Days 1 and 2 – London to Singapore

Lovely Steve drove us to the train station and with a last wave to Clare who just happened to be passing (That was a pleasant surprise!), we were off. As usual public transport in the UK was outrageously expensive….it cost as much to get to Heathrow as a return flight to Sweden….

We were a bit anxious at check-in after Saturday’s difficulties, but as soon as we were speaking to a real person, all problems disappeared and we were off to do our airport shopping…..a keyboard for the Kindle, a fold-up bag to be a larger carryon for the way back, a knee brace for Rob….all essentials!  My check-in bag came to exactly 15kg – the limit for some of our Australian internal flights….Rob’s was a kg less – but he was wearing his boots – and I have all the travel guides!

The flight was long and uneventful. Terrible food again – I guess that customer survey I filled in after last time hasn’t had any impact at all…..We did manage to doze for a lot of it though which was a bonus!

We arrived at Singapore’s very modern Changi Airport right on time – 4pm here, 5am in the UK.  The airport is clearly set up for millions of passengers just passing through. There were shops, restaurants, lounges, etc. even before immigration – most very Western – but facilities for everyone: a cold water drinking fountain next to a boiling water tap for the Chinese to make their tea and instant noodles; a bank of squat toilets (seen as so much more hygienic by the Chinese) next to a bank of Western toilets for those of us who inevitably get our trousers wet in the Chinese version…..

Immigration was a breeze…15 queues, no one waiting more than 10 minutes, friendly officers and a basket of welcome sweeties on the desk!

We tackled the public transport system straight away – very easy to use, everything in English, and very pleasant train journey – much overground – into the city.  The similarities with Shanghai were immediately apparent: traditional Chinese pagodas in gardens surrounded by enormous blocks of flats with washing hanging out and modern office buildings.  We arrived in Chinatown and walked the 10 minutes to our hotel – not too onerous, even with our luggage, in the 30 degree heat and 80% humidity….We are on the Equator after all.  We passed myriads of Chinese streetside cafes – there’s tomorrow’s lunch, for sure – and checked in, just too late for a swim this evening….but I’m sure we’ll be up early tomorrow!  We did notice that prices seem very cheap – both for public transport and a meal in the cafes.

We decided to spend this evening in the hotel’s streetside café – Rob videoing and me typing our first impressions…. A full day tomorrow and then the overnight flight to Sydney.  I have to say, I wish we had booked an extra day here – it seems to be our kind of town!