Barton and Wilding

Sunday 13th February

Greetings from Singapore. The heat and humidity were a bit of a shock at first. As we landed it was 26 degrees and that is at 9.00 in the morning. We were met by the hotel transfer people and taken to The York Hotel. We were very grateful that the hotel room was ready. The quality of the hotel is fantastic. You could not get the same accommodation in the UK for the price. Hey we also are getting an upgrade as well.

English is spoken by most people in Singapore, as it is the official language. What is even odder is that they use UK style electric plugs. From the hotel window there is such a contrast of views. Look down and you see small little buildings where some local people are living, look up and there are these massive tower blocks. What makes it seem strange is the closeness of it all.

In the afternoon there were some really heavy downpours. We were in China town and the buildings have overhangs so we were able to shelter for the time of the rain.

We spend time in a Hindu Temple. Yes it is China Town but there is also a mosque just down the road. Both are some of the oldest buildings in this part of the city. We went to the temple to see it but also get our thoughts together. There are people who are hustling you all the time here which a bit of a pain. They are wanting to make a living but hey chill a bit please. Of course their mate always has a better deal and he is just down the road.

After the Hindu temple we wandered off into China town where I found a lovely silk shirt. It is ideal for the weather here. Jenny and Danny the tailor then thought that I should have a suit. Danny was excellent at knowing what colours are the best for you. Of course I need a shirt to go with the suit. So I am going to have a made to measure suit sent to me in the UK. That at least will save on the weight of the baggage. All I have to do is come back before we leave for a fitting of the jacket.

After that there is nothing else to do but go and have a drink to celebrate at Raffles. We thought that we would walk there. Had we known how far it was we would have caught a cab. Raffles is in the heart of an old colonial area so we saw the Parliament building and the Singapore Cricket Club but they were not playing today. We also saw the CBD (the city business district). The Long Bar at Raffles is one of the few non air conditioned buildings that we came across. They used the old punkas. They are electrically powered these days. If you are at Raffles then it has to be a Singapore Sling. They do not hold back on the gin when making them! The recipe says that there are fruit juices but they must just wave them in the general direction of the drink! They were so good that we had to have a second. A third would have been very silly though. We did raise a glass to absent friends and family who were not there. After the two drinks there was no way that we were going to walk back to the hotel so it was a taxi ride back. We do have the recipe for Singapore sling so do email us and we can send it to you.

After all that had been going on we were rather tired and not feeling that adventurous so in the evening we had a meal in the hotel. There was some great Chinese food - not a great veggie choice but there was some there. The English couple next to us came and had a look at the menu and then took fun out of the Chinese food available. They then opted for 'something' in breadcrumbs with chips and an omelette. Sorry but I am not flying 7000 miles to have omelette and chips.

The next job is to pack the cases prior to flying out tomorrow night. Check out time is 12-o-clock and we can leave our bags in the baggage store until we get the taxi to fly out. The hotel also allows you to use the health spa to have a swim and shower to freshen up if needed. Even more of a good service.

I am listening to Australian music on the Ipod. So there is Delta Goodram, The Waifs, Paul Kelly, Christine Anu, Midnight Oil and Hunters and Collectors. The best name of all has to be My Friend The Chocolate Cake