Singapore

Singapore
3/17/2023

Arriving in an uber first world country was shocking and refreshing at the same time. We spent three days, mostly on our own, and hit the ground running as soon as our ship docked. Mike spent much time working in Singapore in the 1980s, teaching the Singapore Air Force how to use avionics equipment and supporting flight tests. Very little remains of the Singapore he knew. Where once he took a ferry to Sentosa Island, you can now walk or drive or ride a gondola. The new Marina Bay area is full of super-sized high-rise buildings, much on land reclaimed from the sea, along with lots of entertainment venues and hotels. Singapore, comprised of 63 islands, is the world’s only island city-state and sits at the tip of the Malay Peninsula. Established by Sir Stamford Raffles for the East India Company in 1819, its

successful development over the past two centuries is due, in large part, to its cultural diversity – Malays, Indonesians, Indians, Sri Lankans, and Chinese live side-by-side. Multi-racialism is enshrined in the Constitution. English is the lingua franca, but Singapore has four official languages: English, Malay, Mandarin, and Tamil. According to our guides, they also speak “Singlish”. And different religions co-exist side-by-side, with Buddhist, Hindu, Taoist temples; Muslim mosques; and Christian churches throughout the 283 square miles populated by 5.5 million people.

3/15/2023 – Day 1 – We walked over to Sentosa Island where we were truly gob smacked by the number and size of entertainment venues and hotels. But we found our way to the beach and dipped our toes in the water before walking to the tip of the island to visit Fort Siloso. Built in 1874 to protect the harbor, it was used during WWII as a small POW camp, and is now a museum. The views, bird life and

public art on display throughout the grounds make it a quiet green space in an otherwise happening area. Sighting the Oriental Pied Hornbill was the highlight of the day, and is actually our best bird-sighting so far on the trip. Then we walked back to the center of Sentosa and rode the gondola one stop before transferring to another gondola that carried us across the island and harbor, over our ship, across the highway and buildings, and up to the top of Mount Faber, the highest point on the island. Along the way, we met Irina, a woman from Khabarovsk, a city in far eastern Russia, who was in Singapore taking English Once at Mount Faber, we stopped for a little refreshment and to watch the sun set before riding the gondola back around and around a couple of times before disembarking at Harbour Center, where our ship was docked. The tickets were good all day and we wanted to get our money’s worth….

3/16/2023 – Day 2
Today we navigated the MRT (metro rapid transit) around the city – tapping our credit cards and/or iPhones to pay $2-3 per ride. Easy and fast. First up was a short walk through Little India on our way to Bussorah Street and the Masjid Sultan (Sultan Mosque). This

mosque was built in the late 1920s, but its history goes back to the early 19th century when Sultan Hussein and Temenggong Abdul Rahman signed a treaty with Sir Stamford Raffles allowing the British East India Company to establish a trading post here. Then we headed over to Mike’s personal “mecca”, Sim Lim Square. It consists of two four or more story office buildings containing nothing but electronics shops, and this is where he purchased many a camera, video recorder, and other electronic gadgets back in the 1980s. After that sensory overload, we headed back through Little India – stopping this time to take a closer look around, and then over to Chinatown where we enjoyed a great lunch. Ambling our way through Chinatown, we then visited the Sri Mariamman Temple. Built in 1827, it is the oldest Hindu temple in Singapore. Today it is best known for the fire-walking ceremony that take place each October and November when devotees walk across hot coals as a testament to

their faith and devotion. Ouch! Our final stop of the afternoon was the Buddha Tooth Relic Temple and Museum, where we observed Buddhist monks chanting for the faithful in attendance. Our day was not over yet though. Back for a quick shower and then on to our Viking Singapore After Dark tour, where we visited the Raffles Hotel – actually the Annex as we mere mortals are not allowed inside the original hotel -- and our Singapore Slings at the Long Bar. This is where being on a tour comes in handy, as we got to bypass the incredibly long line and go in first. And our drinks, which now go for about $30 each, were included in the tour. Then we headed over to Merlion Park (Singapore’s symbol – mermaid/lion = merlion), took a cruise on the Singapore River, and then took a nice long stroll around the older part of the city before calling it a night.

3/17/2023 – Day 3
Today we made our way to the Singapore Botanic Gardens, which has been “Connecting Plants and People Since 1859” and is free to all. At 202 acres in size, it is one of three gardens, and the only tropical garden, to be honored as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Inside the park is the National Orchid Garden, which charges a small

entrance fee. The Prisoner-of-War Brick Steps were made by POWs during the Japanese occupation of Singapore (1942-1945). As a sign of defiance, the POWs imprinted arrows on most of the bricks to indicate that they were “detained by the authorities “. There is nothing more to say about the most amazing botanical garden we’ve ever visited. The way too many photos speak for themselves. After some serious power shopping, both at the Gardens and at the Harbour Center Mall; a haircut for Mike; an eyebrow clean-up for Mary; and a little grocery shopping, we made it back to the ship just before the deadline. Along with several hundred others who enjoyed Singapore up to the last minute.

Final Singapore thoughts – Mike was shocked at the number of high- and mega high-rise buildings that have been erected since his last visit. Despite high-rise apartments popping up all over, he was happy to see that the ethnic areas remain fairly unchanged. The city is still

fairly spotless, but not as spotless as in the 1980s. As one of the most expensive cities in the world, Singapore attracts all kinds – many of the super wealthy, to be sure, as well as the rest of us. The green spaces were our favorites, and it was a great trip down memory lane for Mike.