Best known for
the Singapore Sling at Raffles Hotel. Oh, and all the rules….They still cane
people here.
Prohibited Goods:
Chewing tobacco and imitation
tobacco products
Chewing gum
Cigarette lighters of pistol or
revolver shape
Controlled drugs and psychotropic
substances
Endangered species of wildlife
and their by-products
Firecrackers
Obscene articles, publications,
video tapes/discs and software
Reproduction of copyright
publications, video tapes, video discs, laser discs, records or cassettes
Sedititious and treasonable
materials.
Smokers could only take 1 pack
of cigarettes ashore and of course no gum chewing. There are lots more rules, but I can tell you their system works. It's a lovely very clean place. Our favorite sign was a sign before boarding the subway that said "no durian". Durian is a very stinky fruit. We tried some at our last Sunday Buffet on the ship. It doesn't taste as bad as it smells, but it probably in an acquired taste. LOL
We woke up to thunder and
lightning and pouring rain. We were supposed to be able to get off the ship at
7:00. But it was nearly 8:00 before they announced we could get off. Grrrr. We
had to go through immigration on shore, but that went smoothly.
We had no
organized tour here and used local transportation to see the sights. First off
we grabbed a taxi to Singapore Botanical Gardens.
The serene and
beautiful park had many locals walking dogs, exercising in groups, walking
their babies and couples just taking in the morning. The rain let up and the
sun came out and it was scorching hot today! There were ginger gardens,
heliconia gardens, bamboo gardens and of course their orchid garden which has
the largest display of orchids in the world. We went through the Mist House
which houses a host of rare orchids, the Cool House which encloses a montane
tropical forest, the Orchidarium is where most of the wild orchids are
displayed and the VIP and Celebrity Orchid Gardens. We then walked through the
rest of the gardens to find the MRT (subway station) to head to Little India.
On the walk out there were heard what sounded like cicadas only with a loud
metallic sound. (like an icepick to the brain)YIKES! Makes our cicadas at home
sound like easy listening music. Ha!
We got off the
subway and explored Little India. We walked to the Tekka Center to
see the “Wet Market” for unusual seafood, fresh meats and vegetables. Every
kind of fish, shellfish, sharks, and various chickens and pork products. Then
we went upstairs and shopped the beautiful saris and other clothes. I picked
up a cute top for about $8.00, the lady looked at me and pulled out my size, I
tried it on over my clothes and it fit perfectly!
Once the 'Cattle Corner' of Little India Singapore, Buffalo Road and
Kerbau Road today still bustle with many colorful sights, minus the buffaloes. (Kerbau
is Malay for buffalo)
We wandered
Serangoon Road This is the main road that runs through Little
India, and therefore receives lots of traffic - vehicles and people. two
very prominent Hindu temples - the Sri Veerama
Kaliamman Temple and the Sri Srinivasa Perumal Temple.
We then headed for the Kampong Glam area. Arab Street is a great place to find
bargains for textiles, fabrics,
dresses, beads, sequins, scarfs and women's wear. There were also a handful of
shops selling carpets and other hand-woven household stuff.
Bussorah Street has 2 sections - one open
to vehicles, another only for pedestrians. We had wanted to visit the Sultan Mosque, but the Call to Prayers sounded and it is closed
during this time. We watched them clean all of their orifices and feet etc.
before entering. It was a beautiful Mosque. We saw the Malay Heritage Center
which is a restored
2-storey building in a lovely compound. This was once the palace of Sultan
Hussein. It is now called the Malay Heritage Centre, but its old name of Istana Kampong Glam still sticks in many people's minds.
We then took the subway to
China Town for a late lunch at Maxwell Road
Food Centre - Where some of the best hawker
food in Singapore can be found. We had hoped for Chilly Crabs and some
other Malay dish, but the center didn’t have either, so we had some grilled
pork and noodles with pot stickers and duck with rice. Fried bananas for
dessert. While we ate 2 sets of different men came to our table to chat with
us. They thought we were from the U.S. and just wanted to talk and tell us
about Singapore and suggested some things to visit.
All of Singapore is an eclectic mix of people. China Town itself
had a mixture of cultures. We walked through the Telok Ayer area to see
Singapore’s oldest Chinese Temple Thian Hock Kheng Temple, an Indian shrine Nagore Durgha Shrine, Al-Abrar Mosque, Telok Ayer Chinese Methodist
Church, and heritage shop houses
with European, Chinese and Malay influences. How’s that for an eclectic
mix!
Besides these ethnic neighborhoods Singapore has a thriving modern
business district. There is a new hotel that the top looks like a ship and has
an infinity pool at the top floor.
We didn’t have time to visit Raffles Hotel (home of the Singapore
Sling) and we were about 8 minutes late getting back to the ship. We took the
subway to the Marina Bay stop where we were going to catch a cab back to the
ship. Our first issue was I was behind Greg on the escalator with 1 person in
between us. When we got to the bottom, I was swept up in the crowd and never
saw where Greg went. He had gotten on the subway and it left before I could get
on. Another train came in a few minutes and I got on and got off at our stop.
Greg was there waiting for me. Phew! Then, we couldn’t get a taxi back to the
ship for ages. We got in the cab just as we were supposed to be boarding the
ship. I don’t think we were last, but still….. Luckily, we had no wait at
immigration and got through that fine.
Showered and went to dinner. It was Greek night in the dining
room. We skipped the show to relax in the cabin and get ready for our tour
tomorrow in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. (it was the hypnotist)
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