Singapore Slings

I'm writing this blog in our room at the Marina Bay Sands Hotel in Singapore, it's a great hotel of which more later. But I'm writing in a hurry because it's costing 8 Singapore dollars an hour and I've got lots to relate. First of all was our 13 hour flight from London to Singapore, the longest flight that any of us has been on. I was very sensible and watched one film (Unknown - a pleasant but rather predictable thriller) then tried to sleep. I think I managed about 5 hours in total and I have felt fine today, unlike the other members of the family who watched two films and in David's case lots of episodes of the Simpsons as well. Today Davie could hardly stay awake and everyone was more tired than me which made me feel very smug. The seat back screens had a screen where you could follow the flight path, it was amazing to think that we were crossing countries like the Ukraine, Nepal, and past Thailand. There was also a camera on the tail of the plane that was very interesting especially as we came into land. We were seven hours forward in time when we landed and we were too early to check into the hotel so we put our bags in left luggage and set off to see Singapore. We jumped on a bus tour to Clarke Quay but when we all got off Davie didn't see us go and stayed on the bus! Alasdair started running after the bus and I hailed a taxi and said "Follow that tour bus!" The taxi driver thought it was hilarious and was saying "Which son? How many sons do you have?" as we sped along. We picked Ally up on the way but when we caught up with the tour bus the driver told us that Davie had got off and was heading back. So back we went in the taxi and finally we all met up safe and sound. After all this excitement we decided that we deserved some lunch so we went to a wee grill restaurant on Clarke Quay overlooking the water. I was surprised at how quiet it was, maybe the waterside areas are quiet on a Monday lunch time. The waiter was very friendly and was telling us that the Malaysians kicked Singapore out of their alliance but now they are jealous of the Singaporeans because they are so prosperous. He also told us that the laws are very strict in Singapore; last month he was fined 300 dollars for flicking a cigarette butt into the river. Then we went on a boat trip up the Singapore river and into the harbour area. The weather was beautiful and we had great views, it's really interesting how Singapore is such a mix of old and new. Two hundred years ago it was just a swampy island before Raffles spotted its potential as a trading post, and now you have beautiful old colonial houses right beside towering skyscrapers, with a huge mix of nationalities. We then decided that we would go to Raffles Hotel for the touristy reason of drinking Singapore Slings! It was wonderful! We went upstairs to the Long Bar and James and Jamie got their Singapore Slings, while I was delighted that they have a non-alcoholic version so I didn't feel left out! We all enjoyed our drinks and the experience was enhanced by the great decor of the bar. It looks old-fashioned with dark wood (although I know it has been refurbished 10 years ago), and there are mechanical straw fans on the ceiling moving back and forth on a metal rod, it looks so good. Every table has a large box of monkey nuts in their shells which the waiters refill from big sacks, and which the customers then eat and throw the nut shells on the floor, which made it rather crunchy to walk on! When I asked the waiter why, he explained that it is a Malaysian custom. The boys pointed out that this still doesn't really explain why! Back on one of the tour buses for our short journey to the Singapore Flyer - it's a whole 5 metres taller than the London Eye (competitive?) and we were very lucky that it was quiet and we got a whole gondola to ourselves which was lovely. The weather was lovely too and we could see miles to Malaysia in the north. From the top of the flyer you can also see a huge number of ships lying off shore. Oh dear I fell asleep just now, I must finish this blog quickly and then get some rest. We walked back to our hotel across the double helix pedestrian bridge, more great views. After we checked in and went to see our rooms (very nice, great views, 15th floor), we went for a swim in the hotel's roof top infinity swimming pool, it was amazing. This is all thanks to Ally who suggested going to this hotel in the first place because he saw it on television. We swam about as the sun set and the lights came on in all the buildings across the harbour. Finally we had a fabulous dinner at the Food Court across from the hotel. There was a huge choice of foods from all around the East - Singapore, Malaysia, Japan, China etc. And it was hard to choose! Finally we all chose something and ate it up - Jamie and Ally found their Char Sui to be rather strange tasting, it was served on a banana leaf. Well I must go, I keep nodding off!