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Singapore, Republic of Singapore (day 26)

 Day 26 - February 1, 2023

The last time I slept as long as I did last night was back in July 2018 :D Sun was filtering through the bottom of the window blinds so I jumped out of bed quick to make the most of it. Today ended up being very warm, especially when the sun was peaking through the clouds overhead. It has been quite the range of temperatures and environments on my trip so far. From the Mediterranean climate of Istanbul, to the steppes of Kazakhstan, to the deserts of Dubai, and now the humidity of tropical Singapore. Fun to pack clothes to suit each of these :D

The days travel only took me 20 minutes away from the hotel. But within that little area, there is tons to see! I had intended to walk over to Chinatown, but didn't end up even making it that far. Got distracted by some buildings which have my favorite color domes, aqua colored copper. Don't know what it is, but I love that look on buildings. The building with the large clock tower is the Victoria Concert Hall. The building with the larger dome was previously the Supreme Court building and is a few feet way from the former City Hall as well. Both are combined into the National Gallery Singapore, an art gallery. Spent some time walking through some of the gallery exhibits and then wandered my way through a park and over to an area at the end of the Singapore River. 

This painting is roughly 12' tall x 15' wide

Across the river is a hotel with a large platform connecting the three towers. To the left is a flower shaped building which is an art and science museum. Sat and sketched the hotel for a while. I would like to find some black ink to do a bit of a wash over it yet to finish up. It's been a few years since I've done some artwork, it's a bit rough, but it was a good bit of practice :)

Took some more photos as I made my way back to the hotel for the night, stopping for a bit of pizza on the way. 

Singapore, Republic of Singapore (day 25)

 Day 25 - January 31, 2023

It has been a long 48 hours. Didn't sleep much on the plane ride over to Singapore. I think the beauty of this new place helped ease that pain though. Arriving at the airport, I left the airport area into a nature themed entertainment and shopping section. Vibrant green plants surround you in the humid air. Apparently there are some pretty cool spots to check out in there, but after the long flight, I wanted to drop my bags off at the hotel and get some food. Check in at the hotel was not until 2pm and I left the airport at around 9am. That left me with some time to kill, so I spent a few hours aimlessly wandering the streets near the hotel after leaving my luggage there. There are lots of interesting things to see around the hotel. There is a university campus and business school nearby. Different museums and all kinds of building styles around. Walking 10 minutes in any direction from the hotel, you see all sorts of different interesting places. The temperature was in the low to mid 70s, quite humid, and it was also raining fairly steadily.

Central Fire Station

The Singapore River is also nearby. Lots of empty tourist boats on the water. Nice area to walk around and it's a good spot for people who enjoy running or biking.

Along the sidewalks in a few of the blocks near the hotel is an area dedicated to the First Botanic Garden. All kinds of fruit trees and flowers line the sidewalks, labels tell what type of plant they are and where they originated. At different points in history, many different varieties of plants were brought in from all over the world.

There is a park nearby also, Fort Canning Park. Over the years, the hill the fort now sits on was used by different countries as a defense and lookout point. The British most recently used the area in World War II, after which it became a museum. There are nice brick pathways winding through the park around lush rainforest plants.

After getting quite soaked from the rainy walk through the city and a section of the park, I headed back to the hotel for a much needed nap. The hotel is located above a shopping mall, it's no Dubai Mall, but there are lots of electronic stores and food options. I went back out around 5pm and thankfully the rain had stopped. I walked further through Fort Canning Park as the sun went down around 7pm.

There is so much intricate detail in the plants around us. I don't always take enough time to appreciate the amount of craftsmanship God placed in his creation. It was nice to take things a bit slower paced today and observe the little details.

This puppy's body was about and 1" long

My first impressions of this place are quite positive. Who knew giving someplace a chance would turn out alright :D People here seem to be friendly and everyone I have interacted with has spoken English. I've also noticed that here, more than any of the other places I have been so far, the local people smile and greet you as you walk by, and not because they are trying to sell you something :). Compared to the seemingly cold looks I got in Kazakhstan, this was a nice change. Another thing I learned, as I happened to glance at one of the signs leaving the airport, chewing gum is illegal here :D Guess they really take pride in keeping things tidy here, and gum littering was an issue they squashed. Till next time, goodnight!