After Singapore

I would walk 500 miles and I would walk 500 more

Category: singapore

  • Hort Park

    There are many parks in Singapore, and this Hort Park is one of them. But unlike other parks, Hort Park is mainly man-made. This park is more of an architecture showcases with “greeneries” as the theme. Many indoor/outdoor design companies put their sample product here for the visitor to “ooh” and “aah”. Though the designs may not affordable for most people, at least we can see the beauty and relax a bit.

    Just after the entrance there is also a “poolside” restaurant providing Vietnamese food, as well as small field and a “

    ballroom” specialized for wedding.
    During the weekends, this park is filled with people having picninc, children playing, or even a small Christian service.
    To get here, you can take bus #100 from Commonwealth MRT. Stop just before/after Alexandra Arch (picture on the left).
    Hort Park is located at N° 33 Hyderabad Rd, Singapore 119758.

  • Mustafa Centre

    Though located in the Little-India area, the nearest MRT is Farrer Park MRT. To go correctly to this place is a bit tricky. When I first came in, I went to the “wrong” Mustafa, which I thought was the correct one, as it was a shopping center as well and use the same name. The “wrong” one also located just at the main road, so you can easily spot it. But this “wrong” one does not have as complete items as the other one. For the “other” one, you need to follow the main road for a bit, then turn left (if you go from Farrer Park MRT) to a small alley then enter from there (you will pass “Mustafa Cafe” before you find the entrance)
    The 3-level store (including basement) has a lot of varieties. From the regular items that you can find in Fairprice or ShengSiong, to jewelries, perfumes, clothes, bags and Italian-chocolates, they are available here at an affordable prices. If you are Indian girls/women, you can find lots of Sarees here also. If you don’t like Sarees but still Indians, don’t worry because there are a lot of packed Indian foods as well: Maggi-s, Muruku, etc.
    Last time when I was there, I bought an old-fashioned Casio watch for only $23, but hey! it’s water resistance! The other time I bought 3 packs of Lindtz chocolate for $10, with the catch that it was two months left before expiry. But I expect to eat those chocs in few weeks anyway.
    Electronics are good also. Though not cheaper than Sim Lim Square, but the quality is better. for t-shirs, they have them, but I’d suggest to buy at Orchard Road instead (cheaper).
    Conclusion, Mustafa is a shopping haven if you have limited budget or don’t really care about brands. But be in mind to fill up your stomach before you go here as meal are generally expensive here.
    Mustafa Centre is located at N° 176 Syed Alwi Rd, Singapore 207704

  • Bukit Timah Nature Reserve

    This is the 1st “highest peak in a country” I’ve ever visit. With the height of 163.63 m, it’s not pretty high tough.

    But it’s still worth it, considering you love nature. But if you don’t, don’t bother to come here. All you see is greeneries: trees, trees, and trees.
    There are several manmade tracks you can choose, depending on their difficulties (distance, height, etc..)
    At the top of the hill, you can see small hut to rest and pride yourself by just climbing the highest peak. When I went there, there were some people picnic-ing inside the hut. You cannot see the whole Singapore from up here (as I expected before). But still it’s a good place to see while you can do some calorie-burning.

  • SCC Rugby Sevens 2008

    I was informed about the event few days before. It is in fact an annual event, inviting teams from many countries (mostly eastern side of the world) to play the Sevens-style of rugby. The game itself is very short. One game consists of 2 x 7 minutes (10 minutes for the final). Therefore the whole tournament was finished in two days (1-2 November 2008)

    The entry fee was $20, but it’s worth it. Maybe because it’s the first time I watch live sport match. Or maybe because my brother took part in it. Yes, my brother is an athlete and he was one of the Indonesia’s “dream team” to play in this event. Though didn’t get the big prize, his team was the winner of Bowl tournament. By the way, the winner was SA Vipers from South Africa.
    More pictures of the tournament, you can find at http://picasaweb.google.com/pascalalfadian/SCCRugbySeven
    About Padang
    Padang is a large grass field just in front of City Hall (the real one, not MRT). Though, it is close to City Hall MRT. Usually the field is left open with no barrier so people can play something. But for this event they created a “portable” stadium that encircles the rugby field.

  • Jurong West Swimming Complex

    This swimming complex is located near the (newly-opened or to-be-opened, depends on when you read it) NTU extension green-line MRT station. Yes, just after Boon Lay.

    With the entry fee of $2, it’s also a good spot to swim. Altough it doesn’t have as many facilities as its neighbor Jurong East, this is the only complex I found having two olympic size pools. One of the two has a rooftop, so it’s more convenient when it’s raining. There is a very high slide that you can use, and good news is you don’t need a float.
    Other facilities are kids playground, jacuzzi, and stream pool.

  • Jurong East Swimming Complex

    Despite its name, the swimming complex is nearer to Chinese Garden MRT rather than Jurong East MRT.

    With slightly more expensive price ($2 for the weekends), the swimming complex provides you all the facilities to have fun as well as for excercise. Do not forget to put aside $5 from your locker, as you may need it to rent a float to use two of the three slides they have. I forgot the height, but it’s quite high! For the lowest slide, you don’t need a float; but (at least for me) it’s more exhilarating because you feel your body going down in high-speed with hardly anything you can do about it (compared with float where you can grab it).
    Other facilites are stream pool, jacuzzi, children playing area, and wave pool (which operates +/- 15 minutes every one hour). The complex also provide pretty good olympic size pool, so you can excercise as well as having fun in this swimming complex.
    With all the facilities, no wonder a lot of people swimming here. I feel bad to my girlfriend if I swim here, but if you are single (and looking), this is a good place to look: pretty girls in bikini and guys with sexy body are included in this “a lot of people”.

  • Buona Vista Swimming Complex

    When I wrote this post, I just went back from that swimming complex.

    Having the place near to Holland Village, expect to see some bule (caucasians) to swim there. First thing came to my head was the pool is very small. Though it has an olympic sized pool (and one kids one), the complex lacks of canteen and shelter. So you can only put your belongings in beach-style chairs provided, hoping there’s no rain. Lockers of course provided for 20-40 cents. If you are too shy to show your “thing” to public, better to not wash here after swimming. The washing rooms are not equipped with doors and there are hardly any hanger. So you wash there, then walk naked to the small table where you put your clothings. Of course males and females are separated, and my report only based on male room. But may be it’s good for.., you know, people who likes the same sex.

  • Queenstown Swimming Complex

    Being the nearest swimming pool to my place, this becomes the most-frequenlty-I-visited (don’t know the good grammar).

    The pool is best for excercise, but not for water-fun. With one olympic-size pool and one more kids pool that most of the time closed. The entry fee is $1 on weekdays, and $1.30 on weekends. The pool has no rooftop, so be prepared to wear sunblock when you swim during the day, or accept the raindrops when it’s raining. Normally the pool is not very crowded, so you can still do some laps without much difficulties.