More on Singapore

A few more tidbits about our trip to Singapore:

• The night safari was a slight disappointment. It ended up being more zoo than safari, and neither of us is a big fan of zoos. 
• The pool at our hotel (the Marina Bay Sands) was breathtaking. It's the highest infinity pool in the world, and we couldn't get enough of it. 

• We spent most of Saturday at what we called the Island O'Fun, also known as Sentosa Island. After riding a gondola over to the island, we took a luge (yes!) down to the beach where we snacked on crab cakes and drank our first beers of the day. We rented bikes and rode along the coast, taking a break to look out from the southernmost point of Continental Asia. We then ventured to the Wave House where Mike faux-surfed, after which he and I ziplined (my first time!). After a quick nature hike, we ended our day on the Island O'Fun atop Singapore's mascot, the Merlion (a lion's head with a mermaid's body).

So now that you can answer that Jeopardy question, here are some other interesting facts about the city-state:

• It's the world's fourth leading financial center, and its port is one of the five busiest in the world.
• It was settled by the British (what wasn't?) and occupied by the Japanese before uniting with other former British territories to form Malaysia, from whom it separated two years later (in 1965). (Yes, they drive on the left.)
• And yes, it's the place that canes people. You may remember the story of this guy.  

Fatty Tuesday: Singaporean Foodies

They kind of had to take me back to Shanghai kicking and screaming. We had a great mini-vacation in Singapore last weekend, complemented by fantastic food. We explored local dishes our first two nights, starting at Maxwell's, what they call a "hawker centre," an outdoor/indoor venue with food stalls and casual seating (Maxwell's is supposed to be the best, btw).

We ordered the staples: chicken rice (which is lovely, tender chicken served with rice made in its broth, dipped in ginger sauce, and sweet, black soya sauce, and chili sauce), noodles with seafood (which reminded me of pad thai; bottom of photo on the right), and fried carrot cake (which initially didn't sound appealing to me only because I took the dish's name literally; come to find out, there's no carrot in carrot cake; instead, it's radish cake (steamed rice flour, water, and shredded white daikon), stir-fried with eggs, preserved radish, and other seasonings). It became my favorite.  

The next night, I discovered Singapore chili crab, which I thoroughly enjoyed (even though I don't normally enjoy crab; it's too much work -- but when it's covered in a thick, spicy, tomato-based sauce and served with sweet buns, it's worth the effort).  

We quickly found out that Singapore is quite the foodie haven, where several celebrity chefs have opened shop: Wolfgang Puck, Mario Batali, Guy Savoy, Joel Robuchon, Daniel Boulud, to name a few. So on Saturday night, our last night in Singapore, we decided to splurge and dine at Battali's Osteria Mozza (yes, LA, you have one too). It was extraordinary. We started with burrata over grilled asparagus and toasted almonds; for il primi, Mike got the gnocchi (what wonderfully delicious little dumplings!), and I got the best pasta dish of my life in the form of one, large ravioli covered in brown butter sauce (when cut open, the yolk of an egg oozed out onto my plate, and as I chewed slowly, savoring every bite, I tasted the perfect balance of pasta, ricotta, and egg). My secondi was lamb atop a mint yogurt sauce (yum!), and dessert was a molten chocolate cake with bourbon ice cream (to satisfy both of our cravings). An awesome meal to top off a really lovely getaway.

    

Zhoumo kuaile!

Reporting to you from Singapore! I flew in last night to meet Mike who's been here for work this week. I love this city so far (but it may be because I haven't seen lush greenery and breathed in clean air in a while). And I'm loving the tropical weather (yes, including the thunderstorms): 

We've already knocked off a few items from the to do list, having grubbed on staple Singapore dishes (stay tuned for Fatty Tuesday!) and ridden the Singapore Flyer (in an ode to my mom who has a fascination for ferris wheels; bottom, left photo). Tonight, we'll continue the local food fest with Singapore chili crab, and venture on a night safari (how cool does that sound?). 

See that three-pronged building in the photo on the right? That's our pad for the weekend. And see the top of it? That's our hangout on Saturday (complete with an infinity pool overlooking the city). More to come (including photos)!