Phinally Done: Back to the future

Dear all,
this time I will show you a little bit about our trip to Singapore.

After a very comfortable 8h flight from Brisbane with Emirates we arrived at 8am in a very wet Singapore. Although we are already quite used to high temperatures the incredible high humidity stroke us down immediately. We barely managed to get to our hotel and took a power nap for a few hours as soon as we got there to get ready for a city walk under these conditions.

Beside the weather conditions Singapore is also different in almost every other regard. How can I say…it appears so futuristic to me. It is perfectly clean everywhere, the metro system is far beyond everything I’ve experienced before: modern, fast, easy to use… The architecture is astonishing throughout the city and you feel about 200 years in the future.

If you question yourself what that odd building on the left side is, have a look on the next picture.

That’s the Marina Bay Sands Hotel – the ship-like structure on top is an oasis with palm trees, a huge pool (just for hotel guets,...damn) stretching over almost the entire length, restaurants, bars, etc. Truly one of the strangest buildings I’ve ever seen…but that’s not all. Every night it turns into something like a spaceship featuring an amazing laser show (picture taken from Jonas Travelblog).

From up there you have literally the best view over the city…while relaxing on a comfortable couch with cocktails, chips and fresh air. Actually we were quite lucky that we got in as we didn’t quite meet the dress code but I already managed to get into club SET in Miami in flip flops hence this wasn’t really a big deal – the lady at the entrance finally let us in after her collegue said something in her ear (maybe they thought I am a celebrity cause I am so tall and blond :P). Therefore we got this beautiful snap shot:

If you ever complained about the fines you have to pay for littering or smoking in the metro system back home in Vienna, you haven’t been in Singapore. There is a reason why everything seems so nice and clean – they charge you heavy fines for almost everything. Chewing gum is forbidden and not available, minor “crimes” often lead to punishment with the bamboo stick and drug dealing/consumption leads to death penalty. Homosexuality is strictly forbidden and common sexual practices as e.g. oral sex were legalized as late as 2007… (porn sites are still inaccessible...Mike found out)

Beside these rather unusual penalties there are also a couple of “funny” ones as indicated in the following pictures:

Imagine that in Amsterdam;)

no kebab in the bus:(

The strange-looking bomb-like thing in the lower right corner is the world famous durian fruit - infamous for its incomparable taste and smell. After having a couple of delicious soups and other typical dishes in one of the numerous food courts...

...we finally found a market in Chinatown, where they sold this fruit…

…and tried it of course;)

If you want to know how my experience was, have a look at the following video (German only):

To be honest it is not that bad. If you eat it fast enough it is quite good and tastes like mango, vanilla, cheese and…yes onions. The big problem is first of all its smell and the remaining taste in your mouth – for hours. Chewing gums are unavailable and tictac’s are way too weak to get rid of this strong taste…and we had some difficulties with our digestion system later on – this is definitely a once in a lifetime experience. By the way: if you bring a durian fruit into your hotel room you have to pay the room for an additional week after your departure as it becomes impossible to rent out the room for a while due to its long-lasting smell that poisons everything.

Ok, enough about that.

Singapore has also a very vibrant nightlife and on Friday night we went out to club Zouk. This club is definitely a cool place to be although the experience is definitely different to other clubs – because I could see over the whole crowd…easily. The tiny Asians all looked at me like an alien from another planet: tall and blond with curly hair! This was also the chance to wear my shopping goodies I made on Orchard Road earlier that day – one of the best shopping areas in Singapore. I am really proud of my booty as it is incredible difficult to find the right size as an European...almost all clothes end at size small for girls and medium for guys – Mike didn’t buy anything;)