2 Days in Singapore!

Marina Bay Sands photographed by Niko Heydenrych.

Where do I begin? Singapore has to be one of the most incredible cities I've visited so far, and it definitely exceeded my expectations. What started as a stopover on the way to Thailand, a trip that has been 3 and a half years in the making, became one of the most enchanting experiences and I absolutely fell in love with the culture, vibrancy, people, and feeling of this beautiful country. 

Day 1.

Landing in Singapore after a 5 hour flight from Perth we made our way to the Peninsular Excelsior Hotel to check in for our stay. At 1am in the morning we collected our luggage and ordered a Grab, to be greeted by the most animated driver who was eager to tell us the best experiences to engage in on our short trip, suggesting what he called the 'must do' iconic sunset experience at the Marina Bay Sands Hotel - more on that later.

Waking up the next morning we decided to have a slow morning, easing into our stay with a room service breakfast and coffee, and coming up with a rough plan for the day before heading out to explore. Top of the list, the Avatar Experience at the Cloud Forest and SuperTree Grove. As soon as we stepped outside our hotel, we were hit with intense humidity. At just 10 in the morning it was already 31 degrees and this gave us an idea of what we would be in for, for the next 2 days. 

Walking towards our destination of the waterfront and Marina Bay Sands it became apparent that we would be stopping regularly as the architecture and city design stopped us in our tracks. Everywhere we looked there was green. In this great urban jungle, there was flourishing plant life in every direction and I already knew that Singapore was going to exceed my expectations.

The waterfront gave us the perfect opportunity to photograph the iconic building of the Marina Bay Sands Hotel before again getting distracted by the gelato stand and Singapore Flyer, deciding to make a booking for later in the afternoon. Booking the champagne experience turned out to be one of the best decisions we made, that was worth every cent. Arriving back at the flyer half an hour before our departure we relaxed in a lounge before being privately escorted to our flight. Once on board we were greeted with a glass of champagne each, and to our surprise a fully private experience. We had the whole cabin to ourselves and spent the next 30 minutes enjoying incredible views over Singapore in every direction and drinking champagne, the ultimate luxury!

We'd had a full morning prior to this as well, although not exactly in the order we'd planned before we left the hotel. After walking all the way to SuperTree Grove we took the opportunity to make a Cloud Forest booking for the evening seeing as we'd booked the Flyer for the afternoon and were pretty much counting down minutes before we'd have to turn around and walk back across the river, although we did have some time to explore. Walking through the SuperTrees themselves, I realised they are so much bigger than you would expect. The whole experience was like walking through giants, and the entire time I still couldn't fathom how we ended up exploring this incredible place. It was a very pinch me moment.

A visit to Gardens by the Bay wouldn't be complete without a visit to the onsite Hawker Centre though, and dining at the 1 Michelin Star restaurant on site was a must. Safe to say the food was great - I had a roast duck and rice dish, although I really know nothing about Michelin Star dining and whether this was a legitimate proclamation or not.

Once we'd enjoyed some good food and the Singapore Flyer, we had our second gelato of the day and made a plan for the evening, which involved a much needed freshen up at the hotel. I can only think of one other time in my life when I'd felt this level of humidity and heat, and that was a brief exploration of the island nation of Vanuatu in my teenage years. Changed and refreshed we headed back to Marina Bay to explore the Avatar Experience - which was an absolute must see and is on exhibition until January 2024, as well as catch the SuperTree Grove light show. A perfect end to a busy and fulfilling day.

Day 2.

Waking up to views like this over Singapore felt electric, and after having such an incredible first day we were excited to explore more of the city. Singapore is huge, both the main city and the rest of the country. There is so much to see and do, and two days just wasn't enough. Naturally, Singapore is high up on my list to visit again in the near future.

We had a plan of what we wanted to see and do, although there were so many things we could have added to our list. Tossing up visiting either Chinatown or Little India was one of these impossible decisions, however we ended up settling on Little India. After ordering a Grab we realised that we'd put in the name of the wrong mosque we had been planning to get dropped off at and found ourselves in another beautiful part of the city, not more than a 10 minute walk from our intended destination. I'm still unsure of the name of this area, however the buildings, cafes, and design had a very strong Turkish influence and we found ourselves walking through the streets admiring some of the best street art I've ever seen before stopping for brunch at The Secret Garden. Great food and great coffee fuelled us as we continued our journey, stopping in our tracks as we discovered Sultan Mosque, a beautiful building with a rich history. Initially built in 1824 as a brick building with space for 500 worshippers, the new mosque was built with a donation by the East India Trading Company in 1928 and is a preserved historical building as it stands today.

While we had arrived in a different area, our mission was still to explore Little India and so we walked about 1km to get there as the streets gradually became busier. Soon enough we were admiring temples and mosques amid the bustling environment of Little India and I felt like we had been transported away from Singapore to India itself. I've always wanted to visit India and I know that this area will only be a small taster of what India is actually like, and it is still definitely on my endless list of countries to visit in the future. We didn't spend long here, but I did enjoy the vibrancy and busyness, a different way of being and far from what my own life looks like.

Before heading back to the hotel to prepare for our evening activities, we popped by Sri Veeramakaliamman - one of the most beautiful and famous Hindu temples in Singapore, built in 1881 by Indian pioneers who moved for work. We could see that it was incredibly beautiful and intricate, however a majority of the temple was covered during our visit, so I guess that means we will just have to go back another time.

Somehow, after jetting all over the city we still managed to squeeze in a visit to the ArtScience Museum, which is something I would highly recommend if you’re ever in Singapore. The exhibitions are always changing, pushing the boundaries of art and science, merging them together in a way that questions our perceptions of the world and redefines ways in which they can compliment one another. The interactive exhibitions were beautifully crafted, interesting, and immersive.

The evening of our second day in Singapore is one I will remember for a long time. As I mentioned earlier, our airport driver said one of the things we had to do while visiting was sunset at the Marina Bay Sands Hotel. Because we hadn't pre-booked, we were incredibly lucky to actually be able to do this. There are a limited number of spaces for people to go up to the observation deck at set times throughout the evening and there were only two spaces left on the 5.45pm elevator when we booked. Once you are up there however, you can stay as long as you want. As we sipped prosecco and watched the sun sink behind the city, I reflected on my time here. Somewhere I had never planned to be had turned out to be one of my favourite places I'd ever visited, and I am so thankful it worked out this way. Life seems to have a way of putting you in places you never knew you needed or wanted, and I believe this was one of those times. I hope I remember this feeling for the rest of my life.

Sunset over Singapore from the Marina Bay Sands Hotel observation deck.

A spontaneous river cruise ended our night and seeing the city from two different viewpoints in one evening was pretty special. Relaxed, at peace, fulfilled, and very tired we made our way back to the hotel to pack for our very early morning flight to Phuket.

Until next time Singapore.