Singapore

Wonderful Singapore! Well what a difference 2 months makes. We were last in Singapore on our way through to Colombo - it rained for 2 days non-stop and we left with a less than favourable impression. It seemed to be shopping, shopping and more shopping.

This time things were different. We decided to treat ourselves to a w/e away as good friends Pete and Chris were traveling through Singapore on their way from London to Oz. So we arranged to meet and 'hang out'. Instantly us battle-weary front liners (not!) relaxed into it. What bliss to be back in a multi-cultural society. I was nearly reduced to tears at the choice of cuisine on offer. And whilst Singapore is often accused of being 'sterile', Colombo could do with a bit more of that I reckon!!! The contrast was enormous and I have to say we both reveled in it.

As we arrived early, first stop the zoo. Now I am not a fan of zoos, but had been recommended by several people that this one truly lived up to its conservationist aim and was worth a look. So having checked it out on the internet, and because I was extremely tempted by the baby orangutan, we went. Public Transport in Sing is a breeze, so we saved ourselves $60sing by using the MRT. And it was good. 99.9% of the animals are from the same climactic region as Singapore and so were all happy as larry in their enclosures. And the enclosures are big and spacious and heavily oriented towards keeping captive animals amused as they would be in the wild. So for the Orangs, not only are there the usuals of hidden food, ropes, huge climbing frames etc, but they rotate all of them in groups of 5 out of their enclosure into a 'roam free' area in the main zoo. I got chatting to the Orang attendant who was keeping an eye on them to ensure they didn't do a runner, and he said some days he doesn't get home till 8pm (his shift finishes at 5) 'cos he can't coax them back in!! Occupational hazard I guess.

At the end of the day Pete and Chris arrived tired, but happy to be on holidays and we took ourselves down to Clarke Quay for Thai, a spot of rugby watching (go Waratahs) and also some gawking at the intrepid "reverse bungy jumpers". For those who haven't seen one, it is a contraption that you sit in that looks like a huge slingshot, and then it does exactly that - flicks you into the air. I can only imagine the G force! Not for the faint-hearted i.e me.

After breakfast we went for coffee, having discovered a true coffee house the day before. Now Dunc is one of those amazing people who bumps into people he knows wherever we go. As an example, I who grew up in London will go to London with Duncan and in 2 weeks will not bump into any of my friends, ex work colleagues, associates etc - I mean London's a big place right? Dunc on the other hand will get on the tube at Heathrow and before we're even in central London will see 3 people that he used to work/ surf/ live with. It's incredible. So whilst I was chatting away, Duncan managed to 'bump' into a great old friend of mine that I lost track of a few years ago when she was doing the Europe thing and I was in Oz. Since then she's acquired a husband and 2 year old so we had a lot of catching up to do - it was great.

After a day traipsing the streets we had dinner in Chinatown (see picture) at a street stall, having just watched a street theatre performer rotate hula hoops around different parts of her anatomy simultaneously. Maximum respect from me who can't manage to move my feet and arms together in aerobics classes! Then past a fabulous Hindi temple down to the water for a quick jaunt up the river on a ferry. The place looks even better by night.

Sunday started slowly, and even slower for Pete and Dunc who insisted on 'just one more' at the downstairs bar which was (of course) karaoke and had a lone cowboy singing to himself. Then down to Little India, on what had to be the hottest day of the year, before we collapsed into an Indian restaurant in search of air-con. I was quite apprehensive as I'd left Colombo never wanting to see another curry in my life, but North Indian food is very different, so we all enjoyed it, though I couldn't tempt Pete and Chris to try eating with their hands!

After fond farewells we hit the airport and the red eye to Colombo. After being stopped at 3 road blocks, we finally hit the hay at circa 2am - a long one, but a good one. Thanks for joining us Pete and Chris, enjoy Oz and we look forward to seeing you in July. Katherine I hope to see you in May.