Singapore

Now that we’re in Asia the countries we are visiting are much closer together, so we have a lot less time on the ship, and only a few days in between ports. After leaving India we sailed across the Bay of Bengal and through the Straits of Malaca to Singapore.  Singapore is a tiny island country on the tip of Malaysia.  It has very few natural recourses, but has managed to become one of the most developed countries in South East Asia.  I only had one day in Singapore, so I didn’t have a lot of time to explore, but I got to see some of the city.  It is a very beautiful city, and very clean.  It was very different to India, where I had just come from.  In the short time I was there, I went to the botanical gardens, Little India, and Chinatown.  I visited a Buddhist temple in Chinatown, and had dinner at a food court—called ‘Hawker’s Centers’ in Singapore--that had delicious Indian and Chinese food.  One of the most famous dishes in Singapore is called fish-head curry, which is served with an entire fish head in a curry sauce.  I didn’t get to try it while I was there, but I got to eat lots of other good things.  It was very interesting getting to see a place so different from India, even if I didn’t get to spend a lot of time there.