Singapore is a city-state and is just 580 square kilometres in size. “Since independence, Singapore's standard of living has risen dramatically. Foreign direct investment and a state-led drive to industrialization have created a modern economy focused on industry, education and urban planning. Singapore is the 5th wealthiest country in the world.” (Wikipedia)
That ad on TV we saw on our way to Bintan Island, “Count on me, Singapore,” had a flavor of a dictatorship. Eric called it a "benevolent dictatorship." I did some more reading and discovered that in fact Singapore is a Republic."Although Singapore's laws are inherited from English and British Indian laws, and include many elements of English common law, the government has also chosen not to follow some elements of liberal democratic values. There are no jury trials and there are laws restricting the freedom of speech that may breed ill will or cause disharmony within Singapore's multiracial, multi-religious society. Criminal activity is often punished with heavy penalties including heavy fines or caning and there are laws which allow capital punishment in Singapore for first-degree murder and drug trafficking.” (Wikipedia)
"The Rough Guide to Malaysia, Singapore & Brunei" adds to this by saying that “at the core of the Singapore success story is an unwritten bargain between its government and population: loss of certain amount of personal freedom, with the government orchestrating the economy and society, in return for levels of affluence and comfort.”
Singapore’s population is multicultural: 77% Chinese, 14% Malay, and 8% Indian (and other ethnic groups). Apparently, the expat community there is large and welcoming of new arrivals. We met some Aussies, Brits and Kiwis who were currently living in Singapore and loving it.
We only had one full day in Singapore and we wanted to make the best of it. We had to accommodate both E’s and our interests (and endurance). We arrived late in the afternoon and checked into our (great Pan Pacific!) hotel. E loved the elevators - we took many trips up and down to keep him entertained.
After we unpacked a bit, we hit the town.
Sadly, Singapore lacks much of the cultural heritage of this part of the world. I read in our guidebook that many of the historic buildings and streets had been bulldozed to make room for numerous shopping centres. To me (Eric's opinion differs from mine), the city lacks personality and character... but it is very clean and apparently safe.
We ventured into a few parts of the city: the Colonial District where Eric thought he died and went to heaven because of the 6-storey Funan Digitalife Mall,
and St. Andrew’s Cathedral consecrated in 1862.
Orchard Street (the commercial mecca of Singapore) with a Mall after Mall after Mall! We walked up (or down) the street and all we saw were TONS of people and a Mall after Mall after Mall.
And this place:
Raffles City (a huge development comprising of two hotels – one of them being Swissotel 73-storey high) where we found Ben & Jerry's and E had his super-chocolate ice-cream.
The legendary Raffles Hotel with its colonial flair is right next to Swissotel. It opened in 1887 and according to the Rough Guide, “in 1902, a little piece of Singaporean history was made at the hotel, when the last tiger to be killed on the island was shot inside the building. It was also in Raffles where British expatriates gathered in 1942 as the Japanese swept through the island.
And it is where at the Long Bar we had the famous Singaporean Sling (well, the boys did – virgin type for E).
The downtown Civil District proudly features S$600 million Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay. The place boasts a concert hall, theatre, recital studio, theatre studio, gallery space and outdoor theatre... and more shopping and dining venues. It was opened in 2002. To some the two spiked shells are peerless modernistic architecture and to others they are plain kitsch.
In the northern part of the island (still retaining the rainforest and mangrove swamps), we visited the most splendid Zoological Gardens. Those of you who follow the minutia of our Kiwi adventure will know that animals are an important part of our life, so believe me when I say Singapore Zoo is second to none. There are over 3000 animals inhabiting lush tropical rainforest within habitats that mimic their natural environment. The star attraction of the zoo are 24 free-range Orang Utans.
What I loved though best were the white tigers. Just amazing!
We had fun watching Splash Safari.
The other animals were great too!
But E’s favourite was Rainforest Kidzworld were E enjoyed a pony ride and splashing in the water on the fountain playground.
We finished our visit in Singapore with a refreshing dip in the hotel pool.
The 10-hour flight back home was slightly easier and more relaxing than the one we took on the way from Auckland two weeks earlier. All in all our Malaysia-Indonesia-Singapore vacation was a great one even though it started and continued with some hiccuping. Thus we arrived home feeling satisfied with our holidays... but relieved we were back in our own beds loving our well-established and secure routine. We are not planning any long-distance voyages until early next year... we will be recovering and continuing to explore the Kiwiland though. Stay tuned.
