These I found after sending the previous blog edition…. From my camera. Sorry if they are repeats… I don’t mean to bore you but think they may be better pics.
More pictures of Singapore
Leave a reply
Author Archives: gailgrant49
Nov 17/25-Singapore day 1-HOHO Big Bus
There are 4 official languages (English, Malay, Mandarin Chinese and Tamil) plus a 5th….Singlish.
Singaporeans are the fastest walkers in the world @7+ kms/hour.
A system called MRT, is a road tax that is automatically charged to a card that is attached to a “card”in the vehicle…..to pay for transit maintenance and improvements. In 1987, it opened 5 now 140 rapid transit stations … 6 lines, all electric driverless trains.
Marina Bay is built on reclaimed land. This trip we found the way to the Observation deck on the 56th floor…. Breathtaking and expensive.
From there we walked over to take in the Flower Dome and Cloud Florest at the Gardens by the Bay. Unfortunately, the Flower Dome was closed for the 2 days we are here but again the Cloud forest was spectacular. I did not take a lot of pictures but if you want to see how magnificent it all is, check my posts from March/25. There are so many.
Financial centres ….
The Merlion, the symbol of Singapore, is facing east because it is thought to be the best direction for financial success.
Singapore River was once polluted with household waste, etc. until a year long cleanup in 1977 at a cost of $170 M.
The old building with multi coloured window frames used to be the old Hill Street police station … now is government offices.
In the 14th century the hill was called Fort Canning had been trading centre but became administrative and military & royal centre. It was used as an underground military base during WW2.
Clarke Quay -exciting night life.
Most (80%) people are living in subsidized housing (1 million units) making it the city with probably the highest percentage of people having home ownership in the world.
There are 15 M visitors here every year. Tipping is not expected in restaurants or hotels cuz 10 % is already added but other service people appreciate 5-10% tip.
Tipping not allowed at all at airport.
47% of land is green space
Hospital patients of which 60% are foreign …..for medical treatment and cosmetic surgery.
There is a “Centre for Cyber Security”… centre for prevention here
Singapore Botanical Garden in 2015 became a UNESCO gardens with over 200 acres. National orchid garden.
On the way around on the yellow line, there was a terrific electrical storm…. Thunder and lightning and torrential downpour. Oh my did I ever get soaked even though we were under the canopy on the bus. Even though we were soaked we decided to bite the bullet and stop for one of the world famous Singapore Slings at the Long Bar at Raffles Hotel….. at 54CAD each. Now we can say we had “been there, done that”.
Nov 16/25-talk about the origin of the Singapore Sling
Singapore fines for chewing gum, spitting on sidewalk, littering… no eating on trains hence cleanest city in world. But one place littering is encouraged at Long Bar in Raffles Hotel.
Singapore started150 years ago.
All marine traffic passes by Singapore. It is only 225 sq miles. Singapura, the former name … means lion city after someone saw what they thought was a lion but there are no lions here but maybe it was a tiger.
1819 was the key to the birth of modern Singapore. With Stanford Raffles (who became governor for 4 year), worked for a British trading company. Only 2000 people lived here at the time….. the Dutch had colonized it. Stanfort Raffles appealed to a different sultan, (a different one had sided with the Dutch), to assist the British. It then became known as the Gibraltar of the east. He made it a free port or atleast less tax charged, which encouraged growth. With the 1822 Jackson plan … segregating populations making it easier to organize. There are pockets of ethnicity to this day.
In 1869 with the opening of Suez, shipping took 9-10 less days from Britain to China. Then came the rubber industry (rubber balls for sports) then production of tires. Someone (I didn’t get the name) stole 70,000 rubber tree seeds from the Amazon and took them to Kew Gardens in Britain and then to Gardens in Singapore and Malaysia and so began the rubber industry here.
Raffles Hotel originally was built on Beach Drive. Because of reclaimed land it is no longer on the ocean’s edge, was built in 1890’s. In 1915 a bartender developed the Singapore Sling. …. He concocted it for womens consumption. It looked fruity (gin plus several other ingredients), so that they could enjoy drinks like the men. The bar at Raffles, sells between 800-1200 drinks per day now (which includes peanuts) at approximately $40 USD.
In 1965, Singapore gained independence from Britain, an island city state. It now has a population of 6 million inhabitants.
Nov 15/25-Phuket, day 2 -snorkelling Khai Nok
Nov-Apr best time to come here apparently, atleast most foreigners come then. Locals and Asians come to visit from May to September during the off-season …. It has more rain but is quieter.
We have 3/4 hour snorkelling Khai Nai Island (small) plus 1 hour on Khai Nok Island (big).
Phuket from Malaysia word Bukit… mean mountain. Chinese came to work in tin mines 200 years ago and stayed.
475,000 population same size as Singapore but Singapore has 6 M population.
Minimum wage 12,000 baht to 20,000 baht/month (815 CAD) if in tourism. They have unemployment insurance.
The “waterproof” case for my phone again leaked but I think my phone will be okay so you’ll just have to take my word for the fish that I did see. It was beautiful bathtub-like water although the amount of fish was limited and the coral not so great.
There has been a 2.5 metre drop in the tide so when we returned we had to follow the course, there was so many sand bars. Apparently we wouldn’t have been able to snorkel where we did if we had of stayed longer.
The ride on the boat back was thrilling for many. The boat seemed to almost fly through the air with bumps along the way. It brought smiles to many.
Now is a day at sea and so I am finally caught up with my blogs. I hope I didn’t overwhelm anyone
Nov 14/25-Phuket, day 1-Phang Nga Bay
We are to go on long tail boat through mangrove forest out to the sea. There are 14 limestone island-karsk .
Main industry is now tourism like so many places. We pass by rubber trees but it is not so important any longer.
James Bond island named after the movie.
Their electricity derived from hydro dam.
In 1981, Phang Nga was made into national park
The limestone karsh formed some 2 million years ago.
Our lunch is at Muslim village (which BTW, was very good), “Koh Panyee” is built on stilts. 1200 people live in the village. 9 years compulsory education and is free. (Kindergarten is not compulsory). Teachers and other merchants come from the mainland. Strange…. They have a floating sports field…. a football pitch. It is surrounded by netting.
Nov 13/25-Langkawi- cruise of Kilim River
There are 99 islands in this island province at high tide or ….104 at low tide. Everything is green… is natural and there is no traffic to speak of. Building max is 5 stories because of the eagles, so we were told.
The name Langkawi means “lang” meaning red eagle, (the symbol of Langkawi) plus “kawi” …the kind of rocks.
Mangrove tour-we are told that there is a 6000 MYR fine if you don’t use life jacket on the boat.
Eagle watching…. There 3 types of eagles there-#1-reddish brown eagle, is the symbol of Langkawi, #2 is the white belly eagle that has a 5 metre wing span.
Monkeys jump into boat if they see plastic, mineral water and food. Don’t panic. Don’t jump into water cuz there are snakes… cobras and vipers. Also you may see sea snakes that eagles feed on.
#3 are the Mountain eagles… that we will not see.
Make no eye contact or smiling with monkeys because you’ll both fall in love… lol! Seriously, the monkeys feel challenged and will attack. Long tailed macaque are crab eating monkeys.
The dusky leaf monkey are also known as the spectacled langur. They black with while around eyes. Baby’s are orange colour that the eagles cannot see.
We stop at a Fish farm
Bat cave… there are 3 kinds….insect eating (can eat 600 mosquitos per hour), fruit eating, blood eating bats.
There are 77 varieties of mangroves. They provide 10 times the oxygen (1 tree provides enough for 4 people) and absorb 4 times the carbon dioxide of tropical rainforests. When tsunami came in 2004 there were only 2 deaths. The mangrove forests provided protection from waves, as well the many islands helped block and diffuse .
UNESCO geopark
Monitor lizards don’t bite but their prey are killed by saliva. Within a few hours the prey died and then the lizards eat them. After eating their kill, the lizards have to sleep for two weeks for it to digest.
Monitor lizards can be up to 3 metre in length. Sea cumber (collagen) is the only exotic food in Malaysia eaten.
It is much cheaper to live here. It only costs 880 ringgit for rent/mo in KL but only 250 ringgit (80CAD) in Langkawi. There are also only 100,000 people in Langkawi. 80% make their living in tourism, 20% in fishing.
I would certainly consider coming back here. It is very beautiful, surrounded by nature.
Nov 12/25-Penang Hill & Kek Lok Si Pagoda
Penang Hill is 800 metres above sea level
First we travel through Georgetown. It originally it was a camp used for prisoners from india. It UNESCO city …all buildings protected… no demolition allowed.
Free compulsory education up to 12 grades. 90% sent to govt schools, the balance to private schools.
Palm oil and petroleum …govt source of income
1 million population.,..most Chinese. 10% Indian. 1957 independence from Britain. Most property owns by Chinese … they control business.
The King is changed every 5 years, chosen from group of sultans. Democratic constitution …, king takes advice from prime minister.
Horse racing is only for non-moslem community. Muslim men can have 4 wives but have to get approval from wife number 1.
Going to Kek Lok Si pagoda that has 88 steps … plus funicular. High tolerance of different religions.
Up the funicular to temple & down.
To Penang Hill…. In Malay language means “flag hill” because the British that were residing there could see the waters of Georgetown. They could warn of ships that maybe came marauding, to those below by waving flags.
An interesting note….Malaysia supplies water to Singapore cuz they have none.
Nov 11/25-Bata Caves- private excursion in Kuala Lumpur
It is monsoon season here and we saw the result today. Our guide picked us up from Port Klang.., a lovely Indian woman named Sathia. There originally was so much confusion with the company as to where we were to be picked up but finally she personally called and got it all straightened out.
This area according to Sathia, does not have typhoons but just monsoons.
We passed by a government building that was obviously burnt. She said they believe it was done purposely to hide evidence of wrong doing. It remained that way for years but now it’s being renovated.
One thing that is apparent to me is that the highway infrastructures as in Thailand, are amazingly advanced….. so far ahead of ours.
We are going to the temple of Gannish called Murugan at the Batu Caves. Batu Caves are a series of limestone caves …amazing…. Looks like it at one time was molten lava although not black. It is a popular Hindu pilgrimage site located near Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. It is known for a 43-meter tall golden statue of the deity Murugan at its base and a 272-step climb to the main cave, which houses Hindu temples and shrines. There were another 90 plus steps to the final destination. The site is also famous for its natural beauty, wild monkeys, and being the focal point of the annual Thaipusam festival.
We then went to see the downtown area where the twin towers and the 2nd tallest building in the world with communication antennas.
Chinatown and to the National Mosque if Malaysia
Stopped into a batik factory…. Beautiful work. Besides all the fabrics made for sale, there were also many picture paintings
Thean Hou Temple
Nov10/25-lecture on The disappearance of MH 370… the last for a while
Its disappearance is the most significant aviation mystery since disappearance of Amelia Earheart
It happened 11 years ago in March 8, 2014. There were 227 passengers and crew of 12 on board for a total of 239. It was a scheduled flight from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing, a 6 hour flight.
They were to fly in NE direction over Vietnam then pretty much over land in China. At weigh point IGARI…. Vietnamese air control was to take over from Malaysian air control. The captain said “Good night Malaysia” as it crosses into Vietnam control 40 minutes after departure. It disappears off the screen, no longer having any contact with anyone. Vietnam tried to contact plane. The plane had 8 hours of fuel on board. Searchers found nothing in the area that it disappeared. Nothing was seen by anyone. One possible thought was that the plane was downed by something in cargo. There was a large amount of lithium batteries in cargo. Could it have been something to do with that??? Then they thought it might be cyber hijacking possibly, or a secret landing, the Bermuda Triangle… abduction by aliens??? International searchers found nothing including in the Indian Ocean. Malaysian official were surprisingly quiet….not very transparent which made others suspicious. Primary radar at the disappearance picked up that it went in different direction….a more complicated theory by Inmarsat mobile satellite company. Data suggested for 7 hours that it has been flying south and subsequently lost off the coast of Australia… an all-silent flight. The plane flew at oscillated altitudes. It had to have a human perpetrator??? The captain began to be suspect because he had marital problems, had a flight simulator at home with exact route on it and he had asked for extra oxygen in cockpit. The sharp turn at IGARI had to be done manually. It then crossed along the border between Malaysia and Thailand to Andaman Sea (where each country would think the other was aware of the airplane), then south for 7 hours until it crashed into the southern Indian Ocean off coast of Western Australia …after running out of fuel.
The Ocean Infinity, a search ship checked the sea bed off Australia that is very deep & very mountainous…. 13,000 feet deep.
In Jul 2015 piece of metal debris (a flapperon… part of wing) washed ashore on the east coast of Africa. It was not damaged suggesting a controlled landing.….
The presence of barnacles indicated the location off Australia. It could have coasted on the sea currents to its African location.
The search is still on.
Nov 9/25-Talk about “The Real Bridge over the River Kwai”
The movie was based on the fictional story by a French prisoner of war. It’s the story of the POWs sabotaging the building of the bridge.
It all started in Feb 1942 with the fall of Singapore. The Japanese goal was to take British India by going overland through Siam and Burma…250 miles through jungle, mountains and rivers. Japan needed manpower…. because they themselves were stretched thin. There were 140,000 of all different nationality POWs. They had to build their own accommodation. Before that they had to walk to where they were to build the railroad/bridges, through hot steamy jungle with mosquitos that caused dengue, malaria and dysentery was rampant. Their diet consisted of only 1/2 cup of rice or soup a day. They endured brutal treatment by Japanese and Korean soldiers. It took 60,000 allied prisoners of war to build plus 200,000 south Asian workers. No one tried to escape because of the thick jungle. They wouldn’t have a chance of survival. They felt that the only way to escape was to complete the railway. Only 4 workers worked together at a time….. one to chip away at the dirt or rock, one ti put it into containers and 2 to haul it away. The Japanese disregarded Geneva Convention on ethical treatment of prisoners. Elephants were also used and were also treated poorly, consequently dying. 1+ deaths of allies POWs plus many more SEAsians for each 2 sleepers. It was also called the Death Railway. There were over 100,000 deaths. The bridge was not blown up as in movie. The allies attempted to blow it up from air finally bombing 2 of spans of River Kwai bridge. The nuclear bombing of Japan brought about the release of ally POWs of as well as SE Asian POWs but many never recovered….. suffering from modern day PTSD. There is 80 miles in Thailand that remains even if the rest has been dismantled. The bodies of those that died were never repatriated. 1 person died for each 2 sleepers. The British military was not happy with the movie because it implied that the British helped the Japanese.
“The Narrow Road to Deep North….”is an Australia modern version of the story about the railway.
gailstraveladventures 