Day 17 – Tours, Tickets and an Unexpected Trip to Sentosa

I woke up late as usual on day 17, and decided to a bit more washing. I collected my kilt from the line and found that it has cleaned up reasonably well, and I put a new wash on. I went out to change some money and get something to eat. I then returned to sort out the washing and then I hung it out on the line. I decided to head into town and try to get on a tour. I got a bus (for a change), and enjoyed the ride into town. That was before I realised I didn’t know where I was going until I got into town. I looked around, the bus stop told me that I would be able to get to orchard road, but I was concerned and got off at the first place I recognised, Dhoby Ghaut MRT station, which was nowhere near Orchard Road. I decided to take the MRT the remaining distance, and got off at Orchard. I then stepped outside to try to find a tour bus, and was unsure quite where to find one. I headed to the bus stop opposite the MRT, because I had seen a tour bus pass that way the previous day. I waited, but none came, and I went to find some information. I didn’t find any, but instead inquired at a perfume stall and was told to stay at the stop, because one would come. I did, and some time later I was rewarded for my patience. I got on the tour bus and was informed that it was the last of the day tour buses, but I could get a Moonlight Adventure tour on a 24-hour ticket. I got on the tour bus and took the ride to the depot (tucked behind yet another shopping centre) and was told to wait for an hour, and that there was a food court inside where I could get something to eat. I had chicken noodle bowl (well, it was a staple food in Singapore, and I didn’t fancy the Fish Head Curry). I then headed out to the bus. I got on and was asked if I wanted a ticket to songs of the sea, and I said ‘no’. The tour guide assumed a befuddled expression before I explained that I had been before. He then told me that I would need an admission ticket to Sentosa then (yep, that place again). I headed upstairs and took a seat. I was glad I did, because the bus went past the Singapore Flyer, giving some great views. When we arrived at the bus park, we were all handed respective tickets, and told to be back at the bus for 8.20pm. I headed for the segways (what else?), and booked a ride. It was quite busy, but in the queue I got talking to this nice kiwi couple and their kids. (You know what I’m like with names by now), from Auckland. We waited until about 8pm, and then we got on the ride. The staff, who knew me by that time, asked if I wouldn’t mind staying at the back to keep an eye on those in front. Not a problem. The ride was enjoyable as ever, and upon return, I was offered a free ride. They didn’t need to ask me twice. I quickly gave my email to the kiwi couple and headed out again. All hope of returning to the bus were quickly forgotten. I joined the next segway group and off I went again. When the ride had finished, I thanked the staff and headed off to the luge for a couple of moonlight rides. When I got up the hill for the first ride, i bumped into a group of immature American guys who were rude, macho and obnoxious. They were convinced they could beat me down the hill, and I proved them wrong. I let them get in front, and then laughed at their expressions as I roared past them. I also laughed as one tried to slow down for the camera and got rear-ended by the guy behind him who was trying to pass me. I reached the bottom and raced for the chairlift, getting a good few cars ahead of them. When I reached the top, I asked the operator (who I had met on a previous day) to try to run them over with the lift (I was joking, of course). I then tore down to the start area and got away before they had left the lift. I was down the hill and onto the lift again before they were even halfway down the course again. I took my last ride and headed for the monorail to Harbour Front, hoping to return again to the Island of fun, but knowing that I was leaving until another trip to Singapore, if ever. When I got to Harbour Front I wondered if they had been looking for me on the bus, but I thought ‘nah, I didn’t go to the show’. I got the MRT back to the hostel, and headed off to bed.

Day 16 - A German, A Merlion and One Big Wheel

Day 16 Began as usual. I woke up late (as ever) and headed out to the airport to change money, having decided that by this point I was getting stiffed on rates just as much in the city as I was there. I changed my money and headed to the Qantas desk in T1 to see if there was anyone present, and yet again finding no-one. What was up with these people? I headed back to the train station through T3, and found a very confused German woman being given very little help by the staff. Flying Scotsman to the rescue once again. Thank god she spoke English, because my rudimentary German wouldn’t have stood a chance. It turned out that the woman (her name since wiped from my memory (explanation coming up in Sydney)) was looking for a hostel and had been told that she would find one on Orchard Road. I decided to take her up there (well, I had no other plans). We took the train to Orchard station, and bode her farewell (I gave her my email address), and decided to explore, my attention being grabbed immediately by a collection of brightly coloured statues depicting shoppers, but mostly depicting many caricatures of Margaret Thatcher. I noted that many (most) of the shops stocked only items above my price range (or that of anyone who isn’t rich), and decided to take some shots of the architecture before heading back to the hostel to bid farewell to Fahin, who was leaving. I took some shots, and noticed a tour bus, and decided to come back another day for a tour. I took the train back to Kembangan. After saying farewell to Fahin I headed for some food (from the Hawker Centre at Tanjong Pagar) and then I headed up to Dhoby Ghaut to begin a colonial night walk as described in my guide book. I walked right through the city, past the National Museum of Singapore, through the grounds of the Singapore Management University and past the Philatelic Museum, Masonic Hall and Armenian Church. I then entered the parliamentary district, passing the Parliament itself and the Supreme Court as well as the statue marking the spot where Sir Stamford Raffles first landed, and then along the riverbank past the Asian Civilisations museum and the Fullerton Hotel, before slipping under the dual carriageway to end up at the Merlion Park. I got a great view of quite a lot of the waterfront, as well as the Singapore Flyer, which, upon discovered closed at 10pm. I looked at my watch, 9.15pm. I decided to find a way there, and found a bike taxi waiting by the bridge on the carriageway I had ducked under. Poor Guy. He was about a third of my weight, and really skinny and he kept getting caught at the lights. I reached the Flyer in just enough time to get a ride, and boarded the big wheel, which happens to be the biggest observation wheel in the world (30m bigger than the London Eye). Just my luck then that the batteries on my camera were running low. And where were my spares? In a hostel in Kembangan, that’s where. I tried to conserve batteries, taking as few duplicate shots as possible, and it just made it, conking out in the last couple of minutes of the 30-min ride. I then headed down and caught a bus to City Hall, followed by a train back to the hostel, which I found yet again empty.

Day 11 - Hong Kong to Singapore

My alarm clock woke me up, as planned, at 4am on the morning of day 11. I got dressed quickly and got my bags together, placing them out in the hall whilst I donned my kilt for the trip. I then checked the whole room (it didn't take long) to ensure that nothing would be left behind. Then I left the keys on the bed and locked the door behind me. Time to go. I dragged my bags (as quietly as I could) past one of the guys that worked at the hostel, Ajibike. I then headed for the lift, and waited as it took its sweet time, as ever, to go up and then decide to come down. The lift would be one thing of Hong Kong which I wouldn't miss. When I was finally at the bus stop, I was witing for the night bus to the airport, and a taxi pulled up. He wouldn't accept that I wanted to get the bus, and kept trying to offer me a ride to the airport. After an exchange of words which are unrepeatable ina public blog, he finally left. I waited for about 15 minutes for the bus, and I was glad when it came, as it was air conditioned (it was quite humid even  at that time in the morning). I placed my large bags in the luggage rack provided, and found seat. Just a bit further down the road, someone else got on, airport bound, and she wanted to pay cash, but couldn't find the right change. Flying Scotsman to the rescue! I moved down to the front of the bus anb found some loose change. Well, I wouldn't be needing it. Once she was paid, she sat down and we got talking. Rachael was from Edinburgh, and she was going to the airport to fly back on the 0830 flight. We chatted about our travels as we travelled to the airport and, when we arrived, we were trying to decide which was the point to get off. I was anxious at trying my tactic of waiting to see where everyone else got off, but was saved by someone who could obviously see our struggle, and told us when we were at the terminal. We found trolleys for our bags, and headed to the departures area. We split, promising to meet up again after check in, and the Scotsman headed off to try his charms on another unsuspecting check-in girl. It worked again, and I got another exit row seat. Brilliant! I also got away with having one bag just over 23kg, but she said it would be okay because the average was under the limit. Then I headed off to find Rachael, and found her at the BA check-in desk. We headed though to the security check, and I prepared to be frisked, as the kilt's buckles always set off the alarm. The search actually turned out quite funny, since the woman wielding the metal detector wand turned out to be five-foot nothing. She had to stand on tip-toes. Once we had been proven not to be terrorists, we heaed to find some food. Rachael said she was not hungry, and went to starbucks, and I headed upstairs to find some sustenance, which came in the form of a scrmbled-egg sausage tray with tomato soup (curious combination) and tea. I took this downstairs only to find that Rachael had dissapeared. I remembered her flight was gate 40-something, so I headed to the other end of the terminal, which had a bad effect on the condition of my as yet uneated breakfast, as the lid in the tea turned out to be ever-so-slightly loose, allowing tea to spill out onto the tray. Thankfully, the tray survived the trip, and I reached gate 41 to find Rachael not there. So I headed back to the other end of the concourse for one last check. upon reching there, I found that Rachael had been sitting on the side of the concourse opposite Stabucks and, of course, I hadn't been looking that way. I settled down to eat my (not slightly tea-flavoured) breakfast, which was actually not bad. The soup, although an unusual addition, brought something new to the table. I didn't actually drink the tea, though, as i realised that i hadn't asked for milk. I also had a slight mishap involving scrambled egg and kilt, which resulted in a quick rush to the toilet to prevent staining, which seemed to be successful. After breakfast had been consumed, Rachael's flight was getting close to boarding, so we grabbed our bags, and I decided to show her the easier way to get from one side of the termianl to the other. A purpose-built underground railway. Nifty, eh? We reached Rachael's gate, and by the time we had exchanged email addresses, she had to board. Then I headed off to gate 29 for my turn, which came quite soon after, as we were told to start queuing just as I arrived, and so I ended up second in line to board. This changed when th guy infron was taking forever to find his boarding card, resulting in me being first on the plane. Upon boarding, I was accosted by a few of the stuardesses and one, named Cherry (I kid you not), asked for a photo, as she had never met someone so tall, and she had never met someone in a kilt. I also got aked if I knew how to play the bagapipes, which seems to be the second question, after, 'is that a kilt?'I was then seated, and I took off my kilt (the buckles add too much width for me to reach the tv controls when I'm in the seat). I awaited my seating partners, and was joined by a fashionista, who looked as if she had trodden on something quite nasty, and her escort, who lookead as if he had fallen out of the gay tree and hit every branch on the way down (a purple jacket, ripped jeans and crocodile-skin pointy-toed boots will do that for a guy). Thankfully, they didn't seem to speak english, so I got peace to watch Star Trek (for the third time). The flight was uneventful, the food ok, though unmemorable, since I can't recall what I had (I think it was chicken noodles, though I;m not sure). Upon arrival inChangi airport I had to queue for quite a while for immigration, but once at the desk it was fine (there was only one form, and no health check). Baggage ollection was next, followed by custons, where the guy asked me if there was anything I wasn't sure about declaring. I remembered the gravy granules (thanks, Auntie Julie and Auntie Lisa), but I was told they would be fine, and my bags were x-rayed before I was free to go (I suppose he thought I looked a bit suspicious in a kilt). I then carried my bags outside, past taxi, all offering business, and up the escalator to the skytrain, which I s quite a piece of engineering (look it up in wikipedia). I was taken by the skytrain to terminal 3, where I could catch the MRT. I took the lift down to the MRT platform, and then the train to Tanah Merah Interchange, where I crossed the platform to take another train to Kembangan as dictated by the instructions sent from the hostel. I then exited the station, only to find no reference to which way to go, and I decided to give in and take a taxi. The taxi journey took 3minutes, and cost S$5. Then I headed for the hostel, which turned out to be up 3 flights of stairs, with not a lift in sight. I was just about dead when I reached the top, and then I had to a self check in, which was a simple process involving a safe code and some money. I then entered the room and dumped my stuff before having a shower and a change. I then put my dirty clothing (left over from Hong Kong) into the washing machine, and went to get some grub. I had intended to eat down in the cafe downstairs, but the menu turned out to consist entirely of fish (fishballs, fish skin or fish head curry). I consulted the Singapore version of the bible of Lonely planet, and headed off into the MRT system to Tanjong Pagar, and to a Hawker Center which I was told was within walking distance of the MRT. It was, but I had gine in the wrong direction. After a panicky moment, I consulted the pull-out map and righted myself, and then I set off for some food. I had a look around the stalls, eventually finding one I liked the look of, and had Wonton Noodle Soup accompanied by pineaplle drink. It was lovely. I then headed back into the MRT and too a train to Raffles Place, to explore, and found a beautiful, twinklingly lit river which will be returned to with a camera. Then, yawning, I decided to head back to the hostel and do a bit of blogging before turning infor the night. My dorm buddies arrived around midnight, and after a quick 'hi' I was sound asleep.

Day 9 - And relax...

On day 9 I didn't wake up until about 1pm. I think it was the 8.5% proof cider that did it. Especially since I had two bottles of the stuff. Still, it was quite nice. I decided to do what I didn't get the chance to do yesterday, so after a long shower and some food, I decided first to catch up with George and say bye before he headed off to Shenzhen. I managed to catch him, and I bid him farewell. Then I headed up to the swimming pool (I had rinsed out my swimming stuff from day 8 to remove the sand), and spent several hours in the pool relaxing and working off the stresses of the week. I also headed down to an arcade that George had told me about, which turned out to contain a very loud (and addictive) car racing game, and a very addictive (and very loud) drumming game. What with that and grabbing some grub, that was the afternoon gone, and in the evening I decided to re-do the peak (day 3) to get some pictures. However, little did I know that instead, on the ferry I would meet Illie and Nick, from Rochester. we got chatting, and instead of the peak we headed up to a bar at the top off the IFC, which did provide quite a good view of the light display, but the lights proved too hard to photograph (the attempts are on facebook), so instead we decided to just watch the wonderful display of dancing light. I can tell you, it really was something. I then split with Illie and Nick (who had to go back to Happy Valley, where they were staying with Illie's parents), and the IFC palace cinema caught my eye, as did a certain film, whose title begins with the word Inglorious (I can't give you the full name because this blog may end up on Mr Hood's whiteboard). I tell you. the seats in the theatre were amazing, really comfy, like armchairs, and with proper armrests and none of that stupid fold-up nonsense. And, for this? Only HK$85, which is very reasonable. The film was also very good (no details so I don't ruin it for those who haven't seen it). After the film I realised how late it was, and decided to run down to the MTR, which I managed to catch (well, it was past midnight, and that trains don't run all night). Then it was off to bed, back at Chungking.

Another Pre-Flight Update

Oh!, what a week it's been! Wednesday was a bit of a shambles, as I sadly Failed my test (too eager at a junction), and the Thursday was hectic with preparations for Friday (When I got mightily drunk), and Saturday (All-day hangover). Today was also mad, with last-minute visa applications, packing, more packing and running around trying to find stuff (for packing). I would also like to use this blog to thank My good friend Maggie for the wonderful cake which she baked for my 18th (It was shaped like a highland glen, to remind me of home), and also to than all that came to my party and for all of the lovely presents, especially the watch with the saltire from Linda, Alan, Stevie and Alannah (A.K.A Loony). This blog is also to say farewell to all befor I head off on my big adventure, I will miss all of you, and will be thinking of you, always. I would also like to apologise for any typos, as I've been out with my parents for a lovely curry, and I had a few (I'm sitting drinking one as I type). This will bge the last post before Hong Kong.