25. Singapore
So, as many of you know, I actually had a minor setback in Singapore. The first two days I felt a little tired and worn out, which I thought was just the result of... well, being tired and worn out, combined with the change in climate (from winter to summer in 6 hours!). But it turned out I had the flu... the stomach flu to be exact. And after a day or so of severe unpleasantness, ended up going to the hospital (which was literally right across the street) for the night to get rehydrated. I'm quite happy I got sick here, actually, because Singapore is very well known for it's medical care. It really was quite stellar. And let me also just say that nurses truly are the most awesome people in the world. I honestly don't know how they do it!
It took me a couple of days to get back up to speed, but once I did I went into severe tourist mode to attempt to compensate. So... here are the pictures I took.
One of the first things I couldn't help but note was how clean Singapore is. Like, sterile almost. I'm pretty certain you could lick the streets and be fine (no, that's not how I got sick!). It was a nice change. I'm sure many of you have heard about how it's illegal to litter there ($1000 fine), and chew gum and spit (now that was a nice change. I could not get used to the spitting in Korea). It's also illegal to 'smuggle' chewing gum in, which I didn't know... I could have gotten a $10 000 fine, because I have several packs of gum in my bags. Another thing I couldn't help but notice was how colonial Singapore felt to me... and by that I mean it really, really reminds me of Bermuda. Like, it's like Bermuda would be if it were bigger, and could support taller buildings. Here are just a few examples of what I mean.
The most prestigious hotel in Singapore is the Raffles Hotel.
Raffles used to be beachfront property, but due to some rather aggressive land reclamation efforts it's not anymore.
Singapore's answer to the Sidney Opera house.
One of the ways in which Singapore is extremely different from Bermuda would be the diversity. Not that Bermuda is entirely homogeneous, but... well, Singapore has 4 different main races of people, 4 different languages that are widely spoken, and many, many religions.
This first picture is of a mosque, and I didn't realize until I got to a computer that I hadn't actually managed to get a good shot of why I took this picture. Under the dome, the black band is made from glass bottles. This is part of the design to commemorate the people who raised money to build the mosque by collecting and selling bottles. One of the things that struck me about this was that the tour guide tossed out the fact that the architect of this mosque was Irish... which, maybe it's just me, but that seems strange. And Irish architect for a mosque... Anyway, here's the picture.
And here is a Hindu temple in Little India. Actually, what is most interesting to me about this picture is the apartments in the background. You can see people hanging their clothes out of the window. They simply use bamboo poles, and apparently they don't really clasp their clothing to these poles with anything... the tour guide was actually confused by my question about that.
This next picture is not a place of worship, I took it because I was frustrated... I had found a church I wanted to go to on the internet, I wrote down the address and got directions and when I got there, this was what I found. Obviously, not a church. But it still demonstrates yet another religion that is prominent in Singapore.
Actually, it just turned out that I was in building 100, not building 100 A. A very important distinction. I found some people who looked like they were going to church and they took me with them. Very nice people.
And finally, the most famous landmark in Singapore (at least from what little I know)... the MerLion. This is the symbol of Singapore. According to what I've read, the reason for this is that one of the first kings decided he would just name the city after the first animal he saw, and when he landed he immediately saw a 'lion'. I put that in quotes, because there are no lions, nor have there ever been lions in Singapore... it is believed that he actually saw a pig, but... I dunno, he was drunk or something. Anyway, lucky for Singapore because I think a MerPig wouldn't be nearly as impressive. The "mer" part is to remember Singapore's heritage as a fishing village. So... here are the photos.
So, that's it for Singapore. Next stop: Vienna. Quite a change! Later, gators!
It took me a couple of days to get back up to speed, but once I did I went into severe tourist mode to attempt to compensate. So... here are the pictures I took.
One of the first things I couldn't help but note was how clean Singapore is. Like, sterile almost. I'm pretty certain you could lick the streets and be fine (no, that's not how I got sick!). It was a nice change. I'm sure many of you have heard about how it's illegal to litter there ($1000 fine), and chew gum and spit (now that was a nice change. I could not get used to the spitting in Korea). It's also illegal to 'smuggle' chewing gum in, which I didn't know... I could have gotten a $10 000 fine, because I have several packs of gum in my bags. Another thing I couldn't help but notice was how colonial Singapore felt to me... and by that I mean it really, really reminds me of Bermuda. Like, it's like Bermuda would be if it were bigger, and could support taller buildings. Here are just a few examples of what I mean.
The most prestigious hotel in Singapore is the Raffles Hotel.
Raffles used to be beachfront property, but due to some rather aggressive land reclamation efforts it's not anymore.
Singapore's answer to the Sidney Opera house.
One of the ways in which Singapore is extremely different from Bermuda would be the diversity. Not that Bermuda is entirely homogeneous, but... well, Singapore has 4 different main races of people, 4 different languages that are widely spoken, and many, many religions.
This first picture is of a mosque, and I didn't realize until I got to a computer that I hadn't actually managed to get a good shot of why I took this picture. Under the dome, the black band is made from glass bottles. This is part of the design to commemorate the people who raised money to build the mosque by collecting and selling bottles. One of the things that struck me about this was that the tour guide tossed out the fact that the architect of this mosque was Irish... which, maybe it's just me, but that seems strange. And Irish architect for a mosque... Anyway, here's the picture.
And here is a Hindu temple in Little India. Actually, what is most interesting to me about this picture is the apartments in the background. You can see people hanging their clothes out of the window. They simply use bamboo poles, and apparently they don't really clasp their clothing to these poles with anything... the tour guide was actually confused by my question about that.
This next picture is not a place of worship, I took it because I was frustrated... I had found a church I wanted to go to on the internet, I wrote down the address and got directions and when I got there, this was what I found. Obviously, not a church. But it still demonstrates yet another religion that is prominent in Singapore.
Actually, it just turned out that I was in building 100, not building 100 A. A very important distinction. I found some people who looked like they were going to church and they took me with them. Very nice people.
And finally, the most famous landmark in Singapore (at least from what little I know)... the MerLion. This is the symbol of Singapore. According to what I've read, the reason for this is that one of the first kings decided he would just name the city after the first animal he saw, and when he landed he immediately saw a 'lion'. I put that in quotes, because there are no lions, nor have there ever been lions in Singapore... it is believed that he actually saw a pig, but... I dunno, he was drunk or something. Anyway, lucky for Singapore because I think a MerPig wouldn't be nearly as impressive. The "mer" part is to remember Singapore's heritage as a fishing village. So... here are the photos.
So, that's it for Singapore. Next stop: Vienna. Quite a change! Later, gators!
posted by JJ at 9:55 PM
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