10/22/11- Singapore

We docked in Penang, Malaysia but I had booked myself on the trip to Singapore so I really don’t have much to say about Malaysia unfortunately. Usually when we dock somewhere, Customs boards the ship and stamps all the passports and we all have to sit around and wait until everyone is cleared in order to get off the ship. However, some countries like to make things difficult for us and need to stamp our passports face to face. So slowly we all have to make our way to the seventh deck and stare at the Customs officers all bleary eyed and have them stamp our passports. Malaysia decided to be extra difficult and make us all actually get off the boat and then proceed through to do face to face customs. I was not at all thrilled about this considering that I was still in my PJs, needed a shower and still hadn’t packed for Singapore. I got my passport stamped and then since none of us could get back on the ship until everyone had been cleared (and there was quite a line behind me), I headed to find a little bit of home in Penang with a couple other girls to kill time. Starbucks. They told us there would be one in Malaysia and I’m pretty sure 90% of the room sent up a silent prayer of thanks. It was not quite like home but still did the job. By the time we got back, we could board the ship so I chugged my latte and hurried to pack.
Basically, Singapore was awesome. Mostly because we've been in all these super poor, dirty, don’t go out at night alone, don't drink the water or get rabies/hookworm/malaria/AIDS countries so Singapore was a breath of fresh air. It’s a real city but it’s super clean and the island is 1/3 city and 2/3 rainforest but even the city had a lot of greenery. They have all these crazy laws like no chewing gum, no spitting, no littering, no jaywalking etc. and you get huge fines if you get caught doing any of them. Our hotel was really nice and the air didn’t smell awful so we could actually breathe. It was so nice to not worry about what you are eating and whether you will regret it later and to be able to brush your teeth in the sink without using a water bottle.
Apparently they have this big race there every September and tons of people fly in and they use the main roads as the track, the sidewalks have black and white checkers along the edge. One of our taxi drivers said its impossible to get a hotel around that time because it is so packed. So again, it was great and really fun. The first night we all went out to a club which was really fun but buying drinks in Singapore sucks because they have a 100% tax on alcohol. I didn’t really think about it until we went to the grocery store to get stuff to prefunk with and we stood there staring at $50-70 bottles that are usually $20-30 at home.
The next day my roommate who was a friend from the ship, and I slept in and got room service for breakfast and skyped home briefly before hitting up the shopping that Singapore is known for. We didn’t actually buy a lot because things were about as expensive as home and we know we will be able to get it all for way cheaper in China. We also went on the Singapore Flyer which is basically a giant Ferris Wheel that I believe is taller than the London Eye before heading back to the hotel. Our impatience for dinner caused us to miss the boat on the whole going out as a group thing but we ended up running into people later that night at Clarke Quay, which is a big nightlife area. Prior to that we went up to the Sky Bar of this giant hotel which is actually three separate buildings all connected by this huge boat looking platform area on top. They have an infinity pool, restaurant, casino and bar at the top, all with amazing views. So we went up, had a drink and stared at the city for a while. After we got our fill of the lights, we headed to Clark Quay where I mentioned that we met up with other people at a shot bar where they served only shots. They had these huge menus of all these different kinds of crazy drinks. But the whole area was cool because it was outside but still covered and it had all kinds of lights and a big fountain and just one bar or café after another. There was one bar that we walked past that was called “The Clinic” where you sit on hospital beds or in wheelchairs and you drink out of IV bags. It was kind of creepy but kind of cool at the same time. So we hung out around the area and eventually went back to the hotel.
The next day we went to the mall next to our hotel to get some Halloween candy for the kids on the ship for trick-or-treating and then we were going to go to the pool at the hotel but a thunderstorm struck so we napped instead. They warned us about the rain in the area since it was monsoon season but I loved it, it was just like home. I talked to one other girl from Seattle and we both have been getting a little sick of all the sunshine and have been waiting for a gray day and some rain. So as soon as that rain started coming down and the sky was all cloudy and stormy, I got really happy lol. I was also hoping that the sudden storm would delay or cancel our plane so we would have to stay in Singapore for another night but no such luck. We didn’t miss the boat but we did get back really late because of all the traffic. All in all, Singapore was awesome and I would love to go back again for a little bit and try a durian fruit and have a Singapore Sling (the two things I did not do). People also said that Malaysia was great so obviously we are on a good course and hopefully things will continue to be super awesome!