Busy Times in Singapore

Lately we are finding that our two days off just don't give us enough time to
do all the things we want to do. For a small Island Nation there is lots to do on Singapore.

One of the things that has caused us to realise this is that we have been sort of restricted to staying here because we have had to renew our passports. I had just over 6 months left on my passport, if I didn't renew it there are very few Asian countries that I would be able to visit during the next 6 months. So be warned people you pay for a 5 year passport but it is only good for 4.5 years and you don't get compensation for the extra 6 months. The new passports for New Zealand are very nice, a work of art really.

But are we paying such high fees for a pretty book that gets stamps and stickers plastered all over it?

The Singapore Arts Festival kicked off last weekend, so there will be lots of things happening all over the city for the next month. As a part of the launch ther was a free outdoor sculpture display done with fire. It took place on Saturday and Sunday Evening. 7:30 - 10:30 pm. For us that means we can go after work on Saturday. Usually we struggle to get home after Saturday at work let alone go out anywhere. But Bradley was keen to go so we decided to tag along. And we were glad we did. You can look at the slide show below and make your own decisions. It was good enough for us to return on Sunday, sadly it rained and was not the same experience. But we did enjoy spending Sunday Evening in the Asian Civilisations Museum.

When we are not travelling and we find ourselves in Singapore for our two off days we like to spend at least one of them getting out and doing things. On Monday we sorted out our green passes on our new passports. That was a trip to MOM and a short 5 minute wait while they got stamped and validated and the old ones got cancelled. Monday Evening we went to one of our favourite Restaurants The Barefoot Place in Little India and had a cooking lesson. Now we have a certificate that says we can Cook Chicken Masala for our friends. It was a fun experience.

Tuesday we decided to take Bradley to Chinese Garden, it is a great place to wander and enjoy some interesting displays. We always enjoy visiting this place. It might be because we have been to these palces a number of times but these days Ruth and I seem to be noticing different opportunities with our cameras. I found myself preoccupied with the gathering storm clouds as the daily rain rolled in. Then while we waited for 1.5 hours in the pagoda beside the lake I was fascinated with the patterns of rain on the water. The monsoon season gives us a number of great photographoc opportunities. If you are interested in clouds and moody skies you might enjoy the slideshow below. Ruth was caught up with reflections so you might enjoy checking out her blog and the shots with reflections.

Our life in Singapore continues to hold lots of lots of opportunities
for adventures time to reflect on how lucky we are.
And
Lately it has been great to have Bradley along to rediscover some of the places
that we both enjoy.

I hope that you all get the chance to enjoy them too!