After the history museum, we went to the butterfly and insect museum. This museum is certainly much more detailed than the one we had visited in Kuranda, with geological exhibits and tons of species in glass. They have some nasty looking creatures in there. You move from the museum area to the butterfly sanctuary, where many species of butterflies flitted about amongst beautifully landscaped terrain. Unlike Kuranda, most of the plants are flowering. There are food stations with sweet food on the table to supplement the nectar from the flowers. In the pictures below, the first photo are of Clippers and the second of Tree Nymphs. There are also tropical birds and turtles in the sanctuary, too.

Even though this sanctuary is nicer overall, we liked the Kuranda one better, probably because Continue reading →

Today Eric and Christi were zombies. Four days of non-stop walking and little sleep had taken its toll on us. Omar and Marion were much fuller of energy. They went to the mall so Marion could get more clothes and toiletries. It was looking like Marion’s bag wasn’t going to arrive, after all, so she needed the basics. They were going to Sri Lanka later tonight, and she doubted she would be able to get what she needed in Sri Lanka.

While Omar and Marion were out shopping, Eric and Christi dragged themselves to the marina restaurant for lunch. They were having their Sunday buffet featuring Continue reading →

This morning we had the taxi drop us off at the Sri Veeramakaliamman Temple in Little India. The temple was built in 1881, and like the Hindu temple we had seen yesterday, the exterior was covered in intricate carvings that are painted in bright colors. The doors to the temple were shut, so we assumed it was closed and didn’t try to go inside.

We decided to have lunch at Continue reading →

After a short night of sleep for Omar and Christi, we began our official Singapore sightseeing. This is Omar’s sixth trip to Singapore, so he took on the role of tour guide.

We took a taxi from the marina to the Raffles Hotel, named after the founding father of Singapore. It was built in 1887 and is quite opulent. It is classic colonial architecture, with high ceilings, crown moldings and fancy chandeliers. We walked through the court yard and had lunch in their bakery. The food was good and surprisingly inexpensive, served on china with high quality silverware. Omar introduced us to curry puffs, chicken curry wrapped in a puff pastry, which is now a new favorite of Christi’s. Most of the hotel is blocked off to non-guests, so we didn’t get to see the lobby or any of the inside beyond the restaurant.

From the hotel, we walked a few blocks over to Continue reading →