Leaving Sydney the flight covered 6,338 km (3,938 miles) the twinkle of Singapore's lights illuminated below us, as we approached Changi Airport.
The land lit up by the multitude of sky scrapers and high rise apartment blocks, a concentrated brightness next to the darkness of the water, where dozens of empty cargo ships, tankers and other waiting vessels appeared to be sitting patiently in the bay with their anchor lights on, perhaps awaiting their next job.
Leaving Sydney at 16.30, the flight was a relatively short 7 hours, and our arrival into Singapore local time 21.30, the three hour time difference gave our body clocks a little sense of jadedness on arrival, thinking was past midnight, two rather weary travellers got off the plane in search of passport control.
The walk was a fair distance, trying the e-gates we both got rejected along with countless others, resulting in an unplanned need to complete an online Singapore arrivals card, which was required before entering the country.
This oversight must have been common place as many passengers like us were required to complete the card, a little confusing as a visa was not required.
After our rejection, we were directed over to a large bank of tablets fixed to tables nearby, inputting our passport details, accomodation and home information plus other random questions, including various health questions took us a bit of time, the tablets were clunky and slow, the questions went on and on.
Making it into the arrivals hall, we found our allocated baggage carousel, a lack of bags seemed unusual, there was just a few bags circling round and round.
Pondering the lack of bags, we surmised that perhaps as our flight was going on to London, maybe just a few of us were getting off at Singapore, for longer than the 2 hour refuelling break.
We waited and waited, it had been about an hour since we had landed and still no bags, the carousel now empty, it was time to approach the nearby assistant, as checking the air tag for each bag, they all still appreared to be in Sydney.
The baggage assistant was not in the mood to "assist" and directed without engagement (using the pointy finger and grunt method) to a lounge with comfy seats and a queue of people waiting to speak to the 8 desk lost luggage team.
Another wait until it was our turn, the desk assistant took our details and quickly confirmed that our hold bags had not made the flight, an eye roll suggested this was a common occurrence, we were also informed that there had been an inputting error by BA ground staff at Sydney to our bag tags, they had not been put onto our flight- rather they had been taken off!!
Leaving the airport with 2 small back packs, we jumped in a taxi and headed for our hotel (Fairmont).
Checking in, we looked like we were travelling ultra light, explaining we had lost our luggage and hoping to be reunited with them before we left the city, as we were only staying 3 nights in Singapore.
Our hotel room was a decent size, made larger by the absence of luggage, our room on floor 19 of the South Tower provided a fab view over the bay towards the iconic Marina Bay Sands Hotel (more of the hotel later).
The first thing we would need to do in the morning was a spot of clothes shopping, the humid temperature required just shorts and t-shirts, so after breakfast, we were off to Orchard Road, the main shopping street in Singapore in search of something to wear and a few other needed essentials.
Two hours later it was back to the hotel with a new wardrobe, before setting off to explore more of the city.
A long walk took us down and around the waterfront, which had undergone a massive transformation from our last visit in 2006.
The imposing Marina Bay Sands Hotel (MBS), holding court with its three towers connected through a boat like structure on the top.
Hosting an open air infinity pool for hotel guests , a look out platform (£30 to gain entry) and a couple of bars and restaurants within the top section, the hotel looks over the inner bay towards the city, as well as out other side towards the ships that populate the outer bay and further out towards the Indonesian Island of Bantam.
Ambling towards the MBS, our aim was to get up to the top, to check out the view, however we had not made a booking for the viewing platform which was sold out for the day.
Undeterred, we walked towards the hotel, taking us around the inner bay (Marina Resevoir) where we passed the Merlion (half fish- half lion stature, unveiled in 1972), symbolising the unity of the lion (city) and the sea (fish), guarding the Singapore River like an ancient mythical beast.
The walk took us onto the old fashioned low level Clifford Pier, where a wedding ceremony was taking part in the middle of the pier, the bride and groom exchanging vows as tourists wandered by.
The pier is now part of the Fullerton Heritage Precinct dating back to the 1930's when it was the landing point for sea passengers, just as the area built up their trading credentials. NB:The British originally arrived in 1819 when the land was full of little fishing villages, forests, small hills and sea marshes.
Some of the sea marshes now part of the reclaimed land project that started back in the 1970's.
Another interesting building was the Art Science Museum, a huge white lotus flower shaped building on the edge of the water.
We entered the MBS hotel lobby at Tower 1, and next to a bank of lifts, a sign indicated "Lavo - Rooftop" (an italian restaurant and bar), so off we went, joining another rather well dressed lift passenger, who then got out on the 42nd floor, we carried upwards to the 57th floor.
On arrival at the top, we approached the entrance to Lavo, the staff ultra attentive, the conversation went a bit like "Did you check in at the lobby?" - "Erm, no" was our simultaneous response, nothing more was said,.
We were then taken to outside balcony seats overlooking the inner bay, no one else was around us, empty tables and a roped off VIP area. Perhaps coincidence - perhaps not!!
A signature cocktail and a beer were ordered, and out came our cameras!!
A couple of cocktails and beers later, we were ready to depart, so ambled back down in the lift, only as we exited the lift we both noticed a rather large queue by the desk we were supposed to check in with... oooops!
We were heading for Gardens by the Bay, a 250 acre green space with huge trees known as Super Tree Grove, vertical gardens that look like trees, storing rainwater as well as generating solar power to help provide the twice nightly sound and light show.
We had timed our departure from Lavo to coincide with the Garden Rhapsody show.
We were not disappointed, neither were most of the hundreds of other people lying or sitting down on the ground, having patiently waited the nightly spectacle to unravel above them.
During that day we had kept a regular check on the Air Tags in each of our luggage bags, looking for details of their whereabouts.
We could see they had been sitting outside the terminal at Sydney Airport for most of the day, however by the evening they were on manouevres to a different part of the airport, a happy reconciliation was looking hopeful.
Thankfully all was fine, they took the same flight we had taken but on the following evening, receiving them direct to our hotel room on our 2nd morning, a detachment of around 36 hours from leaving Australia.
For our second day, we opted to do the hop on hop off bus, an easy decision as we had walked our socks off the day before (with the exception of a 90 minute cocktail pit stop).
Singapore has an enormous subterranean space, below ground there are 3 or 4 levels deep in places, all full of shops, eateries, department stores, a city that can be walked below ground for miles, as well as being connected to the MTR with its underground trains also providing rapid transit below the city.
It feels like only half of the city is visible above ground!
Our hop on hop off bus took us on a wider tour of the city, stopping off at the botanical gardens to the west and then Gardens By the Bay to the east, the giant trees looking really different to their night time lit up look.
The bus took us around the low rise local areas of China Town and Little India as well as back along the Orchard Road. Both the Chinese and Indian areas would not look out of place in their native countries, the design of the buildings, the shops, eateries and the intensity of the local populations. It was fascinating to see how the city had integrated and embraced a deep sense of multiculturalism.
Singlish is spoken in Singapore, whilst there are 5 official languages, (English, Malay, Cantonese, Mandarin and Tamil) a mix of singaporean style of english is seemingly quite prevalent. (NB: Being an Anglo Scottish houshold, we adopt a bit of Scinglish)
In the evening we opted to walk the OCBC Skyway, a walkway suspended 22m above the ground linking the giant super trees, giving great panoramic views of the gardens and the bay, taking time to watch the light and sound show for a second time.
The number of people allowed on the Skyway at any one time was limited, probably for good reason, the movement of the pathway as we were politely ushered along (expected dwell time was just 8 minutes) on the 128m long track.
Despite it being a still night the movement was fairly dynamic, not ideal for those with motion sickness issues to, equally we were both glad to get back down onto terra firma!
Our hotel was directly opposite Raffles Hotel and the famous Long Bar (home of the Singapore Sling cocktail) each time we had passed by, there was a tourist queue snaking around part of the balcony of the famous landmark hotel.
After a late breakfast on our third and final day, we popped across the road just in time for it opening at 11.00am before the tourists were dropped off by bus load.
The place was half empty and the waitress ushered us to a table, noticing the same table we had sat at 18 years earlier, we asked to move and were soon sitting in the same place, the same surroundings all familiar albeit us being a bit older!!
Amusingly we did not opt for the house special, instead we went for something a little different, to accompany the opportunity to enjoy a few peanuts from the large bag on each table, as tradition dictates - once eaten throw the empty shells onto the floor!
I'm sure the table of 4 next to us were a little baffled, we could hear muffled displeasure, they had arrived and ordered before us, yet we were served promptly, almost draining our drinks before their tray of 4 slings arrived for their enjoyment. I'm guessing our change of drink choice gave the bar staff a little more interest than the more common customer choice.
Our afternoon took us back to the Gardens by the Bay to explore the Cloud Forest and the Flower Dome, two separate domed biospheres.
The Cloud Forest a huge conservatory hosting the world's tallest indoor waterfall, the walkway takes you up to the top, and then winds down and around the huge indoor space, plants from every continent (except Antartica) are represented.
The Flower Dome was similar to a pumped up Eden Project, showcasing the world through trees, shrubs and flowers. As it was Chinese New Year, a large section had been transformed to celebrate the year of the dragon.
Our time in Singapore was coming to an end, so we headed back to the hotel to do a bit of final packing before home.
It had not gone unnoticed that Taylor Swift was stalking us, she was in Melbourne when we were then, she then popped up in Sydney and finally trying to shake her off, she bubbled up in Singapore .... at the same time as us.
It was really noticeable especially in Singapore as the number of "Swifties" arriving the day after we got to each of the 3 places was unbelieveable, our hotel lobby went from a quiet level of tourist hum to frantic bangles and glitz, the hotel of 778 rooms was fully booked out.
It was time to leave..... so off we went to Changi Airport.
The concierge organised our taxi to the airport, amused that the driver 's name (which all taxis are supposed to have prominently displayed), said our driver was called Peter Parker, (aka Spider-Man), however taking a phone call 10 minutes into the journey from someone looking for a taxi from the airport back to the city, when the the person he would be picking up asked our driver for his name, .. he said "Chan....Jackie Chan". A wild guess suggests that maybe he's an action film fan??
We had a couple of hours before our flight was due to depart, so opted to visit The Jewel, a building that is part of the airport next to the international terminal, a kind of wonderland where nature meets retail.
In a huge termperate rainforest, the centrepiece was a 40m high "rain vortex" aka a huge colour changing waterfall!
The Jewel is an amazing place, full of shops, bars, eateries and attractions, it seemed like it was a destination venue for the locals to come and just hang out for the evening, as well as being part of an major international airport hub.
One thing that caught my eye before boarding, was a sign in the lounge stating "When the root is deep, there is no need to fear the storm" gulp!!
Next stop .......home .......London Heathrow, an overnight flight of 14 hours beckoned, we were both thankful for the business class bed option!
Two months of travel has gone by in a flash, many great memories to treasure, it was great meeting up with Val in Tassie, and Duncan in Oz, as well as fellow Scot and tourist Ken in Sydney... it has really been a fabulous holiday to remember.
The top ten highlights (apart from meeting people)....
The little Blue Penguins of Omaru (South Island NZ)
Able Tasman National Park (South Island NZ)
Te Anau (the dark skies) (South Island (NZ)
Fiji ... all of it especially the snorkelling off the sand bar
Milford Sound - the scenery and the sea cliffs (South Island NZ)
Mount Cook - breathtakingly stunning (South Island NZ)
The Great Ocean Road - the Apostles and the drive (Australia)
Raffles Long Bar - just special (Singapore)
Mapua - the chilled vibe in beautiful surroundings (South Island NZ)
Waiheke Island - the winery and the beaches (Auckland NZ)
Thanks for all the updates. Really enjoyed the journeys.
Welcome back and glad you both had an amazing trip..,, going to miss your blog updates 😊