The Singapore Journals part 6 (the end) - Jurong Bird Park

... and this marks the end of The Singapore Journals.

The Singapore Journals part 5 - Botanic Gardens and ION Orchard

Another place I usually visit when I'm abroad -if there's any- is the botanic gardens. The Singapore ones are obviously different than most I've visited as there's no need for glass housing seeing how humid the country is. It looked like a big park more than anything else. I have to say what attracted us most is the promise of turtle sight made by my travel book. And we weren't disappointed (the baby turtle! its little hands!).

On our way back we stopped at the ION orchard shopping centre, the most famous shopping area in Singapore. The shops close late (around 10pm) every day. Initially we meant to do it on our way over but it was crazy packed like Oxford Circus the day before Christmas... And it wasn't even Saturday... 

 

The Singapore Journals part 4 - Sentosa Island and the Raffles Hotel

There's really plenty to do in Singapore and even though I stayed a whooping two weeks I feel like I barely scratched the place. Well I have to be honest, it has a lot to do with the weather we had, you wake up in the morning full of motivation and with a million plans in your head. By the time you had breakfast, you feel like having a nap it's so hot and humid outside. We did manage to go out alright to the beachy side of Singapore but we probably saw 1% of what the island has to offer. Located at the South of Singapore, Sentosa Island can keep you busy: a Universal Theme Park, museums, beaches and the possibility to go to other surrounding  quieter islands. We only managed to drag our sorry arses to one beach. How lame is that. Anyways, it was totally worth it (even though I forgot my swimsuit godammit!).

We decided to take the cable car to enjoy the view on the way to Sentosa. It was the only time I had the chance to admire the 'Skycrapers' side' of Singapore.

On our way back, we stopped by Vivo City (one of the biggest malls in Singapore). We did a lot of mall stopping during those two weeks and it wasn't helped by the fact that pretty much every MRT (the underground) station is an excuse for a shopping centre.

I didn't go wild or anything, prices are pretty much the same as here (maybe 10% cheaper) but I had fun trying cosmetic products in Guardians (the local Boots). They have amazing stuff that seemed so alien to me: whitening primers, BB mousse, creams that open the eyes, etc... And so much more choice! I had the paralyzing experience to stand in front of a shelf displaying hundreds of OPI nail polish bottles. It caused a slight implosion in my renowned indecisive brain.

Another thing that I enjoyed were the shops with Japanese imported goods like Daiso or Japan Home. The Singaporeans love the Japanese culture and those shops are an enchantment if like me, you're amazed at their creativity. They're full of things so kawaii and so useless but when you see them they become an absolute necessity. I bought a device that turns your tap into a tulip but unfortunately, it doesn't fit any tap in my flat. Needless to say, from now on, a suiting tap is number one in my priority list for things to look for in a new flat.

After wandering what seemed an infinity in an ocean of shops, we made our way to the Raffles Hotel. It is probably the most talked about and written about place in Singapore. Its fine colonial style features and its famous cocktail 'The Sling' attract many a tourist. I knew I needed to visit the place after seeing Dulcie's amazing pictures. Unfortunately it was already late when we got there and it didn't look as gatsby-esque during night-time (and I struggled big time with my camera, even more so than usual).