APRIL/MAY 2025 ASIA STORY PART 4

Riding through the neuro-ward of Jakarta traffic, we arrived at our final stop in Indonesia, the Raffles Hotel. This hotel earns its stripes every minute of every day for service, quality of food, and everything else that a traveler could desire. We were checked in, and escorted to our suite on the 24th floor, where we, of course, took our “short nap.” Yes. Another couple of hours shot. Nonetheless, we made it downstairs for dinner, and then back upstairs to get some more quality time in the land of Nod. Having memorialized three-fourths of our Asian adventure, it was now time to catch our flight to Singapore. Up at 5:00 AM, for this caper. However, we were not about to attempt this with empty fuel tanks in our tummies. No sirree. Eggs Benedict, Bagels and Lox, and all that went with each for our last meal at the much-fabled Raffles Hotel. Indeed, they got us out of there in time to catch our flight.

After our last blast through Jakarta traffic, we made it to the airport, where we did our security symphony to board our plane to the much-vaunted island country, and city-state, Republic of Singapore. How’s that for a mouthful? Be aware, they have fines for just about any infraction one might think of….Littering, jaywalking, spitting, smoking, vaping, chewing tobacco, carrying of firearms, chewing gum (except dental/nicotine gum) public displays of affection, and last, but certainly not least, misuse of public toilets (not flushing can result in a fine). The omnipresent cameras, both inside of buildings, and on the streets, make for an eerie sense of enforced safety, and cleanliness. There are other rules that you might want to check out if you’re going there. Ignorance of the law in Singapore is “NO EXCUSE.” These people like their towns and streets the way they are, and that’s it. It took a bit of getting used to. Yes. Naomi and I like to hold hands when we walk around town. No “Kissy Face/Huggy Bear” in public.

Our first on the list after reading all of the do’s and don’ts, was to get into the sanctum of our hotel room, which was located in the Mondrian Hotel. Why the Mondrian Hotel? Because, as people learn as they travel, and/or buy and sell real estate, the three most important things are LOCATION, LOCATION, and LOCATION. The Mondrian is located at the tip of Chinatown, which is also a wonderful stew of various cultures all within walking distance, and/or a quick taxi ride. This is what greeted us in the lobby of the Mondrian.

To some, this may have seemed a bit avant-garde. To others, it may have seemed a bit of foreshadowing. As you will see, it was a bit of both. Being judgmental has no place in this glowing international metropolis. Indian, Chinese, Japanese, European, and American food stands, and restaurants, as well as houses of worship, stand side by side in total repose. It seems to welcome all travelers, young or old, hip or square. All that the Singaporeans seem to want to retain is the status quo of cleanliness, and organization. Thus, as you see the decoration that greeted us in the lobby, you might understand once you read the “activities” poster below. Yes. The Mondrian is a “Gay Hotel.”

After checking in, and unpacking, it was time to unwind. Where better to unwind after hours enroute via air than the hotel swimming pool? Yes. We had a ball sharing with the other water-logged travelers where we were from, where they were from, et cetera. One fellow had a multi-colored bracelet on his wrist that I noticed. When I asked him what it symbolized, he said unabashedly, “Gay pride.” I said, “Terrific,” at which point I showed him my wedding ring. He looked at it briefly, almost quizzically, as I explained to him that it was a symbol of “Hetero pride.” Practically everyone in the pool howled with laughter. It was a good ice-breaker. Most of the “poolers” were in town to see the Lady Gaga concert. We were in town to see the town.

This is us taking a walk on a nearby street. It’s so clean, one could almost eat on it. Yes. The  whole town is like this.

This is the SRI LAYAN SITHI VINAYAGAR TEMPLE, just up the street from the Mondrian. They were celebrating their 100th anniversary. We didn’t know if they were reformed, conservative, or orthodox. So we took off our shoes and joined their indoor procession.

Having heard the myriad of stories regarding the virtues of the freshly made dim sum in Singapore, we knew that was going to be “Stop #1.” The shops most highly recommended were in the Chinatown Complex…Once again, a short walk from our hotel.

Here it is, in all its glory.

Yes. We even got to watch them create their masterpieces of dim sum. Oh what foods these morsels be. One does not live by dim sum alone. Let there be soup!! Yes. Naomi had some too.

 

Walking around Singapore, it seems that nothing is just “okay,” or, “Yeah. We’ve seen that before.” Rather, just about everything is either original to the max, or exotic in some other way. As an example, here is a picture of a tree full of Weaver Birds’ nests. Have you ever seen Weaver Birds before? Well, here are a bunch of them. They are located in the Mandai Park, which has many other delights that kept us occupied for over three hours. When our driver picked us up, we were more than ready for a bit of a rest. Nature is beautifully captured and displayed here.

This was our introduction to the bird sanctuary in the Mandai Park. Like everything else in Singapore, it was quite something.

When thinking of ground-breaking architects, the names in the pantheon of heavy-weight architects that generally come to mind are Frank Lloyd Wright, Antoni Gaudi, and Frank Geary. However, the folks who designed the buildings in Singapore are like giants in a field of Lilliputians. Here are some of the buildings that we saw when just walking around during the day. More on this later.

As we were walking around, suddenly the sky changed color, and just as suddenly, a major downpour struck. Being the seasoned travelers that we are, ready for any atmospheric changes, we quickly grabbed our super fold-up rain jackets that we had purchased just prior to our trip, only to find that “waterproof” meant to the salesperson that they held water beautifully, which they did. We didn’t spill a drop of the rainwater that cascaded down upon us. As we sloshed and galumphed our way back to our hotel, we muttered several epithets questioning the birth origin of the rain jacket salesperson. Did we take this lying down? Yes. Back at the dry sanctum of our hotel, we immediately made a beeline for our suite, dried off, and took a nap. Yes. When the going gets tough, the tough take a nap. We, of course, hung our thoroughly soaked clothes throughout the bathroom and front room. When we got up, the specter of a television hero of the past, “MacGyver” made itself known. Yes. My resourceful bride made short work of our doused duds with the hotel hairdryer. Ahh. The virtues of a college education. After our nap, and Naomi’s hairdryer heroics, it was once again time to sample some of the local bill of fare. This time, we tried the restaurant across the street from our hotel. Neither rain, nor sunshine could stop us now. The street was not terribly wide. Thus, in a few dozen steps, we were in the right place for foodies. These unique delicacies are called “Street Food” by locals.

Each dish has a name that we were given, but no information regarding what was in it. Caveat emptor daddyo.

Nonetheless we tried a good portion of the “Street Foods,” and enjoyed most of them. Needless to say, we had to watch out for their idea of mild, medium, and spicy. “Spicy” could power the space shuttle. We were fortunate that the string of restaurants across the street from our hotel were Chinese, Korean, Indian, and Singaporean, thus offering us a cornucopia of authentic foods within walking distance. Once again, LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION. During our stay in this ultra-clean multi-cultural megalopolis, we managed to give each one a try. On one occasion, we opted for the Chinese-style duck, with noodles long enough to be used as clothes lines in a laundry with no dryers. It was paired with a bowl of marvelous dim sum soup.

No trip to Singapore would be complete without sampling its most famous libation, the Singapore Sling, served at its birthplace, the original Raffles Hotel. Not being strict teetotalers, we hired a cab, and made a beeline for this site of bartending history. We were not disappointed in the appearance of this hostelry, originally built in the 1830s, and named Emerson’s Hotel. Due to deaths, and finances, it changed hands numerous times. When finally the Sarkies Brothers leased the property, and built it up into a high-end hotel. It opened as such in1887, and was named for Singapore’s founder, Sir Stamford Raffles. It is now owned by Katara Hospitality, and operated by Accor Hotels, of which we are members. Yes. We are genuine members of the Accor Club. Showing our membership card to the liveried greeters, and our waiter entitled us to a table for two and a round of Singapore Slings at the regular price, along with a bag of peanuts that we were shown to shell and toss the shells on the floor. How’s that for, as Ralph Kramden would say, “Being big shots?” Seriously, it was a study in correct service, and drinks. Once again, “RAFFLES RULES.”

Every blade of grass, twig, and branch is trimmed with the care of a Beverly Hills cosmetologist. No goofing off here.

Just in case you harbored doubts about the importance of the “Sling” to the hotel’s image, this greeted us at the entrance to the bar.

This is us with our heretofore only dreamt of iconic thirst quencher. Notice the bag of peanuts. Yes. We cracked and tossed unabashedly, never missing the floor even once. Oh yes. The drinks were great too. Definitely living up to their reputation.

Now before you start thinking that this is just another boozeria, here are some “facts” that we read on a wall in the bar:

1. Distributed by eco Spirits. Mixes are delivered by low carbon spirits distribution technology.
2. Joining Ecospirits Technology. Raffles Hotel Singapore is the first hotel in the world to use the coSpirits technology.
3. Ingredients delivered in Ecotote Format. Saving thousands of glass bottles each year.
4. Eliminating Plastic Straws. The iconic cocktail is served with straws made by potato starch.
5. Healing Our Planet. Raffles Hotel plants one native tree in Indonesia for every 25 glasses served.
6. Reducing Packaging Waste. Through the use of Luxardo Cherries as garnishes and receiving Bitters in large low-waste formats.
7. Weighing Down Carbon Emission. Dropping 200g of CO2 per serving ecoSpirits.

Upon reading this, we both looked at each other, as if to say, “Cool. Let’s have a taste, and toss some shells.” And so we did.

Yes. Even Raffles has kitch shops, where Sling-sodden travelers can purchase goodies that until that very moment they didn’t realize that they could live without. So it was that we left there with refrigerator magnets, et cetera, safely clutched in our hands.

At this point, we realized that it was time to call our driver to get back to our hotel for a well-earned nap, followed by a wonderful Indian dinner across the street. As we dined, we realized the effect of the humidity. We had been forewarned about it, but at this point, it was really rather much. So after our meal, and saying, “Danyabad,” thank you in Hindi, and “Namaste,” good-bye in Hindi, we made our way back across the street to our hotel, where we both took much-needed showers, and said our “good-nights” to the world.

Up bright and early to get a good head start on more stuff to see. Yes. We started off with the Marina Bay Sands Hotel. It is gargantuan, consisting of three towers connected by a swimming pool.

Rather than make this into an ad solely for this hotel, here’s some of the evening light shows that we were fortunate enough to see. These people really enjoy their town, and enjoy showing it off to visitors. This is part of their “Supertree Multicolor Light Show.” It was accompanied by much ooooing, and aaaahing, with an occasional WOW.

Following this incredible display of “We’re so Fine,” it was time to head back to our hotel to pack and get ready for the next-day’s adventure. Yes. It was nearing time to leave this nearly antiseptic wonderland, and head back to our humble abode in Central Texas, complete with our heads and hearts full of memories, as well as wondering if we would ever take this “ride” again.

Up, once again bright and early so that there would be a minimum of pressure catching our flight out of Singapore to Manila for a connecting flight to Texas.

We had heard about the Singapore Airport, “Jewel Changi Airport,” by name. It officially opened in 2019. It’s not only massive, perhaps the largest on our planet, but is incredibly beautiful, and basically easy to navigate through, which is important to travelers, like we, seeking entrance to their flights. Once ensconced within its confines, it’s like being in a whole other city/dimension.

After checking in, we followed the maps to various areas of incredible beauty and grace.

Confession time. We found most of these incredible sites due to the friendly help of two Singaporean ladies, who hang out at the airport on a daily basis, and who also introduced us to Chinese coffee. Here they are, Win and Vicky, at the “scene of the crime,” the coffee shop. One cup of this brew, and you are ready to drive, non-stop, from Central Texas to Honolulu.

Before going to our gate for our flight, we had to take one more gander at the fountain. It’s just that beautiful. Once again, the architects who put this town, and airport together are true giants in their field.

By the way, I neglected to include one of the local restaurant specials that we took a pass on.

As we boarded our flight back to Manila, we took one last glance at this phantasmagorical kaleidoscope of an airport. All that was left for us to say was a unison, “WOW!”

Yes. We were flying back to Manila, where we’d once again bunk in at the Fairmont. Yes. They of the incredible service, friendliness, and all that is good in a hotel.

The next morning, we were off to LAX, DFW, and the end of our April/May 2025 Asia Story. We hope that you enjoyed reading it as much as we enjoyed living it.