleepless night and bed bug ridden, my flight did get cancelled so I was forced to wait 1 hour in line on the phone while I changed my flight plans. The only day I could get out was two days away, and at this point I was frustrated, tired, feeling empty after parting from Anna and just wanted to get to New Zealand and see my parents, but the flight cancellation meant that I was only able to spend less than two days with the parents rather than the planned four days. I didn't do anything during that whole day, I wasn't in the mood and quite tired. So later that night I had to take a sleeping pill once again.

I had one day to fill and I had a few options. Palau Ubin, a small island north east on the border of Malaysia seemed the easiest and most interesting place to visit. I caught a train and bus to Changi Jetty and from there you catch an old bum boat to Palau Ubin.
The Island is very popular but it is also a great respite from the city. Palau Ubin is an Island that still has a lot of jungle and natural feel to it. You can hire a bike which is a easy way to see the whole island where as walking would be a lot of hassle. Prices for hiring a bike are a bit sketchy and unknown as signs say from $2 but I was charged $12, I am not sure if it is inflated for westerners because there are thousands of bikes available and hundreds of people per day use these bikes, many kids and locals and I am sure that there is no way they pay $12 to ride the bikes. Nevermind, the bike was really handy and I got to see the whole island where accessible.

I saw wild bores roaming, monitor lizards feeding on dead fish, one armed crabs and hand sized spiders. The flora is diverse from mangroves to palm trees, flowers to weird seed type things.
It was worth going to Palau Ubin, to get away from the city and enjoy i bit more of a rural experience. I caught a bus back to Lavender and relaxed for the rest of the day.
Later that night I was talking to two guys in my dorm that were older and from Malaysia where the younger guy had completed a marathon run in Singapore, but with a twist. The marathon goes for 100km, and is this kind of heat is insane, but it is run overnight. The guy said he finished it in 15hours and after the 30km mark he wanted to quit but he made it. Quite amazing that it could be done in a climate like this.

So finally I the ash cloud left New Zealand airspace and I was able to catch my flight the following day. It took me a while to warm to Singapore but in the end I enjoyed it. There is plenty to see and do despite the small size to the country. The nights were hard going but in the end it is all part of travel and adventure.

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