Singapore!

We got off the ship in Singapore by 10 am, which was fast! We all had to take our passports off with us because there are strict security and immigration services right off the ship. I threw my laptop in my bag with my purse and camera, and headed out with Alexa, Kelly, Ross, Lindsey, Tam and Rachel. We hopped on the bus to Orchard Road, which cost about S$1.25. The extra S in front of the $ stands for “Sing,” or “Singapore Dollar.”
Skyscraapers lined the roads. They were everywhere! There were rods replacing clothing lines, which held t-shirts and pants from windows hanging out to dry. The streets were spotless because littering is highly illegal. No gum, no cigarette butts… nothing. Public housing is provided in units by the government, with exercise facilities and playgrounds, and usually a public swimming pool for every complex.
We got off the bus and walked around. The streets reminded me of Melbourne, but a bit cleaner and an Asian version. Alexa and I split off from the group and hunted down free internet at Starbucks. I looked around when I sat down, and realized that Starbucks was exactly the same (and Christmas music was playing!), except that the entire clientele was Asian. It was like a parallel universe! I got to talk to my dad, brother and all of my friends in Columbus because they were at a Halloween party at midnight when I got through to them. It was so good to have a slice of home for that short time. ☺
We left and went back to the underground passageways, as there were no above-ground crosswalks. When we took the escalators down, it opened up to a large underground mall! There are malls everywhere here. It’s amazing. There are also escalators everywhere. We found our friends eating at Food Republic, grabbed some sushi and cool jelly-like, tapioca desserts and shopped around for a bit. Then we went to Raffles Hotel to meet up with some more friends by 4:30. On our way there, we stopped by the memorial for all civilian casualties in Singapore during the Japanese occupation in World War II. Raffles Hotel is where the famous “Singapore Sling” drink was invented – which means that’s how it should really be made, would taste the best, and be the most expensive ones in the city (of course) at $26 per drink ($20 USD). 
Alexa and I left early to head back to the ship and get to the Night Safari bus on time. We met back up with everyone, and boarded the buses by 6:30. We got off the bus in the dark and headed towards dinner, which was a delicious buffet. I tried dragonfruit! which was great. After dinner, we got in line for the tram that would take us through the free-range zoo.
Everything was decorated because it was Halloween! There was a haunted house there too, and all sorts of spooky things. We got on the tram, and there were people dressed up in scary, ghoulish things pacing up and down the sides of the tracks. We saw animals immediately into our trip! They were funky Asian types of animals. One looked like a big bear that had a black front half and white back half. There were no cages. It was great, except that I hate scary things even on Halloween… so when people popped up in costume throughout the 45-minute ride, I ducked and hid!
I got off the tram and found Kelly, and we went over to the fish spa. We paid $10 to stick our feet in the water for 5 minutes, and all these little fish came and ate all the dead skin off our feet. It was the wildest feeling I’ve ever felt. I’ll post pictures.. I couldn’t stop screaming with laughter!
We got back to the ship, and even though it was Halloween and my friends went out to celebrate, I was just not in a great mood and feeling pretty tired. I got to sleep around 4 or 5 am.
In the morning, 6 of us went to Sentosa, which is an island spitting distance from Singapore. There’s a gondola that goes there through buildings on the shores, and a tram. We took the tram for $3. Everyone I was with was hungover, so we went straight to a restaurant and grabbed a late breakfast/early lunch. We went to a candy shop and headed back to the mainland to get on a train to the Singapore Flyer. The Singapore Flyer is the biggest Ferris Wheel in the world! At 42 meters, or about 165 feet high, it’s 28 cars each accommodate 28 people. We had great views of the city!
After this, we went back towards the ship to stop at Max Brenner’s Chocolate Bar for some drinks. We picked up a friend we ran into on the train, and went on to enjoy the most wonderful iced chocolate drinks of our lives, hinted with flavors of raspberry or peanut butter. Mmmmm :)
We ran back to the ship to write postcards and grab dinner. Alexa and I were both asleep by 9 pm. Singapore was a nice break, with clean toilets and a technologically advanced society. The only thing that made me nervous was their legal system.. for hooting at a woman or gesturing in a vulgar way, you risk getting caned (which will make you bleed!) and 3 months in jail, in addition to a hefty fine. I guess that’s one way to get your society to be functional.. but somehow Singapore does it right.