So, here FINALLY is my post on Singapore!
First of all, Singapore is the cleanest city I've ever been to. Hands down. I have no idea how they keep it that clean, it is amazing. There's no trash anywhere. (Which may be due to the $1,000 littering fine) Everywhere feels so clean and safe. Normally when I go to a new country I'm a bit nervous about safety, but I really wasn't in Singapore.
This is one of the first pictures I took in Singapore. It is their 50th birthday this year.
I loved Singapore so much that it is kind of hard to organize my thoughts on how best to share it with you. So, I guess I'll try to go in order.
First off, our hotel was magical. We stayed in the Marina Bay Sands, which is way nicer than anything I could afford (thanks YC's parents!) I'll probably never stay anywhere that nice again. The view was phenomenal. The above picture is the view from our room in the hotel. Every day I got to wake up to that view.
Of course the best part of the Marina Bay Sands was the infinity pool. It is famous for a very good reason. The view from the pool is the best in Singapore, in my opinion. You can see forever in all directions. Though the sunset is only visible from the one restaurant, which was frustrating. Everyone goes up to the pool for pictures, but not many people actually swim. Just about everyone up at the infinity pool is taking selfies constantly, it is rather funny to watch.
Apparently one of the days we were there some guy was swimming around the pool naked and evading staff. I guess it took them awhile to catch Naked Swimmer Man, I rather wish I'd seen it unfold.
The view our first day was marred by rain, but it is still awesome.
YC posing over infinity.
This pool makes for the coolest picture, seriously.
On Christmas Eve we visited the Gardens by the Bay. The Gardens by the Bay was the thing I most wanted to see in Singapore. I'd been looking at pictures of the Gardens for months leading up to the trip. They lived up to my expectations, then blew them away. During the day, the Gardens are impressive, but at night they are phenomenal.
Look at those pretty giant trees!
During the day my favorite part of the Gardens was the Cloud Dome. I loved the waterfall and the fake mountain you get to walk through. It was so pretty, and only cost 20 Singapore dollars for both domes. Not going to lie, the Flower Dome did not impress me. I think the weird Christmas village inside the Flower Dome was what really blew it for me. Quite cheesy. Still, the Cloud Dome made up for it. Plus, it is nice and cool inside the Cloud Dome. Be forewarned, unless you get your hand stamped there is no reentry to the domes.
This waterfall was huuuuuge.
The flowers in the Cloud Dome were just as good anyway.
What really blew my mind about the Gardens though was the giant trees all lit up at night. It was like a fairy garden! They played Christmas music and the trees twinkled in time, it was gorgeous. I stood there in awe for the whole light show. Just look! All the pictures!
Look at all those colors!
I think this one is my favorite. It really captures the magic.
Glowing trees and ferris wheel!
One of the trees, no longer glowing, and our hotel.
On Christmas day we went to the Treetop Walk, and died of the heat. Well, I died. It was so hot and humid, but a fun walk. I saw a monkey in the wild for the first time, which made me squeal and hit YC, and a temple viper.
I wasn't as scared of the height as I thought I would be either. Maybe all the trees underneath tricked my brain into thinking I wasn't so high up, or something. I may have gotten a bit grumpy by the end of the walk though. I don't cope well with heat plus hunger. I'm not sure I've ever been so sweaty in my life, it was disgusting.
Monkey!
Can you tell I'm melting?
The treetop walk!
Near the end of our trip we finally went to a beach. I won't lie to you though, I was quite disappointed with the beaches in Singapore. We went to Sentosa island, which is really the only famous beach in Singapore. It was kind of lame. The beaches on the island aren't very big and cargo ships mar the view. I had a hard time enjoying the beach when all I could see were giant cargo ships. My one regret of the ship is that I spent three weeks in Southeast Asia and only went to one beach, and it was a lame beach.
Enjoying being on a beach, even a disappointing one.
See? Look at those horrible view ruining cargo ships.
The last day we spent in Singapore we walked around Chinatown to find Christmas presents for my friends. I meant to buy harem pants as well, but YC ended up feeling sick so I didn't have time. I guess I'll just have to come back, because harem pants are necessary. Chinatown is very touristy, but worth visiting for the souvenirs. I got some awesome chopsticks and tea for one of my friends, and the prices weren't terrible.
The Buddhist Temple with Buddha's tooth is worth a visit as well. If you are wearing shorts and/or a sleeveless top you will need to cover up with the shawls the temple provides. I looked like a fashionista in mine, I'm sure. Visiting the temple is worth it just so you can say you've seen Buddha's tooth, if nothing else.
Chinatown!
The Buddha tooth temple.
This is what a fashionist looks like, in case you couldn't tell.
I only took a couple pictures of the temple, because I know it can be considered rude to photograph Buddha. I didn't want to accidentally offend anyone. Most tourists were snapping tons of pictures though, so I'm pretty sure you can do whatever you want downstairs.
All in all, I adored Singapore. It was a lovely city with a lot to see and do. Plus, I got to spend the time with my boyfriend and meet his family. It was a lovely trip and I wish I was still there.
I will include another post on all the yummy food we ate on the trip later. I'm sure you all want to hear about the food. Everyone always wants to hear about food, universal truth.
Preview: kaya toast was my favorite. I will rant later.
Look how pretty!
Have any of you ever been to Singapore? Did you love it as well? What was your favorite part?
-Alisa
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