At the counter checking in to catch our flight from Indonesia to Malaysia, we were told we need proof of onward travel in order to leave the country. We were pulled out of line and told to come back when we had our proof. Starting to panic because we were running out of time before our flight departed, we began the search. Chelsea found a cheap flight and after tediously entering our information went to pay and had her credit card declined. After trying several more cards, we soon realized we were in trouble. Tom found bus tickets from Kuala Lumpur to Singapore and purchased them for $80, and all was good. We hustled to our gate and made it. Whew!
Upon further inspection once in Penang, we found out we had purchased tickets on the worst rated bus in town. A lot of reviewers said they would have given 0 stars if they were able to. We were able to cancel and get half our money back. With more time on our hands, we came to realize the bus was still a great option and several hundred dollars cheaper than flying.
Awaking at 4am, we got our gear and caught a Grab to the bus station to catch our 6am six our ride to Penang. We ended up selecting the Aero bus company and were extremely happy with them. Our leather reclining seats each had plenty of room and had our own personal video screens. The boys got to sit at the very front of the second level. We made three stops (a rest stop, immigration/customs in Malaysia, and immigration/customs in Singapore).
Somerset Liang Court, our hotel, was located in the Clark Quay area of Singapore. It was a very trendy area that reminded us of the River Walk in San Antonio mixed with the area by the Eiffle tower on the Seine River. There are all kinds of restaurants and shops that lined the Singapore rivers banks. The cement stair case that lead right up to the water reminded us of sitting on the stairs in Paris at night staring up at the twinkling Eiffel Tower. Our grab driver later confirmed that Singaporeans loved to take the best things from other cities and recreate them in their own city.
Walking around the Clark Quay area outside of our hotel, Mason spotted a Mexican restaurant that he wanted to eat at. With some reluctance we agreed to eat Mexican in Singapore. Chelsea ordered a big drink to share and the waiter asked where to set it down. Tom being sarcastic told the waiter it was for Mason’s birthday. It was not his birthday, however a few minutes later the happy birthday song started playing in the restaurant and some of the staff brought Mason a bowl of ice cream with a candle while the other patrons clapped. Mason was so confused and a little embarrassed. We thought it was hilarious, and it made a great story.
Gardens by the Bay
The Gardens by the Bay tourist attraction was absolutely incredible. We got up early and headed over to explore the giant nature park. To our delight it was not busy at all. Most of the grounds are free to walk around and enjoy. We decided to pay extra to check out the Cloud Forest and Flower Dome.
Cloud Forest
Up first, we went inside the spectacular Cloud Forest dome. The first thing you see when you walk in is an incredible manmade waterfall flowing over the mountain made up of plants and flowers. It was so beautiful that it literally brought Chelsea to tears. They were misting the plants when we arrived which made it all the more magical. It felt like we had arrived in Jurassic Park. We took the elevator to the top of the mountain to check out the “lost world” and sky walk which is a catwalk allowing for views of the city through the dome windows. It was unlike anything we have ever seen and something that needs to be experienced in person.
Flower Dome
The Flower dome is located right next door to the Cloud Forest and is the worlds largest glass greenhouse. There were beautiful flowers and plants from all over the world including many that we had never seen before. Our favorite was the red and white Dahlia flower. There were also many decorations for Chinese New Year including all of the animals from the Chinese zodiac and several Rats for 2020. We had fun posing for pictures by the animals from our year of birth.
We walked around the rest of the park checking out the Super Tree Grove, the Floating Eggs exhibit and the sculpture of the giant baby named Planet. We loved the super trees but wanted to go back at night when the grandmas joined us.
Merlion Park
To cap off an amazing day, we took a walk from our hotel to Merlion Park at night. The Merlion statue is half-lion, half-mermaid and shoots water out of its mouth. The Merlion is the official mascot of Singapore representing their ties to the sea or Mer and paying omagh to Singapore’s original name Singapura meaning “lion city”. The statue is very impressive, but the area surrounding it is spectacular. Across the bay is the Marina Bay Sands hotel and casino which boasts an awesome light and water show called Spectra. The night sky is outlined by the incredible skyscrapers behind the statue and the Singapore river comes alive with night cruises. It truly was a site to behold.
Changi Airport/Jewel
For the third time on our year long trip both Grandmas came to visit us! By the end of their trip the will have taken 20+ airplanes and flown over 50,000 miles or 2 times around the world to be with us. They are simply amazing!
After meeting them by the baggage claim, we headed over to the famous part of the Changi Airport called “The Jewel”. It is not actually a jewel, but a large space. It is most famous for having the worlds largest indoor waterfall cascading down the center of the giant glass domed mall. The water funnels out of the roof and funnels down a glass chute many stories below. The kids had a blast trying their hand at the mirror maze with Tom and his Mom, Nadine. It was very tricky to navigate since you could not tell what was glass and what was the way out. Next, we walked over the Canopy bridge that looks down over the waterfall. It was a glass bottom bridge that looked down several stories below. We also walked through Canopy Park to see some of the animals made of flowers and went down the Discovery Slides a few times. It was a very cool place, and after 4 hours we left to bring the exhausted Grandmas to the hotel to nap.
River Cruise
When in Singapore, we were told you need to try the local favorite Chili Crab. We found a seafood restaurant in Clark Quay with signs saying they had the best and most fresh crabs in town. They were delicious albeit a little challenging to figure out how to eat. We washed them down with Singapore Slings, a well know drink containing Gin, Cherry liqueur, soda water, and lemon juice amongst other ingredients.
After dinner, we set off on the 7:30pm Singapore river cruise. We wound down the river while a TV explained the history of the buildings, bridges, and sculptures along the way. At 8pm, right as it got dark we stopped in front of the Marina Bay Sands Hotel to watch Spectra, their awesome light, laser, and water show. It was a beautiful sight with the building changing colors and spotlights dancing in the sky while the water fountains danced and changed colors to the music. The night river cruise is a must do if you have time.
Garden Rhapsody Light Show
On our final evening in Singapore, we had a nice dinner at a brewery across the river from us. We enjoyed some good old KFC as an appetizer. We are talking about Korean Fried Cauliflower of course. It paired nicely with our craft beers and ciders.
After dinner we took a ride over to see the inside of the Marina Bay Sands hotel and casino. The building is an amazing three towered structure with a rooftop that is adorned with a enormous infinity pool, restaurants, night club and lots of greenery. It was quite expensive to go up so we decided to just walk around the lower level.
Garden Rhapsody Light Show is an out of this world light show set to music in the Supergrove trees in Gardens by the Bay. We loved every second of the beautiful show and had to talk the kids out of waiting till 8:45pm for the second and final show of the evening. Before leaving, we hiked along the boardwalk checking out the fabulous Floating Eggs exhibit. It was a fantastic evening seeing some incredible things.
Singapore is a state of the art city that we wished we had more than four days to explore. There are still so many things we want to see and do. We loved how clean, modern, and technologically advanced this small island country was. We are now off on what was supposed to be a dream cruise around southeast Asia. Instead it has turned into a bit of a nightmare with the news of the coronavirus causing several cruise ships to be quarantined. Our final destination, Hong Kong, was canceled, and the itinerary was completely changed six hours before we were set to depart leaving us scrambling. The cruise will now be returning to Singapore at the end of our trip. We have never had so much anxiety over something that was supposed to be so much fun.