Orchard Road

Of course we wouldn’t miss going to the ever famous Orchard Road to do a bit of shopping. When in Singapore, it’s best to visit a few of their local brands like Charles and Keith, Forever 21, and Muji. The ladies went crazy trying to find these stores. And they all took their time once we found each of these. I patiently waited for hours outside while they do their thing. I kinda needed it too. My feet were killing me from all the walking that we were doing. I took pictures and tried to take a mental note of what Singapore looks like, including all the insurance advertising seen of the buses. It will be a while before we’d come back.

I noticed that one of the reasons why Singapore looks so clean is that the ads are only allowed in specific areas, like in buses and MRTs. No huge billboards strewn all over. The posters are neatly placed on lampposts and the size is not too big to obstruct you from seeing the city.

We also didn’t pass the opportunity to visit Royce.

And we met our favorite snack place called Old Chang Kee.

If ever you find yourself in Singapore one of these days, do try Old Chang Kee’s chicken wings, sotong on stick, and breaded prawn on stick. I think this is their version of street food, and this little shop was our favorite. They have branches all over too. So no matter where you are, I’m sure there’s one near.

Tong Heng Bakery

Another place that we visited is the Tong Heng Bakery right across the Budda Tooth Relic Temple and Museum.

A few days before our flight, I saw a post of foodie Lori of Dessert Comes First about Tong Heng, and she says that “they’re the best I’ve eaten. Ever.” emphasis on “best” and “ever.” Of course we had to have this too. So on our table for a mid afternoon snack are two egg tarts, two bbq pork, and one curry chicken puff.

The eggs tarts aren’t your usual creamy egg tarts. If you’ve been to Macao and tasted their version, I’m pretty sure you won’t like this. this egg tart is totally different. This egg tart is…uhm…eggy. If you’re into eggs, then this little number will hit all the right notes (kinda like getting nordic track coupons for some). Otherwise, it won’t be as satisfying. I actually think that this is how an egg tart should really taste. Eggy. My wife and our two friends KG and J. didn’t like it and refused to take one more bite. It didn’t hit home for me but I managed to finish the last remaining one. The curry chicken puff and the bbq pork were much better though. We wanted to taste a few more pastries but we were still quite full from our Chinatown merienda.

Budda Tooth Relic Temple and Museum

Also located in Chinatown is the Budda Tooth Relic Temple and Museum. This temple houses the Sacred Budda Tooth Relic in a stupa made of 320 kg of gold donated by devotees (I’m sure many of whom abandoned getting their own health insurance in NC). This grand temple is dedicated to Maitreya Buddha, who is believed to be the next Budda. The beautifully carved wooden Maitreya Buddha greets visitors in its 27-feet main hall. You can just stare in awe at how grand this temple is. The architecture and the interiors are inspired by the Tang Dynasty, and one can just notice the fine details that this temple has.

The temple has four floors. The first floor is called the Hundred Dragons Hall because of the hundred Buddas enshrined on the walls. Also on the first floor is the Avalokitesvara Hall, where Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara sits upon an intricate lotus throne. On the second floor is the Exhibition Hall featuring Budda calligraphy, paintings, and sculptures. The Lotus House Teahouse is also located here. The third floor houses the Sacred Budda Relics Chamber and features an impressive collection of Buddhist artifacts. And the fourth floor is called the Sacred Light Hall and is the repository of the gold Sacred Budda’s Tooth Relic Stupa.

Considering how beautiful and grand this temple is, I’d say this is one temple one shouldn’t miss while in Singapore.

free Chinatown merienda

One thing to also notice in Chinatown is the food. The FREE food, I mean. And there were tons of it; no Outer banks foreclosures or any kind of shortage here. You will literally see mountains upon mountains of food. We actually had a lot of fun tasting samples from every food vendor. We literally had our merienda (snack) while going around.

I was taking my time eating one sample after another without really knowing what they are. There was just too many to bother to ask! So while savoring the different tastes and textures of each food I pooped in, I was caught by surprise with this one food item that was really gingery and spicy, but I had to take it all in as I was afraid that the vendor would get mad if I spit it out. Good thing our friend KG was carrying a coke in can, it somehow helped wash it all down. So I’ll leave you with this warning to be careful when taking advantage of the free taste offered in markets.

Chinatown

From Chinese Garden, we rode the MRT bound for Pasir Ris and got off the Outram Park station. From this station we transferred to the other line bound for Punggol. And upon exiting the MRT station this is what we saw: Chinatown!

Since around 75% of Singapore’s population is Chinese, their Chinatown is huge compared with that here in the Philippines. One thing you will notice is that the architecture of the buildings isn’t Chinese. Look for yourself.

Weird huh? A Chinatown with a combination of baroque and Victorian architecture. Built in the style of painted ladies resulted in shophouses and buildings having a variety of colors.

If you plan to buy some pasalubong and souvenirs, I suggest you get some here. There are many shops to choose from and there is much variety. From the perennial keychains to remedies for pimples on scalp, I’m sure you’ll get something.

Mr. Bean

All that walking around the Chinese Garden has made me thirsty. So before rushing to our next destination, we sampled one of Singapore’s leading soya bean food and beverage store named Mr. Bean, right under the MRT station.

This store offers a variety of soya bean drinks and other snacks. Since I don’t want to risk having an upset stomach, I stayed on the safe side and just ordered a soya milk.

It tasted so very delicious that I wanted to sample a few more of their products. Just look at those prices. Pretty cheap if you ask me for something so good and healthy for you. There’s even no guilty feeling of wasting the best fat burning supplement just by eating more because most of their products pretty much have very little fat. Their soya ice cream looks so inviting but I resisted.

Chinese Garden

From Tampines station, we headed straight to the Chinese Garden, which has its own LRT station, making it very accessible.

Upon exiting, the view somehow reminded me of UP Diliman. See for yourself.

Like most Chinese temples, huge stone lions are prominently “guarding” the entrance. We were then greeted by a beautiful seven-storey “Ru Yun Ta” pagoda. Did you know that pagodas were used by ancient Buddhists to store human bones? Pretty creepy huh!

Don’t pass up the opportunity to go up so you can have a 360 degree view of the city. I won’t post photos so you just have to see it for yourself. The tiring walk up the stairs will be worth it! Awesome!

In addition, it also houses a Suzhou-styke bonsai garden inside, reputedly costing SGD3.8 million. There’s also a live turtle and tortoise (know the difference?) museum inside where you get to feed and interact with turtles and tortoises. And to make the most of your trip, the Jurong Bird Park is located near the Chinese Garden too.

This is actually one of the highlights of our trip. And we all had a lot of fun taking pictures and posing. Our pacing wasn’t rushed but not too slow either, just enough to get that belly fat burner working. Prepare to spend at least half a day exploring this eastern part of Singapore. And be sure to check out Jurong Bird Park while there. This is about 45 minutes away from the city, and it would be a waste of time if you’d have to go back.

Tampines

R.’s flat is conveniently located in Tampines. Tampines East to be exact.

As per Wikipedia:

………..Tampines (or Tampines New Town) is the largest residential area in the city-state of Singapore and is located in the East Region of the main island. The town is so named because in the 1900s a large forest of Tampines trees were located at the present site.

Here are a few shots of the area.

Notice how clean and well maintained the streets and the buildings. There is a small day care center nearby too, and the kids were playing at a small playground at the back of the buildings.

A few more steps and we were at the mall built beside the station. I did tell you that there’s a mall in every station, right?

We went straight to the ticketing office to ask a few questions and to have our money broken into smaller bills. After a few minutes of figuring out how to get tickets from the machine (which is much easier than figuring out how to get rid of blackheads on nose), we’re all set to visit our first stop.

This is me buying tickets. First, you select which station you’re going to. Then, you specify how many tickets you need. Then, the machine will show you how much it costs and will ask you deposit the amount. It then drops the tickets in the lower bin, followed by your change. Their LRT/MRT lines are interconnected so you don’t need to exit just to transfer to another line. I can’t help but compare how easy it is to commute via LRT/MRT in Singapore. So efficient!

Here’s an inside look at their MRT. Notice how spacious it is. And very clean too. The MRT/LRT system is used by a diverse group of diffrent races.

More on my next posts.

waking up in SG

After a good night’s sleep, we woke up recharged to a little boy’s voice shouting “Dagun! Dagun!” I later found out that he was referring to the dragon statues in the temple across the street.

At almost the same age as Yuan (1 year and six months), this little guy must be taking hgh supplements! He was huge and heavy, with the cutest little brown curls! Here he is wearing his dad’s shirt.

There was also this hint of freshly cooked pansit in the cool morning air. R.’s parents happen to be visiting too from the Philippines, and Nanay cooked pansit for breakfast!

What a way to start our day!

Armed with printed notes gathered online and maps of the LRT/MRT system, it’s time to explore where we are exactly and start the adventure.

cellphone and slippers

Our Cebu Pacific flight takes approximately three hours. No complimentary food and/or drinks are served. If you want one while on air, you’d have to fork over a ridiculous amount of money. So after checking in, we decided to get dinner. And that was when our friend KG realized that her cellphone is missing. While she was frantically searching her bag, I was trying to ring her cellphone. The voice prompt said, “Cannot be reached.” This would only mean one thing; somebody has taken it and turned it off. Still, we tried our luck and asked the check-in counter: it wasn’t there. I distinctly remember two ladies behind us at the counter. They must have taken it. Only I couldn’t remember their faces. The good news was that they were in the same flight. But the bad news is that they might not give it back. I was praying the whole time that it would somehow find its way back but it didn’t.

Upon arriving at Changi Airport’s Budget Terminal (which specifically caters to budget airlines like Cebu Pacific and Tiger Airways; all other flights are at Changi Airport’s Terminal 2) at about 12 midnight, we lined up to get our luggage. It was when our friend J. took her luggage that she noted the missing slippers tucked in one of the side pockets. This day isn’t turning out so good. After waiting until the last luggage was claimed did she check inside her bag. It was there all along! The good people handling the bags must have thought is safer to put the slippers inside the bag.

And with just one mishap so far and our hope somehow restored, we tried figuring out how to call R.’s house using my cellphone. R. is KG’s friend who’s taken employment in Singapore. R. graciously took us in to save on hotel expenses. After several attempts, we finally figured it out and inform R. that we were on our way. We actually had no choice but to take a cab since the LRT already closed at 11:30PM. Good thing R.’s house is near the airport.

After a brief introduction, we prepared to recharge ourselves for a big busy day tomorrow.