After Ice Asian Trip 2008

Singapore

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The population of Singapore is approximately 4.84 million. Though Singapore is highly cosmopolitan and diverse, ethnic Chinese form the majority of the population. English is the administrative language of the country.

Singapore

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Apartments.

Singapore

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Window shutters on goverment building.

Singapore

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If you would like to shop for ethnic stuff, then to Serangoon Road and its neighbouring side streets are still today a bustling hive of wondrous sights, exotic sounds and intriguing aromas. Here where the locals shop, you can buy almost anything that's Indian, from handicrafts and Kashmir silk to peacock feathers and flower garlands. Glittering saris, some of simplest muslin and others of handmade silk threaded with gold, brassware, cooking utensils and Indian-designed jewellery are particularly good buys.

Singapore

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The Raffles Hotel is an institution in Singapore and has welcomed presidents, kings, queens, and Hollywood royalty since 1887. The colonial-style luxury hotel is an architectural landmark and the pride and joy of Singapore. Situated close to the city center, guests can take leisurely walks to many great restaurants and the main shopping street. The Raffles also offers a host of fine-dining eateries in the arcade area, along with internationally-renowned designer boutiques. All suites are opulently decorated and display an impressive array of luxurious Persian carpets, antique furniture and priceless artifacts. A definite must-do at the Raffles is a visit to the legendary Long Bar where the famous cocktail Singapore Sling was invented almost 100 years ago!

Singapore

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The Esplanade - Theatres on the Bay is a waterside building located on six hectares of waterfront land alongside Marina Bay near the mouth of the Singapore River, purpose-built to be the centre for performing arts for the island nation of Singapore. Taking its name from the nearby Esplanade, it contains a 1,600 seat concert hall and a 2,000 seat theatre for the performing arts.

Singapore

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Downtown Singapore cityscape.

Singapore

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Merlion Statue The Merlion is an imaginary creature with the head of a lion and the body of a fish. This half-lion, half-fish sculpture rests on undulating waves. The lion head alludes to the legend of Singapore's founding by Sang Nila Utama, a Palembang Prince who, on his arrival on the island, saw what he thought to be a lion and thereafter renamed Temasek, Singapura or "Lion City". The fish-tail represents Singapore's links to the ancient sea-bound island which was Temasek and its long and successful association with the sea, reflecting how our forefathers traversed the oceans to come to Singapore and our subsequent dependence upon it as a port.

Singapore

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Building and expanding the city.

Singapore

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The world's tallest Ferris wheel is the Singapore Flyer, in Singapore. It is 165 metres (541 ft) high. It started rotating on February 11, 2008, and officially opened to the public on March 1, 2008.

Singapore

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Cardboard recycler.

Singapore

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Very tall apartments.

Singapore

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This is one of many cool koi fish ponds at the Singapore airport.

Bangkok, Thailand

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Bangkok, Thailand street scene.

Bangkok, Thailand

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Bangkok, Thailand street scene, with Sky Train in background.

Bangkok, Thailand

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Bangkok, Thailand street scene.

Bangkok, Thailand

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An elevated monorail, the Bangkok Transit System, also known as the Skytrain operates on two lines across the city, and has vastly improved the time it takes to move around. Trains operate daily from 06:00 to 24:00, running every 3 to 4 minutes during rush hours and every 5 to 6 minutes off-peak.

Bangkok, Thailand

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One of many temples in Bangkok.

Bangkok, Thailand

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One of many temples in Bangkok.

Bangkok, Thailand

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Entrance to the Golden Mount. The Golden Mount is part of the Wat Saket temple located just outside the old royal city precincts, next to the Pom Mahakhan fort. The mount has a somewhat unusual history. It was started by King Rama III early in the 19th century, who wanted to build a large chedi on the site to mark the entrance to the city. However, the soft marshy ground could not support such a large structure and it collapsed before it was completed.

Bangkok, Thailand

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Later on, Rama IV built a small chedi housing a Buddha relic on top of the mud and brick mound. The chedi was rebuilt again towards the end of the 19th century by his son Rama V when the Viceroy of India, Lord Curzon, made a gift of a Buddha relic excavated from the town where Buddha was believed to have been born. The concrete cap was built during WW II to keep the artificial hill from eroding further.