The Little City-State that Could

Wednesday 29 September 1999 – Monday 4 October 1999

After a pretty grueling month of travel in Indonesia, arriving in Singapore was like finding an oasis in the middle of a desert.  International standard hotels, Pizza Hut, Starbucks, internet cafes that actually functioned; you name it, we loved it.  Amazingly, this mini-metropolis situated on an island was once a tropical jungle.  All that Stamford Raffles and his crew found on their arrival in the early 19th century was impenetrable mangrove swamps lining the shore, and even today there are botanic gardens, parks and wide-open spaces scattered liberally around the cityscape.

Singapura, or 'Lion City', has today as its symbol the merlion, a mythical creature with a lion’s head and a fish’s tail.  It was probably thanks to Sir Stamford Raffles, who founded a British port here, that  Singapore developed as it did.  Today, statues of him are sprinkled liberally across the city and his name adorns many fine establishments, buildings, roads and parks, not least the world-renowned Raffles Hotel.  Keen as we were to try it out just for a night, with a starting price of $400 per room, we settled for something somewhat cheaper and opted instead for a proper afternoon tea after a day of sightseeing.

In the five days we had, we scoured most the city centre, especially the shopping malls.  With a population of only three million, it is perhaps surprising to find the degree of ethnic diversity there is in Singapore but this eclectic cultural mix is what makes the city so interesting.  Chinatown still has some of the sights, sounds and rituals of a Chinese city; Little India is a microcosm of the subcontinent; Arab Street daily life revolves around the calls from the mosque; and the colonial past is in evidence on virtually every street corner.  But there is no doubt that modern Singapore is essentially a Chinese city with strong western influences.  Did we mention the wonderful shopping centers?

Singapore is an exceptionally clean and pristine city and great investment has gone into rebuilding and renovating some of the older quarters.  Despite its modernity, however, it is not the most relaxed locale in the world:  spitting can get you jail time.   The old has blended in well with the new, however, and there are some beautiful places to eat, relax or simply meander to take in the vibrancy of the city itself.  Having said that, some things did seem to go a little too far:  in what other city in the world would you find a swimming pool, health & beauty centres not to mention a cinema and museum … at the airport?!

Perhaps the most surprising highlight during our sightseeing blitz was a visit to Singapore Zoo.  Not necessarily something you would find on the average tourist’s list of places to visit, but well worth the trip.  It was undoubtedly the most enjoyable zoo complex either of us had visited.  The enclosures were open and spacious and one, the Fragile Forest, allowed you to walk through a pseudo (but very realistic) jungle literally brushing shoulders with the animals (lemurs, mouse deer, all kinds of birds and reptiles).  Unfortunately, even after all the orangutans in Borneo, we still hadn’t learnt our lesson on animal photography and most of the pictures leave a lot to be desired!

Five days on, and we were revived and ready to hit the next leg of our journey, this time travelling overland by bus up through the Malay peninsular to Bangkok.