flip'n travels

We collect key chains. Not officially though. But since it’s the easiest thing to bring home after a trip, not to mention cheapest when you have a bunch load of friends from different circles, and the idea is shared by our friends, we found our key chain collection growing and growing without us realizing it. Looking at them now, each one proudly tacked in each of our cubicle walls, we realized we have about 7 each coming from Singapore depicting only one thing…

Ulysses, he’s the most photographed celebrity in Singapore, can be found right at the marina bay area. He’s  got an imposing stance, he’s hard and most of the time, WET! Stop thinking dirty, perv!

It’s the Merlion, the city’s emblem. At 37 years old, he stands proud at 8.6 meters and made of cement. Yes, he’s almost in his prime but still hot as ever.

TRIVIA: The name Singapore is derived from Sanskrit Singha which means Lion and Pura meaning City. Historical accounts claim that the merlion was adapted from the city seal of colonial Manila.

And so when the time came for us to see the country, we knew we had to see the icon for ourselves. We stayed in the city for two days the itinerary on the first day was to visit nearby places in Chinatown and the last, inevitably, was devoted to seek the sight of all sights in Singapore. Our excitement was building as we round the other places to see in the city. We even had a plan to take a picture of one of us creating an illusion that we are bathing with the water coming out of the creature’s giant mouth.

As we approached the Fullerton Bridge, we saw a green net casting itself around the merlion. Was the merlion cold? Were there mosquitoes? Is he photosensitive? Was he having his beauty sleep? Or could it be that the then recent typhoon brought about an enormous lighting and struck the living life out of him and his tail, for the love of God, was chipped off. Yes, that’s exactly what happened.

So we came all the way to Singapore to see a net? We found ourselves in the middle of a huge cosmic joke. We sat there feeling all disappointed for not being able to see him, but mainly because we wouldn’t be able to get our pictures taken… It was such a bummer. We had to settle for the merlion’s mini-me.

Good thing, there are other things to see in the area, several framable structures are actually a few “kembots” away from the bay. So we simply diverted our shutter-mania.

There’s the equally popular durian halves, Esplanade. Built juxtaposing the merlion, it’s an architectural wonder where photographers’ lenses gravitate especially at night.

The suntec mall several blocks away from the the bay has the largest fountain in the world as tagged by the Guinness Book of World Records.

Culture Bits:

Fountain of Wealth is no ordinary fountain, it is not just there for aesthetic purposes alone. It is designed according to feng shui, or the Chinese art of, well, putting things in their proper places. The fountain does spew water but during the afternoon, it pauses to allow people to go to the center and make a wish. But unlike other fountains, you need not scratch your pockets for coins. You make a wish, touch the water while walking around in circles three times.

And another unexpected photogenic spot which we serendipitously captured by Ron’s clinical imagination. We name this shot “the lithotomy position.” This one is right under the Fullerton bridge.

But the fact remains that we cannot get over missing one important spot. On the lighter side of things, it is a sign. Singapore hasn’t seen the last of us. We will be back with a vengeance. Aside from the first picture idea we had in our heads, we’ll get another one taken with our mouths hanging open, drowning from drinking water coming out of the merlion’s mouth. In the meantime, we decided to add another key chain in our collection.

I have never been alone on a travel before prior to my Sagada trip. I have the faintest sense of direction and I always feel particularly stupid after flying, it’s as if my head is still caught up with the altitude change. It took me an hour to find our hostel from the MRT station when I could’ve been there 15-20 minutes after stepping out of the train. I was so scared to get lost that after settling in in our room, I took out my book and a bagful of pretzels, found a comfortable chair and read my way into a comatose. Maria, the housekeeper of the hotel, urged me to go on with my plans for the day. Being gullible, I decided to wake up from my trance and head to Little India.

Directions from Chinatown: Board the train from Chinatown MRT station and get off at Little India station. From there, walk along Race Course Road, turn right to Buffalo Road then turn left to get to Serangoon Road and let your feet and nose guide you around the place.

I walked along the famous Serangoon Road which is the main drag of the place. The reason I wanted to see  the area was actually Sri Veeramakaliamman Templewhich is reputed to be the busiest temple in Little India. Dedicated to Kali, the goddess of power and ferocious incarnation of Lord Siva’s wife, the temple is at its busiest on Tuesdays and Fridays.  I’ve always been a fan of religious art without regard to denominations. I was so proud of myself standing in front of the temple without getting lost. So that’s what happens when you really follow the map till the last turn… I was amazed at how the gopuram (statuary above the entrance) is so detailed. It made me recall my lessons on Indian literature back in college. I was even able to name a few figures in the temple.

Next, I walked a long stretch of a peaceful road, passing by the Angullia Mosque which is an Indian Muslim temple . Finally, I was standing yet again in front of another temple. Was it just me or did Sri Srinivasa Perumal Temple just got teleported to the other side of the town? As it turns out it didn’t, but basically, the make-up of the Hindu temples in Singapore follow a pattern. I took off my shoes and meandered inside together with a few tourists and a couple of faithfuls worshiping. One thing I needed to learn was to take a picture of myself without feeling humiliated. Up until now, I haven’t learned the craft.

After my religious journey, I walked aimlessly around the town devouring the colors of buildings, fabrics and jewelry sold on the stores and the smell of curry and other spices. I set out to find the a good restaurant to eat in and then I suddenly remembered… I do not eat spicy food. What a bummer…

I went back to the hostel exhausted from all the walking but with a heart full of courage. I was tempted to go around some more, but I wanted to savor my achievement in the most natural way. I took out my book and a bagful of pretzels, found a comfortable chair and read my way into a comatose.

With great power comes great responsibility. And like Singapore, greatness can mean a lot of restrictions. No wonder the place is spic and span! We Filipinos should learn a thing or two from them…

Going cold turkey in Singapore

First on the list is smoking. Our vacation lasted for 10 days and knowing this, I should have brought with me a ream of cigarettes but because our point of entry was Singapore, I had to ditch the plan and bring with me two packs which I had to open upon arrival just to make a point that I do not intend to sell them or something. One cannot bring more than one opened pack of cigarettes in the country! There is a total smoking ban in all enclosed places including public transportation and bars. I cannot imagine drinking without cigarettes! And even if you are outside, there will only be designated places for smoking usually marked with a yellow line with a sign that says “smoking zone.” Otherwise, you choke up SGD$1000 as fine. The horror…

Jay-walking, spitting, littering and even drinking and eating in public transport are prohibited. Heck! You are not even allowed to bring Durian inside buses and trains. Pedestrian walks are easily available and traffic rules are expected to be observed to the dot. Jay-walking will cost the offender SGD$300 and up to 3 months in jail while snacking inside the bus will cost you SGD$500.

Signs like this are commonly seen in public places like park, streets and train.

Another controversial restriction is chewing gum. It is not sold in stores and you cannot bring it as you enter the country. Since 2004, only chewing gum of therapeutic value is allowed to be sold upon showing your ID and brought into Singapore. Just so you know, leaving a stagnant water in your backyard/office, jaywalking, leaving your bicycle unlocked and feeding birds are some of the 40,000+ offenses that are punishable by law.

Planning to get high? You might want to postpone that till you get to Amsterdam. Singapore treats drug possession, trafficking, manufacturing, importing or exporting more than 15 g of heroin, 30 g of morphine, 30 g of cocaine, 500 g of cannabis, 200 g of cannabis resin and 1.2 kg of opium extremely severely. A maximum of 10 years in jail or a fine of SGD$20,000 or both await the offender. You can also get charged if they find traces of illicit drugs in your system even if you took them prior to going into the country and also, if drugs are found in your possession even if you were not aware if it.

Illegal entry, overstaying your visa, vandalism, robbery, molestation and rape (sex with a girl under the age of 16 regardless whether there was consent or none) merit caning punishment. Note to Pinoys: Bribing does not work in Singapore. You can get charged for corruption.

Caning is a corporal punishment still retained in Singapore where fit male criminals under 60 years of age can be sentenced to a maximum of 24 strokes of the rotan (rattan) cane on the buttocks. The punishment is mandatory for over 40 offenses, mostly violent crimes, but also some immigration violations and acts of vandalism (look up Michael Fay).

Crimes such as murder, kidnapping, unauthorized possession of firearms and drug trafficking are punishable by death.

In the first world island at the southern-most tip of the mainland Asia, life is busy and fast paced. People move faster, eat quicker and travel from point A to B in a break-neck speed. Even the escalators in public places runs faster than the usual escalators would run. I’m not kidding! I lived the past 8 years in a country so laid-back that when I rode the Singaporean escalators, it made me grab the side rails for dear life.

The malls are inter-connected like a web laid across the city. So we opted to walk rather than taking the cab. With a limited time and so many things to do, we were running like headless chicken.

And yes chicken is the appropriate word, literally. It has been the theme of our food trips in Singapore. The meals that we had were really good and I must say, Singaporeans really know how to do their chicken right (sounds a bit off, but there’s no better phrase to express it).

Whenever I visit Singapore, I always make it a point to eat the two best chicken meals in town. Chicken Rice and Clay pot Chicken. Chicken Rice is Singapore’s national food/meal (McDonalds comes in next). It’s preparation is very simple. You boil the chicken and use the stock to cook the rice. Most hawker stalls serve this in different variety of cooking styles and preparations. My favorite happens to be the simplest, the chicken meal is served with garlic and chili paste (SG$2.50), perfect with a glass of pure sugar cane juice (SG$1). This meal is so popular they can put it in their coat of arms.

The clay pot chicken on the other hand is one rich meal savored and glazed with black soy sauce and oriental spices cooked on a clay bowl. One of the best clay pot chicken that I tried is from Moi Lum Restaurant along Maxwell Road (SG$6). This glazed chicken-topped pot of rice is usually in huge serving. I’m a man and I know if a meal is huge enough to fill a hungry bloke, and their serving is indeed, huge.  Check-out Moi Lum’s Menu, CLICK HERE

after a minute or so…

Hawker places are really popular among locals and tourists alike. It’s their version of carinderia and you can find one on every street across the city. With a very short time we cannot afford to book, wait and spend several hours for a fine dining meal (Or, we simply can’t afford… fine dining restaurants in Singapore, hehe!), so a hawker place is always a life saver for backpackers.

TIPS WHEN EATING IN A HAWKER STAND

‘Chope’ – It’s the Singaporean slang for reserving the table. It is ideal to reserve one specially during lunch time. You wouldn’t want to eat on your tray standing, so chope a seat by leaving a packet of tissue on the table.

No VISA or Mastercard – your cards are as good as Adam Lambert’s genes (READ: Useless) for hawker stalls don’t accept card payments, so be ready with your cash.

“Having here or Take away?” – don’t be confabulated when you hear Singaporeans use this phrase. It simply means “For here or to go?” (“Dine-in or take-out” for us Pinoys). Other popularly used singlish words would be “Same-same” which essentially means item of the same value or price; and when vendor or mall sales clerk say “finish already,” it means they ran out of stocks of the item or product that you are looking for.

Popular hawker centers are the ones at Tiong Bahru, Newton and The Esplanade.

Then the time for our Starbucks fix came. Just like in Macau, Starbucks shops are sporadically spread across the city. We were looking for one and it has been like the greatest quest to find the Holy Grail. From Esplanade we searched the perimeter and couldn’t find one, so we walked all the way to Raffles and across. After an hour and several kilometers of walking, we finally found one in Suntec Mall. Finding that al fresco Starbucks is a “choir of angels” moment for me and Monette.  Only to find out later that there’s a plethora of coffee shops, including Starbucks, in Merlion park, right across Fullerton Hotel. It’s a bridge away from where we started.

Lesson learned: Don’t look too far, maybe the one that you are looking for is right under your nose the bridge.

The backpacking culture is peculiar to a small global community of people with common understanding and perception of traveling. I experienced the true blue backpacking niche first hand when Monette and I flew to Singapore. We booked a separate flight so she arrived 18 hours earlier. She got to explore the city more than I did but it’s alright since it wasn’t my first time to be there.

It was a bit difficult that time since Monette doesn’t have any mode of communication that will connect her to me. Her mobile phone flew out the window days before the trip. So we relied on an agreement that “we’ll see each other in Singapore around 12ish” (which happened two days before my flight schedule) So it’s a punch-in-the-dark appointment to meet-up in a 710.2 sq km city, populated with 4.8 million inhabitants.

Where should I go upon touch down?  So I followed my instinct and went directly to the Hostel. When I arrived, as expected, she was in the veranda yakking with a young lady. I thought, she could’ve been a co-traveler staying in the hostel. Apparently she’s also a Filipina, working as the branch manager of the home stay. So I immediately felt at home.

We barely slept, we only had less than 24 hours to roam around the lion city, so we were always at the tip of our toes, running around trying to enjoy Singapore while figuring-out how to get to KL before the break of dawn.

Looking for a good place to stay is easy, although the rate is the priciest as compared to neighboring cities in this part of Asia, getting a good one isn’t really a problem. We stayed in a home stay popular to backpackers. We booked three hostels and since it was the peak season, the only one that got an available room for us was Fernloft in the heart of Chinatown.

Other than Ate Maria (the Pinay Manager) the only Asians who were checked-in would be us. The rest are European wanderlusts, staying there for the leg of their Asian adventure. Everyone was nice and friendly and would instantly give a nod and/or a smile at least, in most cases, they would start a conversation that would last for hours sharing stories of our (mis)adventures.

After sleeping for less than three hours, we prepped-up, ate our free self served breakfast (toast, jam, peanut butter and a cup of coffee). What is really amazing in this backpacking culture, at least based on our experience, is that you can trust everyone; you can simply leave your backpack in the common room unattended and it will be just fine. I personally proved this first hand when I left my brown envelope with all my pocket money on top of the computer desk, I came back after an hour with two French ladies on the desk, and my brown envelope—untouched.

Views from Fernloft Hostel’s veranda

OUR TOP PICKS:

FERNLOFT CHINATOWN
http://www.fernloft.com/
Dorm – SG$20/person
Private – SG$30/room (can accommodate 2)
Blk 5 Banda Street #02-92, located on second floor
Singapore 050005
Tel: +65 9838 6718 / +65 6323 3221
Fax: +65 6323 3221
fernloft_chinatown@yahoo.com

THE HIVE BACKPACKERS
http://www.thehivebackpackers.com/
Dorm – SG$20/person
Private – SG$45-60/room (can accommodate 2)
624 Serangoon Rd.
Singapore 218223
Tel: +65 6341 5041
housekeeper@thehivebackpackers.com

BETEL BOX BACKPACKERS’ HOSTEL
http://www.betelbox.com/
Dorm – SG$20/person
Private – SG$60/room (can accommodate 2)
200 Joo Chiat Road, Singapore 427471
Telephone: (65) 6247 7340
info@betelbox.com