Singapore - From Little India to Chinatown

We are now leaving our wonderful paradise in Fiji to travel to our first Southeast Asian country: Singapore.

We arrive at the huge airport early in the morning and take the subway to the neighborhood of Little India where our hostel is located. After the luxury of the past week, we have to settle for a windowless dormitory again. Here there are only 2 bunk beds, air conditioning - urgently needed - and a small bathroom with a broken sliding door.

It is hot and humid as we enter the main Serangoon Road that runs through Little India. Here, small colonial houses, modern residential buildings, shabby bars, and colorful temples alternate on both sides, forming a vibrant picture. The further we venture into the district, the more colorful and lively the hustle and bustle around us becomes: countless jewelry stores with sparkling gold jewelry, small shops with old paintings or knick-knacks, as well as market stalls with fruit and flowers, infuse the district with oriental spice mixtures and loud Bollywood beats. Maybe a little like in India? After the long flight here, our stomachs growl louder and louder... so we have an early lunch, of course, Indian cuisine. We feel a bit strange because we are almost the only guests here who eat with cutlery. Traditionally, in India, you eat with your right hand.

After seeing, hearing, smelling, and tasting a bit of our hood, we now head to the Marina Bay area. Here, a completely different cityscape is immediately presented: huge modern skyscrapers, countless malls, and the Marina Sands Hotel, which is impossible to overlook from a distance, with two giant towers topped by a UFO-like structure. Everything here is new and well maintained. We join the flow of crowds and let ourselves be carried to the harbor basin to marvel at the theater's foyer. Here, Lisa finds a large mural that shows people, places, and processes behind the stage. That's exactly how it should be!

Unfortunately, our breakfast at the hostel looks a bit different from the delicious Fiji buffet. There is an instant mixture of coffee and milk powder with sugar or tea. In addition, there is white toast with A) a white unidentified paste, B) peanut butter, or C) chocolate cream. So we sit in a small room together with about 20 loudly conversing Indians and munch on our overly sweet toast.

Today, we dedicate ourselves to Chinatown and also go to this district with our beloved subway. Dramatic movie posters are hanging everywhere down here. Wait a minute, no, that's an advertisement for security! One particularly drastic image shows a bloodied mother lying in the street, apparently hit by a car, while her little daughter cries bitterly next to her. Sitting between the two is a friendly smiling security officer. Interesting campaign.

Chinatown is bustling with activity, with locals and tourists flocking to the bustling markets and brightly lit shops. Techno music is blaring everywhere. Nevertheless, we like it here, especially when you move away from the main streets and explore the beautiful alleys and side streets. Finally, we buy Sebastian a phone case. I am surprised that his iPhone is still functioning after the countless falls from his pocket.

After Little India and Chinatown, the next day we dedicate ourselves to the southeast of Singapore, which the Lonely Planet warmly recommends. Here, there are some interesting temples and pretty colorful colonial houses. But when we arrive and stroll around, we don't find it as exciting as it was advertised. Then it starts raining. We take shelter under the arcades and wait for the rain to stop. Staring at us from a glass case are the rigid frog eyes. The glass case is in front of a restaurant. The mood matches the rain.

We flee to the nearest bus stop and go to Orchard Road, the famous shopping street. Unfortunately, the rain doesn't stop, but there are enough malls here to spend time indoors.

In the evening, we explore the vibrant streets of the Arab world. In the midst of the colorful and bustling pedestrian zones around Arab Street, there is a beautiful big mosque. Numerous restaurants and shops selling traditional clothing transport us to the Orient. It's amazing how diverse Singapore is!

However, the sun is already shining again the next morning. Today, we want to go to Haw Paw Villa, a kind of Chinese fairytale park with hundreds of figures. We grab some toast and off we go!

We leave the subway and walk straight to the villa, although the villa is not really a building but more of a park. We enter and we are surrounded by Confucius, the monkey god, mermaids, half-human half-pig creatures, and countless mythical creatures from Chinese mythology. The facility is nicely designed, with some streams and a small lake inhabited by turtles. But here, not only are pictures presented and stories told, visitors are also informed about which hell they will go to. Oh yes, there are the 10 halls of hell, which are presented in a visually powerful way here in a kind of dark tunnel. Each hell has specific sins that lead the sinner there. Depending on whether you steal, engage in promiscuity, or lie, your intestines are ripped out, you are chopped into small pieces, or you are thrown against a tree with knives. So, always be good. But don't worry, once the endless torment is over, you get a kind of purifying tea and get to be reborn. Super!

We spend our last evening in the harbor because the view at night is simply breathtaking. Everything is illuminated, glimmering, and sparkling. Since there is currently a light festival going on, various buildings are brightly colored. The whole city is a sea of lights.