|
The first thing that comes to my mind when I think about Singapore is that it's the most expensive city! The second thought is – super clean. Both things are true. Singapore is the small city/country that lies on the southern tip of peninsular Malaysia. This country is a global commerce, finance, and transport hub. It definitely is. When flying to Singapore, you can spot a lot of cargo ships waiting to get to the port. Singapore port is one of the busiest ports in the world. |
|
This whole trip was one shock after another. The number of ships was definitely impressive. The second shock was the Changi Airport. I've heard a lot about this airport so I expected a lot. It's definitely the most beautiful airport I ever been to. There are gardens, a lot of flowers, very nice decorations, and the service is super fast. It's really a pleasure to be there.
The third shock was our hotel. We were traveling through Malaysia, Indonesia and Singapore. Hotels in Singapore were the most expensive out of all of those countries. We booked Mercure Bugis Hotel and we knew it wasn't an up-scale hotel. Mercure hotels are clean, quite big, and overall we like them a lot. When we got to this hotel we were shocked – again! The room was super small! I thought that we had the smallest room in Japan, but this one was equally small. They wanted to save space as much as possible so the toilet and shower were separated from the “bedroom” just by a thin glass wall. I know that Singapore is expensive, but they could do better with the design of bathroom facilities. They could give a little bit more privacy. Anyway, a hotel is just to sleep so we didn't wast time and went to see the city.
Where to go and what to see?
Marina Bay and Gardens by the Bay are the most popular things to do. Marina Bay is great during the day. I suggest starting from Merlion and then walking towards the hotel Marina Bay Sands. Merlion is a symbol of the city. It's a statue of a creature that is half fish, half lion. Merlion symbolize life and energy, and that's how settlers wanted to see Singapore as a city full of energy and full of happy life.
Marina Bay and Gardens by the Bay are the most popular things to do. Marina Bay is great during the day. I suggest starting from Merlion and then walking towards the hotel Marina Bay Sands. Merlion is a symbol of the city. It's a statue of a creature that is half fish, half lion. Merlion symbolize life and energy, and that's how settlers wanted to see Singapore as a city full of energy and full of happy life.
Marina Bay Sands is a hotel on the other side of the bay. Most people know this famous building and some of you probably heard about the infinity pool. Marina Bay Sands Hotel's design was inspired by Noah's Ark. The whole complex has a shopping mall, casinos, restaurants, and many more up-scale attractions. The most famous and popular are the Infinity Pool and the Observation Deck. Both of them are located at the top of the building. To access the Infinity Pool you need to be a hotel guest. However, you can easily access the Observation Deck and see the pool from there.
I know – it's much better to take a picture when you are in the pool. I am just not sure if it's worth to pay $300 per night just to get a picture in the infinity pool. The view from the observation deck is really nice. There are restaurants, food stands ect. A lot of people just hang out there, seat on the floor and admire the view.
We saw Marin Bay during the day, and waited on top of Marina Bay Sand hotel for the sunset. After the sunset we went to see the Super Trees.
The Supertrees are a man made, art creation. It resembles trees, and the metal construction is covered with natural leaves and plants. It's lit up at night, and it's totally self efficient (solar efficient). There is a light show around 8 pm and overall I recommend seeing it at night.
The park and the whole area is accessible for free but if you want to take the elevated walkway (OCBC Skywalk) you have to be there before 9 pm and pay around 20 SGD. You can also get to the top of the highest tree and grab a drink in the restaurant located there. One drink is included in the price of the access ticket. I recommend the walkway but would probably skip the restaurant.
There is more than just Supertrees in Gardens by the bay. There is Cloud Forest (rain forest), Flower Dome, Children Garden, and many more. Definitely the whole park is worth visiting.
Singapore Flyer – is another tourist attraction. It's a giant Ferris wheel. It's very similar to the London Eye. Another place from where you can admire the whole city. In my opinion, Marina Bay Sands observation deck is enough, and is better, but if you like to compare go to Flyer as well. Just get there by 10 pm because they close it for the night.
Singapore doesn't have much historical buildings. There is Singapore museum and other art galleries. It also has a lot of restaurants – you can get any kind of food you like and visit up-scale restaurants, or very good fast food places. I am not a foodie person so restaurant recommendations I will leave for somebody else. I can tell you however, where to find the best place to grab a drink.
Clarke Quay – this part of the city is a very trendy area. This is a few block area, with a big stage in the middle. There are bars, clubs, restaurants one on top of the other. You will know instantly that you are exactly in the right place. The music can be heard from the distance and you will see a group of people going only into one direction. No matter if you like club music and dancing, craft beer or looking for a Singapore Sling (the most famous drink) – everything is there!
You can see other bars in the city, but they are not that close to each other. They are very popular to grab an after work drink. On the other hand, Clarke Quay is the place where you can party all weekend long.
We spent only 2 nights in Singapore. You might want to stay for 3-4 nights, but I don't think you really need more time to explore the city. It's definitely, very nice and clean place to live. It's very hot there all year long so you might wanna take a subway instead of wandering around. Singapore is also quite a safe place so, you can explore more in the evening/night time when it's colder. Just take into consideration that some things might be closed. Subway is shut down at 11 pm and most of other attractions like Supertrees, the Flyer etc. are closed by 10 pm. It's an expensive city even for somebody who lives in New York. Alcohol, is especially pricey because of the high taxes, but then you can fly back to Malaysia, Indonesia or Thailand and enjoy cheap drinks again. Because Singapore is very often just a stop between visiting other Asian countries.
Ilona