With sadness I watched India fall away as my plane climbed into the sky, however I knew that it meant Landon was getting that much closer! The flight from Chennai to Singapore was a little over three hours, and by the time it arrived I could hardly contain my excitement in seeing Landon. I rushed through immigration as quickly as possible (though noting that on my stamped immigration card was posted: "Bringing drugs into Singapore is punishable by death.". Wow. They sure take that seriously.), and when I emerged in the baggage claim area I could make out a lone dark-haired figure behind the glass, watching the crowds. Not sure, I waved, and when the figure waved back I knew it was him, and further confirmed it when I got closer and saw his smiling face. I could barely contain myself as I waited for what seemed like millenia to get my bag and go through customs, then finally I rushed into his arms and took a deep breath of his special scent that I'd missed for the past month.
"Hi.". Was all I could manage.
"Hi. I missed you.". He said simply.
"Thanks for coming." I said, which he found quite funny as we headed off to the metro. He groaned as he picked up my backpacking backpack which continues to weigh more the longer I am around shopping opportunities.
Landon had figured out the Singapore metro system when he had arrived several hours earlier and had already checked into our hotel, so I enjoyed being led back to the Hotel Ibis on Bencoolen Road, and chattered his ear off about India, traveling and everything we had to catch up on. He was very keen on my henna tatooes, and was surprised at how orange the stain was since I'd only sent him pictures of the designs in black when they had first been applied. I was quite happy to arrive at the hotel and rest a bit, enjoying the A/C, cable TV, Western toilet with toilet paper and a hot shower. It was late and Landon was jet-lagged, so we ate in the hotel and had Singapore Slings along with barbecued stingray, shrimp tempura and crab straight out of the claw. It felt wonderful to fall asleep next to Landon, and I woke up several times to reach out and touch him, making sure he was really there.
Our flight to Bali was to leave Singapire around 5:30 PM, so we had a relaxing breakfast of fresh fruit and other delicious items then went to see the city. Singapore is an amazing, modern and lovely city! It's very progressive, with the tall necks of building cranes poking their heads up everywhere like elegant swans along the city skyline. The streets and sidewalks are incredibly clean and well-kept parks and gardens are found on every city block. The city's population is an intruiging potpurri of Asian nations-Japanese, Chinese, Phillipino, Vietnamese-that combine to make one super hip and trendy Singapore population. Riding the metro, it seemed that everyone had an electronic device in their hand. A tiny, shriveled old man texting on his iPhone sat next to a teenage boy playing on a game pad that I haven't even seen before.
Our first stop was Fort Canning Park, the most historic part of Singapore. Malay and Chinese historical records show that the hill on which the park and fort stand was the center of the Malysian kingdom, called Temasek, that arose around 1300 A.D. The site was chosen for settlement by Sri Tri Buana, ruler of Temasek and the one reputed to have been the fabled lion for which he named the island 'Singapura', or Lion City. Because of its geographical location, Singapore was a valuable port city and highly sought after by many ancient Asian civilizations like the Siamese, Javanese and Majapahit. We saw its bloody and violent history depicted on several stone carvings along the walls of the fort. Beleaguered by attacks, the last known ruler of Temasek fled around the early 1500's and except for minimal portside activity, the island of Singapore essentially disappeared until it was re-discovered by the British. From about 1860-1970, the beautiful hill was used as a military base, first by the British, then by the Japanese in WWII and lastly by the Republic's armed forces. Now this forbidden city turned far East command center of the British empire turned city park is a lovely place where people can enjoy a stroll, listen to concerts or attend art performances. Landon and I walked through the spice garden and archaeological dig site, and then just sat on a wooden bench for awhile, enjoying the way the tall green trees framed the towering skyscrapers in the background.
We later walked along the river then through Singapore's booming financial district. The most impressive building was a set of three neighboring skyscrapers that had what looked like an enormous cruise ship that stretched across the three of them. We took a half-hour ride on the Singapore Flyer, the world's largest observation wheel, and were rewarded with incredible views of the city and its surrounding turquoise waters dotted with islands. We ate 'hot plate' on the campus of SingaporeManagement University, then headed back to our hotel to pick up our bags and catch the metro to the airport. We were both very excited to board our plane to Bali, and it was funny to track our progress on the electronic map on the screens of the airplane seatbacks. Flying from home to Bali would take nearly thirty hours, but it was just a short trip from Singapore, not even enough time to watch an in-flight movie. I love being in this part of the world! All the traveling possibilities...
Upon arrival in Denpasar, Bali's capitol city, we purchased our Indonesian visas for $25 a piece, went through immigration and were greeted by our driver from the Tropical Bali hotel. He skillfully wove through Indonesian traffic, a flavor entirely different than India's. It was a little slower-paced and people respected the lane space slightly more, but there were many times more people on motorbikes, weaving in and out of our car's headlights, their helmets reflecting the light. I was relieved to see that they actually wear helmets here, and you don't see the typical helmetless mother, father and two children on one bike combo as frequently (though there are still plenty of helmetless children on them, riding with their parents). Apparently helmet-wearing is strictly enforced, according to Landon, who keeps surprising me with delightful tidbits of information that he has picked up from his frequent reading. It's so much fun to not only travel with my fabulous husband, but someone who is as curious as I am about every aspect of the land and culture we are in. He loves talking to the locals, and easily makes friends here. We passed by areas that were quite modern, like shopping malls and McDonald's, but it soon faded away as we left Denpasar in pursuit of Sanur, a more quiet small town on the coast. We turned off the main road onto a thin, rocky path lined by green cornfields on one side, then into the small driveway of the Tropical Bali hotel. Though it was dark, I could immeadiately tell what a charming place Landon had found for us. We were quickly greeted by one of the owners, Michael, an ex-patriate from Sweden with a gentle and friendly manner that matched his small frame and kind eyes. He showed us to our room for the first night, just off the red-tiled front room that had a couch and an enormous filled bookcase, and was open on two-sides: one to a wooden staircase and the other to the beautiful garden. He took our breakfast orders for the next morning and wished us goodnight, and we both read for a bit before falling asleep to the sounds of the wild inhabitants of the Balinese night outside our open windows.
"Hi.". Was all I could manage.
"Hi. I missed you.". He said simply.
"Thanks for coming." I said, which he found quite funny as we headed off to the metro. He groaned as he picked up my backpacking backpack which continues to weigh more the longer I am around shopping opportunities.
Landon had figured out the Singapore metro system when he had arrived several hours earlier and had already checked into our hotel, so I enjoyed being led back to the Hotel Ibis on Bencoolen Road, and chattered his ear off about India, traveling and everything we had to catch up on. He was very keen on my henna tatooes, and was surprised at how orange the stain was since I'd only sent him pictures of the designs in black when they had first been applied. I was quite happy to arrive at the hotel and rest a bit, enjoying the A/C, cable TV, Western toilet with toilet paper and a hot shower. It was late and Landon was jet-lagged, so we ate in the hotel and had Singapore Slings along with barbecued stingray, shrimp tempura and crab straight out of the claw. It felt wonderful to fall asleep next to Landon, and I woke up several times to reach out and touch him, making sure he was really there.
Our flight to Bali was to leave Singapire around 5:30 PM, so we had a relaxing breakfast of fresh fruit and other delicious items then went to see the city. Singapore is an amazing, modern and lovely city! It's very progressive, with the tall necks of building cranes poking their heads up everywhere like elegant swans along the city skyline. The streets and sidewalks are incredibly clean and well-kept parks and gardens are found on every city block. The city's population is an intruiging potpurri of Asian nations-Japanese, Chinese, Phillipino, Vietnamese-that combine to make one super hip and trendy Singapore population. Riding the metro, it seemed that everyone had an electronic device in their hand. A tiny, shriveled old man texting on his iPhone sat next to a teenage boy playing on a game pad that I haven't even seen before.
Our first stop was Fort Canning Park, the most historic part of Singapore. Malay and Chinese historical records show that the hill on which the park and fort stand was the center of the Malysian kingdom, called Temasek, that arose around 1300 A.D. The site was chosen for settlement by Sri Tri Buana, ruler of Temasek and the one reputed to have been the fabled lion for which he named the island 'Singapura', or Lion City. Because of its geographical location, Singapore was a valuable port city and highly sought after by many ancient Asian civilizations like the Siamese, Javanese and Majapahit. We saw its bloody and violent history depicted on several stone carvings along the walls of the fort. Beleaguered by attacks, the last known ruler of Temasek fled around the early 1500's and except for minimal portside activity, the island of Singapore essentially disappeared until it was re-discovered by the British. From about 1860-1970, the beautiful hill was used as a military base, first by the British, then by the Japanese in WWII and lastly by the Republic's armed forces. Now this forbidden city turned far East command center of the British empire turned city park is a lovely place where people can enjoy a stroll, listen to concerts or attend art performances. Landon and I walked through the spice garden and archaeological dig site, and then just sat on a wooden bench for awhile, enjoying the way the tall green trees framed the towering skyscrapers in the background.
We later walked along the river then through Singapore's booming financial district. The most impressive building was a set of three neighboring skyscrapers that had what looked like an enormous cruise ship that stretched across the three of them. We took a half-hour ride on the Singapore Flyer, the world's largest observation wheel, and were rewarded with incredible views of the city and its surrounding turquoise waters dotted with islands. We ate 'hot plate' on the campus of SingaporeManagement University, then headed back to our hotel to pick up our bags and catch the metro to the airport. We were both very excited to board our plane to Bali, and it was funny to track our progress on the electronic map on the screens of the airplane seatbacks. Flying from home to Bali would take nearly thirty hours, but it was just a short trip from Singapore, not even enough time to watch an in-flight movie. I love being in this part of the world! All the traveling possibilities...
Upon arrival in Denpasar, Bali's capitol city, we purchased our Indonesian visas for $25 a piece, went through immigration and were greeted by our driver from the Tropical Bali hotel. He skillfully wove through Indonesian traffic, a flavor entirely different than India's. It was a little slower-paced and people respected the lane space slightly more, but there were many times more people on motorbikes, weaving in and out of our car's headlights, their helmets reflecting the light. I was relieved to see that they actually wear helmets here, and you don't see the typical helmetless mother, father and two children on one bike combo as frequently (though there are still plenty of helmetless children on them, riding with their parents). Apparently helmet-wearing is strictly enforced, according to Landon, who keeps surprising me with delightful tidbits of information that he has picked up from his frequent reading. It's so much fun to not only travel with my fabulous husband, but someone who is as curious as I am about every aspect of the land and culture we are in. He loves talking to the locals, and easily makes friends here. We passed by areas that were quite modern, like shopping malls and McDonald's, but it soon faded away as we left Denpasar in pursuit of Sanur, a more quiet small town on the coast. We turned off the main road onto a thin, rocky path lined by green cornfields on one side, then into the small driveway of the Tropical Bali hotel. Though it was dark, I could immeadiately tell what a charming place Landon had found for us. We were quickly greeted by one of the owners, Michael, an ex-patriate from Sweden with a gentle and friendly manner that matched his small frame and kind eyes. He showed us to our room for the first night, just off the red-tiled front room that had a couch and an enormous filled bookcase, and was open on two-sides: one to a wooden staircase and the other to the beautiful garden. He took our breakfast orders for the next morning and wished us goodnight, and we both read for a bit before falling asleep to the sounds of the wild inhabitants of the Balinese night outside our open windows.
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