I hate air travel. I just cannot afford it. Nobody can. But many of us are doing it anyway. At least those who can afford it financially. Sadly, this includes myself occasionally.
For damage control, I’ve self-imposed a flight reduction policy, which I’ve been trying to follow in recent years:
- No more than 1 return flight every 2 years.
- No short-distance flights, if there are feasible alternatives.
- Make it worthwhile:
Stay at least 4 weeks when flying mid-distance,
and at least 6 weeks for flying long-distance.
In theory, my ongoing Indonesia trip adheres to this policy. However, bureaucratic constraints made it necessary to leave Indonesia for a couple of days. Just to apply for a new visa afterwards. And the most pragmatic solution seemed to be a short flight from Bali to Singapore and back.
Since I had to make this flight trip anyway, I decided to have a quick look at Singapore along the way…
Beach Road
Accommodation in Singapore is much more expensive than in Indonesia. That’s why I booked a rather humble room at The Pod on Beach Road. It was a private room, but technically I still shared a bunk bed with someone else. Their lower bunk was simply opening into a separate room. This efficiency didn’t surprise me in a crowded city-state like Singapore.
What did surprise me was their strict policy against durian fruits. Not just at the hotel, but also on public transport, and many other places in Singapore. Fine with me, since I’m not a durian aficionado.
I had more trouble with the non-smoking policy in Singapore. Smoking is forbidden almost everywhere, even outdoors. Smokers are restricted to dedicated smoking areas, usually just around a public trash can with an integrated ashtray. Whole parts of Singapore lack these smoking areas altogether (see 🚭 below).
Anyway, my accommodation near the corner of Beach Road and Arab Street turned out to be a good pick. As the latter street name suggests, this quarter has a Middle Eastern flair, with some Mediterranean and Indian mixed in. Loads of food options and night life.
On my first day, I made my way towards Marina Bay on foot. South of Beach Road the small narrow streets give way to high-rise office buildings, malls, and hotels. Not quite as shiny as the skyscrapers in the downtown banking district, but generously spaced, with some greenery mixed in.
Plus I found this weird magic-carpet skiing/snowboarding venue in one of the malls. I was itching to give it a go, but I resisted the urge. Gonna have plenty of the real deal once I get back home right in the middle of winter.
Marina Bay
Next I crossed the Helix Bridge towards the Marina Bay Sands resort, which seems to have become a major landmark of Singapore. While the hotel towers are the eye-catcher here, the ArtScience museum looks nice, too. And the surrounding promenades offer great views of the banking district across the bay:
The Marina Bay Sands also hosts a huge mall, mostly housing fashion and jewelry stores. All a little bit too kitsch. I guess the hotel itself wouldn’t be to my taste either, the lobby underneath the hotel towers does look impressive though. I might have enjoyed the view from the observation deck, but my timing was off. They also have a casino, but this sort of thing is way beyond my comprehension.
Gardens By The Bay
Just south of the Marina Bay Sands are the Gardens by the Bay 🚭, a huge park area built on reclaimed land. This park is really huge, so I only focused on some of its main attractions. In particular, the “Super-Tree Grove”, the “Cloud Forrest”, and the “Flower Dome”:
I guess that I liked the Cloud Forest best. A closer look revealed that the lush green just formed a thin facade and that the cloud climate was artificially generated. I did not care for the Jurassic Park exhibits that they’ve sprinkled in, but luckily these were unobtrusive. Overall, it was a pleasant experience.
The gardens and the surrounding areas are nerved by cycle paths, and I noticed many shared bicycles on these. So I signed up for one of these sharing services, and explored Singapore by bike for the rest of the evening. I went up the Singapore River for a bit, where there’s lots of bars and restaurants. But in the end I decided to make my way back to my hotel and grab dinner nearby.
Orchard Road
The next day I cycled to the shopping district on Orchard Road 🚭. I had come with a small shopping list, and spent most of the day ticking of the few items on it. I did not enjoy this shopping experience there at all. Then again, I never enjoy shopping. In the end, I got all that I needed.
Changi Airport
The next day, I headed back to Bali. The flight was in the afternoon, so I had some time to explore Changi Airport, which is a tourist attraction in its own right. In particular The Jewel 🚭, which combines some of the things that I had seen elsewhere in Singapore: a shopping mall and an impressive indoor garden with a waterfall.
After going through airport security, I paid a couple of visits to the outdoor smoking areas there. These are placed in beautiful gardens, too, though they are much smaller in scale:
While I shamefully traveled by air, I also learned how important shipping is for Singapore. There are huge docks and container terminals just south of Marina Bay. And I think I’ve never seen more maritime traffic than in the waters around Singapore. Like here, right in front of the Gardens By The Bay:
