We took First Coach from Bandar Utama to Novena Square, Singapore and I was quite impressed by the bus. We paid RM140 for two ways and I could say it was well worth it. Before we started the journey to Singapore, they provided us with a bottle of water, a sandwich and coupons for hot coffee or tea at the waiting lounge. In the bus, there was ample leg room, and you can put your chair on recline without annoying the other passengers. Besides that, you can also watch movie and listen songs with the TV that is provided, it is just like sitting on a plane. The journey to Singapore took roughly around 5 hours.
It was my first time travelling to Singapore by land. I did not know that the distance between Singapore and Malaysia was that near, even nearer than the Penang bridge. Also, a huge difference can be seen between the customs of Singapore and customs of Malaysia. I shall not speculate further and leave it at that. :P
Upon reaching Singapore, we picked one of the restaurants to have lunch and also went to 7 Eleven to purchase a tourist simcard. There are two versions of the hi!Tourist sim card by SingTel, one for $15 and the other for $30. Well, the main point of the sim card, was for the 100GB data that they have! Me and Mei Xin shared a sim card and I have to say I was so happy that there is wifi so I can mark down the more memorable places to visit again, read reviews and google maps my way to cafes, and not forgetting uploading my photos as I go around.
So, me and Mei Xin went to Raffles Place to look for my sister, who is working there. We had to be despatch personnel and bought coffee for my sisters and her colleagues. Haha, upon reaching Raffle's Place area, I was so amazed by all the buildings, the way people dressed up and how good looking they were hahahaha.
Dropped our baggage and walked all the way to Marina Bay Sands area, of course, being tourists, we had to stop to see the infamous Merlion. The first time I came here, the merlion was under renovation. Thankfully this time, it wasn't.
Merlion, and Singapore's financial district at the back!
The durian shaped Esplanade.
Anyway my dress and cardigan are from H&M if you are wondering, and flip flops because I am on holiday and I deserve to walk around comfortably.
Marina Bay Sands in the background
Helix bridge to Marina Bay Sands
The view from Marina Bay Sands, showing Singapore's financial district at the back.
We enjoyed the view around Marina Bay Sands and walked inside Marina Bay Sands. We decided to head to the casino to have a look see. If you are Singaporean, you have to pay a one time levy to get into the casino, but if you are a foreigner, it is free. They were quite strict about getting in and out of the casino. They actually check your passports when you enter and when you leave, so don't forget to bring your passport along!
Well, Marina Bay Sands casino gives the same vibes as the one in Macau. As expected, most of the people there are tourists who look like they just want to have some fun gambling. I am not sure why, but the casino in Genting does not give the same vibes.
We did not play at all as it was only our first day in Singapore, need to keep the money for our other expenses and also thinking of the 2.8 exchange rate is such a mood kill. Hence, we only went to the casino to look see and also take their free drinks hahaha. They have bottled water, orange juice and coke, if I am not mistaken.
Continued our journey to Gardens by the Bay!
At a pretty underpass towards Gardens By The Bay.
Singapore Flyer in the background.
View of Marina Bay Sands from Gardens by the Bay!
The infamous Supertree Grove. Love the vibes at this area where people just sit down on the grass and enjoy the scenery with their friends and family. However, didn't manage to catch the Garden Rhapsody lights show, but this gives me another excuse to come back here in the future.
The whole Gardens by the Bay is very impressive! Apparently if you were to walk the whole Gardens by the Bay, it is more than 8km! This place is the perfect place for a date, or an evening jog. Also, each and every corner of the place is very well maintained. I can't imagine how much manpower they need to water the plants each day.
Definitely will come back here with my jogging shoes next time! :)
Rushed back to Raffles Place to meet up with Bunny. We went to 49 Seats near Outram Park MRT Station.
The portion was quite big and everything was quite decent for the price paid. If I happen to pass by this area and if I happen to be hungry, I wouldn't mind dining here again.
49 Seats
49, Kreta Ayer Road,
Singapore.
Contact: +65 62254332
Facebook: 49 Seats
Opening Hours:
6.00 pm to 2.00 am (Mondays to Thursdays)
6.00 pm to 5.30 am (Fridays and Saturdays)
Also available at Bugis Plus and Orchard Central.
Took the MRT back to Clementi station and took bus to go back to my sister's rented unit. My sister was like telling us on which bus to get on and which bus to get off. She was worried that we are going to get lost in Singapore. I am quite impressed with the bus system in Singapore though. The bus comes every few minutes and we can check through an app on when is the next bus coming.
However I am ashamed to say that I have never really taken a bus in Malaysia myself so I don't know if such features exist in our country.
Also when we were walking back, I kept looking behind because it was night time and we were walking at quite a quiet area. Sister told me not to worry as Singapore is quite a safe country.
The next day, me and Mei Xin took the bus ourselves to the MRT Station and took MRT to Tanjong Pagar station.
We went to Drury Lane for brunch!
I, on the other hand, had what they classified on their desserts menu, as brunch! I had the Pancakes with Bacon and Chilli, drizzled with Maple Butter ($10). The bacon wasn't too salty, the maple butter wasn't too sweet and the chilli combo worked. Strange enough, that this combination tasted amazingly good!
My sister was raving to me about it and at first I was quite reluctant to try because when the KL crowd was raving about the BBC Waffles in Standing Theory, I didn't quite like it.
Drury Lane
94, Tanjong Pagar Road,
Singapore 088515
Contact: +65 6222 6698
Instagram: drurylanesg
Website: Drurylane Specialty Coffee
Facebook: Drury Lane
Opening Hours:
8.00 am to 6.00 pm (Mondays and Tuesdays)
8.00 am to 10.00 pm (Wednesdays to Fridays)
9.00 am to 6.00 pm (Weekends and Public Holidays)
After that, we went to Bugis to walk around and honestly I was quite disappointed. It was like the Singapore version of Petaling Street. So many people told me that Bugis has clothing like a mini-Bangkok or Times Square, but unfortunately no. I think the only thing we bought for the day was imported chocolate.
Went to Orchard to run some errands for my sister and also window shopped a little at the nearby mall. Mei Xin went to meet up with her friends while I went to meet Bunny at her workplace for dinner. We had Korean food and it was good to catch up with her on what was going on in my life.
The next day, me and Mei Xin woke up and got ourselves to Clementi Mall and had this for breakfast.
Took the MRT to Choa Chu Kang station then sat a bus to...... Singapore Zoo!
Have been wanting to visit the zoo for a while and I heard from my cousin that Singapore Zoo is the best zoo in South East Asia.
They recently received a few koalas and kangaroos and have a Australian zone. Initially, I wanted to go to Australia during this leave period but it was too last minute. So happy that I still got to see my Australian animals!
White tiger.
Clinging on to dear life.
Hello there, human!
Such a calming and beautiful view. It was really breezy as well.
Real crocodile.
There was another crocodile/alligator in the water and it was not moving at all. Was staring at it for quite awhile until this other China tourist, came and take a photo with the flash on. The crocodile was really really angry! It snapped instantly and swam away. I was so angry as well. Well.... All I can say is, this is why we hear accidents at the zoo, like why tigers end up eating the humans, or something like that.
Zebra don't need to do anything also can be so photogenic already wtf.
Another one of my favourite animals, the giraffe!
Learnt a lot of new things about animals on this day and I felt that my zoo tickets is quite worth paying for. Just letting you know if you happen to want to go to Singapore Zoo, purchase your tickets online! You can save up to 30% if you do so.
After a long and tiring day of walking around under the hot sun, we decided to have something nice for dinner. Thanks to Mei Xin's friend, we went to Saveur at Far East Plaza.
Saveur's Pasta : Chilli oil, finely-chopped konbu, minced pork sauce, chives and sakura ebi.
This is supposed to be a starter($4.90) but we ordered it in mains portion. Tastes something like aglio olio to me, and I would definitely prefer the dish below.
The duck confit was so good I'm not even kidding! Mash potatoes was really fine as if it was put in a blender or something haha.
Definitely quality italian food at an affordable price.
Saveur @ Far East Plaza
14 Scotts Road
#01-7B (S) 228213
Contact: +65 6736 1121
Facebook: Saveur
Website: Saveur
Opening Hours:
11.30 am to 9.30 pm (Monday to Saturday)
11.30 pm to 9.15 pm (Sunday)
After that, walked around Orchard and window shopped again. Wanted to try this Llao Llao frozen yoghurt that I have been seeing on most Singaporean instagram page, so I searched on where was the nearest Llao Llao.
Anyway, for this Sanum you get to pick three layers of seasonal fresh fruit, two toppings, and your own sauce on top.
Went home and KO on the bed.
The next day, went for brunch with Bunny nearby her house.
Mei Xin and Bunny, if you are wondering.
Bottom: French toast - two pieces of french toast served with bacon, pork sausage and maple syrup. ($17)
The french toast was awesome, and I liked the fact that they serve pork sausages and pork bacon! Haha, lets just say that they are more flavourful as compared to chicken sausages or beef bacon.
W39 Bistro & Bakery
39 Jalan Mas Puteh,
Off West Coast Road,
Singapore 128637.
Contact: +65 9646 9372
Website: W39 Bistro & Bakery
Instagram: w39bistro
Opening Hours:
11.00 am to 10.00 pm (Tuesday to Fridays)
9.00 am to 10.30 pm (Saturdays, Sundays and Public Holidays)
After that, took the bus to Jurong East where there were a few malls grouped together. Bunny brought us to the supermarket where we picked up Nutella On-The-Go ($1.75) and Fruitips (discontinued in Malaysia long long time ago). Then she brought us to this shop, TEMT, at Jurong East Mall where everything was so cheap and trendy! Bought myself two dresses for only $50.
Then rush back to Bunny's place and take our luggage and rush to Novena Square. Made it in time to take away KFC's popcorn chicken (also discontinued in Malaysia) and boarded the bus home.
Will definitely be a next time soon as I have not visited a few places which I wanted to.
Among all trips I have been to Singapore, this trip has to be the most satisfying one, paid with my own capabilities and also gone with one of the best travel partners who put up with me and has the same budget as me.
It's back to work for me tomorrow and I hope you enjoyed this post as much as I did writing it.
Till then,
xx.
