The bus ride from Kuala Lumpur was mostly uneventful - saw some gigantic catfish at a rest stop, but that’s about it. Crossing the border was a little weird for me though - leaving Malaysia I got grilled about “staying so long” (seven weeks?) which threw me for a bit, but amounted to nothing. The customs agent coming into Singapore was odd in the opposite direction - a bit too happy and excited to give me recommendations, which I thought was a test or something. In any case, we arrived safe & sound!
Travel hiccup: [preface: talking with another traveler, we discussed how disingenuous it was of travel bloggers and insta-travelers to only highlight all the good stuff that happens. Hiccups exist and their inclusion in stories might help future travelers.] When we got to Singapore, RC thought he’d lost his wallet, which caused some consternation. Then, when we found it (he had put it in his bag when we went through a metal detector), his ATM card didn’t work. Luckily we had my ATM card and USD on hand, so we were okay for the few days in Singapore (which is surprisingly cash-oriented).
Our hotel was pretty great and we spent several days just lounging at the pool, so that’s a big vacation win for me. On our first excursion, we explored the Arab section briefly (if I had time & money I’d go explore again), then wandered down to the library (I wrote a poem and we saw an exhibit on early advertising), and just walked the streets for a bit, half lost and half exploring.
The second excursion took us down to Chinatown and on a free tour around Marina Bay. The latter was beautiful, but expensive - typical of Singapore (and, indeed, Malaysia), the culture is centered around shopping and being inside malls! As a bonus, the crowds were pretty heavy due to the Christmas rush, so the whole thing felt overdone. We did have some delicious food at Satay on the Bay though!
Another excursion took us down to Orchard Road to see the decorations there, which existed. I’m sure I’m forgetting half of what else we did, but there was significant hotel pool time involved.
Eventually, we made our way back to the Golden Mile Complex and got on a bus to Malacca on the 26th.
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