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I'm Singapore in the rain!
Having left Lankawi in the blazing sunshine I had one last stop in Asia before moving on to Oz... the lovely city of Singapore.
This is actually my third visit to Singapore; I passed through on the way to and from Australia a few years ago, so I'd already done a lot of the touristy stuff then... the Night Safari, Singapore Slings at Raffles Hotel, boat trip along the river. This time I wanted to get a feel for the city as experienced by the people who live here.
I've been staying with Lizzie, who I used to work with at Mediacom, and her husband Pete - they moved out to Singapore about 16 months ago. After being met at the airport (there's something really nice about being met at the airport; even when I know that no-one will be there I still look around for a sign with my name on it) we headed to their beautiful condo in the nice neighbourhood of Nevena. 3 and 1/2 months of backpacking have seen me sleeping in (amongst some really lovely places) some fairly shabby guesthouses, a room above a nightclub that pulsated with the vibrations of the music, sharing a beach bungalow with cockroaches, and a 12 bed mixed dormatory. So I just an't describe the luxury of having my own really lovely bedroom... bliss. The condo looks right out over the city, and is just 2 stops from the famous shopping street Orchard Road. We spent my first night here in the colonial district, having a lovely meal with Lizzie and Pete's friends (Italian food! I was thrilled - not a grain of rice or a noodle in sight, what a treat). Oh, and then we gatecrashed a private party... gatecrashing is not very Singaporean - from what I can gather Singaporean people are very much like the place itself - nice, orderly and well-behaved... if perhaps a tad unexciting.
On Saturday I met up with Jen, who is teaching in Singapore, and we went for lunch off Orchard Road with some of her ex-pat friends. There is a huge ex-pat scene here, around 1 in 4 people in Singapore, and everyone speaks English. It's very un-Asian indeed! Heading off for a girlie shopping afternoon I was once again thrilled to come across not one, but 3 Topshops!
I've had a lovely time here, and its been really nice to catch up with friends - but weeks of late nights, partying on the beach and existing on banana pancakes has caught up with me and I'm poorly-sick. Thankfully Singapore is a very nice place to be ill, there are chemists, and air-con and friends to look after me. My plans for some last-day sightseeing have been scuppered by the rain and my flu, so I'm tucked up inside where its dry and very happy about it.
Next stop, Sydney!
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- comments
Jen sputhern Glad you had fun and nice to see you, albeit short and sweet! Have a blast in oz and maybe we will see each other again in sunnier days!