Singapore

Asia for Beginners

Around the Singapore River

We spend our first day exploring the downtown area around the Singapore River. We stroll through the well-maintained grounds of Singapore Management University and realize within minutes that the city is lush and green – very welcome, indeed. We pass the Cathedral of the Good Shepherd, where a statue of the Homeless Jesus rests on a garden bench, the Peranakan Museum, and the former Chijmes Monastery School, now an event and wedding location. The café at the elegant Raffles Hotel is still closed; the British Empire-style hotel, which only rents suites, is one of the most luxurious and expensive hotels in the city. Well then, we’ll just have our coffee next door at the stylish JW Marriott South Beach.

We then cross the Padang, a vast green space in the heart of the city that was used by the British for colonial ceremonies. We look over to the modern twin domes of Theatres on the Bay, Singapore’s premier cultural and arts center right on the waterfront. The buildings, a theater and a concert hall, both feature spiky glass facades, which is why locals jokingly call them “The Durians” (after the tropical fruit). Around Empress Place, there are many works of art that evoke the time when Singapore was still a fishing village. Here you’ll also find The Fullerton Hotel, another luxurious five-star hotel housed in a former colonial building that once served as the main post office.

Crossing the river on either the Anderson Bridge or the Cavenagh Bridge, you’ll find yourself just a few steps away from the water-spouting Merlion. The city’s landmark – a lion’s head with a fish’s body – represents the sea and Singapore’s origins as the “Lion City.” Nearby Raffles Place is the city’s financial center and one of the most expensive office locations in Asia – comparable to Wall Street in New York or the City of London.

The atmosphere is quite different in neighboring Chinatown: alongside the many well-preserved shophouses, you’ll find “hawker centers,” the affordable food courts for which Singapore is famous, such as Lau Pa Sat, and magnificent temples, like the Buddha Tooth Relic Temple and the Sri Mariamman Temple. With these impressions, we end our first day in Singapore.

Marina Bay Sands and Gardens by the Bay

Nature and Cultural Diversity

On the third day, we take the metro out to the Bukit Timah district, an upscale residential area with villas, luxury apartments, and international schools. Our actual destination is the Bukit Timah Nature Reserve, the last remaining patch of tropical rainforest in Singapore, home to giant trees and rare plants. On the way to the country’s highest point at 163 meters, we are accompanied by small long-tailed macaques, who have long since lost their shyness in the face of the many hikers. Here, just 20 minutes from the Central Business District, we experience a jungle right next to skyscrapers – a fascinating contrast in this city-state.

Back in the city, we visit Orchard Road, Singapore’s main shopping street. Malls, luxury shops, hotels, and restaurants line the approximately two-kilometer-long street; the area is considered the most important shopping district in Southeast Asia.

In the afternoon, we head to Little India and from there to Kampong Glam, the city’s Arab quarter. The Masjid Sultan Mosque, with its golden dome, is visible from afar, and the shops on Arab Street sell colorful fabrics, festive dresses, and oriental carpets. Narrow Haji Lane, finally, is crowded with locals and tourists in search of the perfect meal.

Sentosa Island, Botanic Gardens and Jewel Changi

On our last day, we part ways. I check out a few sculptures at the elegant St. Regis Hotel and in Mapletree Business City, then take the monorail out to Sentosa Island. The island’s main attraction is Resorts World, a large theme park featuring Universal Studios, a water park, an aquarium, a casino, a concert hall, and several upscale hotels. Finally, I return once more to Gardens by the Bay, where Fernando Botero’s monumental sculptures, surrounded by the park’s lush greenery, are perfectly showcased as part of a special exhibition.

Gunhild spends the morning at the Botanic Gardens. You could easily spend hours exploring this sprawling garden complex. Highlights include the ancient trees, tropical plants, a pristine rainforest, and the world’s largest orchid collection in a single park. The gardens have been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2015, the only tropical botanical garden to hold this status.

In the early afternoon, we meet for a last coffee in downtown, then pick up our luggage and head to the Crowne Plaza Hotel at Changi Airport for our final night – quite expensive, but perfectly located. In the evening, we visit Jewel Changi, the green shopping mall with the legendary Rain Vortex at its center. The indoor waterfall is 40 meters high, making it the largest of its kind in the world. Our stay in Singapore comes to an end with a spectacular light and sound show at Jewel Changi. It’s still early morning when our flight to Melbourne takes off.

Clean, green, wealthy – and smart

Singapore didn’t just surprise us, it really fascinated us. Singapore is one of the cleanest cities in the world; there’s no trash on the streets, no graffiti on the walls, and no unwanted stickers. Chewing gum is banned throughout the country. Singapore is safe, with an extremely low crime rate. The various ethnic groups live peacefully together, and racial hatred is unknown. The “City in a Garden” is one of the greenest major cities in the world; over 50 percent of it is green space: rooftop gardens, vertical gardens, and parks nestled between buildings.

The rapid transit system – not a surprise – is among the most efficient worldwide; in fact, the entire infrastructure is in excellent condition. The container port – an extremely important hub for global trade – is also the largest in the world. As a result, Singapore has one of the highest GDPs per capita globally, while over 200 international banks have branches here. And another superlative that should make us Germans to think about: Singapore is the overall winner of the 2022 PISA study and ranks first in all three competence areas – mathematics, reading literacy and science.

Singapore in Pictures