Let the European adventure begin; hello Singapore

 Monday 

1 July 2024

Day 1 

96 to go

And so the epic adventure begins, with an early morning alarm at 2.30am and plenty of warning before bed, to not talk to me before I was awake. 

With everything sorted and the taxi booked, it was just a waiting game for our maxi taxi to arrive at 320am and whisk us off to T1 for our Singapore Airlines flight at 6.25am. As expected traffic was light and we were there in no time. Before long our boarding cards were printed out bags, 26kg and 20kg loaded and we were passing immigration. The process sure is so easy these days. 

We made our self at home, waiting for the coffee shop to open at 4.30am and then joined the crowds eager for a coffee hit. 

I played secretary, organising electronic arrival cards for Singapore for all four of us and then Dad’s travel card app. By 5.45am we were being called to board. We settled into our seats. Paul on the left aisle and me, mum and dad, across the middle. We all sank into our own bubbles, happy to watch movies and read. 

Breakfast was served 2 hours in, by now we were all suffering rumbling bellies. The eggs and bacon were delicious. With all that done, we were halfway through three trip and the final part disappeared pretty quick.

Arriving at Changi at 11.25am, was a breeze, we were off the plane walking to the arrival hall, passing immigration and collecting bags. Our driver was waiting for us and we were soon driving the streets of Singapore to our hotel The Quay. All checked in, it was off to our room. First impressions weren’t great. The place stank like old socks and the room was tiny. Thank goodness we are only in for the night. 

We changed and got ready to head out. We stopped in at the folks room. They had a disabled room which was very spacious, but again the general upkeep was lacking. We left them to it and went out for food. We food a cheap and cheerful across the road; rice, pork and vege for $4. 

We did a loop of the block wandering the Boat Quay front and then returned for a brief rest. 

By 3pm, we were out with folks wandering down to the colourful Clarke Quay. We took in all of the buildings and the eateries, before making our way back towards Boat Quay, where we chose an establishment for refreshments, Singapore Slings on the list. We took time to just enjoy being on holiday and being warm. 

We returned to the hotel, via the same block we had walked earlier. Time for a rest before thinking about dinner. We watched the weather roll in, with thunder lightning and plenty of rain. By 6pm we were ready to head out with mum and dad in search of dinner. 

We let Dad take the lead, who decided it would be good to return to Clarke Quay. It was a little livelier and the lights were just starting to twinkle. However, it soon became clear that Mum wasn’t interested in eating at any place here and had her heart set on satay sticks from somewhere in Boat Quay. We followed the wet and sometimes slippery path back to the busy eating area. Many of the eateries along here are now Indian fare, this has been a significant change we have noted since our last visit more than 10 years ago. 

We did successfully find somewhere to eat, where mum got her satay sticks, while the rest of us had small dishes of Asian fare. We shared delicious crumbed and fried, gelatinous pumpkin dumplings with a sweet, condensed milk like dipping sauce. They were the highlight. 

With night well set in, and our bellies full, we returned to the hotel, dodging the many patrons now out and about and the many puddles left by the downpour. We were glad to return and say goodnight to a wonderful first day.