For my first blog post, I thought I would start with a travel post. I have recently returned from Singapore and Bali. I visited these places with my mum to celebrate her 60th birthday in January. This was a luxury trip, as it was for a special celebration, so not your everyday holiday!
I will do this first post on Singapore, and a second post on Bali.
We flew with Singapore airlines, which were amazing – one of the best airlines I have flown with long haul in terms of service and facilities on board.
We decided to stop over on the way to Bali in Singapore, as neither of us had been and we wanted to break up the flight. In hindsight, it didn’t really break the flight up that much, as it was 12 hours over to Singapore from London, and a further 2 hours from Singapore to Bali. But I am glad that we did, as we both really enjoyed the city.
We landed in Singapore early morning, and had plans to take the Metro train service to our hotel. However, this was going to take over an hour, and a taxi was around $30 (£15) so we just hopped in one and it took 15 minutes to get to our hotel – Marina Bay Sands.
The hotel is stunning, one of the main landmarks of Singapore. We were also able to check in early to our room, which was lovely after such a long flight. The room was very nice, with comfy beds, and a walk in shower in the bathroom. We freshened up and decided to go out on a walking tour. After asking at the concierge, we headed out on the Metro to Little India. The walk wasn’t til 10am, and it was still only 9, so we walked round a little street food market, and had some breakfast – I actually chose a Laksa, which is a soup with seafood and egg. It was $3, and there was so much, I couldn’t finish it!
We had walked around a lot of Little India by 10am, and when we got to the meeting point for the tour, the tour guide said the tour was $35 each. We thought this was a bit expensive, so we decided to head back and explore more of our hotel, as we were struggling a bit with the jetlag.
We got back to the hotel, and wondered around the massive mall that is attached to it. It is mainly designer shops and restaurants, but nice to look around. There is also a casino, but you needed your passport to enter so we didn’t bother. We went back up to the room and changed into our swimwear, and went up to the pool on the 57th floor. The infinity pool is what gives the Marina Bay Sands its ‘boat’ shape as you can see below. The water was actually surprisingly cold, but fine once you are in. The views are gorgeous and we had a nice afternoon sunbathing and using the pool and the jacuzzi’s on the other side of the deck.
We booked to eat at Lavo restaurant on our first night (also on the 57th floor), and after walking around the Observation deck next to the pool, which is open to the public, not just hotel guests, we went back to the room to change for dinner.
We got a table inside at 6pm, ready for the sunset. I had a Singapore Sling (obviously) and Chicken Parmesan. My mum had spaghetti with meatballs. The food was really tasty, with large portions, and the ambience was good.
View of the fountain show from LAVO 
View of Gardens by the Bay
It was still only early, and we wanted to stay up as long as possible, so we went to watch the fountain show outside our hotel, and then we walked around the lake, which took a lot longer than we expected but we saw some landmarks that we wanted to see. We then went straight to bed as we were exhausted!
Merlion statue at the Fullerton Hotel 
The Helix Bridge 
Marina Bay Sands Hotel 
The Helix Bridge crossing to Marina Bay Sands
The next day we went to the Botanical Gardens, which are in the northern part of the city. We took the metro again, and had a lovely morning walking around the gardens. It was very hot, and the gardens are large, but I would recommend paying to go in the Orchid Garden in the centre. There’s some beautiful flowers in there, with some species named after famous people, including the Queen and President Obama.
Orchid Garden 
‘Elizabeth’ Orchid
After this we took a taxi to Raffles Hotel, as we wanted to have the famous Singapore Sling at the original Long Bar. The bar is quite small, and I would not advise anyone with a nut allergy to visit, as the floor is full of peanut shells. These nuts are complimentary on the tables and guests are encouraged to discard the shells on the floor, as has always been done. My mum who doesn’t drink had a virgin cocktail, which looked almost identical to mine, and tasted very similar as well!
We were aware by this point that it was Chinese New Year, so we stopped at China Town on the way back to our hotel for a look around. Unfortunately, the temple we had planned on visiting was already shut for the New Year. It was very busy with tourists, so we made our way back to the hotel, and got ready for the evening. We were going to Gardens by the Bay to view it at night, and walk over the Skyway.
I suppose in hindsight, we should have thought about the crowds with it being New Year, but we didn’t think. We arrived at the ticket office, and were given a ticket to go up the Skyway at 9pm, which was the last admission time. There were so many people there, so we walked around the grounds, while we waited for our admission time. There are also two ‘Garden Rhapsody’ light shows per night (7.45 and 8.45). We picked our spot for the 8.45 show, and sat down to watch it. It was a spectacular show, with music and lights ‘dancing’ around the Supertrees which surround the main area and Skyway.
Light up Eggs surround the attraction 
Supertrees 
Skyway Observation Desk
We then went up the Skyway, and I have to admit I did not enjoy it one bit! It sways a lot in the wind, and I just felt like I was going to blow off any minute! It is a beautiful view of the city, and the Marina Bay Sands hotel, but I couldn’t wait to get down!
By this time, it was quite late, and it took us a long time to get out of the grounds. We decided to go to Gordon Ramsey’s restaurant ‘Bread Street Kitchen’, which is located in the Marina Bay Sands mall. Despite it being after 10pm, it was still busy and serving food, and we ordered pork belly and steak, and both had desserts (sticky toffee pudding and chocolate fondant). The food was amazing, and we actually stayed there and watched the New Year fireworks as we were on the lakeside. It was a great evening.
Steak at Bread Street Kitchen 
Braving the Skyway! 
Dessert at Bread Street Kitchen
On our last day, we spent the morning in the pool, soaking up the last of the views and sunshine. We checked out, and then went back over to Gardens by the Bay, to do some of the other attractions. We bought the combo ticket for Flower Dome and Cloud Forest conservatories.
We did the Flower Dome first, which was full of plants from around the world. It had a beautiful selection of cacti, as well as gorgeous flowers and trees, which were all really pretty.
The Cloud Forest conservatory was my favourite. It was more humid than the Flower Dome, and as you walk in you are met with a spectacular man-made waterfall ‘wall’. At intervals mist is sprayed around the conservatory to keep the plants moist. You can explore the different levels of the waterfall by walking over various walkways, and it is a really nice experience.
Beautiful views from the walkways 
The main waterfall as you walk in 
Rainbow created during the ‘misting’
We then had time for a late lunch before we went to the airport. I really wanted to go to ‘Central Perk’ cafe, which was based on the TV series Friends. However, when we got there it was closed for New Years Day! So sad. We ended up in an Irish pub, McGettigan’s in nearby district Clarke Quay. After a quick lunch, we headed back to the hotel, and off to the airport.
I will leave this post here, stay tuned for Part 2 – Blissful Bali!
From Warwickshire to the World 