Singapore, 2nd day, March 22, 2023

Today we took part in a tour organized by the ship. First, we went back to the Gardens by the Bay, this time during the day.

Today we learned that the trees are wrapped air intake and exhaust chimneys as well as heat exchange chimneys for the greenhouse. The whole system apparently doesn't need external energy. Nevertheless, it is a very artificial world, even though the plants on the pseudo-trees or chimneys are real. They remain impressive, especially because of their size and the fact that you can walk on them.

The Flower Dome, which is part of the Gardens by the Bay, is impressive as well, but it feels more like Disneyland than a garden. For example, it had blooming Japanese cherry trees. However, they are only planted for a few weeks, and then there is a new theme with new plants.

Afterwards, we drove past the Raffles Hotel and took a small boat ride on the Singapore River. This allowed us to see the city from a different perspective, and the river cruise was particularly pleasant because the boat was electric and moved silently.

Another attraction was the Marina Bay Sands building, where we could enjoy the view from the rooftop. After being there at night the day before, the impression during the day was completely different.

After a small lunch in Chinatown, we went to Marina Barrage. It is not visually overwhelming, but it is of great importance to the city. Singapore must provide its water supply with its own resources as much as possible, and this dam creates an additional drinking water reservoir where the river water is separated from the seawater.

We then said goodbye to the rest of the tour group and went on our own to the Botanic Gardens, where it rained heavily despite the weather forecast. Nevertheless, it was beautiful there, and we admired, among other things, the many 'Ritas' (lawn mowing robots) that mowed the lawn areas of the several square kilometer garden.

To end the day, we walked along the Singapore River and met with Mathias and Su. They invited us to an exquisite dinner and even chauffeured us back to the ship.

In the metro, there are signs stating that you have to pay a fine of §500 for not eating or drinking, §1,000 for not smoking, etc. Maria thinks it's the other way around. I think the sign is clear: No eating or drinking > Fine §500.