Click here to see the first half of my Singapore trip!
It has been absolutely ages since I last wrote a blog post, sorry! This is the second half of my trip to Singapore, a beautiful city surrounded by the sea.
Day one was spent in the city of Singapore, touring the sights and visiting the shopping centre at the Marina Bay Sands hotel. It was bonkers! As soon as we walked into the shopping centre, the thing that struck us most was that everything was designer. There was a shop that was giving out free ice creams for their promotion - a watch shop! Carrying on into the shopping centre, we saw some vending machines. We walked up to them expecting to be able to buy a drink as the heat of Singapore had left us very thirsty, but when we got to them we were surprised to find that they were actually gold vending machines. You could literally go to one of these machines and buy a bar of gold with different designs on. I remember when I was younger and I used to buy the kids collectable things like the more recent loom bands and it just seemed so crazy that bars of gold has literally been made into something that people could collect and maybe even swap?!
Also in the shopping centre was a little canal going down the middle with crystal clear water and behind the queue a small fleet of sampan boats were revealed. For the next ten minutes or so, we floated down the water, listening to the voices of our paddlers behind us who seemed to be having a lot of fun splashing people in the queue with water.
Later in the afternoon, my family and I walked out of the shopping centre and took a stroll around the gardens of the hotel. Outside there were metal sculptures that looked like mushrooms, and walkways in the sky. The heat radiating off the path was incredible and we had to be careful not to step on the tiny little lizards that tiptoed below us.
After, as the sky turned darker, we headed back inside the Marina Bay Sands Hotel and climbed its tall legs, all the way to the 57th floor. As imaginable, the sights were just something else. Way down below us boats floated by weighed down by their cargo, cars whizzed past, ant sized people scuttled around the busy streets and the lego sized city stood.
The 57th floor is famous for its restaurant and even more so for its pool in the clouds. Swimmers can walk right up to the edge of the skyscraper and sit by the (glass) edge of the pool and take in the sights. Although, I was disappointed to find out that only hotel visitors could swim in the pool. After doing my research about the hotel, I can tell you that for a deluxe room for 2 adults and 2 children for one night, the price starts at $499 (as of 6/10/15) . As you've probably guessed, there was no way that we were going to pay that just to sleep there for a night and use the pool, no matter how cool it would be!
Whilst on the 57th floor (the highest), we decided to have a meal. The waitors were with us as soon as we took our seats offering us drinks, making us feel comfortable and like we were VIP. The meal was so tasty too with a filling main of sushi with a caviar topping. In total, with the drinks included, the meal only cost $240 for four of us. That was around the same price as going to the viewing platform on the floor below us which is right on the edge but it's definitely worth going right to the top while you're there.
Later on in the evening, we took the lift back down to the bottom of the Marina Bay Sands hotel and continued to walk until we got to the Formula 1 race track. It seems as though we timed it well to go there as they were still building the track so the lights were on and the starting grid was open to access. We stepped on to the race track through a break in the fence that surrounded it. Might I add that at this point my Dad was so excited that he was almost galloping! As you might expect, lots of pictures were taken, including some of my sister and I sat in the number one space on the grid and
taking a walk through the garages that had been reduced to nothing but the surrounding walls and a few bolts and screws scattered across the floors.
The same night, we watched the light show coming from the Marina Bay Sands hotel. The crowds grew as the night went on and it was like a lovely community event. Everyone came out to see the lights to celebrate Singapore's 50th anniversary.
Day two was equally a fun. The shopping centres were crammed again. For lunch, we had planned to experience the culture, but that was short lived as we ended up in an American Diner. We only ordered sandwiches to save ourselves for tea but those sandwiches were humongous! I don't think I've ever seen so much meat! After lunch, we did a bit more shopping before walking back to the hotel past the river and all the busy restaurants.
The next day was an animal adventure in Singapore Zoo. There, we stroked iguanas, and walked around the animals. Might I add that no animals in that zoo are totally enclosed so we were mega close to the extravagant elephants and other exotic animals. There was also a river cruise where we were told that we might see some rhinos and other animals, however there was nothing in the water at all - definitely a waste of money! I don't recommend that trip.
The final day was a way to go out in style. In the morning, we were up bright and breezy and we walked to the Raffles Hotel to have a look round the shops. It was quite posh, but what was posher was the Fullerton Hotel. This was a big hotel near the middle of the city which gold decor and lots of floors. It was almost as posh as the Marina Bay Hotel. Inside, we had an afternoon tea with loads of cute little sandwiches and snacks. They were very expensive and they had a lot of caviar on.
Before this holiday, I had never tried caviar but I have to say, I don't hate it. It is very strange. They are like the bubbles you get in Bubble Tea and they just pop in your mouth which is a rather strange sensation! All in all, the holiday was absolutely amazing and I would 100% going to Singapore if you ever get the chance.
Arizona
