Monday, March 18, 2013

Our 115 day World Cruise, day 72, Singapore

Here we are again and it looks like it is the same old stuff!

Picked up Irwin this morning as Sandi was going to the doctors.  We had a very nice visit with Irwin and soon it was time to move on!We went to curves and did our duty for the day.  Then we were off to Sprouts and picked up a few things....I forgot to take pictures...you would think that we would have it down pat by now...Vicki did remember to take the bags in!  Yea for Vicki! lol!

Now we are at home and we have the doors open and it is suppose to be only in the 80's today.  It is beautiful outside today.  I might even take a picture! lol!

 This cactus was only 12 inches high 5 years ago....now it is threatening to lift the roof off!                                                                      


                    Vicki thinks that someday she will come out and sit on the patio and read a book!  lol!
                                           
                    No, I am not going to read a book...I will just take a  snooze!   lol!                                                            

Vicki is gone now to see her mother...hope it goes well...Vicki had a really bad night last night and should have stayed home and taken a nap.                                                                



Where we did not go today ....but the Amsterdam did!

 Singapore

It certainly was nice to get back home last night (ms Amsterdam)….  I headed out this morning to take a ride again on the Singapore Flyer, the world’s largest Ferris wheel.  The views from up there are fabulous!  After taking my ride and a gazillion photos, I headed over to the Marina Bay Sands.  My friends Brad & Gloria stayed there last night and they invited me over to check it out.  What a place!!!!  Their suite seemed as big as a house, just luxuriant…. The infinity pool on the top is magnificent, what a view.  After leaving there I headed over to Clarke Quay and then on the China Town.  It was so hot that I decided to call it a dayand headed back to the ship for a late lunch.  As soon as this is posted, it will be nap time, still recovering from the Cambodian adventure….

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Postcards from Paradise

Singapore, Republic of Singapore March 18, 2013 Monday Day Two

Our second day in Singapore started out great. Mostly blue skies greeted us when we looked out our window early this morning. It would turn out to be a day free of rain, however, not free from the oppressive heat and humidity. Guess that would be expecting too much.

After breakfast, we took care of the emailing and set off on another adventurous day of exploring the city. We planned on using our MRT cards to the max, or as much time as we could manage to squeeze into one full day. It was very easy to ride to the Botanic Garden stop on the MRT. For the major part of the morning and afternoon, we toured the many features of the Botanic Gardens. Way back in 1859, the present site of this park was founded by an agricultural society, which was later handed over to the government. It was here that the rubber tree was promoted and experimented with, which later became a major prosperous crop for the South East Asian region. Later in the 1920's, orchid breeding flourished with the start of the hybridization of the plant. Considered a tropical Eden, this 74 hectare garden contains a huge diversity of plants and trees, surrounded with ponds, lakes, streams, and park grounds for everyone to enjoy.

One of those special features in the gardens is the National Orchid Garden, began in 1928 with the orchid breeding program. Over 1000 species and 2000 hybrids can be seen in this hillside wonder. It did cost us to gain entrance to this part of the park.......$1.00 Singapore, the senior fee. We took our time walking through here, mainly because it was so darn hot and sticky. We stopped at every bench in the shade that was not occupied. Out of the nine displays here, one of the most interesting was the Cool House. It is an enclosed tropical forest, mimicking a mountainside in the cooler misty air where different types of foliage grows. Not only have they created a realistic high elevation of forest growth, but they made a haven for us tourists to gain some new insight into rain forests as we cooled off for a short time. Oh yes, we could have stayed in there for an hour if we could have. There was even a stream of rushing water cascading down one side of the enclosure, so real, that you forgot you were in a manmade setting.

We walked every manicured pathway from the top to the bottom, before we exited by way of the garden's shop. Naturally, as one would expect, they sell souveniers here. One of those nicer keepsakes is the Risis orchid jewelry. The pendants and earrings are made with real live orchids that have been dipped and preserved in nickel and gold plate, among other alloys. About 15 years ago, we bought a set, which was not cheap, but also affordable. Now the prices have gone up quite a bit, making us appreciate the pieces we have even more.

By now, it was 2pm, and we figured we had better make our way back to the MRT, the entrance being right outside the northeastern gate of the park. We needed to make our way to Orchard Road and the Hard Rock Cafe where we always have lunch. In order to get there, we had to go north on one line, then transfer to another line to go south again. Sounds confusing, but really it was simple. The difficult part was finding our way out of the station, since you get dumped into a shopping mall. And you are not always on the right level of the mall to find the street we were looking for. A friendly Aussie tourist was also looking for the way to get out and across the road. She linked up with us, chatting all the way, but then veered off in the wrong direction, exited up an escalator. We never saw her again. One nice thing is that while we were looking at the MRT map, a fellow came over and asked if we needed help. He pointed us in the right direction, and we eventually found our way out.

A couple of blocks away from the Wheelock Place was the Hard Rock Cafe, tucked behind a small side street (Cuscaden) near the Black Angus restaurant and the Hilton Hotel. The best way to find this next time is to remember we exited at the glass-domed pyramid structure at Wheelock Place. It was wonderful to sip, no guzzle ice cold sodas while cooling off in the cafe. Since it was around 4pm, it was not crowded, and we did not feel the need to rush out of here. We both ordered the haystack chicken salads, which were perfect for such a hot afternoon.

It would not be the perfect visit to Singapore without a stop at the famous Raffles Hotel. So we got off at the City Hall stop, and found our way out of Raffles City, another huge mall complex, to find the hotel directly across the road. This hotel is a blast from the past with their stately columns and British architecture. Even a formal High Tea was taking place in one of the fancier dining rooms. At this hotel, one must be dressed properly to go inside at certain venues. And no one, except paying guests, is allowed into the main lobby where the Indian doorman stands at guard. The outdoor bar was full of tourists either sipping on beers or the Singapore Slings, a pricey beverage made famous by this establishment.

Wanting to squeeze in a little more site-seeing time, we navigated our way to Clarke Quay, situated on the Singapore River. Always a busy place on the weekends with souvenier stalls every two feet, it was a very quiet Monday today. Small tourist riverboats can be taken from the dock here, and it was nice for us to photograph the folks taking the ride under the many footbridges. If we had not been so full from lunch, this would have been a good place to sit and relax with cold beers. The numerous bars and cafes were gearing up for the evening crowd as we strolled on by.

All too soon, it was time to go home. We cashed out our MRT cards, getting back our $20. deposit. We used up the rest of our change at the local supermarket and drug store on the way back to the ship. There is always a sad feeling leaving the terminal at Singapore for the final time. We enjoy coming to this city more and more each time we visit. In our opinion, we could have spent another day easily.

All of us were back to the table tonight, sharing the stories from the past two days. We all had done something different, either on organized tours or on our own. All agreed that having a sea day tomorrow will be wonderful.

A funny thing happened during dinner. At 9pm, an announcement was made throughout the ship that everyone had to turn in their passports immediately, as previously requested. Five minutes later, they were calling names. Five minutes after that, a staff member came into the dining room to locate a passenger who failed to follow instructions. They will hunt you down, we found out. Embarrassing.

Bill & Mary Ann

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