a holiday in Singapore: day 5

Having fever for two days almost ruined our holiday vacation, so at the very last minute (well, we had seven more  minutes to spare), Francis and I decided to rebook our flight. (I already felt way better that morning when we were packing.) Good thing we found one that departs from Singapore a little past midnight of the 3oth, thereby extending our stay for a day and a half. Also, it was great that even though our original room was no longer available for one more night, a room on the roof deck was. Running out of options, we decided to take it so we no longer have to worry about anything else--just my fever recurring, haha (it never did, thank God!). 

Once arrangements were finalized, we immediately  headed to our default hawker in Albert Center, just across Bugis Street Market. It was off to Kinokuniya after that. 

Bugis by day

Books galore
Kinokuniya is heaven. I finally found this book I had been looking for for a year or so: No One Belongs Here More Than You by Miranda July. It's the last copy, mind you, so I know it was really meant for me. But that's not the only treasure I found--there's also this food photography book by an awesome food photographer/stylist Helene Dujardin (she's in love with ambient lighting, which I also love and want to master). And to mark the pages of these books, I bought a very pretty bookmark. Hee!

Searching for treasures made more efficient!

Hayao Miyazaki movies!!!

I had to restrain myself from buying this one. Boo!

My treasures!

Meanwhile, Francis hoarded some Jeff Buckley literature, and would have gotten more books had it not been for a self-imposed budget (I, too, would have!). Nevertheless, Kinokuniya's selection is something I'm impressed with. Can somebody bring that bookstore over here? 

A walk in the garden 
Before heading to Gardens by the Bay (which was originally scheduled the previous day), we grabbed some pastries and sat down for a couple of minutes in Takashimaya, for we know a lot of walking would be involved in our next destination. As soon as we felt we're ready to walk for hours, we headed straight to Gardens by the Bay.

It was overcast that day, and we were afraid it might pour and ruin our outdoor sightseeing. But the weather took pity on us and just stayed gloomy, sans the rain. 

On our way to Gardens by the Bay. Wish our MRT here is as sane as in SG. Haha!

Bridgeway to Gardens

Long and winding queue

Although the Bay South Outdoor Garden is free, I suggest you check out the Cloud Forest and Flower Domes (S$28 for both) because it's worth it. Make sure to go there late in the afternoon, so that after touring the two cooled conservatories (it takes about an hour to tour each), you'll be in time to catch Garden Rhapsody, where the Supertrees get all lit up accompanied by a majestic symphony. 

Anyway, instead of blabbing about it, here's a simple vid of our Gardens by the Bay experience.   

a holiday in Singapore: days 3 and 4

I stared at this pretty stained glass window for almost two days!

These two days almost ruined our vacation. Why? Because my body suddenly decided to get sick with fever. 

As mentioned in my previous entry, this trip was preceded by a very hectic holiday schedule. Add to that my asthma attack that hounded me just two days before we left for Singapore. In other words, I really wasn't in the pink of health during this trip. And so...I found myself feverish on our 3rd day. 

I had no choice but to stay put in our hotel, while Francis went back to Funan to buy the laptop model I've chosen. He came back late afternoon lugging my new toy, but I can tell he didn't have fun padding the streets of Singapore alone. In fact, I know he got frustrated because we were supposed to go to Sentosa that day, and he's been wanting to go there because he didn't have the chance to check it out the first time he was in the city.

I did manage to get well towards the evening, though, so we were able to explore the neighboring Bugis area. 

Bugis Street Market is like a tiangge, and is very much alive at night. I went gaga over clothes, shoes and cute bags. In fact, I saw this adorable canvas bag made to look like a postal envelope. It was very reasonably priced that I decided to get all four colors (one for me, one for my sister, one for my sister-in-law, and one for a good friend).

 

 

 

The bustling Bugis area is brimming with lots of tempting buys: from fresh fruits to a variety of snacks, and of course, fashion accessories!

 
The Bugis area is also home to Bugis+ Mall (formerly known as Iluma). It would have been great to have explored it further, but alas, this frail girl had to go back to their hotel to get some rest. 

Come early morning the following day, I found myself once again racked with high fever. Since I was desperate to get well right away, I forced myself to make a cup of hot instant coffee, down a tablet of Biogesic, and take a quick bath--all done while taking care not to wake up Francis. I didn't want him to worry and get frustrated again. I tell you, I've never pushed my body to its limit like that, as I didn't want to waste another day lying in our hotel room!!! Haha!

Well, technically speaking, I only wasted (again) half a day. We managed to visit Mustafa to grab some pasalubong, and then ate lunch at The Banana Leaf Apolo in Little India. Sadly, I was not able to eat a lot because the dishes were too spicy for my taste. After we've had our fill, we immediately went back to our hotel so we can drop off the pasalubong we bought before heading off to Gardens by the Bay.

 

 

 

The sights surrounding our hotel, which includes the Masjid Abdul Gafoor mosque (bottom photo)

But.

Both my legs were terribly aching, and I can feel my body temperature rising again. I thought an hour of rest would cure it, but I was wrong. One hour became two, and two turned to three, until it was already evening. Only then did I feel a wee bit better. Instead of going to Gardens by the Bay, Francis and I just grabbed dinner at a nearby Burger King. I was still not giving up, though. Unfortunately, even if my mind was so raring to go, I knew that I am physically not that well to venture out. It was utterly heart-breaking. We didn't go all the way to this country just so I can lie in bed with fever!

Apparently,  we had no choice. We had to forego Gardens by the Bay. I was so disappointed. Meanwhile, Francis tried his best to convince me (and himself, too) that things like this happen, and that I shouldn't be blaming myself. Mind you, it was one of the worse feelings ever, especially since we'd already be leaving for Manila the following day! It was so horrible that I was really sobbing my heart out!

We woke up the following morning feeling so morose. Little did we know that that same day would give us a chance to redeem the two days we lost. But that, folks, is a story for another entry. Suffice it to say for now that we didn't leave Singapore like a whiny bunch of sore losers. Haha!

a holiday in Singapore: day 2

Day 2 in Sinapore found us in Funan DigitaLife Mall and Chinatown. 

Funan was a must in our list because, well, we had to do a bit of reconnaissance since I had a plan of getting a new techie toy (that's another story for another day). But before we headed out, we first grabbed brunch at our favorite neighborhood hawker center in Albert, which is conveniently located in the Bugis area. Once done, we were off to Funan.

After mulling over which laptop model to buy in Funan, I didn't plunged head on to the purchase yet. I  had to make sure I was making the right decision, and while doing so, off to Chinatown we went to check out its colorful streets, picturesque temples, and the very interesting Ann Siang Hill, where a dainty, little store called Little Drom Store is located. Unfortunately, it was closed when we visited (we couldn't find any explanation, as their store hours indicate that they should've been open at that time, boo!). We spent about an hour checking the stores and establishments, and assumed that the place probably looks livelier at night. 

Before heading back to the city to meet up friends for dinner, we had to stop over Maxwell Hawker Center for a breather and some snacks as well. Once I felt my feet were once again ready to take some pounding, we headed back to our hotel to freshen up then promptly proceeded to andmade Cafe in Pacific Plaza.

It was a fun dinner catching up with dear friend Ceres and her beau, Ron. And of course, the pretty dishes all made up for all the walking we did. Haha!

Here's a video of Singapore sights on our second day. Forgive the mediocre quality, as this is actually my first time to make a "movie". (Will definitely try to improve next time, haha!)

a holiday in Singapore: day 1

After a month and a half of planning, December 25 found Francis and me flying to Singapore.

But let's backtrack a bit. Since it's the holidays and it's been tradition to spend Christmas Eve at either my mom's place or my in-laws' (it was at my mom's last December), this trip proved to be quite a challenge (the whirlwind of activities proved to be bad for me, as I was currently recuperating from asthma right before our trip). After spending dinner on the 24th at my mom's in Taytay, Francis and I went straight back to our pad to freshen up and make sure everything's packed. We then headed to hail a cab to NAIA 3, worried that it might be hard for us to find one after midnight. Good thing we didn't have to wait long, and at about quarter to 12MN, we were already on our way to the airport.

Come Christmas Eve, Francis and I whipped up our phones to call our respective families. We were exchanging Christmas greetings while on the road, it's weird and funny at the same time!

Apparently, we arrived at the airport a couple of hours earlier. To make the most of it, we spent our Noche Buena there, with congee and barbecue chicken as our very humble Christmas Eve feast. Afterwards, we tried so hard to catch some sleep--I was unsuccessful while Francis snoozed like a baby. 

Finally, it was time to check in our stuff. Fast forward to a few hours later, we found ourselves padding the streets of Singapore in the morning sunshine, on our way to our hotel. We stayed in Mayo Inn on Jalan Besar Street, near Little India. Since it was too early to check in, we just left our luggage at the lobby and headed off to grab some lunch. We then came back to our hotel and got settled in, then it was off to exploring Singapore on Christmas Day.

Our cozy, Japanese-inspired room at Mayo Inn

 

On our way to Esplanade, we found this tribute to Singapore's various artists

Artworks on display in Esplanade

Yes of course, I lusted for this, but decided otherwise. Perhaps next time?

This one, too! My preciousssss!

Francis and my first shopping loot from Charles and Keith. Had to restrain myself in that store! But hey, I did get something for someone else (for my mom, actually)!

Esplanade, the durian-inspired building

The imposing Marina Bay Sands can be seen from just about anywhere in Singapore

Hello from Mr. and Mrs. Funa!

Smiggle store is bursting with so many colors!

I wish our MRT/LRT system is this clean, safe and efficient!

That's a giant Pinoy parol on display!

Christmas dinner at Trattoria Cucina Italia in 313@Somerset

 

Giddy about my rootbeer float!

Next up: exploring Ann Siang Hill and Chinatown!

poetry on the fridge

I apologize for the blurry photo.

One of the treasures we found in Singapore is this Magnetic Poetry set, which I've been secretly wanting ever since I saw it in a magazine. So when I found the tin boxes in the souvenirs section of the Asian Civilizations Museum (for SGD32), Francis and I immediately agreed to buy it. 

So, aside from forcing me to flex my mental muscles in order to come up with decent syntax  once again, this nifty set also forced us to get rid of unsightly receipts tacked with mismatched magnets on our fridge's door .

Hurrah for Magnetic Poetry!