Saturday, June 29, 2013

Goodbye Singapore

Friday started out at the "Fresh Market" which is another name for an outdoor market. Here they had a huge assortment of fresh fish, pork and vegetables. There was a small amount of beef and a couple of rows of household "stuff". All of the produce looked wonderfully fresh very tasty especially when compared to the offerings in Fairbanks.

It was a few blocks from the main street and the second floor had a large food court. I had noodles with several pieces of roast duck on top with some grilled vegetables served with a bowl of hot broth. Not bad for $3.20 (SGD) or about $2.75 (US). A cup of hot coffee was another $1 (SGD). The coffee served is almost an espresso served on top of a little sweetened condensed milk. Coffee here in Singapore has been very delicious.

We then went on another walk through a series of parks on the south side of town near where my sister works. We started out in a commercial park highlighting locally grown plants and trees. This park was in the middle of a large commercial area near where we started the treetop walk a few days back.

This led to another treetop walkway though the walkway here was wood rather than the metal grid. There was a thunderstorm on the horizon so we walked through this section pretty quickly. Some good views from the walkway but the city views were starting to look the same. We got a little bit of rain but not enough to get really soaked.

The next park was along the ridge and had a number of exercise areas and picnic areas. At the far end of this park was the National University of Singapore. I'm not sure of the size of the student body but the campus was huge and nicely laid out. Where we ended up walking and catching the subway was near the medical school.



After spending a week in Singapore, we headed back for the U.S. We headed to the airport at 3:15am on Saturday, Jun 29th and arrived in Portland at 8:30am on Saturday, June 29th. The flight stopped in Narita, Japan, for an hour and a half so we had an opportunity to spend our remaining yen. This has been a really long day.

12 comments:

  1. Richard,
    A fantastic trip and time with family, thanks so much for sharing these places that I won't see On my own.
    Welcome home!

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    1. It was a great trip and we had a nice visit with family. I don't think I would have even considered the trip without being able to go with my sister and her family.

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  2. I thank you, too, for sharing your trip. You must have had or are still having some remarkable dreams. So much new, sights, sounds, smells, tastes. I wonder how this will change your life at home now.

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    1. Lots of new sights and sounds though I'm glad not to experience durian. Lots of signs banning the fruit from subways, buses, cabs, hotels or just about any enclosed space.

      I don't think it would change much though I'm more addicted to noodles now...

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  3. Welcome back as well!

    So does feel jet lag more flying east or west?

    dom

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    1. I think going east is much worse as far as jet lag. I had a hard time staying awake last night until 9:00pm.

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  4. The 29th was so nice you experienced it twice. That does make for a long day. Welcome back to the USA - the land of excess. I think it is just as hot in Alaska right now.

    That 'no choking the bird until he sings' sign is neat. Well, that is my interpretation since his beak is open.

    Welcome home!!

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    1. Flying all day and arriving in the morning was pretty brutal. But it's starting to feel normal again. We are staying with my cousin in Portland and it is really hot but at least it isn't as humid as it was in Singapore!

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  5. It's great travelling the world through your eyes Richard, thanks. I am puzzled about the no squeezing the bird sign though??? Do people actually try to catch and squeeze birds? Really, I am waiting to hear what the sign really meant.

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  6. I'm pretty sure it means don't catch the birds or maybe don't try and catch the birds.

    Apparently it's been a problem with tourists from other parts of Asia.

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  8. I hear rumors of durian seen in Miami but so far no luck. Are you surprised the gods require you to overcome a test to eat their ambrosia?

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