Singapore - Goodbye Asia

04/11/11

Today I decided to spend the day learning about the history of the island, mainly involving the events that occurred during the Second World War when the British surrendered to the opposing Japanese forces in 1942. I first headed to the Battle Box in Fort Canning Park; this underground bunker system was the primary headquarters for all the operations in the Malaya area. It was here where the notion of surrender was first brought up. Next I headed south to visit Fort Siloso which saw action during the conflict. To round off my day I lastly went to visit Kranji war memorial and war graves which is the final resting place for many serving soldiers and volunteers who lost their lives during that period. With this being my only full day in Singapore in the evening I decided to take a stroll along the quay side to see the skyline lit up. While wondering along a discovered an Indian dance festival was taking place.

05/11/11

This was to be my last full day in Asia before I move onto Australia. I think this is now my new favourite part of the world – great food, friendly people and stunning scenery. With a flight back to Bangkok in the evening I went to visit the Quay side again to grab some photos and explore more of the surrounding area. I discovered a 7 side international rugby event was happening on the cricket green. Moving back towards the direction of my hostel I stumbled upon the National Museum to find out it had an exhibition of paintings from the Musee D’Orsay Paris on show including Van Gogh’s Starry Night, it worth it just for that painting.

Asian Favourites

Below is a list of some of my favourites in Asia:
• Favourite country: In the end little Laos stole my heart; I’m so surprised this country isn’t more widely known.
• Favourite food: Hard to choose but for me Vietnam just came out on top.
• Favourite capital city: Has to be Hanoi, the mixture of new and old and the general pace of the city.
• Favourite scenery: Look no further than Laos with its topical forests and mountains which burst out of the ground like razors.
• Favourite people: The people of Cambodia take this easily - Always smiling, polite and super friendly. Never in a bad mood.
• Favourite place: Georgetown, Penang. A world heritage protected area and you can see why they would want to preserve it, like taking a step back in time.
• Least favourite country: Thailand I’m afraid – just too plain old dirty for me. Didn’t feel like it had its own identity.