SPORE SO FAR!

Here's a look at our first few days in Singapore...

THE FLIGHT

• Despite the 2:45am take-off time, there is only one way to fly, CATHAY PACIFIC: Business Class. The Pods were awesome, the Johnny Gold on the rocks were flowing strong and I got to catch up with lots of my favorite shows, unedited: the first six episodes of CALIFORNICATION: S2, the first three episodes of TRUE BLOOD: S1 and VALKYRIE, it was great. Michelle took full advantage of the amenities using every thing that was given to us. The service was spectacular, the flight smooth and Michelle even managed to sleep for a few hours, I even slept for two hours and if you know me, I don't sleep on plane. It will be extremely difficult to travel in coach again...

WELCOME TO SINGAPORE

• WE MADE IT! 12.5 hours to Hong Kong, a 2 hour layover and then a 3.5 hour flight to Singapore. As smooth as it gets. We arrived in Singapore at 12:30pm Tuesday afternoon (9:30pm Monday for you Vancouverites) and while waiting in the immigration line-up, I realized that I forgot my sunglasses on the plane. We ran back to the gate and luckily they were still cleaning the plane so after a few minutes of looking, they found them and returned them to me unharmed. We went back in line at immigration and then a funny thing happened with our Visas... nothing. They looked at our Visa paperwork, they looked at our passports, they verified the names, they stamped everything and said "welcome to Singapore"... that's it. The one time I tried to get into the States with a Work Visa, it took six hours and at the end of it all I was denied. This time, it was a dream. We grabbed our bags and were met at the airport by some of my new co-workers Bobby & Aamir who took us on the "scenic route" to our temporary housing. I was stunned at how hot & humid it is, I was instantly soaked with sweat, it's gonna take me a long time to acclimatise.

TREETOPS

• For the next 6-8 weeks, we are staying at a lovely resort type dream called the TREETOPS EXECUTIVE RESIDENCES located at the far end of Orchard Road by Tanglin, it's astonishingly beautiful and I feel blessed that Lucasfilm put us here and this is Michelle's first taste of Sing hospitality, it's awesome. The rooms are nice, the staff friendly, the pool massive, the breakfast buffets complimentary and the gym sizable. That's right, I said gym, both Michelle and I committed to working out everyday and so far so good. This is a new chapter in our lives and that means getting in shape as well. But on this first day, all we did was sleep, that's right, as soon as Bobby & Aamir left, Michelle passed out and really didn't wake up for 17 hours, me? I stayed up a bit (as it was only around 3pm) but soon fell asleep and managed a solid 10 hours. We woke up at 8am, went downstairs for an awesome breakfast by the pool and then got ready to tackle the first official day of the rest of our lives.

ORCHARD ROAD

• Since we are so close to ORCHARD ROAD, the biggest shopping street in Singapore (think Robson Street on crack x 10), that's where we spent our first day. We picked up a "pay as you go" phone until our bank accounts are set up and I can finally get my iPhone, we ate at the Food Pavilion, Michelle bought some clothes, I picked up my official Sing Crumpler bag for work, we both bought nike shoes, we got our EZ-link Transit passes and spent the afternoon walking up and down this massive road. One thing to note, the prices were great, even with the exchange, everything was still cheaper here than back home... booya! We then returned to the hotel and sat poolside in the sun, sharing a beer and then prepped for dinner with Aamir & his wife Denise, who took us to a "local" muslim eatery for some kick ass nosh.
  

BEUNA VISTA/HOLLAND VILLAGE

• We woke up to the sounds of our first tropical rainstorm and it was raining hard. A little thunder, a little lightning and lots and lots of rain. We ate breakfast under cover but still sat poolside so we could enjoy the cooling effect of the rain (even though it was still damn hot and I was still sweaty). We then got ready and decided to check out one of the potential hoods to live it called HOLLAND VILLAGE. We jumped on the MRT (possibly the cleanest and well lit subway system in the world) and headed out of the city core. We got off at the proper MRT stop, Buena Vista, and proceeded to turn left instead of going straight. We ended up in the Singapore burbs and were really the only Caucasian people in sight. This is a different side to Singapore, tons of government housing, lots of laundry hanging out of the windows and possibly the biggest Hawker Center (think outdoor food court where a meal will cost you about $3) I've seen yet. We asked some folks, got a new course heading and walked to, hopefully, Holland Village.

• We got to a t-stop and ofcourse went left when we should have gone right, we walked for 20 more minutes and finally hailed a cab who took us to the proper destination. Holland Village is a bustling, compact collection of shops, hi-end restaurants, clubs and a big central Hawker Center. It was quite active during the day but everyone says to see it at night as that's where it truly comes alive. We ate lunch at a Pho place (awesome) then walked around to explore a bit before cabbing it back to the the city. We went to the legendary Raffles Hotel (no Singapore Slings today), explored the Raffles City shopping mall and then MRT'ed back to Orchard and walked back to the hotel. After a workout, we hooked up with Bobby and another new co-worker Wayne for dinner at this Mediterranean restaurant called ESMIRADA'S where the music is loud and they smash plates to celebrate the good times and then for Martinis at NO. 5. Full day and despite the constant heat and a couple showers, we love it.
  

SENTOSA ISLAND

• Woke up and Skyped with Victor & Gina (the puppies are doing well but we miss them terribly), worked out and had breakfast. Then we decided to hit SENTOSA ISLAND, billed as Singapore's resort island and boasting some of the best beaches around, we thought better to explore now rather than s busy weekend. Bottom line, this place rocks. We took a cab to Mount Faber and took a skytram over to island (like a skilift at whistler but this one is over the city and ocean). We were then greeted by a beautiful yet touristy place with tons to see and do but first, we were hungry and we knew exactly where we wanted to go!

• We had lunch and drinks poolside at CAFE DEL MAR, yes, that Cafe Del Mar, it was great. A couple cocktails, some lunch, tunes flowing in the background, it was a memorable way to have some lunch. After that, we walked to the UNDERWATER AQUARIUM which was amazing for three main reasons: 1) You can hand feed Manta Rays 2) They have actual live "Nautilus" crustaceans 3) They have a Dugong! After an hour or so of playing with the fish, we headed back to the giant Merlion statue and sky-trammed it back to the mainland. That night we had a lovely dinner at the BARRACKS CAFE in the HOUSE complex at DEMPSEY HILL (home of the legendary "Tiffin Punch"), it's a great area filled with artists, restaurants and shops, worthy of repeated visits for sure.

More adventures to come...