Friday, January 15, 2010

Thoughts on Singapore:

I didn't think I'd get to internet again before Malaysia... but who knew, we found free internet in Singapore. Here are my initial thoughts on the country:

It is VERY clean. Never seen a cleaner place. People walk around picking up individual leaves they are looking so hard for litter.

The Singiporians do not mess when they say they will fine for spitting, jay-walking, and eating/drinking on public transport.

The high-rises are AMAZING! Their new casino trumps anything we have in Vegas for sure.

We took a boat tour along the Singapore River to kind of get the lay of the land and see things from a new perspective.

Our hostel is a TOTAL dive. I can only remember about2-3 places worse than this that I've stayed in. I just got out of the shower- worst experience of my life. It was freezing, about 10% water pressure and i couldn't even lift my arms it was so small. I had to change in there too because Scott said I couldn't go trapsing through the halls of the hostel in my sarong.

We read 2 Nephi 2 today, and Scott applied the principle of knowing good from evil to our staying in this awful hostel. Maybe now we will better appreciate our nicer (but still sketch) places in the future.

We are staying in little India :) It is great because we were hoping to work India into our trip, but couldn't. So now we are happy to frequent their markets, shops, and most especially their delicious food stands. Marsala chicken for lunch was perfect!

Some locals told us they never get used to the humidity here. Now we've lost hope. We thought maybe by week 3 we would acclimate, but now we've resigned ourselves to being hot and sweaty the entire trip.

We really love Singapore. It is clean, classy and very organized. There are tons of nice banks and hotels, all of which have the most phenomenal water features I've ever seen! Today I dragged Scott into many a bank office to check out their cool fountains. We were REALLY out of place there though, in cargo shorts, t-shirts, and sweaty hair... it's really gross.

Scott told me I will be a more righteous person if I adopt the missionary practice of only using internet for 30 min, once per week. But don't worry, I'll keep working on him and hopefully check in sooner than later!

xoxo,
Stefanie

2 comments:

Julie T said...

I'd love to see Singapore! And little India sounds sweet. Is it too late for you to contact/stay with one of our friends' relatives that live there? You'd be tons more comfortable! (Look up the church) I have to agree with Scott on the no traipsing thru the hall in your sarong...but with you on a little more rather than less internet activity during the week. Not only does it help you process what you are experiencing and remember it better, but it gives all of us a common bond so in years to come we can relate to you more.
PS I'm pretty sure you are right about the humidity :) Pick up one of those battery operated fans for $1! Please tell Scott I missed hearing from him this time!! Love you guys!

Noelle said...

I am so happy you enjoy Singapore. I wish I could be there too. Keep up the good work. I love the posts!!!! By the way, you eventually can get used to the humidity but it takes a while. I remember when my Dad went to Honk Kong to pick me up. He was sweating like crazy and I was totally cool. Anyway, enjoy!!! Love, Phil