Singapore comes from the
Malay Singapura which is derived
from Sanskrit “Singa” from a
Sanskrit word “simha” which means “Lion” and “Pura” means “town” in
Sanskrit and is a common suffix in many Indian place names. ( en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Names_of_singapore )
Singapore is the first
international country I have travelled. Far from its meaning, the “Lion City”,
which we may connote as a dangerous living creature and not the animal to be
friends with. It was a friendly place starting from their transportation system
up to their places and the people. The country’s direction signages in malls,
train stations, streets and in known tourist spots are very efficient. I did
not even feel that I am in a new place. I felt that I was still in my comfort
zone.
During our stay in
Singapore we used different modes of transportation like trains, Double Decker
buses and taxis in travelling from one spot to another. The country offers six
places that must be visited by tourists. However, we just visited the four best
stations and these are:
CHINATOWN:
Using the MRT (Purple/North East Line), drop off at Chinatown Station. It is
directly connected to Chinatown People’s Park. The place offers cheaper
clothes, gadgets and food items, etc.
Here, we tried their
chicken rice and ice cream bar in rainbow bread with chocolate chip and blueberry
flavors for 2.30 SGD and 1.20 SGD, respectively.
Blueberry flavor is so
yummy!
ORCHARD
ROAD: From Chinatown Station, drop off at Orchard Station
(Red/ North South line) to get to Orchard road. Want some shopping? This place
is inviting you to spend a lot of money. The MRT station is connected to
Orchard Ion Mall, where you can find the high end brands of clothing,
restaurants, etc. Diagonal to it is Tang’s Department Store, It’s like the SM
Department Store in the Philippines. However, if you are looking for the
cheaper chocolates, perfumes and souvenirs, they have the Lucky Plaza waiting
for you. It is located just beside Tang’s.
Better deal on chocolates?
Go to Choco Stop at Lucky Plaza!
SENTOSA-HARBOURFRONT:
Taking
the Yellow/Circle Line drop off at Harbourfront Station which is connected to
Vivocity Mall. There are three (3) way to get to Sentosa. (1) If you want to
lose fats, use the boardwalk, it might be a very long walk but you can
alternately use the walkalator. (2) If you want the scenic view of Singapore
from the top, take the Cable car…hmmmm…quite expensive (3) Less expensive and
not that tiring? There is the monotrain to Sentosa, you may just have to wait
for eight (8) minutes interval. It will only cost you 4 SGD (2-way)
In Sentosa, It’s never
too late to be a kid again! They have a lot of amenities to offer but we just
visited two main attractions, namely:
(a) SEA AQUARIUM. It is the world’s largest aquarium. We enjoyed
the collection of fishes without getting wet and putting ourselves in danger;
that large fishes might eat you in whole. As I saw these fishes, I felt relieved
while taking pictures with them. The tiredness disappeared. However, I felt I
little bit of depression ‘cause they should be in the ocean, enjoying their
natural habitat L
We
spent 38 SGD each for the ticket and it’s worth it!
(b) UNIVERSAL STUDIOS SINGAPORE (USS). We
made a very hot deal for the ticket to USS. It only cost us 60 SGD each
including 10 SGD meal voucher.
First
things first. We took photo at Universal Studio Globe then we started queuing
ourselves to “Lights Camera Action” by Stephen Spielberg then we headed to
“Transformer”, which everybody should not miss. It was an amazing ride, I felt
the tension, the heat of fire and bullets in transformer movie and felt like I
am in real world of Sci-Fi.
We
also watched the “Water World” stage play even though I haven’t watched the
movie, I still enjoyed it!
We
also tried other sections that USS offers like “Far Far Away”, “Madagascar” and
“Hollywood”. We also took pictures with different characters like Pinochio,
Betty Boop and Sesame Street Characters.
“Transformers”
is great!
MARINA
BAY:
According to the locals and Filipinos who work there, we must not miss the
Marina Bay if we are going to visit the country where the Marina Bay Sands,
Garden by the Bay and of course the landmark, The Merlion are located. To get
there, use the Red/North South Line and Yellow/Circle Line of MRT, and then
drop off at Marina Bay Station or Bayfront Station.
(a) MARINA BAY SANDS. It
is a hotel, mall and casino, where the three (3) buildings were interconnected
by one big ship on top. The lights from each room make the building glamorous
from afar at night.
(b) GARDENS BY THE BAY. It
is located behind the Marina Bay Sands. It is a garden where you can find
almost all plants in the world. They have two (2) domes, one for flowers and
the other one is for cloud forest plants. Inside the garden there is also
children’s garden where children can take a bath in lighted fountains and enjoy
in the playground. Satay by the Bay is also available for those who want to eat
and drink.
The
best part is the main section where you can find the Supertree lighted like an
inverted umbrella full of plants clinging to it. Here, I felt like I have been
swallowed by a colorful whirlpool then dropped into another planet where
unusual sizes of plants are growing. It’s magical. I can’t take my eyes off
them!!!!
(c) THE MERLION. The
first day we went to Merlion, there was no more water on it, that’s why we made
sure that on our last day we will see it again. From Gardens by the Bay, we
passed by the Marina Bay Sands then we cross the most beautiful bridge I’ve
ever seen (so far). The bridge has stainless steel bar and fiberglass half-roofed
as its design and it looks lighted by Christmas lights. We walked/ jogged for
more than thirty (30) minutes just to take pictures of the Merlion with water J.
Hungry from a long walk
from one destination to another? Marina Bay offers the “Makansutra”. There are
choices of food and drinks from different countries in Asia.
Many of the travelers
that have been to Singapore suggested that we also visit Malaysia since it is
only forty five (45) minutes travel via airplane and six (6) hours via bus.
In Malaysia, we just
visited the Petronas (Twin) Tower since our flight was delayed by three (3)
hours due to technical problems.
Aside from Twin Tower,
there’s a lot more to discover in the country, however we have no enough time
to explore it.
My first international
travel with my favorite travel buddy, Clara has been very rewarding, started
from the warm welcoming smile of a newly met friend, Karla, the home sweet home
accommodation, the food trip sponsored by her and Peter and the modern and
magical creations of bright minds made our stay a wonderful one.
