since paro and i had nothing better to do today…. we just started googling place to visit in singapore… hehe… coz we suddenly realised dat all da places we’ve been to in sg are probably shopping complexes.. shopping complexes… and more shopping complexes…. haha… we’ve never really gone to those touristy places in our whole 3 years of our stay in sg…. what a shame! haha… image ppl asking us… “hey… have u been to this place… yada yada yada….” and we say no… how embarrassing… hahaha… so yeah.. we decided to pretend to be tourists and wander along city hall and raffles place to snap pics…
STOP 1: St Andrews Cathedral
“St Andrew’s Cathedral is a distinctive and elegant institution in the heart of the civic district. Designed by Colonel Ronald MacPherson in 1856, it replaced the original church which was destroyed by two lightning strikes in 1852.”
we first went to St Andrews Cathedral just outside da City Hall MRT station… went in da grounds and tried to pick da perfect angle to take a photo of but to our dismay, da cathedral was blocked by trees…. AT EVERY SINGLE ANGLE ACCESSIBLE!… haih… sighs…. so out of da many many pics we tried to take (yes, i thank God for digital cameras), this was da nicest shot we managed to get…
STOP 2: Supreme Court and City Hall
“Built in 1939, the Supreme Court’s Corinthian columns, classic design, and spacious interiors featuring murals by Italian artist, Cavalieri Rodolfo Nolli, make it one of the finest buildings ever built during the British Rule of Singapore.”
next, we moved on to da Supreme Court and City Hall… it’s just opposite St Andrews and i’ve always wanted to go and take a look at da place…. it’s such a grand structure! i sumhow have this thing for pillars… tall tall pillars… they just look so grand don’t they?? we were on da opposite side of da road so we could get a better view of da whole building… had to step back furthur to get a good view… and next thing we knew, we have love grass(wat’s da name of dat grass anyway? love grass?? really??) all over our jeans… yucks… it makes me itch….
STOP 3: Victoria Theater
“Victoria Theatre was originally built as Singapore’s Town House in 1862. The memorial hall was later constructed as a gesture to celebrate the diamond wedding anniversary of Queen Victoria . In fact, a total of $368 000 was donated by the people of Singapore as funding for the construction of the memorial hall. Today, the memorial hall is the home of the Singapore Symphonic Orchestra and a lively and popular venue for the performing arts.”
Victoria Theater… hmm… nothing very special about dat…. all i can say is i’ve been in there once… for da NTU Choir concert Cantamus….
STOP 4: Statue of Sir Stamford Raffles
“Sir Stamford Raffles - Singapore’s founder - stands tall and proud in the form of a dark bronze status in front of Victoria Theatre. Its replica, made of pure white polymarble, stands at North Boat Quay, an area commonly known as the Raffles Landing Site.”
it was da statue of Sir Stamford Raffles dat was puzzled me for a moment… i could have sworn dat da picture of da statue i saw on da tourism website was white!… hmmm…. puzzling then… but not so puzzling now… coz i found out dat da da white one is actually a replica of this bronze one, located in North Boat Quay….
STOP 5: Dalhousie Obelisk
“In harmony with the historic Singapore River area at Empress Place, this stately monument was built to commemorate the visit to Singapore in 1850 by Marquis Dalhousie, Governor-General of India.”
this is a rather ugly monument…heheh….wat so special, wor??? reminds me of da character called Obelix in da comic strip Asterix… he makes menhirs… anyway… an obelisk is supposed to be a tall, thin four-sided, tapering monument which ends with a pyramidal top… this obelisk to me looks more like this squarish lump of cement… hmm…
STOP 6: Boat Quay
“Looking for a swingin’ good time? Then head on down to Boat Quay - the trailblazer of the Singapore entertainment scene.”
this is one of my favourite favourite spots in singapore… Singapore River… boats (River Taxi)… jazz bars… interesting bronze statues… a giant FAT bird… yup… btw… can u see da big FAT bird sculpture on da opposite side of da river? wat gender do u think it is? paro has yet to find out… she needs sum answers… haha….anyway…this place is even prettier at night when all da buildings are lit up….made it a point to snap sum night scene pics on our way back… next stop would be to fill our starving stomachs at a really deserted Burger King… how pathetic…
STOP 7: Somewhere Near Chinatown
“Cha Zhi Lin teahouses have been set up in the heart of Chinatown, Far East Square and within the International Seafood Restaurant in East Coast (inside Bigsplash) to offer tea lovers a pleasant environment to savor premium Chinese tea harvested from the highlands in China. The teahouses are tastefully decorated in traditional settings and provide customers hands-on experience to tea appreciation with complete tea sets at each table. And certainly, savouring the centuries-old beverage in a century-old Fuk Tak Chi (the oldest temple in Singapore) is a unique experience.”
paro and i just continued wandering aimlessly around boat quay… we walked on and on and on till we suddenly realised dat we were in sum place strangely looking like Chinatown… it was quite an interesting walk… we passed by a bunch of people in cowboy suits line dancing to country-western tunes… so fun…. i wan to join! we actually were trying to get to CHIJMES… so hmm.. smart me, saw dat there was this brightly lit place further on… so being kay-poh as usual, i wanted to go see wat it was… for all we knew, we might have just walk in one big circle and ended up back in city hall… oh but i was so wrong… instead we ended up stepping into this chinese looking mini tea museum (later i found out dat it’s Fuk Tak Chi Museum)… da man there gave us a mini tour and told us sum interesting stuff about da things there… in da museum, there was also this really life like wax(or watever he was made of!) man sitting at da table wif sum tea… his name was apparently “Louis”… hahahah… i was like…errr… this cina man in olden day clothes called Louis?? an english name?? kidding me or wat?? anyway… his really name is actually “Lu Yue” (i dunno what it is in chinese), a guy who wrote alot about tea…
STOP 8: CHIJMES (Our Last Stop)
“Having undergone a spectacular facelift as a national heritage site, CHIJMES (pronounced “chimes”) is now a popular dining, shopping and entertainment site. CHIJMES Hall, the restored chapel, provides a breath-taking backdrop for musicals, recitals, theatrical performances and weddings.”
hah.. we finally reached CHIJMES at about 8 plus… i’ve always been curious of wat’s on da inside of those walls… we went in… yeah.. pretty much as i expected… restaurants… bars… fine dining! haha… it’s a really pretty sight… den we saw IT… the chapel… W.O.W.! beautiful stain glass and da lighting just made it look grand… we went to take a peek at da hall inside and yeah… i decided… i want my wedding to be held there!!!! i want! i want! i want~~~~~!!!! hahahaha… i’ve chosen my wedding venue! da only thing is… i haven’t chosen my groom =p ….. ah… who cares about da groom… hahaha….
today was a truly an interesting day… it’s really fun to pretend to be tourist and appreciate architecture and history… (ok… i admit… it’s more fun to play wif my camera… i wish i had a pro camera!) no regrets watsoever spending da whole afternoon and night out wandering da streets… best of all… no one to hurry us… no homework to rush when we get back… and no curfew! hahaha… wat pure joy!
Here are sum other pictures we took:
Leave a comment