12.03.10 - Home

We touched down at 5.25 am to a temperature of 3 degrees. Once more we had chatted to people in the lounge in Singgapore. There was the young man who was sitting next to me who came from Trowbridge and a couple who had planned to stop overnight in Singapore but who had been told that they had to leave on Thursday night as their passport had less than six months on it. In fact it was due to expire in a couple of months. They had been to the USA and NZ and no one had noticed until they arrived in Singapore. It was an uneventful flight and we both managed to sleep.

It is now Tuesday and we have been home 4 days. The weather has been very kind to us with fresh but sunny days, hence the washing is all done and suit cases stored away. Only the ironing remains to be completed. We have the photos to download on to the computer and my video needs to be sorted so we still have a bit to do but it all reminds us of the wonderful holiday we have had and the many memories that we will have of the places we have been and the people we have met along the way.

The Botanical Gardens

We woke to a beautiful day, hazy sunshine and no rain so having completed our packing we made our way by taxi to the Botanical Gardens. Our taxi driver was very keen for us to visit a place that sold jewellery as by doing so he would get a petrol voucher we told him that we didn’t have any money left but undetered he said that we didn't have to buy anything and it wasn't out of our way, so as not to disappoint him we agreed. There was some lovely jewellery there but very expensive and having fulfilled our obligation we continued our journey (the taxi driver was delighted with his voucher). The garden covers 63 hectare (155.7 acre) and is home to a diversity of tropical plants set in a beautiful landscape and with plenty to offer. We visited the Ginger Garden which displayed hundreds of species of ginger and included a waterfall that you could even walk behind. Swan Lake which was completed in 1866 not only boasted white mute swans from Amsterdam but was also home to terrapins, catfish and several other types of fish. The centre piece of this was one of the many sculptures displayed around the gardens which was of flying swans and was absolutely enormous. We missed out the rain forest as we did not relish the thought of being bitten prior to our journey. Palm Valley was home to an enormous array of palms both big and small and there was also the bandstand that in its heyday had been the scene for many regimental performances but is now no longer used. It gradually got hotter and more humid so having had lunch we visited the Evolution Garden and then decided to make our way back to the hotel and prepare for our departure.

06.03.10 - Sentosa Island to Mainland Singapore

Our taxi arrived and we were on our way to the Miramar Hotel on the mainland, not such a luxurious hotel but then it is in the city.

We had booked ourselves up for a tour of Singapore by night and with this in mind settled down for an afternoon nap following lunch. Singapore town is a very busy city and there is so much traffic. We were taken to Clarkes Quay where we had a typical Chinese dinner alongside the river. This was then followed by a visit to the Bugis Market which takes place every day from 10.30 in the morning until around midnight. There were lots of people about as it was a Saturday and with this and the humidity which seemed very high I have to admit to being glad when we left. It was then off to the famous Raffles Hotel for the famous Singapore Sling cocktail. We were escorted to the Long Room on the third floor where there was a group singing. On every table there was a square wooden container of the smallest monkey nuts you have ever seen . Apparently when you have finished you just throw the shells on the floor hence a very crunchy sound as you walk across the floor. Peter having finished his drink we made our way to explore. It is a most magnificent building with a large inner courtyard where we would see chefs preparing food and people dining. We then made our way outside and to the front which is very grand, I was amazed as to its size. You can actually stay at Raffles but we never did find out how much it cost. As it is near the end of our holiday we decided that we probably couldn’t afford it anyway.

Our plan today was to revisit the Botanical Gardens as there was so much more that we wanted to see but when we woke this morning it was raining. It is now nearly mid day and just when we thought it was lightening up it has started to rain again and it is tropical rain, very heavy. We can only hope that it will clear later and we can carry on with our plans, if not we have our books.

09.03.10 - Malacca

An early start today as we are going to Malacca in Malasia and it is a long journey. There are 6 of us on this trip and besides ourselves are 2 young girls, one Chinese and one French and a couple who live in California but originate from Manila in the Philippines. We were on and off the mini bus like yoyos while crossing the border, first leaving Singapore and then arriving in Malasia but having picked up our guide we were on our way. I was amazed at how green it all was and fascinated by the plantations of oil palms from which they produce palm oil. Malasia is the second biggest producer of palm oil in the world. The other trees which were much in evidence were the rubber trees, these are tapped twice a day and a little cup is attached to the side of the trunk into which the sap drips.
We arrived in Malacca and made our way to the Equatorial Hotel where we were to dine before embarking on our walking tour of the town. Lunch was splendid and we were soon on our way.
The temperature in Malasia is always high as is the humidity which reaches 95%. Today was no exception with a temperature of about 35 deg and very high humidity. As you can imagine we were soon soaked and were glad of the respite which a bit of shade brought. We wandered though the small side streets where people were selling and producing their wares in tiny openings and learnt about the history of Malacca. Prior to independence Malaysia has been governed by the Dutch, the Portuguese and the British and this is evident in the medieval charm, picturesque buildings and narrow streets. Francis Xavier, the founding father of Christianity in Malasia was originally buried here, his remains are now in Goa and his right arm in Rome. To reach his burial place and the remains of the church we had to climb a hill and then steps, this in itself was not too bad but with the humidity we were all very hot when we eventually reached the other side so it was cold drinks all round.

08.03.10 - We Hit the Shops

Singapore has a shopping are called Orchard Road which makes Oxford Street in London look quite small. It is full of huge shopping malls as well as ‘smaller’ shops and I think you could probably find anything you could think of here. Today we thought we would take a look. The shopping doesn’t particularly appeal but we thought that we ought to experience it. I have to say that once more it was very hot and humid so we meandered in and out of the shops just for the air con. We passed by Emerald Hill which had some original shop-houses all of which had been refurbished and according to the information board no. 2 was furnished in the traditional way but when we went to make enquiries I was told that it was no longer on view and when we looked it was now part of a bar, what a pity! We experienced our first Singapore shower while waiting for the bus, it lasted about an hour and we were amazed at how heavy the rain was, however, it soon dried up. Tonight we wandered along by the river and after cocktails ate in one of the many restaurants there.
We are quite excited as we learnt late this afternoon that the trip we wanted to do to Malasia was to go ahead.

07.03.10 - City Tour

Part of our package was a city tour and commentary. Our guide was quite informative and amusing. Our first stop was the Botanical Gardens. It was Sir Stamford Raffles the founder of modern Singapore, who developed the first ‘Botanical and Experimental Garden’ in 1822 and which closed in 1829. Thirty years later it reopened at its present site and today has a great diversity of tropical plants including the National Orchid Garden which is what we went to see. They have over 20,000 orchid plants on display and the colours and varieties have to be seen to be believed. Our next stop was to be Merlion Park (the Merlion has a lion head and fish body and is the symbol of Singapore) but as there was a marathon taking place that day the roads were closed and so we we went to the highest hill in Singapore, Faber Hill, from which we could see the water on one side and the city on the other. This was followed by a visit to Thian Hock Keng Temple, one of Singapore’s oldest Buddist-Taoist temples. Apparently it had been in a bad state of repair but in recent years has been completely refurbished and has now become a tourist attraction. A local Handicraft Centre was included and here they had pictures and ornaments made of semi-precious stones which were very ornate and beautiful but not to our taste. The tour was finished by a trip to Little India.

05.03.10 - Sentosa

During breakfast today we were visited by a brown squirrel, 3 small white parrots and numerous peacocks of various sizes which proceeded to strut around the terrace where we were eating. In fact one particular large female constantly tried driving off some youngsters who we thought might have been some of last year’s brood, and one cheeky bird made off with a rasher of bacon from the plate of a lady who had gone to get some toast. Needless to say she discarded her plate of food and went for some more.
We decided to explore the island today and caught the bus from the hotel. All buses and trams on the island are free and cover different zones, the yellow line comes to our hotel. Our first stop was Underwater World Singapore and Dolphin Lagoon. We were just in time to see the pink dolphins perform along with about 100 small children who were on a school trip. The highlight of the visit was the 83 metre long acrylic tunnel which gives the impression of being below the sea and from which you can see all manner of fish swimming alongside or overhead. It was lovely and cool inside and it wasn’t until we came outside that we realised how hot and humid it was.
Peter wanted to visit the Tiger Sky Tower which is Singapore’s tallest observation tower at 131 metres and which revolves on the way up and down giving you a 360 degree view. I opted out of this and decided to sit with a drink and wait. I didn’t have to wait long as what we didn’t know was that you just went up and then down and didn’t get out, so no sooner had I sat down with my drink than Pete reappeared. We were really hot and sticky so after our drink we took a quick tram ride along the beach and then returned to the hotel for a refreshing swim.

03/04.03.10 Auckland to Singapore

We left NZ with a heavy heart having thoroughly enjoyed our stay and were particularly sad to say goodbye to Sarina, David and Harry.
Today was to be long day flying from NZ via Melbourne and travelling through several time zones but eventually we touched down in Singapore and were soon on our way to our hotel on Sentosa Island.
We are at the Sentosa Spa Resort for 3 nights to soak up some sun and generally chill out. Thus this morning we had breakfast and made our way to the pool for a leisurely day. Having been dark when we arrived we had not seen the extent of the hotel and were amazed at just how large it was with lots of inner spaces with ponds, fountains, tropical trees and plants. The pool was enormous and well serviced with an attendant providing us with ice cold flannels on arrival and keeping us topped up with iced water for the whole of the day. We really did chill out, swimming, reading our books and people watching. We were kept amused by some peacocks which roam freely in the grounds, a white one, a couple of males and a female with the tiniest chick. Fortunately this morning the sun was not too hot although it did get much hotter in the afternoon and reached about 90 deg although it wasn’t quite so humid.

Last day in NZ

Today is our last day in NZ and Auckland. Tomorrow we are off to Singapore. We take with us many memories. We have enjoyed our stay with Sarina and David and getting to know Harry who has been a real delight. What are the most memorable things that we will take away with us from NZ? Is it the lady that we met in Doubtful Sound who had sold her house and was gradually making her way through her sons' inheritence, the farmers wife who was hand rearing a lamb and would never be able to slaughter it or the wine grower who had reared 2 ducklings along with the chickens so that they now thought that they were chickens and wouldn't go near the pond. Equally it could have been some of the many people we met along the way, such as the man and lady that we met only this week as we were crossing the road and that we stood talking to for about 15 minutes or the man in the shop who wanted to advise where we should go not only in Auckland but also when we get to Singapore. Yes, people have been so friendly and helpful there are too many instances to recount and I am sure that over the weeks and months to come they will gradually all return to us.

Whale and Dolphin Watching

Today started with a trip to the Maritime Museum. From the outside it didn't look very big and we thought that an hour or so would see everything. How wrong we were. We managed a couple of hours and still couldn't cover it all, the models of boats was amazing some of them being as big as two thirds of the original. Grabbing a sandwich we made our way to the harbour. We were going off for another boat trip to hopefully see whales and/or dolphins. The sun was shining and the sea blue as we started on our trip. We headed out of the harbour and motored for about 2 hours towards the Coramondel peninsula which is supposed to be one of the best places to see the dolphins but once more they were proving elusive so we headed in another direction when there was a shout someone had spotted a dolphin at the rear of the ship. We ended up seeing several but only swimming under the water and no acrobatics. It obviously wasn't enough as once more we were issued with a voucher to go and have another trip.

28.02.10 The Tsunami and Nippers

New Zealand surf life saving clubs offer training to both adults and to young people who may eventually wish to qualify as lifeguards. These juniors, or ‘nippers’, learn a range of skills through competitions. Harry is a Nipper and meets with his club at Pahia Beach about 45 km from Milford where he lives. We said that we would like to go and see what he did so off we set with him and Sarina. However, on our arrival we discovered that there had been an earthquake in Chile setting of a tsunami in the Pacific and affecting the east coast of NZ. All the beaches both east and west had been closed and Nippers had been cancelled for this week. We were a little concerned as Sarina and David's house is on the east coast and the ocean is at the end of their road. Fortunately there was no massive wave and the house was safe. Once the danger seemed to have passed the beach was opened and swimmers and surfers were alowed in the water. Harry had the time of his life, surfing and playing in the water and on the beach.

Having left the beach we drove to Waitakere and Sarina, David and Harry took us for a walk in the bush to Kitekite waterfall. It was a very picturesque and there was even someone swimming in the lake at the bottom and no it wasn't a child it was a man! We finished our day with a barbeque when Pete cooked the red snapper in wet newspaper.