“Ladies and gentlemen the captain has switched on the fasten seatbelt sign in preparation for landing, please take your seats and ensure that your tray tables are locked in and your seats in the upright position”.
A speech that becomes more amusing each time you hear it. As we flew over Singapore the sky was lit up by what seems to be the lights of Orchard roads mega shopping complexes? Or not. It didn’t seem like there was actually any space to land this jumbo jet considering how small Singapore actually is. But sure enough the wheels touched the ground and I had yet another city to explore.
Getting out of customs was as easy as pie with a stamp in my passport (got to love being an Australian citizen) we quickly exited through customs and waited for our bags at the carousel. Just so this blog actually makes sense the actual reason I was in Singapore was mainly on business to meet some clients of which I took my girlfriend along. So as we got our bags and went through what seemed liked laxed border control compared to our Australian counterparts we saw our pickup of which she conveniently held up a sign saying “Mr Mitterstoger”. Feel special enough So we were on our way through the bustling city of Singapore.
After the usual first time meeting etiquette we headed to our accommodation at the Singapore Golf Club arranged by our hosts. Our bedroom was a nice double bed with aircon (beats those cheap non a/c’d hostels) with a great view of part of the golf course. As you can imagine waking up at 7 am that morning we were exhausted; but to the two unknowing guests Singaporean’s don’t actually sleep but rather they eat. And eat is what we did.
So after a quick phone call at approximately 11pm we were on our way to a feast of different meals. We didn’t have to wait long as our hosts were already waiting for us with their Mercedes. Now most of you are thinking its just a Mercedes, yes its just a Mercedes however Singapore has from memory a 270% car tax imposed not to mention huge yearly registration fees so now imagine a $140,000 Mercedes with 270% car tax on top. Now that’s an expensive car………. After the usual pleasantries and a short drive away we made our first stop at the golf clubs seafood restaurant. Giant crayfish and oven baked fish were on the menu and although tired we polished them off in the usual Singapore manner of good food.
To say the least we were extremely belly stuffed and exhausted from our flights, however sleep is for the weak apparently??? Our host kindly took us for a tour of Orchard and the major sights of Singapore stopping every now and again to take in the sights. Driving through Orchard at night is definitely an experience every one should have if you don’t have a car go by taxi. The hotels and large department stores put Brisbane’s largest to shame. One could easily spend their life savings on a visit if they were keen. Insider information tells us that Singaporean’s don’t really shop there unless they’re on their big Singapore end of year sale in July. Point to note next time I’m there in July.
Making a quick stop at the Singapore Performing Arts centre (shown above) more commonly known as the durian buildings we were yet again on our way for more Singapore highlights. Driving by the hostess bars on Singapore we made our way up to Mt Faber one of the highest points in Singapore. Unfortunately I had yet to acquire a decent camera/tripod so I was unable to take any decent photos of the view of Singapore. The time approaching on 1 am an initial D session down the mountain began. I always wondered what made him drive his expensive car down the mountain this fast without a care in the world. I asked him this a couple years later of which he quickly replied that if there was a scratch its just a car nothing more. Wise words? Still unsure at this point.
What time is it? Time to eat again… and of such we were introduced to our first encounter with a hawker centre, verdict: AMAZING and one of the major reasons I travel back to Singapore year after year. Current time at hawker centre approaching 2 am… It was late and I’m pretty sure our hosts could sense that we were getting tired so we made our final stop at the only 24-hour shopping complex in Singapore Mustafa’s. Well what can I say about Mustafa’s it’s just immense. They say one can find anything and everything inside this complex from watches to clothes to chocolate to souvenirs everything is available for the keen shoppers.
About to collapse from sheer exhaustion we were driven back to our room to get some sleep for another busy day exploring the sights for ourselves.
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