OUR TRIP TO THE FAR EAST

SINGAPORE

We left home in late September for a visit to Singapore, Malaysia, Cambodia and China.  The menu on the right hand side will let you navigate through our travels.

We took the little Central Mountain Air flight to Vancouver where we connected with a United Airlines flight to San Francisco.  There we were catching a Singapore Airlines flight to Singapore with a station  stop in Hong Kong.  You are perhaps asking yourself why such a circuitous route.  We were using Aeroplan Frequent Flyer points and in researching the best route it turned out that if we had included an Air Canada flights the "free flight" would have cost over $800 more.  We thought we could put up with the slight inconvenience that it caused by Air Canada having a fuel surcharge which United and Singapore don't.

There was an added advantage in that Singapore Airlines is a Five Star airline wheres as Air Canada is a Three Star airline.  The difference does show as you will see later.  Singapore Airlines has very attractive young flight attendants who wear lovely long colourful outfits. They have very professional-looking make-up.  For the meals the airline provides a menu book, both Western and Asian choices are available.  The flight attendants are pleasant and always willing to help, if necessary.

At the station stop in Hong Kong we chose to get off for a stretch. It actually took most of that time to get off and back on again because of some slow lines we had to join, it wasn't really worth the effort.  We landed at Terminal Three in Singapore in the early afternoon, this is the newest terminal and very efficient.  It didn't take very long to get our bags and get through the usual formalities and Sam was waiting for us.  We took the Metro to the City and a cab to the hostel which were going to make our base while in Singapore.  We had stayed there before after an earlier visit when we travelled from Bangkok to Singapore.  Hangout @ Mount Emily is quite near the City Centre, on a hill, so there were steps to climb whichever way we approached it.  It had been a long travelling day so we didn't do much until the evening when we had dinner with David and Sam at their apartment.  This was within walking distance of the hostel and a little nearer to the Fairmont Singapore and the Swissotel Stamford, where David is based, than their earlier apartment.

We timed our visit to be there when the Formula 1 race was being held. The day we arrived was used for the first and second practice sessions, which we by-passed.  The track runs through the downtown core and lies behind a fenced area.  The race itself is run late into the evening for the convenience of European television, and the track has an amazing lighting system that make night into day.

Hangout is in Little India and we spent the morning walking around the area.  There are many small shops, markets and temples to see.

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 A row of typical shop houses

 Outside the Sri Veeramakalimman Temple

The usual collection of shoes

Some detail from the Temple tower

That afternoon we visited the Haw Par Villa  with David and Sam. 
The park, originally called "Tiger Balm Gardens", was built in 1937 by brothers Aw Boon Haw and Aw Boon Par, the developers of Tiger Balm (Safe, Fast and Effective.  Pain relief without the  Pills), as a venue for teaching traditional Chinese values.  The park contains over 1,000 statues and 150 giant dioramas depicting scenes from Chinese folklore, legends, history and illustrations of various aspects of Confucianism.   It was all rather weird.
 

The entry to the Park

Must have escaped from Australia

One of the many dioramas

 The laughing Buddha

We went back to the City Centre where the second day of practice for the Formula 1 race was taking place.  We called into the Swissotel Stamford where we were able to go up to a room on the 20th floor which was going to be a hospitality suite for the race proper the next day.  It overlooked a corner near the Padang, a large open green space.  GP2 practice was on and we had a good view down to the track.

View down to the track at the Padang. You can see the lighting system

David and Robin were going to watch F1 practice and David had managed to get two tickets to a lounge above the pits.  The track is inside an enclosed area and while the ladies were going to visit the shops at Orchard Street, the men took off to the track.  This is a street track and it the race is run in the early evening so that TV viewers in Europe can see it during the afternoon.  The lighting system is amazing and when F1 qualifying took place, the track was as bright as day.

We walked alongside the track as practice session three for the big race was taking place.  This allowed us to see a large section of the track as the pits were on the opposite side from our entry gate.  One corner was causing quite a bit of grief and it did have an escape road, most corners don't, so woe betide you if you make a small error.

A Marussia that didn't make the corner

Our hospitality suite was on top of a grandstand opposite the pits. There was food and drink! and we could walk along the top of the stand to see the whole length of the pit area.  The lights were now on and the lighting standards were just in the way but our view but the track was in the clear.

Opposite the Mercedes Pit

The Ferrari Pit

One of the promotional balloons 

The Grand Prix is a big event in the life of Singapore and brings enormous crowds into the City.  After qualifying we made our way, very slowly, out of the track area.  There were few bottlenecks to pass through.

The race being in the evening gave us a whole day to explore more of Singapore.  We chose to visit the Gardens on the Bay.  The Gardens were only opened in June 2012 and are to be found on the waterfront at Marina Bay.  They are not yet fully complete but you can stroll in the outside gardens and also visit inside two very large greenhouses - the Flower Dome and the Cloud Forest.  On our way we walked by an enormous new hotel, the Singapore Casino Hotel, with 2500 rooms.  It is very striking.

The Singapore Casino Hotel

The impressive Supertrees. These 16-storey-tall vertical towers collect rainwater, generate solar power and act as venting ducts for the park’s conservatories. 

At the entry to the Gardens

Just one of many, many flowers

Someone has  been busy with the shears

Quite a root system

Making sure we aren't getting lost.  These gardens are large

We made our way to the first of the greenhouses - the Flower Dome.  It is divided up into many different sections covering the plants of the World.

Inside the Cactus Garden

A general across the Flower Dome

The palm trees

A stone carving, looking at you

The Baobabs

Some flowers were easily recognised

We moved across the the other greenhouse - the Cloud Forest.  Not quite as hot but very humid.  The central feature is a large "mountain" from the top of which run a series of waterfalls.  You take an elevator to the top and then walk down a suspended walkaway to the bottom.

 The Cloud Forest "mountain" and its waterfalls

Inside the Cloud Forest looking out

On the walkway

Exhibition area halfway down - stalactites and stalagmites

The misting system at work - beware

Crowds on the walkway

I can see you

The Gardens are really lovely, a great attraction.  We left the Gardens and walked to the entrance to Marina Bay were they are building a barrage to keep the sea out and turn the area behind the barrage into a fresh water sports playground.  Singapore is always developing something new. 

We had dinner with David and Sam back at their apartment and watched the race on television.  Yes, we went all that way to watch it on TV, but we had a first hand knowledge of the track by now and you see more that way anyway. Vettel won at the start of his run to four victories (at the time of writing just before the Brazilian Grand Prix).

We walked back to Hangout and packed our bags as we were leaving the next morning for a few days in Melaka in Malaysia.

A VISIT TO MELAKA IN MALAYSIA

On our earlier trip from Bangkok to Singapore we spent two nights and a day in Melaka.  We thought it would be nice to go back for a slightly longer time.  We booked into the same hotel we stayed in earlier, the Aldy.  This is probably the best located hotel in the town and it was a good base to see around.  We took the bus from Singapore to Melaka.  The buses are very well appointed with wide seats in very colourful upholstery.  The trip took about four hours and was non-stop.  We checked into the hotel and started our exploration that afternoon.

Melaka has an interesting history. In the 14th century Melaka was just  a small fishing village on the straights of Melaka but a Hindu prince set up his headquarters there.  It soon became a favoured port for waiting out monsoons and resupplying trading ships as it was situated halfway between India and China and with easy access to the spice islands in Indonesia.  In 1405 Admiral Cheng Ho arrived bearing gifts from the Ming Emperor with a promise to protect the State from potential Siamese raiders.  Chinese settlers soon arrived, they became known as the Baba and Nonya or Straights Chinese.  The Chinese form a sizable proportion of today's population and their cuisine is evident. 

The third ruler, the Sultan, converted to Islam and Islam was made the State's religion.  Many Indians arrived at this time and they worked in the rubber plantations and their successors form another large group of the current population. In 1509 the Portuguese arrived seeking the  
wealth of the spice and China trades.  Although initially made welcome the Melakans attacked the Portuguese fleet.  This prompted an immediate outright assault by the Portuguese and the Sultan fled. 

Under the Portuguese the fortress of A'Formosa was constructed and missionaries sought to establish the Catholic faith.  This period of Portuguese strength was relatively short lived as Dutch Influence developed in Indonesia and Melaka passed into Dutch hands and they ruled for about 150 years. They built fine public buildings and churches, many of which remain to this day.  In1795 the British took over the administration and an intense rivalry was set up between the Dutch and the British.  The fortress of A'Formosa was partially demolished and the Dutch population was forcibly removed to Penang. The founder of Singapore, Sir Stamford Raffles, stepped in before too much damage was done and in 1824 Melaka was ceded to the British.  Melaka, together with Penang and Singapore formed the Straights Settelments and these were the centres for expansion into the whole of the peninsular.  The Federation of Malaysia was formed in 1948.  Melaka's importance rapidly waned in the 20th Century as Singapore grew in commercial importance and Melaka is now something of a backwater.  

This complex history explains so much of what one can see in the town. 

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 Map of Melaka Fortress

 

The Porto de Santiago - the only part of the Portuguese fortress A'Famosa remaining

The Dutch Graveyard inside the Fortress

St. Paul's Church built by a Portuguese ships captain in 1521

 on the summit of Bukit (Hill) St. Paul

Statue of St. Francis Xavier, a pioneering Roman Catholic missionary

 

The Governor's Mansion was used by the governors from Dutch times in the seventeenth century up through post-colonial times.  

The Aldy Hotel from Bukit St. Paul

Christ Church is an 18th century Protestant church in the city below Bukit St Paul.  It is the oldest functioning Protestant church in Malaysia

The Stadthuys - the Town Hall - built between 1600 and 1641.   It is believed to be the oldest Dutch building in the East. Many buildings in this part of the city have the dark port red colour.

These tricycles are special to Melaka.  They are covered in artificial flowers and have a loud speaker blaring away for the delight of the tourist.

 

 

Two tricycles at night .

 

The river that runs through Melaka, much cleaner than at the time of our earlier visit.

The monitor lizards are still in residence

The Pak Putra Tandoori & Naan Restaurant, rated by Tripadvisor as the best restaurant in Melaka.  You sit in the street with all the locals who know of a good thing.  Excellent tandoori chicken and very good value.  Lots of fun.

 

Making Naan bread 

The Tandoori cookers 

 Chicken in the cooker.  The Naan bread is slapped onto the side.

  

A private residence in good condition.

  

 An older residence looking for some tender loving care.

  

A row of typical shop houses 

A shop house open as a museum.  The owner used to live at the back of the shop and upstairs.

Downstairs at the back - the living accommodation

The upstairs area, open to the courtyard below.

One of many temples in the core area 

 Inside the temple

One of the stranger shops

The well-known Geographers Cafe.

 The Chinese influence

 The Kampung Kling Mosque - the Islam influence

 These baskets are for a bride to keep her treasures.  The tourist version is much smaller

A blacksmith on Blacksmith Street.

 We were sorry to see shark fin on sale in a Chinese shop.

A Nonya speciality - pineapple tarts - very tasty.

A large selection in a Chinese shop - lots of mushrooms and many things we couldn't recognize.

One thing we found it hard to find as a coin operated laundry.  We never did find one but eventually we did find an obliging Dhobi who looked after us well.  We were in Melaka for three nights and enjoyed the longer time there this time.  It was time to get the bus back to Singapore before the next stage of our trip - to Cambodia.