Following on the previous path of ill-advised and completely irrelevant for the time articles, let’s talk about Singapore. Singapore is great. In fact, Singapore is so great, that the only think that it could improve is having a little bit of a cooler weather, because the tropical one is too sweaty for my tastes.
So, my initial contact with Singapore was a transit flight in Changi Airport. Changi Airport has been voted as the best airport in the world for many consecutive years and there is a reason for it. Actually, there are many reasons for it. One could be that it is has a free movie theater. Another that it has many gardens and ponds in it with koi fish and sunflowers. Or maybe that is has a whole space with comfortable chairs to sleep at, while waiting for your flight. Changi is definitely a great choice for a layover (not that you ever choose your layovers, but if you could…).
However, if you happen (after the whole quarantine and impending doom thing) to find yourself in Changi with plenty of time and a visa free entrance in Singapore, then don’t just stay there. I know it would be very tempting to just waste away in the greatness of this airport, but right next to it you will find the Jewel at Changi Airport. Except for a great Mall, the Jewel has the most magnificent artificial waterfall, one can lay their eyes upon. If you get a good vantage point, you will see the terminal connecting train passing in an elevated platform besides the waterfall, for an extra futuristic scene. Even better every hour, there is a light show, with music, colors and all that jazz.
Singapore is not just its airport, though. There is plenty of magnificence in the city too. Let’s start our day trip in a seven eleven, after an easy metro ride from the airport, with a generous breakfast, like any should be (this article sounds more and more like an advertisement). After many YouTube videos of people storming seven elevens, I was so excited to go and try everything they had to offer, with an emphasis on their buns. They did not disappoint. After eating, a walk in the Marina Bay is required. There, except for the great city view, is also the Merlion, which is just a lion head with a mermaid body that spews water. Fun to see, but nothing to write home about.
Singapore is a perfect amalgamation of traditional architecture and beyond modern one. You will find Gothic churches and traditional temples. The best one to visit is the Buddha Tooth Relic Temple and Museum, which is a Buddhist (I know, you could never guess) temple in China Town, with free entrance and plenty to see. For more modern tastes, there is the ArtScience Museum shaped like a Lotus flower, with a lavish Mall next to it. There are too many buildings and sights to mention and there are all worth the view, but there is one that should not be missed. That is the Supertree Grove in Gardens by the Bay. In these gardens you will see many things, but most importantly, you will see these lighted big avatar-like constructions that look like trees and also look like they are straight out of a fairy-tale, one has not written yet. There are truly beyond our reality and something unique to not just Singapore, but our time period in general. Every night, they also have a light-show with songs ranging from Disney to Star Wars. If I was living in Singapore, I would want to go see that show every night, without ever getting bored.
Singapore might not be a city for many days, given the size, but it is the one city/country that I would definitely suggest visiting before another. So, after all this is over and we are allowed to travel again and we also grow out of whatever crisis follows, pick a good pair of shoes and walk around in the streets of Singapore. There you will find much wonder of future and past.
The Indonesian Chronicles 