Singapore

On our trip back to the States, we took an extra few hours and flew south to Singapore for the afternoon and evening on New Year's Day. Justin's old Japanese exchange student, Yuhei, met up with us and gave us a little walking tour of the city. After checking into our hooker hotel on the outskirts of the city, we took a cab to Orchard Road, a 1.3 km shopping mall. We ate lunch at an outdoor restaurant and people-watched for a while.

We made our way over to the Raffles Hotel, a very expensive and famous hotel in Singapore. (Not like our hooker hotel) Inside the small courtyard was an outdoor restaurant and long bar, along with high-end stores like Gucci and Coach. The living quarters of the hotel were closed off to the public.

From there, we took a cab to the riverfront and surveyed the damage from the night before. I guess Singapore throws a pretty big New Year's celebration. Everything was in Mardi Gras colors. Confetti, noise-makers, and other reminders of the night before laid across the street. We stopped at a small Spanish restaurant along the river. I had my Pina Colada and the three of us enjoyed the afternoon warmth while watching the tourist boats go by in the river next to us. (Sharpy and Rosebach.... they have DUCK BOATS!!! quack quack!)

Yuhei and Justin

Another cab ride later and we were back to Orchard Road. In the basement of one of the shopping malls was a famous Taiwanese restaurant. From outside the restaurant, you can see into the "kitchen" through a giant glass plate window. Din Tai Fung specializes in their hand-made dumplings. Each dumpling has at least 18 tiny folds enclosing the meat inside. Unlike the States, the concern here is the quality of food, and not the quantity.

After a delicious dinner, we wandered the along the lighted Orchard Road for a while, before walking down a back alley to a small bar. We put down a pitcher of beer and soaked up the ambience of the warm and humid evening. Justin and I made it back to our hooker hotel, where my suspicions that it was a hooker hotel were confirmed.

An afternoon and evening does not do this small country justice. When I travel to that side of the world again, I'll probably spend several days in Singapore and really get a feeling for the place. Definitely going back to the dumpling place too.