Following our wonderful Panama canal cruise aboard
Queen Elizabeth in 2019 the Suez beckoned. We booked for 2020 and then
Covid got in the way. Eventually after several failed attempts 2024 became a
reality – until it didn’t…. 3 weeks before departure the antics in the Red Sea
saw a revised itinerary from Colombo around the horn of Africa. Dubai, Petra
and Barcelona were replaced by Mauritius, Cape Town, and the Canary islands.
We started with a few days in Singapore and shared the experience with Kate and Alan, cousin Pam and
her long term friend Dianne. Helen organised the Singapore activity and this
inevitably started with high tea at Raffles. What a wonderful heritage
building.
The teas, Billecart Salmon and food
ensured this was a memorable experience. The only challenge with ‘high’ tea is
it makes seeing some of your companions quite difficult.
Externally the grounds were just as
spectacular.
After a brief walk around the nearby shops
it was time to imbibe again – this time at the world famous ‘long bar’ where
the choice of drink was obvious - a Singapore Sling.
What I had not
appreciated was the bizarre convention of supplying each table with a bag of
peanuts (no comment needed) with the expectation that unwanted shells were
just left on the floor. (If you look closely, you can see that Alan’s
contribution was significant.)
I think this bar
tender was just showing off that he could still shake a cocktail as the green
machine could shake four martinis at the same time.
Many years
previously as part of a school fellowship (some may say junket) Helen had been
on a night safari at the local zoo and decided a repeat experience was
warranted. This proved to be an excellent choice with all sorts of animals
being viewed from the comfort of a tram. The only real challenge was getting
photos but at least the flamingos had some contrast that helped.
As did a very lethargic lion.
Our hotel (The
Paradox) was adjacent to the waterfront and a boat trip around the Marina
seemed to fit our slightly lethargic outlook (understandable given the heat and
humidity). The mix of old colonial
buildings overlooked by a range of dramatic towers was an endless contrast. Of
course Marina Sands is an obvious standout which looks ship shape from any
angle.
The arts/science ‘flower’ museum is an
interesting contrast as is the Singapore flyer. (The flyer is similar to the
London Eye in that is uses tension cables to support the rim – that said there
is one very big difference which is ???? (The hub of the London eye is supported
only on one side.))
We opted to take advantage of an air
conditioned experience and went through the Flower Dome where the Australian
garden was the first to greet us.
Our visit was timely as the Japanese cherry
blossoms were out.
This succulent
display caught my eye – some were so tiny that the closer you looked the more there
was to see.
Here is an unusual view of the Sands. It
looks like an exodus from Noah’s ark (albeit the penguins are two by two by
two).
I had wanted to go on the flyer to see how
it compares with the eye. First it is not as busy. We had this gondola to
ourselves.
The views are spectacular albeit quite
different. (In the left middle ground you can see Queen Mary 2 waiting for us
to board.)
Finally, of
course was the obligatory drink at the top of the Sands. What a view. The
Flower dome is in the front with the Cloud forest behind and behind that is the
barrage which separates fresh water from the sea.
The blue flyer contrasts with the green
stadium and its retractable roof.
Then of course there is the sound and light
display which I suspect is quite dramatic close up but was but a small segment
of the view from the rooftop.
With that our 4
day stopover in Singapore was complete. It is a great city to visit although no
longer the economic destination it once was. That said it remains both safe and clean.
The next day we
boarded Queen Mary 2 (QM2) and set off for our one month adventure.
