Singapore Feasts

We've now realized Uber is a more reliable and cheaper way to get around than taxis. There's a few tricks in Singapore - some places (like the skyscrapers and malls) have designated drop off/pick up points, so you may have to meet your car at those spots. Otherwise it's just as easy as in the US and we end up using Uber most of the time we're running around Singapore.  We should have used Uber to reach our hotel when we arrived at the airport.

We have a guide who explains to us that if the cost of a new car is $50,000, you also pay 100% tax to the government, then you pay another 100% for a license - so the car ends up costing you $150,000 to purchase it.  But then the license is only good for 10 years - so you either need to pay another $50,000 or start over with a new car.  Singapore tries to limit the number of cars on the road, and doesn't want old cars driving around, and that's how they're keeping the numbers down.  So I think Uber has become popular because people use it as a way to help recover some of their costs (and taxis can only be driven by Singapore citizens, and not by permanent residents, etc).  Uber ends up costing us less, too - in taxis there are surcharges for rush hour times, tolls for driving on busy roads (ERP gates are everyewhere) plus the cost of the distance and waiting times - in the end our set price for Uber works to our advantage.

2nd story of Tiong Bahru Hawker Center - food stalls are along
the walls and tables & chairs are in the middle

This morning we start with a Tiong Bahru Hawker Center food tour (the facility has been recently renovated) through the Wok 'n' Stroll company. Our friends are able to join us for this one, too - though no kids this time. We try all sorts of local specialties (unfortunately I don't get the names of everything), including finally having sugarcane juice. We saw it in Vietnam, but we were told it wasn't safe to drink with our Western stomachs. It's fine, but I prefer the lime juice I've been ordering at all the restaurants. 

starting off the tour with a little coffee

The food is all good, but nothing really jumps out at me as being great. We also walk around the wet market on the first floor, with Alfred, our guide, explaining different foods and customs. I'm worried the wet market will be like the ones I've read about in China, but it's very clean and there's no real butchering going on (if anything is being cut up it's already been cooked). It appears to be more like a traditional grocery/farmer's market.  We're told this Hawker Center is a place locals go to versus tourists, so it's fun to see that side of Singapore.

Our guide, Alfred, explaining some of the food items to us.

Our first round of different food items

It's not quite the same as Japan, but people reserve their seats by placing a little pack of tissues or an umbrella at their spot, then go off and get their food. Sometimes it's hard to find a seat because you think one is available, until you see the spot holder there. (In Japan they'd leave their bag, but apparently people aren't quite so trustworthy here.) Napkins are not provided, though there are some people who walk around selling some tissue packets (Something else I didn't know until Japan - tissues used as napkins. Personally, I don't like it - I think they're too fragile - or I'm too messy). Alfred tells us begging is illegal in Singapore, so this about the only way people can legitimately ask for money. I realize no one has solicited us for cash, and even in Arab St the shop owners aren't overly pushy (only in a couple of stores are they constantly showing you different things to pressure you to buy).

Our guide, Alfred, explaining different traditions to us.

We eat down in the wet market, too!  I try a mangosteen for the first time - it's pretty good.

It's actually easier to peel than an orange.

close up of the mangosteen fruits

lots of orchids and other flowers to choose

There's a fresh flower booth by the produce.  If we were staying in Singapore longer I'd buy a bouquet for our hotel room.







In addition to the prepared foods, vegetables and fruits, you can find meat and fish. 

This looks cleaner than the Tsukiji Fish Market in Tokyo.

As we walk around I'm excited to see something I've read about in my Singapore-based books (Alfred also explains the tradition to the group).  In parts of Asia, when people die their families and friends burn paper copies (joss paper) of items that represent physical objects.  It's believed that in the afterlife people will receive these items.  You can buy the joss paper in many places in Singapore, but this is the first time I've seen and realized what the display represents.  It's interesting to see what people consider important and want to have in the afterlife!  Lots of jewelry, money, iPads, beer, alcohol, Gucci purses - where are the books and quilting materials?  I'm sure Steve would want golf clubs.

The iPad assumes electricity is present in the afterlife...

Very specific beer brands for the afterlife -
Guinness can be found here!

Afterwards we return to the second floor of the Hawker Center for more food and dessert.  I don't think we have ais kacang, or if we do, it's a very plain version (without the sweet corn, red beans, coconut milk, grass jelly, etc that we've seen in other places).  This one tastes more like a snow cone you'd get in the United States.  

Good on a hot day!

Next Steve and I visit Orchard Road, the famous shopping street in Singapore.  We may have purchased a couple of items here...

Dinnertime!

Then we visit our friends at their new townhouse. They only moved in a couple of weeks ago, so they're still getting settled. The kids' favorite part is the backyard - it's a 50 meter swimming pool, shared with only 3 other units (all still under construction, so they have their own pool for the next few months). Steve likes trying out the family's electric scooters - apparently, that's a common way for both adults and kids to travel to nearby locations, like the MRT stop or school. We're able to cook out on the grill, and enjoy Chef Steve's steak and veggies and Lakkhana's spicy sauce. (We've missed her sauce since they left Tokyo!)