We were up bright and early so enjoyed a leisurely breakfast in the semi-outdoor setting of the hotel’s restaurant. With a wide selection of both Western and Asian dishes to set us up for the day and our favourite cappuccinos it was the perfect start.
Singapore Botanic Gardens
Our plan for the morning was to visit the Singapore Botanic Gardens which conveniently have their own MRT station on the Circle Line adjacent to the Bukit Timah Gate entrance. It is free to enter the gardens with a SG$15 (£8.77) charge to visit the National Orchid Garden located within the main gardens.
Foliage Garden, Singapore Botanic Garden
This 165 year old tropical garden covers 74 hectares and is the only botanic garden to have been honoured as a UNESCO World Heritage Site having held this accolade since 2015. Our stroll took us through the Foliage Garden where we meandered along gently sloping paths. In this garden, leaves take centre stage and viewing their contrasting shades, textures and structures was beautiful. One of the garden’s paths was along a metal grilled walkway which had been designed to allow visitors to view plants below their feet.
Continuing, we enjoyed wandering around the vast gardens where rubber trees flourished in the Rainforest Garden. This garden was instrumental in pioneering rubber cultivation and tapping techniques which developed into a major industry across the Malayan peninsula.
A historic clock tower stands proudly in the centre of Orchid Plaza and at first I thought the clock must have stopped as it appeared to be displaying the wrong time. I soon realised though that each clock face displays the current time in a different location. It was the tower donor’s preference for the cities of Tokyo, London and Vancouver to be included alongside that of Singapore. The tower has a special connection to the gardens as the design of its intricate Sealing Wax palm tree engravings were used to form the logo for the botanic garden.
National Orchid Garden, Singapore
The National Orchid Garden is absolutely exquisite and it’s definitely worth the modest entry charge to wander amongst such fragrant, delicate blooms. Some newly cloned varieties were on display and these had been named after celebrities.
As we had arrived quite early, it was still reasonably quiet and we were able to follow the winding paths without the crowds, so I would also recommend planning an early arrival to maximise your enjoyment of these exquisite gardens.
National Gallery of Singapore
Before leaving, we enjoyed refreshing mango smoothies sitting out on the terrace of the Botanic Garden cafe and afterwards hopped back on the MRT, this time to City Hall as we wished to visit the National Gallery of Singapore. This magnificent building overlooks the Padang which is an open playing field and home to the Padang Cricket Club. Standard admission to the art museum is SG$20 (£11.68) and free for Singapore residents.
The museum has only been open since November 2015 and already houses the world’s largest public collection of Singaporean and South East Asian art. This vast museum is located in two of Singapore’s colonial buildings which are integrated via link bridges combining both old and new architecture beautifully. As a national monument certain aspects of the building could not be altered and this makes visits all the more interesting.
Exploring the National Gallery, Singapore
We collected audio guides so that we could tour the museum at our own pace starting in the former City Hall, a neo-classical masterpiece with a facade of 18 Corinthian columns facing The Padang. A large bamboo sculpture entitled ‘Cargo’ hangs from the City Hall foyer and this striking piece of artwork is in fact a scale model of two 20ft shipping containers. The galleries in this part of the museum focus on modern and contemporary art from the 19th century colonial period presenting the culture of Singapore in art, and are equally interesting viewed from a historical perspective. The former City Hall chamber, once the grandest room in Singapore was where the Japanese surrender at the end of World War II was formalised and looked resplendent with its marble pillars.
Contrasting architecture in the National Gallery, Singapore
Moving across to the former Supreme Court section, the galleries present the history of South East Asian art across the region. I particularly liked this wing of the building as not only does it contain some impressive art work but is also architecturally beautiful. The galleries are based in and around four wood panelled court rooms retaining their original appearance.
Stunning architecture in the Rotunda of the National Gallery Singapore
Amongst the courtrooms is a magnificent central rotunda with a dome that was originally designed to house a circular law library. There was even an opportunity to view the holding cells below the court room which appeared very spartan.
Rotunda Dome, National Gallery Singapore
Before leaving the museum, we took the lift up to the rooftop Coleman Deck where we found a cafe/ restaurant with an outdoor terrace overlooking the Padang and colonial district. The rooftop also features a large mirror pool with seating. After taking in the panoramic views one final time, we then returned to our hotel for a pre-dinner rest.
Robertson Quay, Singapore
Feeling refreshed, we set off again, this time for a stroll along the Singapore River towards Robertson Quay. Most people tend to walk along the river in the opposite direction but I’d recommend heading this way as well as there are numerous attractive bars and restaurants to accompany the splendid views. On passing the Great World MRT station which is on the Thomson East Coast Line we decided to hop on the metro to Shelton Way so we could eat at one of our favourite hawker centres.
Lau Pa Sat Hawker Centre, Singapore
A visit to Singapore wouldn’t be complete without dining out at least once in the iconic Lau Pa Sat Hawker Centre which recently celebrated its 130th anniversary. Dining beneath the stunning wrought iron and glass canopied roof we were spoilt for choice as there are over 80 mouthwatering stalls to choose from with six of them being Michelin listed. We couldn’t resist the local favourite of Singapore Chicken Rice accompanied by cooling glasses of iced watermelon juice.
Clarke Quay, Singapore
I adore Singapore’s balmy weather so to conclude our evening we strolled back to the hotel passing Marina Bay on our way back to Clarke Quay. The twinkling lights along the river were very pretty and we paused awhile to watch pleasure cruise boats pass by and some brave people tackling the bungee jump. Although I’m happy to try numerous activities outside my comfort zone, bungee jumping would never be one of them!
