We only had two days in Singapore as a stopover between New Zealand and Indonesia. This is day one.
We traveled from Auckland to Singapore on the largest AirBus currently built - a monster double-decker with separate suites for first class passengers. It was a ten hour flight and they served us two meals complete with complimentary alcohol. Very classy!
In Singapore, we had the most darling airbnb in a restored heritage building called a shophouse. Apparently these used to have shops on the ground level and living quarters above them.
Our room was in in enclave with several rentable rooms on the upper floors and shared kitchen and living spaces on the ground floor. Shu, our host, must be in the movie business because everything was decorated like a movie set with retro furnishings and paraphernalia everywhere. There was even a pond with a buddha fountain and goldfish.
We arrived late in the evening so we didn’t see much of the city until the next day, when we went out for a food tour that I had prearranged through the With Locals website. We were to meet William at a metro station at 9:00am. After such a long day of traveling and me still limping with my cane and David still coughing, I wondered if this was a good idea, but it turned out to be a great experience and well worth the effort.
William, our guide, was born and raised in Singapore by Chinese immigrant parents so he knows and loves this beautiful city well.
He began by explaining that Singapore has three main cultures -- Malay, Chinese, and Indian -- and that he would be taking us to places where the locals go to eat and shop. So, we would be getting introduced to the cultures of this city through our stomachs. Yummm!
The first area we visited was Haji Lane, where you can see an older Malay part of town juxtaposed against the modern skyscraper in the background.
William insisted on taking a photo of us here.
Our destination was the Kampong Glam Cafe, a popular breakfast place for local Malaysians.
William explained the meaning of the name, which is also the name of the neighborhood. Kampong means village and Glam is thought to be derived from the name of a Malaysian tree. He got us seated and brought us a dish of a traditional breakfast curry to share, which included a hard-boiled egg, a glutinous rice cake, fried tofu, vegies, and toasted coconut, with a delicious curry sauce and a pile of hot chili paste on the side. A great way to start the day!
Next, we went across the street for sweet, milky ginger tea and a pastry with curried potato inside. More deliciousness!
Near there I noticed a twinkling window display of delicate little glass bottles. William explained that this is a perfume store where they mix a personal perfume for you from scratch, particularly suited to your own body chemistry and preference. It would have been lovely to linger and sample some of the fragrances, but we were on our way to Chinatown for more tastings.
Before we boarded the subway for Chinatown though, William insisted on taking a photo of us in front of this beautiful mosque.
In addition to the food, it was great to have a guide to introduce us to the subway system, which is airy, clean and modern.
Here we are emerging in Chinatown, where William again insisted on putting us in the picture.
We strolled through some streets with all the shops selling decorations for the upcoming Chinese New Year - the year of the pig.
On the way, William pointed out a sign indicating a “food street” in one direction, but he said that was for tourists, and he took us in the other direction. Our destination -- an immense food court upstairs with over a hundred stalls of delicious-smelling Chinese delicacies.
Again, William found us a seat and brought our food tastings -- chicken with rice, a very unusual “spring roll”, and a refreshing sugar cane drink.
On our way out of the food court, William took us by the only street food stall to receive a Michelin star - a place with barbeque meats that had a waiting line of more than an hour. It looked fabulous but we’ll have to try it on another trip.
Our third and last stop was in Little India, at a similarly immense food court, for naan and two kinds of pancakes with various sauces and mango lassi drinks. By this time we were pretty full, but we made a valiant effort and finished most of it.
And, here we are with William in Little India after a lovely introduction to this fabulous multi-cultural city.
The next day, we asked our taxi driver about how these three groups with their different religions get along and he assured us that, even though each group maintains its own culture, there is mutual respect and appreciation among them. We said that the United States could learn something from them. He laughed.
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