Double-Faced Singapore → Wild / Sophisticated

₪ Marina - Harbour Front - Gardens by the Bay

I was taken there by Norlinah's niece, Sarah, two years older than me, though she looks my age, not to say younger. It was nice, we had cool, well bloody hot weather, I got sunburnt on my shoulders, eventhough we stayed very little time outside... Well I am here to work on my tan, especially on tights and stomach, but it doesn't seem to be my host family's liking, who even seem a bit upset about me wanting to go wearing bikini on the beach ahah... Well everyone does it though. And I am not a Muslim, I shall thereof get on beaches on my own, so maybe my trip to Indonesia won't be any of paradisiac beaches with white sand... Too bad. Anyway, Norlinah's sister offered to take mo once she is on school vacation (che is a teacher), i.e. in June. They try to do their best to make me do whatever I want, so that my flight to Singapore was worth the price d:

Anyway, I had a great time there, although we mostly visited shopping centers, I could still see famous places.



Gardens by The Bay

Sarah put so much effort into taking me to places to see. And I could find many westerners, many chic boutiques and fancy places, but I crave for someone to take ne there at night! Actually, I wish someone took me there to have dinner at the top of Marina Bay three-towered building... But everything is very expensive there. Well, that's the style/way of life I like. It is all about luxury, I know /: ...

For lunch I had stim bread with Kaya, which is quite hard to describe, just as Sarah said, it's Kaya! Okay so basically it's a kind of Malay jam, made of coconut, eggs, but I am not sure I could tell according to the taste. The whole meal was melting and warm... It is delicious, very unhealthy though. I only had that for lunch, yet it was enough! I used drop sticks, but the consistance was too soft, too mushy.We went to a restaurant, inside Suntec City. I mean a real restaurant, not one of their in-air places crowded and noisy with plastic furniture just like we have for buvettes ... To order you fill the form yourself, as shown below.

Fountain of Wealth in Suntec City, a huuuge mall. Now just waiting to get rich (;O People keep touching it while walking around it.

₪ Hikking in the Jungle
Here we go, noon, time to go. No excuse to back off now, got my whole day free, nothing else to do. Well, I feel that I planned it pretty well : the bus stops, the pathway, and I figured since I am here that i will somehow orientate once I end near the bus stops. 
First time I did everything on my own: planning, packing, walking, asking my way, guiding in the trails, finding out other ways when necessary, and so forth.  

Quarry View, I met westerners there, who also thought everything was closed because of construction - again - and that was the farest we could go, that is to say ten minutes away from car park ('x

When I arrived, the loop was closed, however I was allowed to get on the cycling pass. 

Hopping to find somehow my way and catch up the track I was BASICALLY following

How did I know that was where I had to turn? No idea. Thanks to my good star I thing, just a very good and smart guess? Just Kidding (; Anyway such a vicious hidden track playing hide-&-seek.

I asked my way to runners, males mainly, and also female hikers, all very nice and took the time to answer to me. Usually pretty surprised I was all alone on my own. If at many times I was not even sure to still be on the right trail, I kept going, and always followed the original pathway I wanted to complete. God bless my great sens of direction. I also tried to follow first tip I was given: keep walking straight on the cycling trail, so I was always looking for the signs.

Finally got ya you bloody winding path! 

As heading on the track, orientation maps after orientation maps, I did not change my pathway but extended it, or I'd rather say found one hard enough to meeting the challenge of the Dairy Loop that was closed. Kind of making it while doing it (x Love that. This is adventure: you are not really sure where you will end, but know that somehow you will get somewhere.

Meeting very polite people, saying Hello or Nodding when meeting you, thankfull cyclists when you move to let them pass. Eventhough I was at the begining disappointed to hear construction noises, or the highways not so far, I could enjoy being in the middle of nowhere, just me and the wild life, hearing weird noises of the jungle, especially birds' or other animals' ones. I really felt like I was lost in the forest, just like in a movie and that was so cool!

See, the rain is coming ....

30cm lizard! Well, fingers crossed next time I'll see the 2-meters-long one!



Creeping in the Jungle (((((((:

Palmito! Eheh feel like I am in Pirates of Caribbean

My middle name is Tarzan. (= deuxieme prenom)



While having lunch (piece of bread with salad) on a rock by 3:00pm, a woman (Betty, working as accountant for an oil company, pretty wealthy I obviously as she travels a lot and only buys luxury brands) just come, and asking me "you having sandwich" the right thing to do just appeared to me to be offering her some. She took some salad. I offered if she wanted more, showing I did not feel compelled to... although a little bit d: Then, when we hear thunderstorm and guess rain is coming, she offers to take me to the end, back to the visitor center where I started. I accepted, eventhough I had not finished my meal and I usually prefer to walk at a good pace on my own, taking time to take pictures, observing... Well, she was fast xD and we better hurry because of the rain. It was nice of her. Unfortunately, the email contact details she gave me did not work...

In my narrow shelter as the rain caught me once I am done with hiking.

The rain coat was definitely helpful. But I fear it will even get damage with so much rain, just like my sneakers...

Damn mosquitos bites. I even did not care in the jungle, while literally swimming among the plants.  Day after, Oh my. HUUUGE bites all over my body. Now I think I will better prepare before strolling again in the jungle. I should not have. Well I still do not regret it, totally worth it to feel like Crocodile Dundee :D

₪ Let's talk about the weather

☼ Heat
Heat is cool, but not feeling okay on your skin, you know when it is summer in France you are looking for the sun to make you feel warm and in peace. Here, it is more something almost oppressing. Sweltering heat. You cannot really enjoy it, you feel wet n your jeans, you can feel sweat flooding along your back... Gross. I guess I get more and more used to it, but still, it is only good when you go from one fresh atmosphere (that means with air con ;D) to the outside atmosphere, or when it is early on the morning or late in the evening: that is only when it feels good. Especially, it is annoying if you exercise, run, walk fast. I have to carry a little towel to swip my sweat! Hopefully, it makes you skinnier, at least that's how I feel: that I am literally MELTING!

≈ Rain
I was surprised while looking on the internet, to find out that there was not just rain in Singapore, but many days of rain, like more than half of the month! I expected hot weather, and certainly dry one, not knowing what humid was like...




Innocently doing grocery shopping when wild rain comes!

Anyway, after some first experiments in unforeseen circumstances, I figured out that rain was heavy, violent, just like you can see on TV when it is monsoon season, and that locals always knew somehow when to carry an umbrella (although still wearing sandals...) but before all, I figured out that I COULD MYSELF know when rains fell. Indeed, it usually happens middle-late afternoon (3:40-5:30). It goes stronger and stronger, literally swamping streets, and slowly easing to stop, after what sun burns again. And yet, tonight, the rain is actually still falling now, even five hours after it started. Yep it is 9:00pm, and there is storm, lights, rain, I love that when thunder roars in the night... 

Learnt from Akid that pupils and students do not play baseball at school, but they have their Asian volleyball: sepak takraw. Have a look on it, pretty impressive and funny stuff. Makes me think of Kung Fu d: