Since we only had one entirely full day to spend in Singapore, we decided to spend it by walking around the city. After getting up and having some toast for breakfast, we headed out to the bus stop and rode into the city center. We got off at Orchard Road, which is one of Singapore’s most popular shopping streets.
We walked around there for a bit, not really wandering into the stores but rather soaking in the Singaporean atmosphere. Orchard Road itself was very, very nice and clean, and it was clearly an area for upscale shopping. Luckily, we had arrived on the start date for the “Great Singapore Sale” festival. The summer-long festival celebrates Singaporeans favorite pastime, shopping, by offering discounts up to 70% at stores all across the city!
Afterward, we wandered away from the main street and wandered through the residential and business areas to get to Clarke Quay, a large shopping/eating outdoor mall. I was suddenly hit by déjà vu, since the area struck me as awfully similar to the Arizona Desert Ridge mall, where I often go shopping when I’m home in Phoenix. To be honest, it was very strange, since the atmosphere was similar and the layout design almost identical to the one back home. There was an outdoor fountain where kids could play, just like home, and the entire area was covered by shade structures, again like Desert Ridge. It was a very weird feeling, but also very comforting.
The only difference was a very bizarre medical-themed bar, which had hospital beds for chairs and operation room lights for decoration…
We ended up wandering around Clark Quay for a while, especially along the waterfront. We had lunch at a really wonderful restaurant, and we were all very satisfied with our meals despite the “Western” price. It felt like the first good meal I’d had in months, and I followed up with a chocolaty dessert. When I cut into it the chocolate flowed out of the center, and I was strangely delighted and had a lot of fun playing with my food. Clearly, I was in desperate need of a high-quality, Western-style meal.
After lunch we worked off our full bellies by walking through a restaurant row, a corporate district, and the historical/government district. I continued to be impressed with Singapore’s pristine environment, which still felt remarkably similar to a combination of Western cities I’d visited. Elements of California, New York City, Phoenix, and London were all present, but the result was still uniquely Singapore. I’d decided that if I had to pick any Asian city to live in for an extended period of time, like a few years, it would be Singapore.
At last we reached the Esplanade, which is Singapore’s art and theater hall that looks like a giant white durian fruit. There, we had a great view of the Singapore Flyer, the giant Ferris wheel similar to the London Eye. A second view was of the brand-new Sands Hotel & Casino: Sentosa, which looks a lot different (and a lot cooler) than the Sands in Macau. This one consisted of not one, but THREE skyscrapers, all connected at the top by a sky beach!
Also, we could see the famous Merlion fountain across the river, which is Singapore’s most iconic symbol.
From there we continued our walk to the Fountain of Wealth, located in the middle of corporate skyscrapers (a fitting location for a fountain of such a name). Here, in the center of the roundabout, was the world’s largest fountain. At first, I thought it looked like a big copper donut with legs, and I didn’t think it was that pretty until it actually came on. Since it was close to sunset, the sunlight hit the water just right, and it looked magical.
In the evening we took the Metro to a mall, where we caught the monorail (like Disneyland!!!) to Sentosa Island. It is a manmade island built specifically for Singapore’s tourism industry, and here you’ll find a new Universal Studios as well as Singapore’s only beaches. Also, you can visit the southernmost point of mainland Asia and be as close as possible to the Equator, since across the short stretch of ocean you can see a good part of Indonesia (I waved hello to my dad).
Since night had already fallen, we decided just to have dinner on the island. Farah had recommended to us to visit Azzura, so we did.
And were we impressed! Set right against the (fake) beach, we were greeted with loud, pounding music, swan-shaped beds, a hot tub and pool, and a live DJ playing to the large crowd of young international people in their beachwear. Everyone was dancing and having a good time, and we were jealous that we couldn’t stay out all night and join them.
We ate a small dinner and had as many drinks as our budgets would allow (one). I enjoyed my Caesar salad entirely too much, since I don’t get them very often in Asia. It wasn’t even that great, but I was just so happy to be eating a salad for once. It felt so refreshing!
We were sad to leave, but we knew we needed to get an early start the next morning if we wanted to explore Singapore more before leaving for our flight back to Macau. After standing in line for a really long time to get the monorail back to the mainland, we took a taxi back into the city to our hostel.
Sentosa Island was amazing, though. I wished I’d had one more day to spend just in Sentosa. It was absolutely beautiful at night, but I would have liked to see it during the day as well. We all agreed that while it did have an air of “fakeness” about it (I mean, it was an entirely manmade island), it was still a really amazing place.
Coming up next, the last in my Malaysia/Singapore series, “Malaysia & Singapore: Day Eleven.”
Love,
Kati
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