Singapore & Malaysia, 2011

Last Updated on Saturday, 05 March 2011 19:45 Written by Duncan Foster Wednesday, 02 March 2011 06:27

We had a few days holiday to use up, so decided to have a trip to Singapore and Malaysia. After much research on the web, and reading of guide books, we settled on flying into Singapore, catching the bus up to Kuala Lumpur, then from there to the Cameron Highlands. After a couple days in the highlands we planned to catch the bus to Lumut and from there a ferry to the island of Pulau Pangkor, and then, after returning to Lumut, going back to Singapore on the bus, via Malacca.

We knew we didn't have time to do it properly, as we only had a 12 day trip, and flying out and back would take two of those days. Having visited, though, we know we want to go back and do it properly. It really is a wonderful part of the world.

Singapore, Feb 19th, 2011:

We landed in Singapore around 8 o'clock in the morning, headed straight to our hotel, checked in, dropped off our rucksacks, and headed out to have a look around Singapore. We had booked the Grand Mercure Roxy Hotel for the night as it was close to the airport and had a free shuttle bus. It turned out to be a good choice as they also let us check in at 8.30 in the morning, for no extra charge. They are a little off the beaten track, though, as you need to catch a bus to the MRT (Singapore's metro/underground system). They have a lovely pool, and the room was clean and spacious, though, so I would happily stay again.

 We caught the MRT down to the stop near Raffles Hotel, and walked over to it to see what all the fuss is about. It is a lovely old colonial building, with verandas, tree filled squares, and old colonial buildings. We carried on with our walk, through the Chinatown area, and the Indian area, visiting a couple temples, before looking for the ticket office and departure point for our bus to Kuala Lumpur for the next day. We returned to the hotel, foot sore and hungry, before walking round the hotel area and finding a restaurant on the street behind the hotel. I set my alarm for early in the morning so we could get the 8 o'clock bus, and went to sleep.