SE Asia Vacation - Day 1, Singapore

Joey and I took our first off-island vacation! Actually, it's our first real vacation together and we had a fantastic time! We took a trip to Singapore, and from there we hopped on a cruise ship to Malaysia and Thailand!

About six of my friends and I planned this cruise trip together way back in March, but unfortunately due to scheduling conflicts, my friend Amy S. and I were the only ones that were able to make the original cruise date, while two others rescheduled for the week after us and made it into a girls trip. But we had fun, nonetheless!

Almost ready to board our plane to Singapore!

The name Singapore comes from the Malay word, Singapura, meaning "Lion-city" and is located on the southern tip of Malaysia. It is a diverse country with majority being Malay, Indian, and Chinese. Singapore is a small country with a growing population, therefore, there were skyscrapers everywhere, with more being built. As some of you may know, Singapore is known as the "Fine City" because of all fines you would get for doing things that are illegal in Singapore, such as chewing gum (however, possession is okay) and littering. I must say, the No Littering rule should be adopted and followed by all countries because Singapore was so beautiful and clean!

We stayed at a couple of hotels on Orchard Road, which is the mecca of shopping in Singapore! The street was so beautiful because it was decorated with Christmas decorations (check back for a later post to see the pictures).

Singapore dollars.

It took half a day to travel to Singapore from Okinawa, and we arrived past midnight on Friday morning. We decided to take Friday easy and just walk around Singapore and visit museums.

Our first stop was to the Asian Civilizations Museum. But before we went in, we stopped to eat lunch at a restaurant next door called IndoChine - so yummy! Joey was able to try the Singaporean beer called Tiger; he said it was "alright".

Joey's Tiger beer on the left, and my iced tea on the right.

We were excited to find out that the Asian Civilizations Museum had a special exhibition gallery dedicated to the Philippines, called Land of the Morning, the Philippines and its People. Now, I'm not the biggest history fan, but I love learning about different cultures and religions. So this museum was a great way to start our trip in SE Asia, giving us a bit of background before we visited the other places.

There were a total of eight galleries at the museum, which highlighted Singapore, West Asia/Islamic, South Asia, China, and Southeast Asia. Joey and I learned so much!

A large Pejeng-style Bronze Drum from East Java, Indonesia.

At the top is a Qu'ran Scroll from the 15th Century, Ottoman Turkey which has the 'text in text' feature, transmitting the entire contents of the Qu'ran.

A closer look at the Qu'ran Scroll. Impressive!

Statue outside the Asian Civilizations Museum.

After the museum, we crossed the Cavenagh Bridge - it is the only suspension bridge and one of the oldest bridges in Singapore that crosses over the Singapore River.

Cavenagh Bridge

Next, we went to Victoria Street to visit CHIJMES (pronounced 'chimes'), which used to be a Catholic convent, the Convent of the Holy Infant Jesus. The chapel is now used as a multipurpose hall and that day, it was being set up for the reception of a wedding. We were able to sneak one picture of the inside and it was beautiful! Other than taking pictures of the chapel itself, there was not much to do there, as the surroundings were converted into restaurants, shopping, and entertainment.

The front view of CHIJMES.

The back and side view of CHIJMES.

The inside of CHIJMES.

Right across the street from CHIJMES, we found the Roman Catholic Archbishop Diocese of Singapore and the Archbishop's House.

Roman Catholic Cathedral of the Good Shepherd.

Then, not knowing what to do next, we asked for directions and walked to the Peranakan Museum. Peranakan comes from the Malay word, meaning "child of" or "born of". The term is used to refer to a person of mixed ethnic origins in Southeast Asia. For example, Jawi Peranakans are descended from Indian Muslims and Tsinoys are those in the Philippines of Chinese and Filipino or Spanish ancestry. The Peranakan Museum focused on the Peranakan Chinese communities.

There were a total of 10 galleries with a special exhibition gallery called, Baba Bling - The Peranakans and their Jewellery (Yes, they spelled jewelry like that. I guess it's because of their British influence). Did you know that they had elaborate 12 day weddings? The museum explained the Peranakan origins, Peranakan wedding, childbirth, family life, the life of Nonyas (Peranakan women) and Babas (Peranakan men), food, and Peranakans today.

The head wear and jewelry of the Peranakan bride and groom. Fancy, huh!

Nonyaware - a brightly colored porcelain that was favored by Nonya's for special occasions.

Baba Bling exhibition - sorry, no pictures were allowed inside!

Once we were done, we headed back down to the first floor to find out there was a gathering of Chinese Peranakans!

By then, Joey and I were exhausted after walking around and exploring Singapore for our first day. So we headed back to our hotel to get some rest for another busy day ahead!

*Read SE Asia Vacation - Day 2, Singapore next!