Singapore - Marina Bay Sands - Water and Light show (Wonder Full)

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  Marina Bay Sands Water and Light Show

Having seen "Sound and Light" shows in other countries' tourist attractions, I was expecting just shooting water, laser lights and maybe some fireworks.  The clear images projected on the water mists were unbelievable!  Go experience it yourself, if you can.

The show is played nightly at Marina Bay Sands' waterfront platform just outside the shoppes.  You will not miss the platform because of the crowd which gathers there.

The first Saturday of the 15-min complimentary show (19 Feb 11) played to a packed and appreciative audience.  The show started at 9:30pm but the platform was already very crowded by 8:45pm.  So, go early to pick a good spot.. and pray it does not rain. :-)

By the way, there are no fireworks - just laser-light, wonderful images and water fountains played to accompanying music.

The official site with updated timings is below:
http://www.marinabaysands.com/Singapore-Attractions/Wonderfull/

Singapore - Chinatown (The TinTin shop)

The TinTin Shop

Address: 56 Pagoda Street Singapore 059215 
MRT station: Chinatown (North-East Line)
Opening hours: Monday to Sunday, 11am to 9pm
Email enquiry:  info.tintin@gmail.com


Fans of TinTin, you need look no further than Chinatown (Singapore) to get your favourite TinTin products!  I heard stocks are moving fast, so do check out this place soon.

Singapore - ION Orchard (Dec 2010)

KRASNAYA Watch Art Gallery

A couple of tourists (1 male and 1 female) walked past this shop at ION Orchard, pulling along their trolley luggages and probably doing last-minute shopping.  When the man spotted above shop (website: http://www.krasnayawatch.com), he became very excited, as if he has found the "Holy Grail" or something.

Most locals would walk past the shop with barely a glance.  The man took out his digital camera, took a few pictures of the shop (like above), asked his female companion to take a shot with him posing in front of the shop, asked his female companion to also pose in front of the shop, brought his camera into the shop, only to be chased out promptly (no photos allowed in shop).  The female companion appeared not very interested.

For those who did not click on the above weblink, according to the website, this is the only KRASNAYA shop in Singapore.  KRASNAYA means "Red" in Russian (Red Army Watches) and this shop sells collector branded watches from Russia.

It is located at Unit B3-03 (opposite Starbucks) of ION Orchard shopping mall, accessible by buses or the trains [MRT] (North-South Line, look for the ION exit at Orchard station).

Happy Holidays! (Dec 2010)

Christmas Stitch (outside Inter-continental Hotel, Singapore)

Here's wishing all readers "Happy Holidays!!"

I shall be back with more "exotic travel pictures" soon..

Singapore - Resorts World Sentosa (Aug 2010)

There is life after sunset at Resorts World Sentosa and I am not just referring to the Casino. The rides at Universal Studios Singapore may be closed but the restaurants (in and around Universal Studios, as well as at the basement near Casino) are open. There is also a "theatrical circus spectacular", Voyage de la Vie, starting at 8:30pm (Wed-Sun nights) at the theatre next to the Casino. No animals are involved, just human acrobats and a male singer.

If you can choose, request for seats at the front rows closest the stage. You will feel more "immerse" in the performance and enjoy the show more. Do note the performance is "closed for maintenance" from 12 - 23 Sep 2010.

You can find out more about the performance, showtimes and book your tickets here:

http://www.rwsentosa.com/language/en-US/EntertainmentNightlife/VoyagedeLaVie

Well, at least the show's ticket price is cheaper than the entry levy for locals into the Casino.. :-)

Singapore - Final NDP Rehearsal at Marina Bay Sands (31 Jul 2010)

For the final National Day Parade (NDP) rehearsal on 31 Jul 2010, I caught the flypast and mobile columns from the overhead bridge leading towards Suntec City.

I then made my way across Marina Square Shopping Mall, the Helix Bridge and onwards to Marina Bay Sands. During the playing of the National Anthem, look up towards the SkyPark and you would see a dazzling light show!
Look who had gathered to catch the best views of the fireworks? No other than the marching contingents!
They were actually there to participate in the finale of the National Day Parade, One Voice 2010, to recite the pledge and sing the National Anthem on 2010 hrs. It was quite impressive!

P.S. On all the Saturdays when I caught the NDP finale firework displays from various locations (Esplanade Bridge, Marina Bay Sands, Helix Bridge, and I am sure everywhere else), there was always appreciative applause after the firework display ended. If only the firework display can continue every Saturday.. (sigh!)

Singapore - Marina Bay Sands (June 2010)

Inspired by the Business Times article found here (http://www.relax.com.sg/relax/news/393588/MBS_Makings_of_a_big_star.html), I decided to make a trip to Marina Bay Sands on 26 Jun 10.

Marina Bay Sands (website: http://www.marinabaysands.com/) is more than a casino. There are shops, restaurants, lounge, an outdoor area for you to see the Singapore skyline and a SkyPark for you to get a bird's eyeview of the surrounding islands. In year 2011, there will be performance theatres, exhibition halls and maybe even "sound and light" shows on certain nights.

Besides the surfboard-like SkyPark, you may noticed some "flappers" outside the 55-storey hotel. These are collectively known as "Wind Arbor". The flappers created a water ripple-like effect when the wind blows and look nice both daytime and at night. Inside the hotel main lobby (above, bottom row, right pic), look up and you will see some steel spider-web like structure, called "Drift".

The buildings opposite the hotel are the shops (or "shoppes"). Near the outdoor area, you will see an inverted dome structure. This is NOT a wishing well, so please do not throw your "lucky coins" down the dome. This is also not a litter-bin. There may be security cameras trained at the structure, so good luck to the person who attempts to throw rubbish down this dome. :-)

It is actually called a "rain oculus", designed to catch rain water which will drip into a "canal" in the shopping centre. If you happened to be at the "shoppes" when it rains, you may like to take a look at this rain-catching "oculus" from the basement. I spotted some drain-holes in the "canal", so I am confident it will not overflow and flood the basement shops during extremely heavy rainfall.

One function of the "canal" is for the romantics who may like to catch a sampan ride (as opposed to a gondola ride) in the shopping centre. I would not expect the sampan ride to be "rocky", even when the weather outside is stormy.

In the main hotel, there is a lounge with 'live' music playing, called "Fuse" (top row, left). Next to it (top row, right) is an international buffet restaurant called "Rise". At the other end (bottom row) is a Chinese restaurant called "Jin Shan" ("Golden Hill" in Mandarin).

I shall not mention the other Chinese restaurant located at the casino area which is served by 2 slow lifts. If both lifts broke down while the guests were already in the restaurant, the Singaporean restaurant patrons may have to pay Casino Levy (S$100 per Singaporean) to leave the place via the Casino.

Marina Bay Sands has a "kids club" for you to "park" your kids, while you "park" yourself at the casino, shops or restaurants. The kids will be entertained by electronic games, cartoons and the staff would even play table-tennis or table-soccer with your kids if they wish to. The "Casino" signboard is popular with non-patrons (especially those below the age limit) to take a picture to show they have been near a casino.

Singapore - NDP Rehearsal at Marina Bay Sands (Jun 2010)

If you happen to be at Marina Bay Sands on any of the Saturday evenings in the month of July, you will notice a group of people gathering to view the Singapore waterfront between 6:30pm to 8:20pm. They are actually there to see the flypasts (between 6:40pm to 7:15pm) and fireworks (8:10pm to 8:20pm) of the National Day Parade Rehearsals from a new viewpoint. If you are lucky enough to purchase a ticket to the SkyPark during that period, you may get to view the flypasts and fireworks from up in the sky!

The full works can be seen on National Day (9 Aug 10). Unfortunately, you cannot see or hear much between the flypasts and fireworks, unless you have a mobile phone or laptop which can stream the parade 'live' on 9 Aug. Otherwise, you may be better off getting a drink or taking a stroll at the 'shoppes' between the flypasts and fireworks.

Have fun!

Singapore - Resorts World Sentosa (Apr 2010)

A trip to Resorts World Sentosa (http://www.rwsentosa.com/) and Universal Studios Singapore costs only S$2 by public bus RWS 8 from Vivocity (or Harbourfront MRT). You can check out the website (http://www.rwsentosa.com/language/en-US/Attractions/UniversalStudiosSingapore) for the entrance fees to Universal Studios Singapore. You need 1 whole day to try the unlimited rides and attractions. As I only reached Sentosa island around 11am, I decided to just view the Universal Studios from outside.

Local citizens and Permanent Residents have to cough out S$100 as entry levy just to step in. For overseas guests, you just need to show your passport to gain free entry. 

Above are 2 other interesting hotels at Resorts World Sentosa.

Japan - Osaka Universal Studios (Oct 2007)

With so much excitements about the opening of Universal Studios Singapore [at Resorts World Sentosa (http://www.rwsentosa.com/)] and another in South Korea soon, I thought of sharing some photos I took in Oct-07, from the outside of Universal Studios Osaka - I did not purchase the day-pass to go in.

Egypt Guided Tour - Cairo Arrival (Dec 2004)

Being slightly naive, we thought of having a "free and easy" day before our guided-tour to explore Cairo on our own. We were armed with only the Lonely Planet (Egypt) guidebook and our knowledge of English language. We did not took the tour's hotel transfer because we arrived a day before the tour started.

We were stuck at the Egyptian Customs for an hour plus! Apparently, this Customs officer seldom saw young (late-twenties/early-thirties) Chinese Asians with Singapore passports visiting Egypt for pleasure back in 2004. He took a very long time trying to establish that our passports were real, even to the point of trying to remove the photograph pasted on the passport!

Thanks to an English-speaking Egyptian tour-guide who noticed our uncomfortable situation, the tour-guide managed to convince the Customs officer to let us through.

We checked into our hotel and visited the Cairo Tower nearby.
We were surprised to see how developed Cairo was, with all the buildings, cars and roads. From the Cairo Tower, we spotted the Giza pyramids in the horizon. We could not wait for our "Wonders of Egypt" guided tour to start..

Egypt Guided Tour - Memphis, Giza (Dec 2004)

After breakfast and a pre-tour briefing, we started our "Wonders of Egypt" tour with a sightseeing trip to Memphis, the capital of the Old Kingdom. We saw a colossal statue of Rameses II and a great alabaster sphinx. We then made a short photo-stop at Sakkara, to see the Step Pyramid of Zoser I.

Our next stop was Giza, to see the famous Sphinx and magnificent Giza Pyramids. Here, we got to climb up and walk alongside one of the Pyramids, as well as climb in to see the inside of another one of these historical creations. At night, we returned for a magical "Sound and Light Show" which illustrated the ancient history of Giza (in English).

Clockwise from top-left: The statue of Rameses II, the alabaster sphinx, the famous Sphinx and Great Pyramid (copyrighted by me, because you need to be at a certain location to take this photo), the Sakkara Step Pyramid, another view of the Sphinx, a lighted Pyramid, ticket to the Giza Pyramids "Sound and Light Show", a lighted Sphinx.

Centre: A picture of the 3 Pyramids of Giza (also copyrighted by me).

Egypt Guided Tour - Luxor and Karnak (Dec 2004)

We took a morning internal flight from Cairo to Luxor. We were brought to a cruise boat in private moorings near the edge of the town. After we have "checked in" and left our luggages in our cabins, we had lunch on board. We then alighted to visit the Luxor Temple (below).

Luxor Temple (middle row, 2nd pic): You need to take this picture from an angle so it seemed like the branches are growing out of its head. :-)


Next we visited the Karnak Temple, constructed over a time period of 1500 years.

(bottom row, 2nd pic): It's hard to resist taking a picture of the "bunny" photo. :-)

At night, we returned to walk through the Avenue of Sphinxes, as we were introduced to a complimentary "Sound and Light Show". We strolled through the Karnak Temple one more time.

Egypt Guided Tour - Hatshepsut and Valley of Kings (Dec 2004)

This morning, after breakfast on board the ship, we alighted to have a photo-stop on the West bank of the Nile for a photo of the towering Colossi of Memnon. These 2 seated figures are the only remains of the Amon-Ofis III mortuary temple.

We next visited the Temple of Queen Hatshepsut, which blended into the cliff face above. This temple was also known as the Temple of Deir El-Bahri ("Temple of the Northern monastery" in arabic).

We next dropped by the Valley of the Kings, which is the burial place of many New Kingdom Pharaohs, including King Tutankhamon. Our ticket granted us access to 3 tombs (except for that of King Tut's).

Egypt Guided Tour - Edfu and Kom Ombo (Dec 2004)

In the morning, we visited the Temple of Horus (Falcon God) in Edfu. We then spent the rest of the day cruising until we reached Kom Ombo.
We stepped foot into the Temple of Sorbek (Crocodile God) and saw mummified remains of many small crocodiles.

On our final night on board the ship, we were treated to an Egyptian Galabea Party and Dinner. We arrived at our ship's final destination, Aswan, the next morning.

Egypt Guided Tour - Nubian Village, Aswan (Dec 2004)

At Aswan, we took an optional tour to sail to a colourful Nubian Village. We bought some nice souvenirs there.

Egypt Guided Tour - Aswan (Dec 2004)

We took a motor-boat ride to the Temple of Isis, which is on the island of Philae on the river Nile.

(bottom row) We saw some Egyptian children, a building and noted how crowded the tourist boats could be.

We later sailed in a traditional felucca in the Nile river, around Aswan's Botanical Gardens.

Egypt Guided Tour - Abu Simbel, Aswan (Dec 2004)

(Top row) The next day, we took the optional early-morning excursion to visit the magnificent Abu Simbel temples in Aswan. It was well-worth the time and money. I felt like Indiana Jones when I entered the temples. :-)

(Bottom row) In Aswan, we saw an unfinished obelisk in an ancient Granite Quarry (left). We also passed by the Aswan High Dam (right).

We took the afternoon flight back to Cairo.

Egypt Guided Tour - Cairo (Dec 2004)

Back in Cairo, we visited the famous Egyptian Museum. We saw many Egyptian artefacts, including some of King Tutankhamun's treasures. The museum was so big it would take days to see each and every exhibit in the museum.

Egypt - The Great Pyramid of Cheops (Dec 2004)

Best of Egypt (Dec 2004)

It could take another few months to compile the historical sites of Egypt, so here is my collage of the "Best of Egypt" for now.. :-)

Top row (1st 2 pics) are the temples of Abu Simbel, 3rd pic is the cruise down the Nile River.

Middle row: We saw the Colossi Of Memnon (1st pic), the Giza Pyramids and the famous Sphinx (middle pic) and the less famous Step Pyramid (3rd pic). I was glad we visited the Giza Pyramids and Sphinx before watching it in the movies 'Jumper',
'Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen' and 'G.I. Joe: Rise of Cobra'.


Bottom row: We dropped by the Valley of the Kings to explore the Tomb of King Tut (1st pic). We also visited the Karnak Temple (middle pic) and came across an alabaster shop selling souvenirs of an Egyptian goddess (3rd pic).

Egypt Guided Tour - Cairo (Dec 2004)

On our final day in Cairo where we get a transfer from hotel to airport, our flight out was in the evening. With time to spare, we decided to search for a place recommended in the Lonely Planet. With help from the hotel staff and a map, we located "El Fishawy" Coffeehouse (top row) to try their famous coffee. We also saw many tourists there with the Lonely Planet (Egypt) guide-book in their hands. :-)

(Bottom row) Notice the shops and street names did not even have an English alphabet in it. There was also a bazaar teeming with people.

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In Egypt, we started our tour from Cairo, flew to Luxor, took a cruise down the Nile to Aswan and then flew back to Cairo.

We joined Insight Vacations for this 9-day guided tour. While I am preparing the photos, do check out the guide books from Amazon.com.

Dubai (Dec 2004)

Back then, the Dubai taxi meters jumped at 50 cents per click! We learnt quickly to take buses.

The shopping malls in Dubai are huge. Top row 1st pic is Mercato Mall. 2nd row 1st pic is the Egyptian themed Wafi City Mall. You should try the Abra ride (top row 2nd pic) while in Dubai. It is near the Spice Souk (top row 3rd pic) and Gold Souk (2nd row 3rd pic). If you like luxurious living, why not drop by Burj Al Arab (2nd row 2nd pic) for a drink or high tea?

Wild Wadi (3rd row 1st pic) water theme park is near the Burj. You may also like to check out the Hard Rock Cafe (3rd row 2nd pic) in Dubai. The Jumaira Beach Park (3rd row 3rd pic) charged 5 Dhs per entry.

My travel experience

Let us take a break here before I upload more travel photos..

So, how do we travel?  We started our Europe trips with guided tours and later realised we could easily get around, as long as we can speak English and have a map to guide us.

In 2003, we started our Europe tour by joining the Trafalgar tour group in Rome for a grand Italy tour (http://exotic-italy-notes.blogspot.com/).  Our local travel agent booked our flights separately for us after confirming our tour package.  We "discovered" the ease of internet flight booking in 2004 and booked our subsequent flights with the most economical airlines thereafter.

In 2004, we took advantage of an airline's (Emirates) promotion of providing discounted hotel stay on transit and extended our vacation to that country (Dubai) after our main tour with Insight Vacations in Egypt.

While booking flights, we realized the conveniences of hotel confirmation. We started reading hotel reviews on http://www.TripAdvisor.com.

We made our most "daring" trip by booking only return flights and the first 3-night hotel stay in Athens, Greece, during Summer 2006. Majority of the trip was really free-and-easy, when we booked our next hotel stay via internet or phone the day before we travelled there. The Lonely Planet - Greece guide helped us a lot in Greece. We missed our ferry once and had to extend our stay at one of the hotels for extra nights. We were lucky there were vacancies, although we had to change rooms.

In Japan (2007), we foresaw possible language problem and pre-booked all our hotel stays. It is important to bring along a printed copy of the confirmation email, together with the hotel's address and map (if possible). Our travel guide for Japan was Rough Guide - Japan.

In all our trips (both guided and free and easy), it is useful to bring along at least 1 guide book (either borrowed or bought). During the free time for guided tours, the guide book referred us to some interesting side-places for our extra photo-shoots. Our favourite guidebooks packed with photos, illustrations and maps are from the Eyewitness Travel Series.

We learned during our travels to always be patient with others and always have a sense of humour. Time is at our disposal since we are on vacation.

I hope the photos inspire you and the Travel Guides help you on your next trip to the country. :-)

Greece (Aug 2006) - Athens

Our 3-week Greek Odyssey started in Athens. Here, we visited the Parthenon (top row, middle pic) on the Acropolis (the first of many hills we did not realize we would be climbing to see the archeological sites), and we also saw the Caryatid Porch of Erechtheion (top row, 3rd pic), supported on the heads of 6 shapely maidens (caryatids).

The middle row shows the Parliament building in Syntagma (1st pic), ruins on Ancient Agora (2nd pic) and a tombstone on the "Street of Tombs" (3rd pic).

The bottom row shows the reflection of the Acropolis (1st pic), Greece flag (2nd pic) and one of few cow figurines (last pic) scattered around the city. The one you see is titled "Greek Time". :-)