Singapore: Part 2

Obviously this post is LONG OVERDUE, but since I promised one certain travel maniac I would eventually post PART 2 of my spring break escapades, (from almost 4 months ago... crazy how time flies!)... here they are!

As I mentioned in Singapore Adventures PART 1, street food is the best! This whole street was filled with makeshift hawker stalls and food trucks!

We went early in the morning so it was actually pretty deserted...

We bought from this guy who made the most amazing fried dishes.

This one below definitely deserves a special mention. It's called CARROT CAKE (not the sweet dessert kind) and you can find it everywhere in Singapore. It's actually not carrot - it's radish - so it's very similar to the Cantonese dish (radish/turnip cake). BUT... instead of being steamed in large chunks like the Cantonese way, this Singaporean-style dish is usually chopped up into little bits and fried with egg, little pieces of meat, and green onion. If I had to recommend only ONE dish in Singapore to try, THIS WOULD BE IT!!!

After eating, Randy and I went to walk around Singapore's "Chinatown" area, where merchants sold a whole bunch of random knick knacks and souvenirs.

The architecture in this area is pretty neat too. I would LOVE to live in a house this colour! Just looking at these walls makes me so happy =) 

After that, we took PUBLIC TRANSIT (the MRT/subway system)... which was painted in one of my favourite colours... yellowish-orange!! (anyway, that's probably not interesting to anyone but myself... haha.. but I was super excited about the walls)...

Our next stop was LITTLE INDIA, which might have been one of my favourite areas to visit, since you know, I'm obsessed with Indian things. haha. =P

Along the streets were Indian markets and shops.

I loved how COLOURFUL the buildings were. 

As we were walking, we found this market selling women's saris and suits... LOOK AT ALL THOSE GORGEOUS COLOURS!!!

Randy was a good sport since he had to follow me around as I stopped at every store to stare at all the outfits. haha. 

There were SO MANY styles and they were super cheap as well... around $80-150 CDN (at least I think that's cheap!) I'd say it's worth it!!

It was then that I noticed the hideously creepy mannequins...

... and had a sudden urge to be hideously creepy myself. 

To be honest, I ALMOST bought that white dress below because I wanted to wear it as a wedding dress. haha. seriously. But it was $145CDN and I didn't have enough money on me. hahahaha. So forever it shall just be captured as a memory on my camera. =*(

Afterwards, we ate at the food court... I had MEE GORENG - a type of Asian noodle - that was delicious... like everything else in Singapore. It's all about the foodddd!!!

Haha... again, another unflattering squinty-faced picture, but HEY. I'm enjoying my food and that's all that matters.

This picture below is one of my favourites from Singapore. HAHA. I think it's because I only noticed the guy on the bicycle (on the right) after I got home. I always love finding hidden surprises in photos after the fact.

When we got home, Randy's mom and sister had made an AMAZING MEAL. Honestly, they are like... the best cooks ever.

Sweet-and-sour fish!

Papaya Salad!

oh... and BIRTHDAY CAKE to celebrate a certain old fogey! =) 

Our next little Singapore adventure took place on SENTOSA ISLAND (which has attractions such as Universal Studios... which we did not go to). Instead, we tried INDOOR SKYDIVING for the first time!

Here I am, looking like a dork on one of my more successful attempts. The other pictures are pretty hilarious and sad-looking.

To be honest, it's quite expensive so it's one of those "try it once" kind of activities. The instructors can do some pretty crazy moves though. Us? We just tried to stay flat so we wouldn't belly-flop onto the floor. haha. But we did get our "flight certificates" in the end... and a DVD with evidence of our sad flying attempts for future self-ridicule. yay!

After that, we dressed up even more like dorks to go ride on SEGWAYS!!!!!!!!! (Yes... EXACTLY like GOB from ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT!!!!) It was my first time so it was pretty fun!

Afterwards, we took the CABLE CAR RIDE to take in the view around Sentosa. 

That's all for now. Part 3 (aka. the final barrage of Singapore Pictures) will be up one day... hahah... be patient, little grasshoppers... be patient.

Travel: Spring Break in Singapore (PART 1)

Last month during Spring Break I took a little one-week vacation to Singapore! So here are some pictures of the trip + random commentary to go with it as I try to take on the role of a pseudo-tour guide. For those of you actually FROM Singapore, you tell me if my representation of your city is correct. HAHA.

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Having lived in Hong Kong for the past few months - in a room that is only slightly bigger than a closet - I've come to appreciate SPACE. In Singapore, so many of the apartment complexes look like vacation resorts! 

The first thing we did was...EAT. Randy and I went to the local mall and ate at a casual outdoor foodcourt. Street-food stalls in Singapore are called "hawkers" (at first, when I heard people saying it with an accent, I thought they said "hookers"... hence super awkward phrases such as, "Let's eat at the hookers")...

ANYWAYS... the combination of greasy fried noodles + deep-fried potato patties + honey garlic potatoes + fried egg = HEAVEN to me.

On one of the first days, we took a stroll near the Fullerton Hotel, which his across the bay from Marina Bay Sands (one of Singapore's famous hotels... more on that later)...

As we were walking, we noticed a street stall selling ICE-CREAM. But not just ANY kind of ice-cream. They call it "Dirty Ice-cream" and it is soooooo delicious. And don't be fooled by its name - it is hygienic (I think). Basically, it's a thick block of frozen ice-cream between either a slice of white bread or two crispy wafers. I chose the strawberry marble ice-cream between wafers since I don't really like the thought of soggy bread. 

Here, the woman is constructing my dirty ice-cream wafer sandwich...

You may laugh but seriously, this was one of the HIGHLIGHTS of my trip.

I clearly remember just walking around the bay and non-stop smiling for 5 minutes because of the ice-cream. Inside the Fullerton Hotel, we stopped by the dessert counter...

Randy tried a giant pistachio macaron, which in my opinion, tasted like playdough. haha. Many people have told me that when you go to Singapore, you want to eat at the cheap shady-looking places on the street because even though it seems sketchy, the food is actually better than the overpriced stuff they serve at hotels and fancy malls.

As we continued along Marina Bay, we encountered an interesting structure reminiscent of either a metal durian or a very large and indestructible porcupine.

It's actually called the Esplanade which houses a concert hall and a theatre. How did I find this information? I googled "Singapore Durian Building" ... and ACTUALLY - fact of the day - locals really do call it "The Big Durian".

Near Marina Bay, we saw the famous MERLION statue, which has the body of a fish and the head of a lion. It's supposed to be a national mascot of sorts for the city of Singapore... aka. thriving tourist attraction and a great excuse to sell iconic Merlion merchandise.

Here we are with Randy's family... (I wasn't sure if they'd want to be featured on the blog, so I gave them colourful happy-faces instead... which is pretty similar to their actual expressions in the photo anyway...)... haha. Oh and that's the Marina Bay Sands Hotel in the back, looking like a long whale of a cruise ship docked on top of three separate buildings.

At night, we feasted on two types of crab - if you like seafood and you're in Singapore, you HAVE to try these two dishes...

During our trip we also had a whole bunch of desserts. The one on the far left is a snow-cone type dish with neon syrup drizzled on ice. The one in them middle is a coconut milk "dessert soup" ...

...and the other odd-looking one is ice + coconut milk + tapioca balls + grass jelly + syrup (which I guess is basically a random mix of everything)...

On another day, we went to the mall located inside Marina Bay Sands.

We were actually there for THE FOOD since everything else being sold in the mall was unaffordable.

These XIAO LONG BAO dumplings were delicious though!

And of course, no meal is complete without ICE-CREAM.

Outside there was a huge man-made whirlpool. I wonder what would actually happen if someone fell in?!

Every night, they have a LIGHT SHOW by the water featuring all these random laser lights and holographic images projected in the air. I have to say, it's worth watching at least once!

alien abduction!!!

The picture below reminds me of DRAGONBALL Z for some reason. 

Afterwards, we actually went up to the TOP of Marina Bay Sands where they have something called the SAND SKYPARK. 

The Sand Skypark is basically a lounge/bar area with a swimming pool that has a vanishing edge dropping off the side of the building.

Usually, only hotel guests have access to this rooftop lounge... but we have our ways... mwahahaha...

Another tourist attraction I would recommend is the Singapore Flyer aka. The World's Largest Ferris Wheel.  If you're interested in gorgeous aerial scenery, I would definitely try the half-hour ride. In my opinion, I think it's more worth it to go at night when the whole city is a sea of neon.

Isn't the view just amazing?

PART 2 coming soon! 

Stay tuned...