post card from Singapore: out and about

You should be proud of me; I got out of the house two days in a row.  First yesterday, to Remi's parent teacher interviews, then some browsing on my own and then in the evening Matt and I escorted Ella to an iceskating outing for school where we sat in a hawker centre socialising with other parents while Ella tried to iceskate for 2 hours.  Today I've been out nearly all day too. And I'm exhausted.  My 6am school morning alarm went off (I forgot to turn it off for Saturday morning sleep in), so Matt and I took our coffees and watched the sun rise from the roof top terrace.

Anyway, I took some photos over the last 24 hours, so here's a few fun and interesting shots from SG:

We managed to get onto the first carriage on the yellow line (MRT) last night, and as there is no driver on the newer lines, we got to "drive the train with our minds".  This photo is as the train was coming into a station.

Coming down the escalators into the new Stadium MRT station...I love the way it feels like you're entering a cave...filled with water...

 My friends and I here have a bit of a "panda" joke going on.  I may have once said something about how pandas are a doomed species largely to do with their own evolutionary development, which some how got translated into me implying that all pandas must die (not true).  But now we see pandas everywhere...Ella and I in particular keep running into people in panda suits, which always means we have to take a photo.  Ella said she could smell the sweat on the panda, whereas I could feel the heat radiating off the poor sod on my side.  And we were in a very over air conditioned mall.

 Ella wanted a photo with the "big nut" as she calls it, as she's been past it on the bus, but hasn't seen it up close before.  Even though we go to this mall quite a bit.  Tragic example of life here  in Singapore...so much of it is spent indoors and underground.

 Here's a few photos of the front of the mall, which is quite spectacular.

 This was all an open grass area when we lived here before.  Now it is a HUGE mall with all manner of top end designer stores up above ground and 4 or 5 below ground levels with all kinds of shops.  It's also right above Orchard MRT stops (only 2 stops from our nearest).

Today Oscar went off to rugby coaching in the morning, Kit went off to rugby training a bit later, Ella and I went off to buy her some school bathers, and Remi and Matt decided to go out and get some lunch.  Thanks to the wonder of modern technology and texting, we were all able to meet up again, and we sat outside this hulking great mall and Matt bought all the kids an icecream sandwich....a LOCAL icecream sandwich for $1 which was a brick of icecream wrapped in a slice of pandan bread.

Literally an icecream sandwich.

So, a good day.  Matt and I are planning on topping off the day with some cheese on the roof to watch the sun go down.  It's been a lovely day; not only did it not rain (I should watch myself as there's still time), it's been lovely and breezy.  You have no idea how much you come to appreciate breezes when every day is 31C with at least 80% humidity.