This year for spring break I decided to go to Singapore and Hong Kong! Theses are both places on my Asia bucket list, and for a variety of reasons, going to both this year in my one week vacation worked out the best. I’ll be splitting my spring travels into two parts!
March 29th: My flight was in the evening of the 29th, so it was mostly a travel day and getting to the airport!
I took my normal bus to Sapporo, and arrived around 10:30. Because the lunch place I wanted to go doesn’t open until 11:30, I went to kill some time in the Tokyu building to look at the current gacha selection. While I was at it, I noticed a pop-up by Shirokuma Bakery in the basement. I heard good things about this bakery, and since my flight doesn’t provide food, I figured I’d buy a sandwich to eat on the plane. I picked up a pastrami sandwich (430 yen), and ate it during my first leg of the flight.
The sandwich was pretty good; thin, but packed with slices of pastrami and a few lettuce leaves and cucumber slices. Soft fluffy white bread on the outside, classic Japanese no crust. There was mayo, and also a hit of wasabi flavor, which I’m assuming is some kind of mustard. I’d like it a lot better if there was no mustard, but maybe that’s a me problem.
When 11:30 rolled around, we headed to Kobutaya, a butadon place I’ve been meaning to try. They used to be located in Tanukikoji, but recently moved to the basement of a hotel near Odori. I ordered the loin bowl, and a nice thing about this place is that loin and pork belly cost the same here. They are cash only with a vending machine, but have a bunch of languages, so it’s tourist friendly!
It was super yummy! While I think it’s not the most tender pork I’ve had, I think this is the most flavorful butadon. The pork was thin, decently tender, and not too dry, and coated in a savory and sweet marinade. There was this nice char on some of the pieces, and I love a good crispy moment. It was topped with green onion and a brown wasabi.
Before heading to the airport, I picked up boba from Gong Cha! Read about my boba here!
I headed to the airport around 12:30! After wandering the halls a bit, observing the airport soft serve competition campaign (our airport has so many different soft serves…), I headed into security around 3 so I’d have time to buy some souvenirs for my relatives.
I was surprised to see the international post-security had changed a bit since I was last there! They got rid of one of the 4th floor lounges to install a new generic Japanese souvenir shop. They were running a digital stamp rally in which you scan 4 QR codes around the area, and if you screenshot the virtual shimaenaga, you can enter a free gacha for a souvenir. I won a sticker sheet!
4:40 rolled around, and our boarding was delayed for around 10 minutes. Once everyone was on the plane, we were delayed another 30 minutes on the ground, supposedly due to congestion at Taipei, where we were stopping on the way to Singapore. I’m not sure if this is a Scoot thing, but this is the first time I’ve been explicitly told not to wear earphones during takeoff and landing.
The flight itself was relatively smooth and uneventful. Despite sitting at the same seat on the same plane, because of the stopover at Taipei, I had to get off the plane, go through express transfer security, and then reboard the plan among a fresh crowd of people. I’m sure there’s some reasoning behind it, but I was feeling pretty frantic, and it all felt pretty pointless. To add to the frustration, I was able to put my carry-on baggage near my seat, but the second time around, I had to put it a bit further away because of the people who boarded before me.
We took off around 11pm. The second leg itself was relatively uneventful as well. I attempted to sleep, but as usual, proved futile.
March 30th: I’m landing in Singapore! Technically it’s not a full day, but when I’m landing at 3am…it’s essentially a full day. The items on the docket are eat some local food, and check out the Merlion and Marina Bay Sands.
I had a plan laid out for after I land, but it all fell apart when my esim failed to work after installation. I was on chat support with them from literally 4am to 12pm. Although eventually it worked fine, I was really frustrated at how slow their responses were, and the constant evasion regarding a refund.
In the meanwhile, I grabbed a Thai tea at a food stall right outside of arrivals. Thai tea is essentially impossible to find in Japan, and I figured it’d be a good caffeinated start to the day. Very yummy, and very classic Thai tea.
My esim problem didn’t look like it was going to be fixed anytime soon, so I decided to get some real food at Heavenly Wang. I ordered this bowl of “Old Man Noodles” (A Gong Mian), which turned out to be some sort of instant noodle. They were advertising it as some sort of nostalgic flavor, so I thought it’d be a local thing.
The noodles were a typical instant noodle texture, and the soup was quite comforting. No layers of flavor, but it had a generic warm, vegetable, brothy quality to it. It came with some bean sprouts, green onion, minced pork, and a couples slices of fried luncheon meat. Nothing too special.
I continued exploring the airport, hoping my esim issue would be resolved. It seems like Changi Airport was doing a Miffy campaign, with Miffy posters and icons throughout the airport.
It was getting close to 9, and I decided to go get a real meal. Song Fa Bak Kut Teh is an award-winning chain known for Singaporean bak kut teh, a pork soup. I heard that lines can get long at other locations, and going right when they open at the Jewel/Airport location could help. When I arrived before 9, there was already a signnificant line forming!
I think they limit their breakfast menu to only a few things, but as long as the soup was there, it was enough for me. I ordered the soup with pork ribs, and the vegetables as a side, and because I had a feeling there would be a lack of vegetables over vacation.
The vegetables were super acidic, and could be overwhelmingly sour if eaten on their own. In contrast, the soup tasted really good, except it was extremely peppery. The pork was fine. Not tough, not tender, and tasted like, pork. The soup is unlimited though, and the employees will keep pouring it for you…
Eventually, I got tired of the super peppery soup, and really need a drink. I found a milk tea place, but at that point, I just wanted something refreshing, so I grabbed an iced Jasmine tea. Read about my drink here!
Technically, this all wasn’t in the airport. It was in a mall called Jewel connected to the Singapore airport, one of the main attractions called the Rain Vortex, a giant waterfall in the middle of the mall. I managed to catch the opening show, and that was pretty cool.
After much waiting for my esim company to respond, I was tired of the airport, and decided to just roll with it and head out into Singapore proper. It was only after I dropped my stuff off at the hotel around 12:30 that they finally solved my issue…Good timing, but it still took them 8 hours to fix it.
Now with a working sim card, it was time to do something about the gross humid heat I just brought upon myself. Before a proper lunch, because I’m an adult, I set out for some ice cream! I had a bunch of ice cream places in Singapore bookmarked, and first stop, is Apiary! They had a ton of interesting flavors, but I went with the lavender, and their titular ice cream, made with wildflower honey and cocoa nibs.
Highly recommend the yummy and unconventional flavors at Apiary! The ice cream was creamy, and the lavender flavor was strong. The Apiary flavor was more subtle (should have eaten this one first), but I could taste the sweet honey flavor and just a bit of cocoa.
For my first real meal in Singapore, I headed to Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice at Maxwell center. This place has gone viral and famous for the best Hainan chicken rice in Singapore. Surprisingly, at 1:30, there wasn’t too much of a line, and I only had to wait 10 minutes.
It definitely looks simple, but it tasted amazing, and actually lives up to the hype. The chicken is super tender, and melts in your mouth. The sauce is savory and slightly sweet, and the rice has flavor as well. The sauce on the side was too spicy for my liking.
I picked up a cup of soy milk at a stall nearby. It was going to be my next cool drink, but it didn’t feel cold enough to be, so I planned to put it in the fridge. I ended up not having it until way later though. As a non-sugar soy milk, it still definitely hit my soy milk craving. Not too creamy or watery, and the perfect consistency and flavor.
My hotel was open for check-in early, so I dropped off my soy milk and did some unpacking and chilling (with the air conditioning). And then it was time for more food! Specifically, Michelin xiao long bao. I’m only one person, so i only got one item. Otherwise, I’d totally try more of their menu…
My god was this xiao long bao good, but good in a different way than Din Tai Fung. The skin was smooth and silky, and the inside was juicy with a decent amount of soup.
Before heading over to Merlion Park, it was time for a drink! I headed over to the nearby mall, which had a Chi Cha San Chen among its many boba shops. Read about my drink here!
I walked over to Merlion Park to see the famous merlion statue. For some reason, I thought there were multiple statues along the harbor, but I guess it’s just one moderately large one. People say it’s smaller than you think, but I think it’s a decent size. It certainly isn’t huge, but it’s not small either.
It was pretty cool, but there’s not much to do besides take pictures and eat at the nearby cafe. After I got my pics, I headed over to Marina Bay Sands across the way. I took a look around the shopping mall in the hotel, and then followed the sign to Gardens by the Bay. The initial sign I followed led me to the rooftop, which was cool, but not the place with the supertrees I was looking for. Eventually, I found the way to the real Gardens. I explored the area for a bit, but didn’t go into any of the paid areas. One of my favorite parts was stumbling upon this one area with giant plant sculptures in the shape of various animals.
At night, the supertrees light up, and twice a night, put on a show. I caught the 7:45 one, and it was pretty cool! I read somewhere a good spot is to watch from the platform between the hotel and the Gardens, so I staked out a spot for abut 30 minutes. My only complaint was the music was not too audible from that spot, but I don’t know if that’s on me for picking to watch from there.
There’s another light show every night that happens on the shore of the hotel called Spectra. On weekdays it runs at 7pm and 8pm, and weekends add an additional slot at 9pm. I was hoping to watch the 8pm one, but it had already started once I had arrived from the Supertree show. Before the 9pm show, I took a look at the Marina Bay food court to see if there was anything fast (not really, plus the crowd), and bought some water at the Grab-and-Go.
Before the Spectra show, there were a few groups doing K-pop dance covers at the same venue. Seems like a popular place with the young’uns. That aside, the show was very cool. It combined water, lights, and projections to make various illusions. And then I headed back to my hotel for the night.
March 31st: The first real full day in Singapore! Apparently, it was also a holiday, so I was hoping it wouldn’t greatly affect my plans…
My original breakfast plan was to go to the main location of Ya Kun Kaya Toast to try, well, kaya toast. I planned to go early when they opened, to beat any potential line. However, when I arrived, there was no one around, the shop was dark, and the place looked abandoned. There was no indication anywhere that they’d be closed that day, so I was a bit confused. There was a woman who came a little after me who looked like she had the same plan. Took a picture of the restaurant and everything.
There’s many locations of Ya Kun around Singapore, but I really wanted to go to the original since my hotel was nearby. That was a bumner, but luckily there was another location down the street. There’s a few variations, but for my first time, I went with the classic kaya butter toast set, with an iced tea.
For my first kaya toast, I’d say it was pretty good. I went in to the experience knowing that I don’t like butter and runny eggs, and overall, it does taste like how it looks. The toast was thin and crispy (very up my alley), and dipping it in the runny eggs gave it a nice, mellow flavor. I think with the butter and eggs it kind of drowned out the kaya spread though, but by itself it’s a nice, not-too-sweet jammy spread. I made the mistake of pouring some soy sauce in the eggs while I was dipping the bread in it…
We are continuing breakfast part 2 with fishball noodles in the same mall! I found a LiXin Fisshball noodles when I was walking around the day before, and figured this was the most convenient location for me. Their original store was rewarded with Michelin Bib Gourmand status, so I felt I had to try them. Apparently their stores can rack up a line, so I headed there when they opened at 8:30. I got the basic noodles dry, no spicy, and with flat noodles. Very cool you get to choose the type of noodles.
It was quite a lot of food, and definitely very filling and yummy! The fishballs were bouncy, and the soup was a light broth, reminding me of home. Aside from fishballs, the soup comes with a few slices of fish cake, and a fishball dumpling! The skin is actually made from fish paste, with dumpling meat filling inside. The noodles were boucy and a bit chewy, lightly coated in lard. I was having a bit of trouble finishing the noodles, so I took them to go.
Despite being full, I had one more stop for the morning. Michelin wonton noodles from Ji Ji Wanton Noodle Specialist! This place can certainly get a line fast, and there’s only one location, so I was determined to line up at 9:30 when they open. Luckily, they also do takeout, so I went with that option to bring back to the hotel. I ordered a small version of their signature, with a little bit of everything.
I ended up eating half when I got back to my hotel, and the other half for breakfast on Wednesday. The cha siu slices were so tender, and absolutely melt in your mouth. The wontons were soft and flavorful, and I liked how it came with both a boiled and a fried version! The noodles were bouncy and chewy, and coated in this lovely sweet, thick soy sauce. Honestly 100% worth it.
After resting at the hotel for a bit, I headed to Orchard Road to check out the shopping area there. First order of business, is ice cream. I found this gelato place that does tropical Asian flavors, and they all looked really yummy! The gelato game in Singapore is strong…It’s not everyday I find a chrysanthemum ice cream!
Very yummy, with a light chrysanthemum flavor. I will say, the texture was simultaneously creamy with a bit of iciness throughout. The berries added a nice touch of natural sweetness!
I explored the malls along the street for a bit, but a lot of the shops were mostly high-end luxury brands, some fashion shops, and the usual food and restaurants in the basement (yum, but I had no stomach space). I was hoping to find some small, cute handmade goods-type shops, but this clearly wasn’t the area for that. There is this cute neighborhood called Emerald Hill with historical architecture.
The main stop of the day was the Singapore Botanical Gardens! T’was a hot day, so maybe a bad decision on my part, but overall very pretty, and alots of treest. I thought it’d be more of an enclosed area, but it was pretty spread out, and like a giant park in some parts for people to chill and hang out. The orchid garden sounded pretty cool, but of course that had a paywall. I’m not that enthused about orchids to pay to see them.
At this point, I didn’t have a real lunch yet, and was starting to crave real food. I headed to Paper Rice, a Vietnamese restaurant that is supposed to be really good. Hokkaido has no good Vietnamese food, so I was excited. I’m usually a pho girlie, but I decided to go non-hot soup with a vermicelli dish. In addition to the pork main I ordered, the dish comes with spring rolls, vegetables, and a giant rice cracker.
Very yummy with a generous portion! The spring rolls were a perfect size, and crispy and hot. The pork was grilled with a nice char flavor, and I ate the rest of the bowl like a noodle salad. The rice cracker was a unique addition, and I love crispy chips, so I’m not saying no to that.
It was a drink time! I passed by a boba place earlier in the Orchard Road area, so I went back to grab an iced tea. The item I got turned out to also be non-caffeinated, so I decided to save it for later, and grab a boba from a different shop (I’m on a mission to try out as much of the boba scene in Singapore as possible). Read about my drink here!
On my way to get an actual boba drink, I stopped by for ice cream part 2. Though this ice cream is quite unlike normal ice cream. There’s a lot of carts along Orchard Road selling the same thing, but I had this specific cart bookmarked, so I joined the substantial line. They’re very efficient, so it went by pretty fast. There’s many flavors of ice cream to choose from, as well as a standard cone or bread, but obviously, I’m going for the bread. Now this, is an ice cream sandwich.
The experience was very interesting. While the ice cream tasted good, I’m not sure if bread and ice cream in this form go well together. The bread, although rainbow, was essentially just fluffy white bread. It wasn’t bad by any means, but I wouldn’t pay for the experience again. I’d eat it though. A little confusing.
On to boba! I heard this place was good, and it had an interesting menu. Read about my boba here!
I chilled in the area for a bit sipping my boba, and headed back to my hotel to drop off some stuff soak in the air conditioning. The last spot for the day was Lau Pa Sat, a bustling hawker center that is also known for the satay stalls that open up at night. I was too full for a hawker meal, but I could go for a skewer or two!
Past 7pm, the street in front of thr Lau Pa Sat building transforms into a bustling mini night market of around 10 stalls selling satay. They all mostly sell the same basic things. Stall 7/8 aka “Best Satay” clearly had the only line, and all of the salespeople no matter the stall were quite aggressive. The main selling point of the stalls was that they were selling skewers in bulk in massive sets for cheap, but individual orders were fine too.
My one complaint is that it seemed like most of the stalls had a rule where you had to buy a minimum of 8 Singapore Dollars (a skewer was 80 cents). On top of that, the stall I ended up buying from (Stall 6), said that items could only be ordered in increments of 5. Sure the skewers themselves are tiny, and I could be silly for wanting just one or two, but this still seems odd to me. What do I know, I’m just a tourist. I ended up going for 5 beef and 5 chicken.
While I do agree that they were small skewers, since I wasn’t super hungry, I also barely fit them in solo (this is why you bring a friend). As for the meat, they were yummy, with a kind of slighty sweet savory marinade. The meat was almost mystery meat, with how tiny the chunks were, but they were tender and easy to chew. I personally liked the super charred bits!
Pro tip: The LiXin Fishball noodles has a branch at Lau Pa Sat, and from the looks of their menu, the branch here is cheaper than the one at Chinatown Point, where I had just been that morning. Go here!!!
April 1st: My last full day in Singapore. Just a chill day of last minute food to-dos, exploring Little India, and hunting for more unique ice cream.
I spent the morning going on an adventure trying to hunt down the Chagee around Chinatown to get that amazing smelling tea. Unfortunately, the first one I tried was app-order only, and I realized after hunting down a second location, that most of their stores were the same. The one on Orchard was an exception, and I wasn’t going all the way to one at VivoCity, which supposedly can order at the register.
I gave up on my morning tea, and instead headed to my breakfast spot of choice: Dearborn Granola. I’m a granola girlie, and I heard the granola here is good, so this place was on my bucket list. Their seasonal flavor was cookies & cream, which the employee described as on the sweeter side. It sounded good, but I liked the idea of chocolate hazelnut better, so I opted for that off the regular menu with greek yogurt.
I was initially served the picture on the left, and though I’m pretty sure this looked more like a “strawberry macadamia” than a “chocolate hazelnut”, I didn’t want to question the shop. I took a bite of one of the red blobs…and it was a giant, dried strawberry. Chewy and a bit sweet and sour, it was like a natural gummy. I asked if this was the chocolate, and indeed, was not. I kind of wished the employee let me keep the strawberry as a service, but he just took it back and redid my order. Not that he’s obliged to, but I’m a huge hater of wasting food.
The granola was really good, and tasted like it was handcrafted. All of the invidual items were separated and crispy, but there weren’t any giant chunks. If you’re looking for those, you’re at the wrong granola place. I liked how it wasn’t too sweet, especially with the inclusion of easily meltable dark chocolate chunks, and the hazelnut flavor. I’m not a huge nut person but I do like Nutella, so this was reminiscent of that. It is a premium price though.
The bowl itself was pretty small, and I was still hungry, so I decided to head back to my hotel to drink my soy milk (yes, I didn’t drink it yet). On the way, I passed by Maxwell Center, and I decided to hit up the ondeh ondeh stall to try out a local sweet, tapioca cake. The sign on the stall said they were out of ondeh ondeh, so I asked for a tapioca cake…and the lady said no tapioca cake, and to pick from something on display. There were no labels or anything, so i pointed to a cake bar-like thing. It had a brown layer on top, followed by a dense yellow layer on the bottom, with a coconut topping. Weirdly enough, this didn’t look anything like the menu pictures, so I can’t say exactly what it is.
Upon further research, I think this might be a baked tapioca cake, which makes things more confusing. The cake was dense, a little chewy, but mostly mushy, with quite a bit of coconut crunch throughout the experience. Not too sweet though! As non-coconut fan, I thought it was just okay. Maybe I need to try something else.
I also passed by Tong Heng Traditional Cantonese Pastries (again). They make traditional Chinese pastries, including Cantonese style egg tarts. Not just any egg tarts, but a unique shape. I’m not an egg tart person, but I am into trying famous foods…
The crust was super crispy, flaky, and fall apart! The filling held together, and was soft and pillowy. A little too egg-tasting for my liking though. Good thing I got one here though, because I ended up not getting any egg tarts in Hong Kong…
After chilling in my hotel sipping on my soy milk, I decided it was time to go out and find some ice cream. With only a day left and many ice cream still on my list, I was on a quest…
On the way to my ice cream destination, I stopped by Champion Bolo Bun. I heard their pineapple buns are unique and taste good, and clearly other people did too. There was a small line for ordering, and many peopl were sittng in the shop waiting for their order. I opted for a single large plain one, though it seems adding a slice of butter is popular. They have a very interesting policy that if not consumed within 20 minutes, you can come exchange it for free with a fresh hot one without waiting in line.
My god this was probably the best bolo bun I’ve had (until this point, the one I got in Hong Kong is close). It came out so hot and fresh, that it was hard to hold at first. The top layer was super buttery, crispy, and crackly, and the thick bottom layer was soft, pillowy and fluffy on the inside. The flavor was rich and buttery, very decadent.
On my way to my ice cream place, I found a cute independent goods shop called Cat Socrates. Highly recommend if you’re looking for cute, locally handmade Singapore goods. Right next door is Creamier, which was supposed to be open… but they were totally closed. Even the sign on the door indicated they were supposed to be open. Did I miss some kind of memo?
I wasn’t sure what else there was to do in this area, so I moved on with my plan for the day, and headed to the Little India area. I was going to get a paratha…but the stall I was looking at shut down as soon as I got there. That’s rough.
I checked out Mustafa Center, which is this giant shopping complex that spans 7 floors and sells everything you can think in one seemingly endless building. The insides are cramped, filling the premises with as much stuff as they can. It’s pretty cool if you’re looking for general souvenirs.
Determined to get my ice cream, I headed to Tom’s Palette. I feel like all the gelato places I’ve been to have had unique flavors, but this one takes the prize with…pipagao flavor gelato. The Chinese throat medicine. That’s a little too far out for me, and I got an Italian dark chocolate, and the “king of mangoes”, alphonso mango. The lady even gave me a bonus baby sumnerberries!
The gelato here is very rich and thick! I liked how not sweet the dark chocolate was, and it truly felt like eating a creamy, solid form of dark chocolate. The mango wasn’t too sweet either, and tasted like completely natural, like I was eating an actual mango. It could have been my imagination, but I think I saw some mango fibers. Berries was good, like a typical berry smoothie made of the usual berries.
I decided to check out the nearby Suntec mall and see if there was anything to do there. It’s a pretty large mall, with a bunch of shopping, food options, and many boba. There’s a giant fountain in the middle which can supposedly give you good luck, but I had just missed the entry time (it’s in increments from 10am-12pm, 2pm-4pm, and 6pm-7pm). Supposedly it won the 1998 Guiness Record for largest fountain. Tourists can get a Welcome Gift after you walk the fountain. It sounded fun, but I wasn’t sticking around for and hour and a half for it…
I decided to pick up a boba for the day, since there were so many options at the mall. After scoping out the options, I decided on Playground, a branch of the Playmade chain that sells desserts. Read about my boba here!
By then I was getting hungry, and ready to wrap up my day early so I can pack. I rode the MRT back to Chinatown, and got some beef noodles. Technically, this resturant actually had a location at Suntec Mall where I was just at, but I figured even that was a bit early for dinner. Plus I saw a review that said the Chinatown location was better anyway…
This is a Lanzhou style beef noodles place, with a clear beef broth simmered with spices. The noodles are handmade, with 8 different types to choose from! I ended up going with the fattest one, the “Flat”, for fun, and I like a chewy noodle. I went for the signature, with has radish and sliced beef, and no spice or herbs.
The soup was really nice and comforting. Not too spiced that I constantly needed water, but also really flavorful for a clear soup. The beef was tender with a good amount. To my surprise, my noodle was just one, giant long, fat guy. Chewy, and a fun experience. I think if I were to go again I’d go one width down, for the fat chewy experience, but still be able to slurp more than one strand.
While I was in the mall, I stopped by Amps Tea to pick up a tea for tomorrow morning. I was going to wake up early, and figured a caffeine boost would be good. Read about my tea here!
On my way back to the hotel, I finally picked up a brownie from next-door to my hotel. It smelled so good from day one, but I haven’t been in the area while they were open the past couple of days. I opted for a basic one, in sea salt flavor. Japan doesn’t really know how to make brownies, so this was my chance!
The lady offered to heat it up for me, but since I planned to eat it later and my hotel has a microwave, I didn’t need her to. I had this as breakfast dessert the next day, and microwaved it according to package directions. It came out warm, and the filling inside was oogey gooey and bursting out the top. The filling was pretty salty, but I can’t fault it when it’s the name of the flavor. The brownie was quite black, but otherwise, the main portion was a cakey, not too sweet brownie. Paired with the molten filling, it was just right.
I needed one last dessert to end off the day, so I headed to Dopa for gelato (yes, again). I saw that the Tanjong location was exclusively selling a Momo Sencha gelato, and that sounded really yummy.
The gelato here was a lot more sticky, or stretchy, if that makes sense. As for the gelato, it was refreshingly peachy, and creamy, with a light tea fragrant aftertaste.
April 2nd: Time to leave Singapore and head to Hong Kong!
I couldn’t leave Singapore without one last Hawker meal, and since my flight was in the afternoon, I had a spot lined up. This char kway teow place is quite famous, and opens at 6am, which works out perfectly. Unfortunately, while I was checking out Google that morning, I found out through reviews that it would be closed until April 8th, and that the closure started since I arrived in Singapore, so there’s nothing I could have done differently. I really wanted to try char kway teow while I was in Singapore, and I knew of another Michelin place nearby, but that one didn’t have official opening times, so I didn’t want to risk going. While I was researching other options, I ate the leftovers I accumulated in the fridge, and sipped my tea from the day before.
Eventually, I found another char kway teow stall that opened in the morning according to Google, and so I headed over. To my dismay, the stall was totally closed…there were a quite a few stalls operating for breakfast, so after wandering around for a bit, I settled on Jia Ji Mei Shi, selling small dim-sum items. I opted for the meat zhongzi, or sticky rice dumpling.
It’s a simple item, but very nostalgic and right up my alley. The rice was flavorful and just a bit sticky, and the meat chunks inside were fall-apart, and equally marinated with the sweet and savory sauce.
After I finished, I went back to the hotel to chill, do some last minute packing, and eat my brownie. I left around 9:30 to get to the airport early!
My main goal was to get my last dose of Singapore gelato at Birds of Paradise, which opens at 11. Since I got there early, I headed up to the top floor of the Jewel complex to see the views. Unfortunately, other than a small walking portion, the majority of the area is also behind a paywall.
I got a bit lost trying to find the gelato place, but I eventually got there (Google Maps lies, it’s not on the second floor, it’s on the first floor). The flavors in these Singapore gelato shops never cease to dissapoint…I ended up going for just a single scoop of the Osmanthus Pear Sorbet.
Very yummy, and despite being a sorbet, it was very creamy in it’s own right! The taste of the sorbet was a lot more pear than floral, but there were slight floral notes that took it beyond just pear.
Around 11:30 I headed into security. Security is a bit of an outlier here, as first you move through automated immigration panels, and there’s a mini-seucurity guy to the side that did a preliminary scan of my bags. It was pretty casual though, so it seemed a little suspicious. Turns out, the real security is right at the gate. The actual gate is blocked off by glass walls, and opens up around 30 minutes prior to boarding. There, is the real security, with bag and body scanners. The only thing beyond that is a waiting area and doors that lead to the aircraft.
Anyway, once past the initial “first” security, you’re greeted with a ton of shops, duty free, and some food courts. All terminals are accessible with transit, so you can explore them all if you have time. There’s also some cool gardens to explore, like this Butterfly Garden.
I thought about visiting the sunflower one in Terminal 2, but that seemed a bit far, and I didn’t have that much time. I did pass a Lego store, with a Merlion figure built out of lego!
We ended up boarding a bit later than planned, but took off on time. And then I was off to Hong Kong!
This time I stayed at Heritage Collection on Chinatown. It’s a digital hotel, which means no staff at the hotel, no front desk, and the room key is on your phone. In exchange, staff is availble to help 24/7 over Whatsapp, and they are super helpful! Very responsive, polite, and willing to help out with whatever you need. The room is cozy, with a small kitchenette, and even laundry on the premises. Chinatown is a convenient area to stay in, with a few MRT stations around, a ton of amazing food choices, and Hawker centers all around.
Some things I observed about Singapore, as an American living in Japan: water is not served/free, so bring your own drink or be prepared to order one! Napkins also don’t seem to exist here either. Busses come in not only one floor, but also double decker busses for normal use. They also don’t announce the bus stop, so you really have to pay attention to where the bus is going. There are also quite a few non-stair slanted escalators. You also have turn on the individual outlet before using it. Coming from two cultures that use “elevator”, seeing “lift” being used everywhere was quite amusing.
This is Part 1. Part 2 comes out next week.
Leave a Reply