Wanderers : Singapore

Singapore. It's a city and country. It's 137 kilometers (85 miles) from the equator and probably the closest we'll get to the equator. Singapore is the third largest financial center in the world with New York and London topping the list and second busiest container port in the world with Shanghai number one. It was amazing to see all the ships at anchor waiting to enter port! It is one of the most globalized cities in the world with a third of its citizens being foreign-born nationalized citizens. Chinese Singaporeans make up much of the population but this country is also home to Malaysians, Indians, Europeans and Americans. English is the common language but Mandarin and Malay are widely spoken as well.

Singapore gained independence from Malaysia in 1965 and has been known as the Republic of Singapore ever since. Lee Kuan Yew, Singapore's first prime minister, can be credited with taking Singapore from a third world country to a first world financial super power.

Singapore has some unique and strict laws. Taxi drivers must be national born citizens. Selling chewing gum is illegal (and is prohibited from being brought into the country). Spitting and vaping are illegal. The legal drinking age is 18 but alcohol cannot be purchased after 10:30pm. Drug traffickers are punished by death. Dealers are publicly hanged. We were warned that possession of a controlled substance IS punishable by death. Not may be punishable. IS punishable. People still get caned for doing stupid shit (no more than 24 strokes).

The result: a clean, modern and safe city. A sharp contrast from US cities. We never saw any police officers or heard sirens.

What did we do?

SMRT. Singapore has a fast, clean and modern metro system called SMRT (Singapore Mass Rail Transit). We rode it everywhere. From the airport upon arrival to everywhere we went. The crowds are low. It is SO easy. You don't even need a ticket. Just tap your phone or credit card to enter and exit and your fare is automatically charged. Trains run about every five minutes and there are stops all over the city. There are buses too, many double-decker, but MRT was perfect for us. That may explain the minimal traffic. There also are not many motorbikes.

Stand Up Sally signs were ubiquitous.

Gardens by the Bay. This is one of Singapore's iconic attractions. There is the Supertree Grove that are tree-like structures that tower overhead. There are two glass domes (conservatories): the Cloud Forest and Flower Dome. We visited both domes. If we had to pick one thing to do, it would be the Cloud Forest, an indoor rain forest that 'mists' every two hours. Truly spectacular.

Planet Sculpture by Marc Quinn

Floral Clock

Dancing with the Stars

The Thinker

Sharon's Avatar

Rob's Avatar

Carnivorous Plants

Hanging Out!

Miniature Orchids

Before misting

During misting

Stone Plants

Old Man of the Andes

It's a wrap!

Gardens by the Bay is home to over 1.5 million plants from every continent except Antartica. The flowers were exquisite!

Before bloom

After bloom

Mysore Clock Vine

Skypark at Marina Bay Sands. The Marina Bay Sands is an ultramodern hotel with three towers that support a platform that houses an infinity pool, restaurant and observation deck. Only the latter is open to the public (after paying S$52 to ride the elevator 56 floors up in 40 seconds). The Observation deck can hold up to 600 people. We saw countless vessels awaiting their turn to enter port, Gardens by the Bay, Singapore's skyline and the waterfront area.

Raffles Hotel for a Singapore Sling. The Raffles Hotel is the most famous hotel in Singapore and epitomizes the island's colonial history. It was really nice checking out the hotel and the high-end shops. Back in the day... etiquette dictated that ladies could not consume alcohol in public. Pretty much only teas and fruit juices. An enterprising and insightful bartender saw a niche and created a gin-based cocktail that looked like a fruit drink -- the Singpore Sling. It was a hit and 'socially acceptable'. We went to the Long Bar at the Raffles and purchased two 'original' Singapore Slings. There was a long line just to get in. Two drinks for S$88 (about $66 USD). 😳 At least we got peanuts and it's the only place in Singapore where littering is allowed and you can throw shells on the floor.

Boat Quay. This used to be a 'locals'/backpacker hang-out. We had dinner here. I had to try Singapore's national dish: Chilli crab. That was S$88!!! And Sharon got black pepper prawn for S$30. Add a couple of drinks and it was a S$200 dinner. At least we had a river front table!

Black Pepper Prawns

Chilli Crab

Albert Center. This is a 'hawker' center and right near our hotel. We ate here twice and both our meals combined were less than S$10 each time we ate here. You can either find a hawker place to eat (they are everywhere) or pay full price at a restaurant.

Chinatown. We visited the Sri Mariamman Temple. A Hindu temple. I guess we were there for a service or some ceremony? We feel so ignorant sometimes. The cool thing was seeing a glimpse of local life and watched people lighting incense, praying and chanting. There were people parading around with horns blowing and drum a-banging. It was a spectacle to behold! We felt a tad awkward being there.

Next was the Buddha Tooth Relic Temple. We never saw the 'tooth'. But again, we seemed to time it for a ceremony. After that it was time for lunch! Sharon read about Hawker Chan's. A Michelin rated restaurant. We waited almost 30 minutes for... chicken. That's all I got.

Long Line

Needed a refreshing beverage while waiting - Lemon Ice Teas

Haw Par Villa. Formerly known as the Tiger Balm Garden. It is an 8.5-hectare Asian cultural park and the last of its kind in the world. It was built in 1937 and is Singapore’s largest outdoor art gallery. It is an eclectic and quirky park of Asian culture, history, philosophy and religion. Walking the grounds and checking out the hundreds of statues and artwork is free but the highlight is Hell's Museum. All the major religions of the world are explained here and then there are the 10 Courts of Hell. Cool, creepy and bizzarre.

A chicken-head woman is considered
evil and pulling the chicken-head
man into her lair.

Heaven and Hell

Entrance to Hell

Guarding the entrance of the 10 Courts of Hell are Ox Head and Horse Face. They are part of the netherworld's bureaucracy. They form a network of attendants and jailers responsible for escorting souls through the 10 Courts, and to and from the various hells for punishments to be meted out.

Horse Face

Ox Head

Court 1
Virtuous souls who had accumulated good deeds take the Silver Bridge to become deities or reborn humans. They escape the rest of the 10 Courts.

Court 2 Days After Death 14

Sins - Causing hurt, cheating, robbery Punishments - Thrown into a volcanic pit

Sins - Corruption, stealing, gambling Punishments - Thrown onto blocks of ice

Sins - Prostitution Punishments - Thrown into a pool of blood

Court 3 Days After Death 21

Sins - Drug addiction, involved with trafficking, robbing tombs, instigating others to commit crimes, social unrest Punishments - Tied to a red hot copper pillar and be grilled alive

Sins - Ungrateful, have a lack of respect towards elders, escape from prison Punishments - Have your chest sliced open and your heart taken out

Court 4 Days After Death 28
Sins - Tax evasion, avoiding paying rent, fraud. Punishments - Pounded by a stone mallet

Sins - Disobedience towards siblings, lack of finial piety. Punishments - ground by a large stone

Court 5 Days after Death 35

Sins - Plotting the death of someone to steal his property or money, charging exorbitant interest rates as a moneylender. Punishments - Thrown onto a hill of knives

Court 6 Days After Death 42

Sins - Cheating, using curse words, kidnapping Punishments - Thrown onto a tree of knives

Sins - Misusing books, possessing pornography, breaking rules and regulations, wasting food Punishments - Have your body sawn in half

Court 7 Days Agter Death 49

Sins - Spreading rumors, sowing discord among family members Punishments - Having your tongue pulled out

Sins - Rape, driving someone to his/her death Punishments - Thrown into a wok of boiling water

7th Court

Court 8 Days After Death 100

Sins - Lack of filial piety, causing trouble for parents or other family members, cheating during exams Punishments - Have one's intestines and organs pulled out

Sins - Harming others to benefit oneself Punishments - Dismemberment

Court 9 Days After Death 1 Year

Sins - Robbery, Murder, rape, any other unlawful conduct Punishments - Head and arms chopped off

Sins - Neglecting the young and old Punishments - Crushed under boulders

Court 10 Years After Death 3 Years

The 10th and final Court of Hell, souls will be hauled before King Zhuanlun to receive a final judgment to decide what forms they will take upon rebirth. This will depend on their karma - the good and bad deeds committed in life.

Here a court clerk delivers a severe verdict
Judgement of the 10th King
The man to be reborn as a black goat
The woman to be reborn as a white rabbit

Orchard Road. Orchard Road’s beginnings date back to the early 1830s, when it was an unnamed road with fruit orchards, nutmeg plantations and pepper farms. In 1958, Orchard Road’s first department store—TANGS—was set up by local merchant C.K. Tang. Then known as House of Tangs, it marked the neighbourhood’s first step towards becoming one of Singapore’s huge shopping district. We aren't really shoppers but enjoyed checking it out and looking for a new backpack for Sharon (that we didn't find)

Fort Canning. Fort Canning Park is a beautfiul park to walk around. During World War II, the British surrendered Singapore to the Japanese.

Too many people in line for spiral staircase
had to settle for walkway

Fort Entrance

Clarke Quay. Fun historic place with lots of stores, bars and restaurants. Clarke Quay

Where did we eat? Hawker stalls at Albert Centre, George Town Restaurant, 81Boat Quay and our last night we splurged and ate at a Japanese Restaurant in Capitol Singapore to use our remaining Singapore dollars.

Spicy Salmon Roll

Aburi 12 Kinds Kaisen Chirashi Don

12 kinds of Sashimi over sushi rice

How did we get here? We arranged transport from our hotel to HKT (Phuket International AIrport). We flew Scoot Airlines. They were very casual with our carry-on bags and didn't even weigh them. Once we arrived in Singapore it was easy peasy lemon squeezy! All we did was scan our passport. Get a photo taken and that was it. No human interaction. We walked to the MRT station and figured out how to get to our hotel which was right next door to the station.

Empty seat between, Score!

Where did we stay? V Hotel Bencoolen. Not impressed. $150/night for a tiny room, paper thin walls (we could hear guys peeing) and no breakfast. Maybe we're spoiled after almost four months of 'cheap' hotels but this one did not impress. But the locaion was perfect!

Sidenote: There is a Navy Inn on the northern part of the island.