Spent most of my life in Singapore - from 7 to 17 years old. That being said, I grew up thinking, behaving, speaking like a Singaporean. Like I said in my first post, I was the geekiest kid on the block, but surrounded with many wonderful friends. In fact, I've made friends with some of the most wonderful people and I'm glad that we are still in touch. So let me write a little bit about the wonderful Singapore~
TRANSPORTATION
Visited Singapore 6 times in the span of 7 months. Yes, I am definitely having a monthly affair with it. Singapore is a totally different city than I used to know 7 years back - there's just WAY more people & everything is SO pricey. Nonetheless, I would say that it is one of the cleanest and well-organized countries in Southeast Asia. Singapore's public transportation is AWESOME! You can get to almost anywhere and everywhere with the buses or the train (MRT). MRT maps are easy to read and they are all in English! To travel by MRT, you will need to purchase the EZ-Link card at the ticket office or ticket machines in the train stations. Single trip ranges from about SGD$1.10 to SGD$2.80. MRT & buses can get REALLY packed during the peak hours.
Or if you are not into public transportations, taxis are easily available, but they can get ridiculously expensive during peak hours. Peak hours are 7AM-9.30AM & 5PM-8PM for monday thru fridays. That being said, peak surcharges is 35% add-on to the metered rate, a call booking is $3.50 and $2.50 after 11pm. Midnight surcharge is 50% of the metered fare. So you can imagine how expensive taxi fares can get. A normal fare from airport to Orchard area would be about SGD$22.
TRANSPORTATION
Visited Singapore 6 times in the span of 7 months. Yes, I am definitely having a monthly affair with it. Singapore is a totally different city than I used to know 7 years back - there's just WAY more people & everything is SO pricey. Nonetheless, I would say that it is one of the cleanest and well-organized countries in Southeast Asia. Singapore's public transportation is AWESOME! You can get to almost anywhere and everywhere with the buses or the train (MRT). MRT maps are easy to read and they are all in English! To travel by MRT, you will need to purchase the EZ-Link card at the ticket office or ticket machines in the train stations. Single trip ranges from about SGD$1.10 to SGD$2.80. MRT & buses can get REALLY packed during the peak hours.
Or if you are not into public transportations, taxis are easily available, but they can get ridiculously expensive during peak hours. Peak hours are 7AM-9.30AM & 5PM-8PM for monday thru fridays. That being said, peak surcharges is 35% add-on to the metered rate, a call booking is $3.50 and $2.50 after 11pm. Midnight surcharge is 50% of the metered fare. So you can imagine how expensive taxi fares can get. A normal fare from airport to Orchard area would be about SGD$22.
THINGS TO DO
So as a tourist, there's a lot of things that you can do in Singapore! Especially if you love the sun and beach.
#1 Gardens by the Bay: There's 3 areas that you can visit here - Flower Dome, Cloud Forest & Supertree Grove. If it is your first time in Singapore, Gardens by the bay is one place you should visit. Go around 4 or 5 pm and wait until the sun sets. The view gets prettier by night time. :)
There's a lot activities that you can do in Sentosa. There is a SGD$5 fee to take the Sentosa Express train from VivoCity to Sentosa. There are 4 stations.
Sentosa Station - is where you board the train from Vivocity.
Waterfront Station - this is where you can Adventure Cove Water Park, S.E.A Aquarium, Casino & Universal Studio Singapore. I have never been to the Adventure Cove, so I cant really say much about it. As for S.E.A Aquarium, it is the world's largest aquarium. Tickets are SGD$38 per adult. You can get a discount if you are a foreigner and have your passport with you. It is home to more than 100,000 marine animals of over 800 species. You will enjoy here if you are a marine lover. As for the casino, they say that the one in Marina Bay Sands is better. Universal Studio is really small as compared to the one in LA, but they have many one-of-a-kind rides.
Imbiah Station - has the big Merlion for you to take picture with.
Beach Station - is where all the 3 man-made beaches are located.
#1 Gardens by the Bay: There's 3 areas that you can visit here - Flower Dome, Cloud Forest & Supertree Grove. If it is your first time in Singapore, Gardens by the bay is one place you should visit. Go around 4 or 5 pm and wait until the sun sets. The view gets prettier by night time. :)
(Inside the cloud forest)
(flower dome)
#2 Sentosa There's a lot activities that you can do in Sentosa. There is a SGD$5 fee to take the Sentosa Express train from VivoCity to Sentosa. There are 4 stations.
Sentosa Station - is where you board the train from Vivocity.
Waterfront Station - this is where you can Adventure Cove Water Park, S.E.A Aquarium, Casino & Universal Studio Singapore. I have never been to the Adventure Cove, so I cant really say much about it. As for S.E.A Aquarium, it is the world's largest aquarium. Tickets are SGD$38 per adult. You can get a discount if you are a foreigner and have your passport with you. It is home to more than 100,000 marine animals of over 800 species. You will enjoy here if you are a marine lover. As for the casino, they say that the one in Marina Bay Sands is better. Universal Studio is really small as compared to the one in LA, but they have many one-of-a-kind rides.
Imbiah Station - has the big Merlion for you to take picture with.
Beach Station - is where all the 3 man-made beaches are located.
(in one of the beaches in Sentosa)
(Imbiah Station)
(USS)
(S.E.A Aquarium - really pretty ;))
Those will be the places that first timers should visit. Most Indonesians would just go to Singapore to eat local food/fine dining food and shop in Orchard. I'm not saying that it's a bad thing that we shop and stay indoor (aren't we doing that already in Indonesia?!) However, I think they should be more adventurous & be less afraid of the sun to hang out in the beach or at least be out in the sun! Enjoy the clear sky and fresh air that we don't get in Jakarta (okay I don't like the humidity part too). Nonetheless, I love my people :D
I personally LOVE the sun & beaches. But my mum would nag if I go to Bali or just stay too long under the sun. Apparently, being tanned isn't a good thing for us. But hey, a little bit of sun WON'T kill you... One of the things that I have yet to do since I'm back is to go cycling in my favorite park - East Coast Park. I will get that done, eventually!
With lots of love,
Claraaaa <3
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