Sticky in Singapore

We arrived in Singapore after a very easy flight, thankyou Quantas, and settled into the comforts of a b and b, aptly named 1bandbsingapore! Our first day we spent exploring chinatown, which was incredibly clean-as is the whole of Singapore, jam packed with ornate little colourful houses, market stalls and food stalls. For dinner we checked out one of the world famous Hawker Stalls and had to try some carrotless carrot cake, given its name from the shallot ingredient which is supposedly related to the carrot! It is basically egg, shallot, wheat and soy, tasted good to me!

The next day we visited the colonial region, where Sir Raffles first landed and declared Singapore an international trading port, making it the thriving city it is today (minus the whole japanese invasion part). The buildings here were very grand indeed, made more so by the heat glaring off them and making the white sparkle! We took a look inside the asian civilisations museum, one of the most prominent buildings, and were especially entertained by the childrens areas, where you actually learnt very interesting factoids about food and culture! Down by the quay we tried some famous Indian Pratha Rota, recommended to us by a family friend of Ruthies, which was quite divine, dipped in some special sauce we ate as many as we could!

Of course no trip to Singapore would be complete without a Singapore Sling in Raffles! I had been looking forward to my trip to Raffles for a very long time, for which I have the programme Tenko to blame! Having been described as cough syrup to me I was pretty sceptical about this concoction, but it was in fact delicious and well worth the wait! We met Ruthies family friend in the long bar, where I had my famous drink, and which was also exceedingly busy. I think we were not the only ones to have thought to pop in to Raffles for a drink! The palm court especially looked exactly as I had envisaged, I was very happy to be there!

Our last day, I ventured to the National Museum of Singapore for a history lesson, and I have to say it is one of the best museums I have ever been to! With my audio guide I was literally taken through time and can now tell anyone, in great detail, about the events in Singapores history! That afternoon we checked out little India, which literally is like stepping into another country-India in fact! Jam packed with people and with tiny lanes and markets stalls everywhere. The buildings where bright but a little shabbier than the rest of Singapore. Tired and sticky from bustling around we retired to the quay to enjoy a final meal by the singapore river. Chilli chicken and tiger beer, delightful!

Overall Singapore is an amazing city where it seems so many different cultures coexist, everywhere you find tiny ornate houses there is a brand new tower block looming behind. You can step out of a brand new shopping mall full of labels and into a hawker centre where lunch costs you $5! And all this engulfed in overwhelming heat, and the occasional rain storm! Its pretty special!