Min

Min arrived early via bus at the Moon Hotel to pick me up. It was great seeing her again after 4 years. I didn’t take many photos of Min because she is like me and doesn’t like her photos taken. This one I took a couple of days later and I like her expression as she looks over the feast she bought us for lunch.

Orchard Road

We took several buses to reach the Singapore Botanic Gardens, passing by Orchard Road. All I could say of Orchard Road was WOW! Beautiful modern building after beautiful modern building: department stores, malls, restaurants, the works! Singaporeans shop and eat, and when they get tired of doing that, they eat and shop and they do it with such style and great abundance. Asians from all over also come to shop and eat in Singapore.  I would not doubt that Singapore has more malls, stores, restaurants, and food courts than any other city in the world.

Singapore was once a British colony and driving is on the left. The escalator down is also on the left as well as the correct side of the street to walk on. To me, something looked out of whack.

Orchard Road

More of Orchard Road

Orchard Road

Many 5–star hotels are on Orchard Road.  The building with the hat (red) is the Marriott. If I ever come to Singapore again, I will stay on Orchard Road.

Orchard Road

What a perfect place to watch the world go by.

Isetan Japanese Department Store

We took the bus back to Orchard Road and went into the Isetan Department Store which anchors the Wisma Atria mall.

Isetan Japanese Supermarket

We sampled its food on our way around the Isetan Japanese Supermarket located in the basement.

Chinese New Year’s Food Market

Then we sampled our way around the special Chinese New Year’s Food Market in the Takashima building. This market is here only near the Chinese New Year.

Wisma Atria Food Village

Then we ate at the Wisma Atria Food Village. I have put our excursion in the Isetan Department Store, the Chinese New Year’s food market,  and the food village on a slide show. Go directly to

http://www.peggysphotos.com/singapore–wisma–atria–mall/

or to Slide Shows, Asia, Singapore, “Asian Food, Singapore”

Orchard Road

On Orchard Road.

Chinese New Year’s Dragon on Orchard Road

The dragon was covered in roses. It looks like it belongs in the Rose Parade and maybe it has been there as Singapore often has a float in our parade.

Chinese New Year’s Dragon on Orchard Road

Close–up of the dragon’s head.

More of Orchard Road

More of  Orchard Road.

Chinese New Year’s Decorations

Chinese New Year’s decorations on Orchard Road.

T.G.I. Friday’s

T.G.I. Friday’s on Orchard Road. From the bus, I also spotted the Hard Rock Cafe and, very surprisingly, the California Pizza Kitchen ( a chain at least in California).

Emerald Hill Road

You reach Emerald Hill Road from Orchard Road. Emerald Hill was originally granted to an Englishman named William Cuppage. It was later acquired by the Peranakans, which is a community formed out of marriages between the Chinese and the Malays from the 16th century onward. From 1900 to 1930, Chinese Baroque houses were built on Emerald Hill. Min told me that these were the houses of the concubines. The houses have been restored and are quite beautiful.

Emerald Hill Road

More houses on Emerald Hill Road. Some are private residences and some are shops and bars.

Emerald Hill Road

More houses on Emerald Hill Road.

Emerald Hill Road

Houses with a corridor in front of them.

Emerald Hill Road

One of the corridors.

Emerald Hill Road

Beautiful entryway.

Emerald Hill Road

Old door.

Emerald Hill Road

Another old door.

Emerald Hill Road

A beautifully restored house.

Emerald Hill Road

Above the windows and door.

Emerald Hill Road

Tiles, etc.

Emerald Hill Road

One of the bars on Emerald Hill Road.

Emerald Hill Road

The bar’s Happy Hour menu.

Emerald Hill Road

Inside Que Pasa.

Emerald Hill Road

Inside Que Pasa.

Singapore Art Museum

Back on the bus, I spotted this interesting statue in front of the Singapore Art Museum.

The City

Also seen from the bus––the high–rise city.

Raffles Hotel

Our next stop, the Raffles Hotel, opened in 1887 and now a National Monument. Some Singapore history: In 1819, Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles, an Englishman, signed a treaty with a local sultan, gaining control of Singapore and thereby laying the foundation of modern Singapore. Singapore became self–governing in 1959. It is a city–state with a parliamentary form of government with a prime minister. Its population is 5 million––74.2% Chinese, 13.4% Malay, 9.2% of Indian descent, and others. It has four official languages: English, Chinese, Malay, and Tamil. Its size is approximately 699 square miles.

Raffles Hotel

Doorman at the Raffles Hotel.

Raffles Hotel

The lobby.

Raffles Hotel

The fountain.

Raffles Hotel

More of the hotel.

Raffles Hotel

The Raffles Hotel’s bars, visited by many celebrities in the past.

Raffles Hotel

The Raffles Hotel is famous for creating the Singapore Sling––a drink. I had two on my Singapore Airlines flight and I would have another one two nights hence on a night tour. I’ll give its ingredients then. They are very good.

Raffles Hotel

Available at the gift shop.

Raffles Hotel

The patio bar.

Raffles Hotel

Raffles Hotel from across the street.

Chimes

Chimes, across the street from the Raffles Hotel. The building was originally the Convent of the Holy Infant Jesus, but when the convent moved, it became a restaurant, bar, gallery, and shopping center.

Chimes

Another view of Chimes.

Chimes

Inside the church––no longer used as a church.

Chimes

Stained–glass window inside the church.

Chimes

Corridor.

Chimes

The outside patio. Many restaurants and bars are here: Japanese BBQ, Italian gelato, Spanish bar and tapas, sushi, Senor Taco, Waffle House, pizza parlor, Korean charcoal, Harry’s Bar, etc.

Chimes

Hog’s Breath Cafe, with Monday Night Madness, is also here.

Min went home from here and I took a cab back to my hotel. I was to go on a night tour.

Night Safari

The Singapore Zoo offers a night safari where you can see nocturnal animals in their night behavior. The animals in the zoo are not caged and are allowed to roam freely, but they more or less stay in their own areas by staking them out with their own smell. You can also take a day tour, starting out with breakfast with the orangutans.

Night Safari

I had signed up for a buffet but I did take note of this Ben & Jerry’s and had an ice cream here later.

Night Safari

If you didn’t sign up for the buffet, there were some other tempting places to eat––one offered hamburgers.

Night Safari

There were plenty of offferings in the buffet. I enjoyed my dinner companions––all from either the U.K. or Australia and making Singapore their stopover on the way to or on the way back to either Australia or the U.K. It is such a long flight, that stopovers are almost a must and the main stopovers are Singapore, Hong Kong, and Dubai.

Night Safari

More of the buffet.

Night Safari

And more of the buffet.

Night Safari

It was somewhat difficult to see the animals and even more difficult to take photos of them, but I tried. There was a section on the route where you could get off the tram and walk around in the dark. It sounded too scary to me, but maybe I would have gotten better photos. This photo is of zebras. Not as hard to take a photo of them because of their white stripes.

Night Safari

Elephants.

Night Safari

More elephants.

Night Safari

Could be a wild boar.

Night Safari

Don’t know.

Night Safari

Not sure.

Night Safari

Something with horns.

Night Safari

Back off the tram. Old biplane in the restaurant area. Back to my hotel and the end of my day.