On Saturday we got up around 4:30 after quite a thunderstorm during the day. We quickly got ready and headed out to get some food before Andrew headed off to work. It was raining a bit, so I had Andrew’s spare umbrella (which was a lifesaver later in the evening, despite it leaking). We walked through Tan Tock Seng Hospital to get to the MRT (metro) station. I can’t believe how nice, clean and advanced it is. I got a metro card, and we went from the Novena station one stop to the Toa Payoh station, where Andrew takes his shuttle bus to work. We went to the Crystal Jade restaurant (one of Andrew’s favourites). Restaurant food is about the same price as in Canada (but in Sing dollars, so about 3/4 the amount), as opposed to the hawkers which are cheap like the street meat in Turkey. Most restaurants serve family style, so Andrew got his favourites for me to try.
We started with some Beef Hor Fun.
It is really thin noodles that have beef and sauce on them and was very tasty. Then we also got some pork dumplings in chili sauce (top) and xiao long bao (bottom).
The pork dumplings were okay but were a bit better when you put some dark vinegar on them. The xiao long bao were incredible. They are essentially dumplings filled with soup and were sooooooooo delicious.
After dinner Andrew went to his shuttle, and I took the MRT down to Orchard where all the high priced shops and designer stores are. Especially since it was all decorated up for Christmas. It was pouring out, but still looked nice and surprisingly festive.
Everyone walks under the awnings, opens their umbrellas to cross the street, then closes them again when they get out under the next awning. Being a Saturday night, the streets were packed too. It is essential to have an umbrella when you go anywhere, so much that even 7-Eleven (which are everywhere) sells their own branded umbrellas.
I wandered down Orchard Rd for almost 2km until I got to the Dhoby Ghaut MRT station. I was looking to go inside somewhere to dry off a bit and while in there saw it was only one stop on another train line to go to Little India, so I went and checked it out. Singapore has about 5 million inhabitants with about 75% being Chinese, 15% Malay, and 10% Indian. The most interesting thing about Little India was the smells. There was the smell of curry, the interesting smells at the restaurants, the light aromas of the vegetable stands, and the fresh smells in the flower shops.
From Little India, I walked back down to Orchard Rd, and back up it to the Orchard MRT station wandering in and out of some of the malls there. They had a Burberry, Coach, Gucci, Armani Exchange, Brooks Brothers, Chanel, and various other high end retailers there; quite the contrast from the small stands in Little India not to far away. That was another 5km or so of walking, which was getting tough on the feet with my sandals being wet from the rain and puddles. I took the MRT back to Novena, walked through the hospital and back to Andrew’s, getting some Eastern Rice Dumplings on the way. Although I was hungry and getting a little tired, so all I managed to take a picture of was the sign of the place.
I got home, ate the dumplings, and chilled for a bit, before heading out to bed.
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