Singapore

This month we spent 4 days in Singapore. It was my second trip there (I also visited two years ago) and Gavin's first. Our goals for the 4 days? See my cousins, eat, catch up with a good friend, eat, see a bit of the Singapore Biennale and eat. Check out all the photos here and here.

We slept
The Perak Hotel's clean, spare rooms are housed in renovated shophouse with a lovely façade. It's interior could probably use a little more charm and the first floor accomodations lack natural light, but it's conveniently located and reasonably priced. WiFi is free but frustratingly spotty.

Another good, possibly better, option where I stayed two years ago is Hangout Hotels @ Mt. Emily. It's often characterized as a hostel, but don't let that scare you off. There are single and double rooms with clean, mod Ikea furnishing, free WiFi and a trendy vibe, located a few minutes walk from the MRT.

If you've got a bit more cash, check out the chic Scarlet Hotel, which actually looks a lot nicer than their cheesy website would have you believe.

And if you're really rolling in it, I probably don't have to tell you about $700/night Raffles.

We ate
Oh, boy, did we eat. We ate so much I'll have to put it in another post. A city that continually renovates churches into restaurants can only be characterized as food-obsessed. All I have to say for now is pick up a Makansutra food guide and familiarize yourself with the concept of the hawker centre.





We explored
Singapore may be small in landmass, but neighborhood by neighborhood, it packs a lot of diverse experiences within its borders.

Little India
Both times I went to Singapore, Little India was my starting point. Of all of Singapore's neighborhoods, Little India -- colorful, bustling, and not (yet) filled with shiny and bland shopping malls -- is my favorite. The main artery is Serangoon Road, but don't forget to wander down the little sidestreets to ogle the colorful shophouses, sniff the spicy aromas, nosh on some dosas, imbibe some ABC Beer, and admire the gorgeous architecture of the mosque and Hindu temples.

Arab Quarter, Kampong Glam
From Little India you can walk to the Arab Quarter in about 10 minutes. The impressive gold-domed Sultan Mosque is the focal point of this neighborhood and right in front of it Bussorah St is worth a stroll despite the touristy vibe. One block over, Arab Street has bolts of fabric for sale and one more block to the south is Haji Lane which is short but packs in quite a few trendy designer boutiques and vintage shops. I like Pluck, Salad and 2. There's also some Haji Lane spillover on Ophir Road, where crafty Maki Squarepatch churns out stuffed creatures. If you need airconditioning, walk over to Bugis Junction, a mall that attempts to recreate the look of the shophouses it paved over. Nearby is Bugis Village, a covered market with clothing and electronic stalls that replaced a red light district. Don't forget to the ogle the oppulent interior of Parkview Square, an office building completed in 2004 whose architectural influences are 80% Art Deco, 20% Evil Empire. For yummy eats, head to Beach Rd, home to numerous "steamboat" (hotpot) restaurants. If you don't mind a 10-15 minute northerly walk, Golden Mile Food Centre is also on Beach Rd.




Chinatown
Even Singapore, with Chinese people constituting 78% of the population, has a Chinatown. It comes complete with red lanterns and silk qipaos for sale. If you're going to Chinatown to buy vaguely Asian-looking tchotchkes, go to Pagoda Street. Otherwise, avoid that road and explore the new Chinatown. Along Ann Siang Rd, Erskine Rd, Amoy St and Club St, chic design boutiques and studios have begun to appear. Many of them don't have obvious signage, hiding away in shophouses and adopting a chic under-the-radar pose. I liked Front Row, Style: Nordic, eggthree and my favorite, Strangelets, a lovingly curated shop that is perfectly described by their tagline "Militant Craftsmanship." For yummy eats, try the hawker center at Chinatown Complex instead of the "Food Street" on Smith.


The Colonial District
Some people like to fondly remember bygone British colonial times with a Singapore Sling at the Raffles Hotel Long Bar. Hmm. I recommend paying tribute to the hard work of early Chinese immigrants to Singapore with some egg tarts and coffee at Raffles Ah Teng's Bakery instead. Other than gawk at rich people at Raffles, what else to do in the Colonial District? The Singapore Art Museum has terrific modern and contemporary exhibitions of Singaporean and Southeast Asian art. Their new annex for emerging artists, 8Q, looks really promising. Chjimes is a complex of restaurants and bars housed in a former church. The Esplanade is the performing arts center, housed in a prickly building that looks like a durian. City Hall was the site where the Japanese surrendered Singapore to Lord Mountbatten in 1945. It's going to be renovated into the National Art Gallery 2012, but I got to see some interesting installations in the courtrooms here during the 2006 and 2008 Singapore Biennials. And don't despair for yummy eats: there's a Makansutra-sponsored hawker center at the Esplanade, and Lau Pa Sat, a hawker center housed in a beautiful Victorian cast-iron former wet marketplace, is steps away from the Raffles Place MRT station.


Haw Par Villa
If you're amused by oddities you might like to visit this weird little park created by the founders of Tiger Balm. I didn't get to return this year, but the imagery I experienced at The Ten Courts of Buddhist Hell and The Vices and Virtues Tableau two years ago have stayed with me... and I think I'm a better person for it. To get here, take a taxi or bus from the HarbourFront MRT station.


Chinese Garden
Wouldn't you know it, there's a Chinese Garden at the Chinese Garden MRT station. It's got a pagoda, a lake and a bonsai display. It's worth a look if you haven't ever been to one and have time to kill, but it was falling into some disrepair when I was last there in 2006. If you like amphibians, then the best part is the Live Turtle & Tortoise Museum, which has 200 turtles and tortoises from over 60 different species. Oh, and a two-headed turtle named Double Happiness.



Palau Ubin
We took a trip to Palau Ubin, only a 15 minute boat ride from the Changi Village Ferry Terminal, to spend the afternoon biking through the jungle and exploring beaches. The two beaches aren't really swim-worthy, but make nice spots for relaxing on a sunny day. There are also some beautiful abandoned quarries -- where swimming isn't permitted -- on the island. It took us about 3 hours to explore most of the mostly flat and well-paved island. On our leisurely ride, we spotted lizards, herons and a family of black boars (momma, poppa, and baby!).

The bike rentals and some seafood restaurants are near the ferry jetty. We went to Palau Ubin on a weekday, which meant that, on the plus side, most of the time we had the roads all to ourselves. On the minus side, some of the restaurants and all of the drink stands were closed, so if you want to eat something beforehand, check out the Changi Village hawker center across from the ferry terminal before you embark. Even though Gavin's cell phone welcomed him to Malaysia there, Palau Ubin is technically a part of Singapore. It just feels like another world entirely....

We got around
I like Lonely Planet's maps. You can download just the map here.

by MTR
MTR stops are near most of the places you want to go. Nice for the environment, nice to your feet and a nice blast of cool air on a hot day.

by foot
Really, the neighborhoods in central Singapore are much closer to one another than you might figure by looking at the map. Sometimes it's just easier to walk rather than take an MTR and transfer lines.

by taxi
It's easy to get a taxi at the taxi stands and they're air-conditioned... If you're more than two people traveling, it might be more cost-effective or the same to take a cab instead of the MTR.