The best (as in humiliating, and nerve-racking) example of this is recently when we were going through immigration to enter Sydney.. while the immigration officer was reading our MALAYSIAN visas, Madison was chatting away with her about how we're from Singapore, and naming all the things she loves about it. Yep, that's my little squirt! Eyebrows were raised, buttons were pushed, official-looking people appeared out of nowhere, and asked me to be quiet while they continued to (gently) interrogate my daughter for why she was telling them she lives in Singapore when she in fact does not. In the end everyone was laughing at her, and they let me explain she just celebrated her birthday there, open her presents in the hotel suite after a "treasure hunt" to find them; thus why she loves the place and tells people that's where the presents are. What have I done?? Now every trip to Singapore will have to be accompanied by a treasure hunt and presents. Hmm...
Nevertheless, it was one of the best weekends we've had so far. Singapore is a beautiful country. Small, easy to navigate - there are actually clear & accurate road signs! - friendly people, good food, and an overall great vibe.
The similarities to Malaysia are:
1) the child-friendly aspects - restaurants & shops are happy to see her come in and will play with her, no matter how "high-end" they are.
2) In walking through the local areas I really thought I would see differences in grocery stores, and more unique shops, but they're really about the same. That was surprising.
3) Singapore is very small, and has a ton of people living there.. so I still felt the "people-cattling" (as I call it) when you get into crowded areas. There are just so many tourists, and Asians don't respect personal space.. they just run you down! Including women & children, so I still had to be on my guard in crowds.
The differences we noticed right away to Malaysia were:
1) Singapore is SO clean! You can tell they really take pride it that too! There are signs everywhere, with rules attached to the fines if you don't comply. I would never break the law there.. punishment is extremely severe, ha
2) Both countries are so beautiful but Singapore is so much more GREEN! It's sad to see Malaysia tearing down so much forest, whereas Singapore has made a huge effort to maintain forested areas for national parks, recreational facilities, etc.. On the drive down to Singapore we saw the most beautiful outskirts of Malaysia - they should've preserved some of that in the city but they're so greedy they'll do anything to make a buck.
3) Singapore is easily 3x the price for everything.. imagine our sticker shock the first day. Whoa!
Speaking of driving down, it only took 4 hours, and was a beautiful & easy drive. Ryan made fun of me at first, but my friend here gave me this idea for a travel potty. It's a pop-up potty seat with disposable plastic bags (think puppy pad, if you've had a dog), and it's the BEST thing I've purchased for traveling. Although the rest areas seems pretty good once we were on the road, I didn't know what to expect as some of the bathrooms in the city can be really gross.. so this invention has saved our lives a few times. We only pulled over once so Madison could "tinkle" and we were off again in 2 minutes. Fantastic! Ryan is a fan of the travel potty now :)
We packed our days with sightseeing - the zoo the entire first day, chili-crab for dinner that night (which is a well-known Singapore delicacy), checked out Marina Bay Sands the next day (the hotel that looks like it has a ship on top), did some shopping on Orchid St which is like our Michigan Ave, explored the Boat Quay area which has boats / restaurants / shops, met some friends for lunch next to the Crayon Bridge (I named it that b/c that's what Madison called it - see pics), and much more.. there's a lot to do in such a little place!
The zoo was our favorite spot - I've never been to such a well-planned zoo. The exhibits were amazing, as it looked like you were standing in front of the animals, not behind a huge wall looking at them. I've never seen anything like it. The Orang Utan "open" exhibit was incredible - the monkeys just roamed free.. no bars, no cages. They just swung through the trees above your heads, and would come down to grab some food when the handlers came by then would hang there and enjoy their lunch. Truly magnificent. We spent the entire day there and Madison was truly spent when we were leaving - she was passed out by the parking lot!
Tips for the zoo for anyone going who is reading this..
Go EARLY! The earlier you go the less crowded and the less hot it is. Take an umbrella, even if you don't think it's going to rain take one anyway. The rain in Singapore comes from nowhere and it's a torrential downpour! If you have a rain cover for your stroller take it also. Bug spray is a must - it's like a rain forest environment, so with that comes bugs. Sun screen for the fair-skinned. We were prepared with all of this stuff, but I didn't see it anywhere to buy (except umbrellas). The food is very good so you don't need to bring any. There are 3 spots to eat but the main restaurant is fast and a good variety of asian & western, and somewhat kid-friendly. Since Madison is 3 she just eats what we eat but for younger babies you may need to pack snacks. Bring water! It gets pretty hot. The splash park is a great way to cool down and let the kids run free if they've been the stroller a lot. Just walking around after her cooled me down. Then of course there is the strategically-placed Ben & Jerry's ice cream shop right next to the splash park.. so you have to stop there on the way out :) Also, if you want to rest your feet, or let the kids take a 20 min snooze, take the boat ride from either the south or north tip of the zoo (you can catch it either way). It's really beautiful, and the lake is huge and very smooth. The boats are nice and it's just a tranquil break from all the people.
Ok so back to our weekend..
That evening we went to a recommended restaurant near the water for chili crab. We were seated on the patio right next to where the orchestra was playing on the harbor. We couldn't have chosen a better way to end the day. The music was beautiful, and of course Madison loved seeing the orchestra and dancing while they played.. which was highly entertaining to the restaurant guests. The chili crab was ok - not our favorite experience. Some people love it, we didn't. We chose an Australian King crab with the signature chili sauce, and it was good, but it just tasted like they poured she-crab soup all over it. It was very rich.. and VERY expensive! Not to mention they charge you for napkins, peanuts (that they place on the table when you sit down and make you THINK they're free), and also the bread they brought for Madison to munch on. Next time we'll skip the crab.. but it was fun to try!
And for the bday finale.. Ben & Jerry's chocolate ice cream! What a day!
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