Monday 27 May 2013

Singapore

My trip to Singapore was planned with a friend in Malaysia. Ultimately, Singapore was merely a staging post on the way to more interesting places but each trip needs an introduction, and Singapore was it. I planned to spend two nights in Singapore and, as I had planned to spend a few days in Dubai on the way back, my flight with Emirates was routed via Dubai[1] on the way out too on a lovely A380 - it was quieter and nicer than other planes I have been on.

A friend of mine from Singapore, who I met in 2006, had spent most of the time I had known her in extolling the virtues of Singapore. She told me how great it was to get around easily, how multicultural it was, that it had the best food and that it was just a very welcoming place. I had my misgivings at the time(s).
What did she say when I told her that I was going? Well, her face dropped a little and
"Saif, I don't think you're going to like it"
This was a comment that stayed with me throughout the trip - I don't know whether I wanted to prove her right, or to prove her wrong, but it stayed with me.

The first thing that caught my eye upon landing in Singapore was the carpet (see footnote[1] about Dubai for further details). In all fairness it was different to the identikit flooring that you get at most airports and had a design that dated it very well.
Plenty of people had told me about Singapore and so I felt I had to fill my time up and so, other than my travelling companion (henceforth labelled as TC), I had also organised some other meetups with friends (and, yeah, I am now comfortable with that designation) that happened to be there temporarily.
When I got out of the airport, I got the train towards the hotel and soaked in the atmosphere... And possibly my own sweat. Maybe some other people's too. Hot amd humid was what I expected, got and humid was what I got. After noticing how wedded people, women especially, were to their phones I got to the hotel, dropped my bags off, said a quick hello to friend and departed for rendezvous 1 with a school friend (henceforth, rz1). I was late to arrive, which is pretty uncommon, and we met by Marina Bay Sands which is a new part of the city. In my defence, I was in a new part of the world and had just been flying for about 15 hours so I didn't feel too bad. Too bad about it, obviously I felt bad - "I had just been flying for about 15 hours".



Gardens By The Bay
I found it a little confusing which was not helped by the fact that the station was in a part that was "awaiting development". After a lot of faff and walking through a little music festival, we eventually met up. And in the absence of other things to do, walked around a little in the Gardens by the Bay and chatted.
Joined by a friend a little later, we decided to eat on Arab Street so we cabbed it there. I'm not a huge fan of cabs but, even with a fairly extensive metro system, it was still easier and quicker.
I didn't know a great deal about Singapore but had been told that I should go to Raffles to go to the Long Bar - where the Singapore Sling had been invented. I'll be honest, I don't know where any other cocktail has been invented and I think most places would not be that well-known for inventing a cocktail. I'm genuinely not sure whether it is good or slightly pathetic to be in the situation where the most famous thing is that a cocktail was  invented there. The Raffles hotel (and now, complex) was quite nice in its own, not quite faded, colonial grandeur. The bar, however, was rubbish. The name, in particular, seemed a bit inappropriate as it was a pretty small place. We (minus rz1) sat, ate some monkey nuts [link] and then left to find a better place - a rooftop one. We failed but we did find a pleasant enough ground floor one. It was quite late, but still teeming with people and, judging by the clothes, quite a few football fans amongst them. This was the night of the Champions League final (with two teams from the same country) after all and the time difference meant it would be rather late at night. How wonderfully circular, ten years on.



Shopped and Dropped
The next day started with a passable breakfast and then bus to Orchard Rd. Orchard Road is famous for shopping and, when in Singapore...
I was not too interested in actual shopping but thought a look around would be fine and fun. And these cathedrals to the gods of shopping had a number of devotees, a significant number. As I walked around as a tourist, I noticed a lot of people taking photos - very much in the modern style, selfies aplenty and even the non-selfies were with a similar aesthetic. Modernity has passed me by in so many ways - but I was the one with photographic equipment. The trip, in general, made me think about the nature of tourism quite a lot and it was not right of me to begrudge them that little happiness (and not so little in many cases). Well, not until they asked me to move out of the way as I walked - moved so they could get clear photos of themselves posing in front of department stores. At this point I begrudged them, I begrudged them hard.
Upon meeting rendezvous 2 (henceforth rz2), the heavens opened and the rain was insanity in water form. It did lead to my second favourite moment in Singapore as some shop clerks stood under the roof to offer umbrellas to people walking the 5m to the next roof. Beautifully simple, but we used it to get to lunch - a colourful selection of dim sum.
And then I was left in the company of a friend of a friend. I'm socially awkward so this was pretty tar out of my comfort zone. Or was it? Do we open up or close down with not-quite strangers?
Anyway, rain closed down options but as rz2 was a local of sorts, she knew we could head to the covered, and new, Gardens by the Bay. Again.
Inside, the gardens also contained two conservatories which I went through. They were both very popular and for good reason - interesting and enjoyable although I can't say I'm the biggest fan of flowers... It was enjoyable though. I always find myself comparing places to other places (though I don't do this for people - this was the actual conversation we had when there) and the Gardens By The Bay, whilst larger and less busy did remind me of the Olympic Park in Stratford. I do not think that this is a tangible connection though. From there, a quick trip for some sunset shots from a bar called KuDeTa which was on the advice of rz2. Good advice - it was almost as if she was an experienced guide of some kind.
Singapore is all about food, I'd been told by more than one person. Food and shopping. Food, and shopping.
The one I'd been told most about was "chicken rice" which was as simple as the name suggests - though that seems to be because the "Hainanese" part is always left out. As a result, rz2 had looked up some places (well, "consulted") so I knew I had to go somewhere else for the recommendation. As it happened, as I started to make my way, I found out that I'd be dining alone. Fortunately, rz2 took pity on me and thus I did not dine alone (not that I would have minded, as such) and we made our way. And as luck would have it, this independently sourced recommendation was quite close to the hotel.
It was on the way there that the umbrella incident was overtaken as my favourite thing in Singapore:

This video instilling fear and distrust of anyone acting differently seemed so appropriate in this place.
I did not find chicken rice made me reappraise the whole concept of flavour, but it was quite nice, though not the kind of thing I'd rave about. Obviously, I have since been told that I did not have the right kind, but this was a well received restaurant so I might just say I am not a huge fan.
And with that, Singapore became but a memory, to be dredged up when necessary - quite regularly over the trip as a reference point...


First, to Indonesia.
Singapore 2013 - click for photo album

1. A quick stopover in Dubai was not particularly noteworthy but I was struck by the scale and design of the airport which I think was exemplified by the paving of the clearly expensive marble (or marble style flooring). It was dark and as we moved along the travelator I noticed the floor almost strobing with the movement and wondered what it was. It was an interesting effect and seemed to show the concentric rings of light moving with waves across each other. It was eye-catching and I wondered how it was done and then I realised that it was just a result of the light bouncing off slabs that were not aligned - and none were properly aligned. I toyed with the idea that it was a deliberate, and subtle effect but it was so out of kilter with the rest of the airport's supposed design that I thought that it must be accidental.