Shaun and I were once again couch surfing, this time in Singapore. Our host, Kuni, was a Japanese expat who has also lived in India and Malaysia and has hosted some 300 surfers in total. We had only requested to stay two nights but realized the the first USA World Cup game would take place right after we were scheduled to leave and we thought it would be cool to see the US play England in Singapore so we asked to stay a third night straight away. He said we could so that was set up.
Getting to Singapore was easy but we assumed the transport would be late as it always is in Malaysia but it was right on time so we had about four hours to kill before Kuni could let us in when he got home from work. We figured McDonalds would be a good bet because we could sit there for as long as we wanted without being bothered and could use the free wifi that every McDonalds in Malaysia has. In Singapore, however, there was no free wifi for us. We ended up sitting at McDonalds the entire time reading and talking, which was OK but it would have been nice to get some stuff done online during that time.
Kuni's place is a studio apartment in an amazing complex. There is an olympic size swimming pool, a workout facility, a bowling alley, and more. The apartment itself is nice but small considering the six surfers he had there. Everybody was pretty cool. I got along with a couple German girls pretty well and Shaun hit it off with a Dane. I was interested in going to the world famous Singapore Zoo and Shaun was not so we split way for our first day in Singapore not spent in McDonalds. Shaun walked around the city and the German girls and myself headed to the zoo. The zoo was pretty sweet and while it was a bit pricey it was worth it. I enjoy zoos and would recommend it to people that do but if not it would probably not be a good time.
We ended up not seeing the USA-England game because nobody was interested in going out to see it partially because we had gone out the previous night to see the opening day's games. The bar we ended up at was filled with French people who ended up being devestated when they tied an "inferior" opponent. It was fun and especially fun because all the French were unhappy and because the Dane that Shaun befriended was very drunk and buying everybody drinks.
I decided that I had not seen enough of Singapore so kindly asked Kuni if I could stay a fourth night. It would only be me, though, because Shaun was headed to KL to catch a flight to Bali. So, Shaun and I parted ways. It was nice to hang out with somebody from home for a bit even though it was brief. It had been a long time since I had seen anybody that I had known for longer than a month and other than my time in Yangshuo it had also been a long time since I had seen anybody that I had known longer than a week. It also gave me a taste of travelling in a pair instead of alone. The dynamics are different and there are pros and cons with both and both are acceptable to me. Regardless, Shaun was headed to Bali and I had another day in Singapore.
I decided I could not resist the touristy yet ever-tempting Sentosa island. It is an island just south of the island of Singapore. It is not big but is, as far as I can tell, an island-wide series of theme parks and hotels. Think Orlando without the people that actually live in Orlando. (That is a poor description but the best I can come up with at the moment.) I went with one of the other surfers and it was actually a pretty nice place just to walk around. There are a ton of toursits (virtually everybody) but the views are nice. We were going primarily to do the Sentosa Luge. It is not a real luge at all but is still fun. You sit in what is what I called a Big Wheel when I was a kid expect it is a little more sturdy and has a break. It is basically a tricycle that does not require peddling that sits really low to the groung and is more horizontal with a break. (Again a poor description.) You get one go for S$14, three for S$21, or five for S$27 (about US$10, 15, 20, respectively). We both decided to go for three in part because it was a good value, in part because there are two routes down allowing us to try both and then do the one we liked more again, and it part because, in truth, we did not know if we were going to like it enough to want to invest in doing five. Well, it was good fun, though overpriced and too short of a ride. That said, I was glad I did it and if I could go back I would do it again. We also walked around the island a bit. There is a lot to do there but everything is expensive. We ended up playing ultimate disc with some people on the beach. Only myself and one other guy had any clue how to play. It was still fun and reminded me a bit of home.
With its vast array of cultures and people Singapore was a really interesting place and would be a good place to live abroad if you do not know a language other than English. You would be left out of some stuff but could easily get around and basically still do anything. I enjoyed my time there a great deal.
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