First thing you notice on arriving in Singapore is how clean it is; and how very organized it is. Also, the first surprise that I received on reaching there were the 'Travellators'(well that's what they call 'em in Singapore). The are like escalators, except that, while escalators take you upwards these things travel horizontally. A perfect technology for people like me who would like any excuse not to walk to their destinations.
Another surprise was the amount of lush greenery that was present everywhere. This despite the fact that Singapore ranks as one of the topmost cities in the world. As expected, the roads were top class, and we cruised to our accomodations smoothly taking in the fantastic sights around us.
Places worth seeing:
My stay in Singapore was very short; as a result of which, it was not posible for me to see the whole of Singapore. But I managed to see most of it. I am just putting in a brief description of a few good that I visited, along with the pics of course.
Singapore Zoo:
The Singapore Zoo is one of the major tourist attractions in Singapore along with the Jurong Bird park, the Night Safari and Sentosa island. The zoo has around 2500 animal of 315 different species. Around 16% of them are endangered species. The zoo follows the concept of open model. Which means that most of the animals are kept in the open separated from the visitors only by moats and short barriers concealed by vegetation. Only the big cats like Jaguars, Puma, Leapord and Cheetah are kept in spacious glass enclosures since they are vary good climbers and hence the moats would be insufficient to keep them in. The zoo has been built in an already existing forest in Singapore. There are also a few shows organised by the zoo officials everyday; the notable ones being, breakfast with Orangutans, the Elephants of Asia show and the prnguin show. For me the biggest highlight of the tour were the White Tigers.
You can actually walk among a few animals here and observe them closely. For instance its really amazing to watch kangaroos from up close. Then ofcourse there are the orangutans and some other apes who can be watched from really close quarters (by walking among them). Another great thing in all the zoos (Singapore Zoo, Jurong Bird park, the Night Safari) is that almost all the animals are adopted by some private company, which really helps the zoo maintain the animals very well.
I have posted some pics and vids. Hope you like them.
Night Safari:
The Night Safari is said to be the world’s first nocturnal zoo. This zoo is situated right besides the Singapore Zoo. There are 1000 animals kept here of 120 species, out of which 29% are endangered species. Most of the animals kept here are also present in the Singapore Zoo; however, there are some animals which are kept here exclusively since they are nocturnal ones. There are a few shows organized here too. Most of them consist of performances by people dressed in tribal outfits and spewing fire from their mouths. There were a lot of animals kept here which I had never seen in my life and the names of which I had never heard before.
The entire area of the zoo is divided into 8 different geographical areas, namely: The Himalayan Foothills, The Nepalese River Valley, The Indian Subcontinent, Equatorial Africa, The Indo-Malayan region, The Asian Riverine Forest, The South American Pampas, and The Burmese Hillside. The animals can be seen in the dark by lighting which resembles moonlight, but is a bit brighter than it. The basic structure of the zoo is similar to the Singapore Zoo. Some of the animals are kept in enclosure here too. One of the most fascinating experiences was to walk in the enclosure for bats, with bats as large as football zooming around you or hanging upside down on tree branches.
Flash photography is not allowed here, and hence you need a really powerful camera to click photos here (which unfortunately I don’t have). So, I don’t have any pics available.
Jurong BirdPark:
The Jurong Bird Park houses the largest collection of birds in the world, with 9000 birds of 600 species. The collection comprises of a combination of exotic birds, migratory birds and birds of prey. You can get close to a lot of these birds and feed them. Like in the Zoo, here too there are several shows which enable us to observe these birds from very close quarters. Some of the most fascinating shows are the ‘Birds and Buddies’ show and the ‘Birds of Prey’ show. In the ‘Birds and Buddies’ show, you get to watch exotic birds like the Cockatoos and Macaws perform some really cool tricks. A lot of tricks involve volunteers from the audiences. Apart from these birds, the show also features flamingos, pelicans, hornbills, toucans and a talking parrot who sings songs in 4 different languages. Most of these birds are born and brought up in the park itself. The ‘Birds of Prey’ show features the predators among the avian species. Even here most of the birds are born and brought up in the park itself; which is why the zoo officials are able to organize this show in the open rather than in any closed enclosure. Here too, most of the performances involve volunteers from the audiences. The highlight of the show is the huge Himalayan Vulture. It’s quite fascinating really-and a bit scary- to have all these huge birds flying about your heads, sometimes even clipping your heads with their wings. All these shows not only focus on the entertainment part, but also the information part.
Some snaps for you.
As well as some videos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
Sentosa:
This is a island resort in Singapore with lots of attractions. Nothing more to say really. I guess the pics say it all. Watch out for the video featuring the laser show. It's damn good.
Some snaps and videos.
Other places worth visiting:
Apart from the above mentioned tourist attractions, there are quite a few other places worth visiting here. The Merlion definitely merits a mention here. Its a huge statue of a creature which half lion and half fish (similar to a mermaid). There is an identical statue in Sentosa as well; but, this one is really gorgeous. The Merlion is the official symbol of Singapore. According to some malay legends, Singapore was known as Temasek, a Javanese word for sea. In the 11th century A.D, Prince Sang Nila Utama of the Sri Vijaya Empire rediscovered the island. The first living being that he saw on the island was a lion. So, the Prince decided to name the island "Singapura" which in Sanskrit means Lion (Singa) City (Pura). While initially the symbol of Singapore was just a lion, later on it was changed to Merlion. The fish tail of the Merlion symbolises the ancient city of Temasek and represents Singapore's humble beginnings as a fishing village. The statue is located in the main commercial area of Singapore.
A few snaps for you.
Apart from the Merlion, some other attractions worth seeing are the Marina Bay area(where the Merlion is situated), the Chinese Temple, the Suntec City Mall; which is the biggest mall in Singapore, Little India, the Singapore eye (which is a giant wheel and you can see the entire city when you are at the top), Mustafa Shopping centre (for shopoholics). The Suntec City Mall also houses the Fountain of Wealth; which, the mall authorities claim, is the largest fountain in the world. There are also a lot of intresting places to see for Science geeks. I was fortunate enough to see a 'F1 Special' exhibition when I visited the Singapore Science Centre.
A few snaps for you.
For us gluttons:
As far as the foodies are concerned, there are some really great restaurants here. You can have a variety of food here consisting of a vast cuisine; although, doing so on a regular basis in a posh restaurant can be a bit expensive. But, there are a lot of food courts available here catering to your needs and providing you with the same variety at lower rates and qualities. But, its not that bad really. So basically finding food is no big problem. Being an island ofcourse means that the sea food here is great. For people who like to stick to McDonald's and Pizza Huts; there are plenty of 'em available here.
For people who are more of the partying types, I am afraid that I cannot provide any information to you as I was strictly on a 'family holiday'.
People and Culture:
The majority of population in Singapore consists of Chinese and Indians. Infact, one of the official languages of Singapore is Tamil; the other two being Chinese and English. The City itself is planned very well with all the tourist places and the main city well placed. This excellent planning has made it possible to maintain the balance between the natural and the concrete jungles.
The infrastructure facilities available here are really excellent. However, the most lasting impressions left in my mind was the discipline of the people residing in Singapore. They themselves strive hard to maintain the law and order as well as the beauty of the city.
