Our second day in Singapore would be way too short to do all we wanted. All aboard was 4pm, with a mandatory muster drill at 4:15pm. Almost 80 folks went home today, and about the same amount of new passengers boarded. This marks the halfway point of the cruise. How did this go by so fast???
So, after a light breakfast, we went off the ship by 10am, expecting a short line at the security checkpoint. Lots of people were backed up, waiting for the immigrations check, but most of them were coming from a ferry. Our group had three agents getting us through the line. Since we had been cleared yesterday, it did go a tad bit faster. Then we went through the xray check, and down the escalators to the Harborfront Mall. The HAL tour groups were assembling here for another day of organized bus excursions. We have been on every one of them, and thankfully, we were not on any today.
The mall and the entire city for that matter was much busier today, because it was a Saturday……kids were out of school. The MRT was busy as ever as we made our way to the first stop at City Hall. It took two train lines to get there, but we wanted to see how far the work has progressed at the famous Raffles Hotel. Turns out, most of the hotel has been closed off to the public, including the main entrance. The only photo we would get of the properly dressed Sikh greeter would be a painting on the side of the barrier wall.
Once we made our way out of Raffles Place shopping center, we crossed the street to circle the hotel nicknamed the “ famous old lady”. The restaurant the Longbar was opened for lunch and their famous Singapore Sling, but not until 11:30pm. We were too early, although we would not spend the money for the over-priced very sweet drink with a touch of alcohol anyway. Had one a long time ago when the price was under $20, but we found the Tiger beer was much better. Even the beers were over-priced at $15 at that time, because there is a high tax on alcohol in Singapore.
We did find that a small shop had been re-located at the hotel where you could still purchase Raffles souvenirs. We were informed that this property will be opening sometime this coming July. And from the looks of the work done, it will probably be on time.
Ducking back the way we came, we now headed for the Marina Bay Sands Hotel and Shoppes. Forgetting that Marina Bay MRT stop was the correct station, one of us remembered it was really Bayfront. Back on the correct train, we got out right at the entrance to the lower level of the Shoppes by the Bay. Going up escalators, we strolled through part of this over-the-top high end mall to access the outside plaza and view of the Marina Bay.
We are convinced that when the temps and humidity go up, the locals stay inside, never leaving the air-conditioning. The outside areas were almost empty of visitors today. We walked up to the lotus-shaped Art science building surrounded with a pond full of lotus blossoms and small fish. Directly across the Marina Bay, we should have been able to see the famous Merlion statue, half fish, half lion, the symbol of Singapore. However, the statue was completely covered with a screened tent, and most likely was undergoing cleaning.
Time to walk to the Gardens by the Bay and the new icon of the Marina Bay Sands Hotel. From the walkway out of the Marina Bay, we got some great views of this oddly-built hotel with three individual towers and an “ironing board” deck on the top. The towers measure 656 feet high, and the Sands Sky Park Observation Deck on the top is 492 feet long. It houses an infinity pool that is 492 feet long. Friends Queen Karen and Diana spent a night at this hotel, and showed us photos and videos of their exciting swim in this pool. What a memory they will have forever. Now to access this deck, you have to pay $23, unless you have reservations for dining at Ce La Vi or the Sky Bar at one end. Years ago, when this hotel was new, we went up the elevator to the top, and got to see the pool and restaurant through a gate. Good enough for us.
Continuing on this walkway, we entered the Gardens by the Bay where the domes are located. We have toured the Flower and the Cloud Forest Domes, so we did not feel the need to pay $28 to see them again today. It would take more time that we did not have. We did take the time to stroll the entire gardens, getting photos of the Super tree Grove, and the OCBC Skyway with a 72 foot high walkway in these trees. You can walk the 420 foot walkway for an $8 fee. The evening laser and sound shows must be dazzling and it is free, as is the entrance to this park. And there is dining at the top of the largest Super tree called the Indochine. They serve cocktails and flavors guaranteed to take your breath away. Bet the prices on those cocktails would do the same, with the high price of alcohol.
Heading out towards the exit, we crossed over the Dragonfly Bridge, taking photos of the boardwalk that surrounds the lake. It is called the Scented Walk that measures 1444 feet. Would have been great to do the hike, but it was way too hot to even try it. This was on the way to the MRT, where we took the elevator to the entrance to the Bayfront Station.
We caught the blue line, to the purple line, which took us to our last stop at Clarke Quay. The trains were so full that we stood the whole time. Yesterday, the younger kids gave up their seats to us, as is suggested by signs in the trains. Getting off here, we hoped to find a café opened on the riverfront. However, we normally do this the first full day here, but arriving so late yesterday, we saved this stop for today. Well what we did not know was that none of the restaurants or bars open up until later in the day. Our only option was to go to a Chilis, which we love at home. But, it was full of little kids running from end to end. Not exactly the ambience we wanted, we got back on the MRT and went back to Harborfront.
We still had to get our $20 deposit back from our MRT tickets, so we lined up at the office with 20 other folks doing the same thing. Even though it was before 3pm, this line was much longer than we remembered. You would think that the refund desk would have more than one agent, but they do not. Takes patience, but these things happen. At least we know we still had plenty of time for the all onboard time.
With more money to add with what we did not spend for lunch, we figured that we could pick up room snacks at the little supermarket in Harborfront. But we found the line there was even longer than the refund line. We gave up that idea, and went directly to a money changer, where we got US dollars with hardly no fee at all for the exchange.
Back through the checkpoint, we made our way to the gangway, where we surrendered our passports to the ship’s front desk people. We were glad to hand them over, since we do not like having to take them with us. But in some places in the world, you are required to do this. A copy is not a substitute either.
The coolness of the ship was most welcomed, but we did not have much time to relax, before the horn blew for the third muster drill of this trip. Almost 80 folks had departed, and 80 new ones came onboard. After the short drill, we headed back down to work on photos until it was time for sail away.
The lines were dropped around 6pm, and the ship turned around and headed out into the Singapore Straits. There is a huge number of ships in this port, so the sail away was far from boring. The only thing that hindered it was the massive black cloud that headed our way, dropping much needed rain. A passing shower made us go down to deck seven, where we have the shelter, but still have the railing. It was there that we thought we recognized a couple of folks that we met back in 2016. Not totally sure, they spoke first, also remembering us, as we sat across from them at breakfast in the dining room many days. Unknown to us, they have been following blog, and took note of some of the details we have been including. Actually, we do this so we don’t forget, but are sure happy we can help other guests as well. They had a long flight from Seattle, but will settle in after a short stay in this wonderful city. Welcome Nancy and Mike.
We welcomed two friends from Sydney to our table tonight…..Greg and Heo. They will be on now until we return to Ft. Lauderdale. Barb has known them for longer than us, and are really close buddies. And since they read our blog often enough, they know the happenings of the last two months. The menu for our meal tonight was Singaporean, but the guys said it was nowhere near the real deal. The spices used and even the ingredients were not the same, although they still seemed to enjoy it. As for us, we ordered the crispy spring rolls (excellent), and the tortilla salad with grilled chicken. Most satisfying and perhaps healthy.
We now have three sea days on our way to Sri Lanka. Really need the down time to re-energize.
Bill & Mary Ann
