Things to do in Singapore

Thursday night after our Mandarin test, Jenna, Mike, Andrea, and I took a bus to the Hong Kong Airport. Our flight departed on time at 8 'o' clock in the evening and we landed in Singapore at 11:20. Customs was routine and we were in a taxi on our way to "Sleepy Sam's" by 12:15, asleep by 1:15. Hostels are convenient and inexpensive, thus, perfect for college students. I've been happy with my experience so far anyway.

On Friday morning I went for that run I mentioned in my previous entry. I love exploring new areas by way of running. There must be something about it, because that's the number one thing I've been looking forward to doing in the new places I travel to. In fact I went on another run this morning as well, but I'll get back to that later.

Around 11, we walked over to Suntec City, a shopping mall and coporate center that's arranged in the position of a left-hand, palm up. In the place where the palm would be, there is the Fountain of Wealth, the largest man-made fountain in the world.

At 1 pm we went on a "Duck Tour" of downtown and Marina Bay. The vehicle we toured in actually was a boat too, hence the name; there was a ramp to enter the water and the captain stomped on the gas and we hit the water with a huge splash. That wasn't the only time we got wet either - about halfway through our time on the water, the heavens opened up and let loose on our duck vessel. Fortunately, they were prepare and we only got rained no for a breif time. the whole thing lasted an hour and our tour guide kept us relatively entertained. It was probably THE most touristy thing we could have done though, ha.

After that, I ate Subway for the first time in about a month-and-a-half. It was scrumptious, the 12" chicken terryaki on honey wheat bread, that is! I love Subway and didn't realize how much I missed it. We walked around the mall for a bit longer and then decided n catching a few Zzz's before our Night Safari at the Singapore Zoo, that was to begin at 6 'o' clock. It was a good rest and we were picked up by "Joe" around 6 as promised. Joe is a native Singaporean who was a sailor about 20 years ago. Currently, he is studying to get his Master's in Sailing where his heart seemed to truly lie. He was full of little stories about Singapore and his past. I was thankful that I'd hopped into the front seat of the bus because I had some very interesting conversations with him both to and from our destination.

He got us to the Safari by 6:30 as promised and we got in line right away for the tram ride through the night zoo. We saw many different nocturnal animals on the tram, the highlight of which was the tiger. We saw the tiger after the tram as we hiked the entire footpath. There was a viewing section with a wall of glass separating us from the beast and he happened to be hanging out right there. I think it might have been because of my camera (flash was not allowed but there is a red light that always comes on before taking a picture), but all of a sudden the tiger sprung at the glass, stopping just short of hitting it. That got our adrenaline pumping and the animal restlessly paced around in front of us for the next 10 minutes or so. It was incredible; to see the muscles rippling throughout his sleek body and his shoulder-blades pumping with each step - less than 5' in front of us - was surreal. His entire physique resonated with sheer, unadulterated, power. There was not an ounce of unnecessary fat on him. Amazing...

That one experience absolutely made the night, possibly the day.

We rode back with Joe and weere in bed by 11:30, in preparation for a long day on Saturday. Good trip so far...