Greetings From Asia

Short story even shorter: after saying goodbye to everyone at the airport, we went straight to the duty free shop to get some liquor. After some Bailey’s, Underberg and Kümmerling, we felt pretty much prepared for our 12-hour flight. Simone and Andi at the airport

Andi and Simone fell asleep right after dinner. I could at least get some sleep every now and then so that the flight wasn’t as bad as I worried it would be. The big shock came when we left the Singapore airport: it was HOT and HUMID!!! I thought the US east coast would be humid in the summer, but that was nothing compared to here. So we decided to get an air-conditioned taxi (30 Minutes to Alex’s and Ben’s apartment = 12€ - ridiculous compared to German taxis). Alex, Ben and Alex’s sister Johanna welcomed us at their apartment building which I have to say is really nice. They have a pool area, tennis court, fitness room, and much more. Although we just had breakfast on the plane just before we landed, we went out to the city to get some Asian food and collect some first impressions of the city.

Anne, Madlen and Conny - I’m sure you would have enjoyed this:

It was the real Springfield-Starbucks-feeling ;-)

Today, we went on a typical tourist sightseeing tour. We the bus to the city and got off at some interesting places. Here are some pictures:

China Town

After all I’ve seen I have to say that Singapore is a very clean city. Nice people (although some of them look at you like you were an alien – it is a strange feeling if you are pretty much the only non-Asian person in the place), interesting architecture, big shopping malls and a lot of things that reminded me of the USA (i.e. street signs, food, etc.).

As the big finale of the day, we went to the New Asia Bar on the 71^st floor of a building (I forgot what it was) to celebrate Ben’s birthday. From there, we had a great view over the city, good cocktails (happy hour!:-D) and food.

Alex and Ben

Tomorrow we’ll probably go to Saratosa island (the beach) and the Raffles Hotel (we were told that it is a MUST to go there and have the famous Singapore sling cocktail) before we hit the road again. We’ll be in Bali tomorrow night and I can’t wait to see the beach and our hotel. So stay tuned for more news and pictures....

Just 2 more days

Unaffected by stupid wannabe terrorists, my plane for Southeast Asia leaves on Tuesday. I'm really glad we got a direct flight to Singapore.
Well, I really should be packing right now. My parents are coming to Koblenz tomorrow morning to pick up my furniture and stuff. Unfortunately, I'm still suffering from the 12-hour-drinking-marathon I left behind last night. Not even the 3-hour breakfast with my friends this morning could bring back the necessary strength to do the packing thing. So I'm writing my blog being aware of the upcoming night shift.

My next entry will probably be from Bali. Hopefully, I can tell some exciting Singapore stories and provide you with nice pictures.

°°°Goodbye°°°