08/10 - Chinatown

Get out of the peaceful oasis and into the hustle and bustle. After the botanical garden, Chinatown was on my agenda for the afternoon. First stop: Chinatown Complex, a huge market building with at least three floors full of food stalls. I finally took a photo of the hawker centers that are typical in Singapore.

You can find these centers at practically every corner and they offer a wide variety of local dishes at very affordable prices. Since groceries at the supermarket are so expensive, it's hardly worth it to cook for yourself. I also go with my colleagues to one of the various hawker centers nearby for lunch.

With such a huge selection, it's always difficult to decide, but in the end, I had a typical Singaporean hand-rolled spring roll called 'Popiah'. Definitely the right choice.

After that, I continued to the street market and soaked in the atmosphere while also searching for some souvenirs.

From there, I headed towards Telok Ayer (originally a bay, but later filled in to accommodate the growing population). It's a very beautiful neighborhood with many different temples of various religions and the modern high-rise buildings in the background.

Telok Ayer

From there, I slowly made my way towards Clarke Quay, where I met up with Couchsurfers for dinner. On the way there, I took a short break in a lounge chair overlooking the Singapore skyline.