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“Feeling like a couple of Attenboroughs” |
After a 6 hour bus journey on the worlds most luxurious bus we were through customs and into Singapore. This time Lynds hadn't done to well on the accomodation booking side as we soon saw that you could rent rooms by the hour. There was a seedy looking club next door, and all the men wanting to book a room for an hour seemed to have very much younger wives???
So after dumping our bags we headed straight out into the sticky heat to explore. We walked down street after street and saw little more than shops and more shops. Some of the modern buildings were pretty and the whole place was very clean indeed. We saw Raffles hotel but opted against the obligatory Singapore Sling as the hotel looked much like any other and the drinks would have been 24 quid for two. After a bite to eat we searched for a watering hole as neither of us wanted to go back to hotel sober. After some aimless wandering we came upon a bar with Harley Davidsons parked outside. But the sight of a Fosters tap inside drew us in. Well, we stuck out like a couple of backpackers would in a biker bar, with neither of us having tatoos or a bandana wrapped around our heads.
They seemed nice enough and Jap (who ran a tattoo parlour during the day) couldn't have been a nicer host. The big guy who looked like an aboriginal Giant Haystacks didn't even mind too much when I gave him a whooping at pool. And after many odd drinks and a couple of cherries soaked in petrol we wobbled back to our knocking shop.
Next day we jumped on the tube and headed for the zoo. After a brief altercation with the bus driver (why do you always have to have the right bloody change when its 110 degrees out and the nearest shop is a shirt soaking distance away) we were there. This is supposedly the best zoo in the world. And I truly believe it. No cages as the animals are kept away from the public with moats, so you do spend much of your time convincing yourself that a white rhino doesn't like a swim. They all have a lot of room (compared to other zoos) and some are allowed to roam free. We walked up one path and a black gibbon was just sat on the pathside watching the world go by.
So feeling like a couple of Attenboroughs we got some tea and waited for the night safari. This is basically a different zoo at night. Where you can see all the creatures that are nocturnal. They put on a show, and I bet you didn't know that otters can sort rubbish for recycling. Why the streets aren't crawling with them doing this valuable job I can't fathom.
Next day a trip on the river narrated by the worlds most annoying american made us laugh. Telling us where a historic bridge used to be until 5 years ago when they pulled it down and put a concrete one there. While at the front of the boat a Japanese couple were busy photographing all manner of things. From drains to the underside of a concrete bridge. All the time wriggling around in their seats and sliding onto the floor to get the best angle of the floating turd going by. Slide nights at their house must be a blast.
All in all, afetr talking to lots of locals we discovered that SIngapore is great for shopping and eating. And thats about it. Its clean and safe with some odd laws (chewing gum is illegal and a brit who took a pee against a tree got 5 lashes from the birch), but not special in any way we could see. If it wasn't for a group of bikers taking us under their hells angel wing, it would have been a very bland place indeed.
previous travel blog entry
Uncle says:
I have sent an email to Gran telling her that you want the up dates on Coronation Street and East Enders as you are getting withdrawal symtoms. Love to you both Unc.