Singapore - day 2

Jetlag mostly averted, day 2 on the trip started off at a reasonable time. 

Katie took us out to look for food, looking for traditional Singaporean breakfast of kopi (coffee condensed milk) and kaya toast (toast with sweet coconut and egg jam). After a bus ride to the complex it was in, we found that, unfortunately, the place seemed to be closed as the building was under construction. Resigned, we decided to look for Hainan chicken rice at Maxwell's, a hawker stall near Chinatown. Strike 3 for the trip! (Chili crab place from the hawker stall on Airport road that was closed for vacation, the breakfast place that was closed for construction were the first two). Maxwell's was closed for spring cleaning that very day!

So we called for a cab to go to another area to eat. Once we told the cabbie where we were going, he told us not to go there. He knew we were tourists and told us there was nothing to see there, and better, and cheaper food was to be had elsewhere. He essentially ended up taking us back to where we started and sent us off near Raffles Hotel for some places he thought were really good -- a Hainan chicken rice place he liked. Unfortunately, it wouldn't open until 11:30, and with a half hour to kill, we stopped at a corner cafe for kopi and kaya.

After the light breakfast, we moved right on into lunch, moving down 3 doors to the Hainan chicken place for Hainan chicken rice (the rice was quite flavorful), cabbage, and noodles. Pretty standard fare, but good stuff. Then we went back to Katie and Marcelo's apartment for a brief rest and dip in the pool.

After an hour of not-eating, it was time to eat again. We headed over to Raffles Hotel for our afternoon high tea. The building itself is very impressive, dating back to the colonial days. High tea was served in a grand room, and we were near a larger open area with double-height ceilings. The English snacks came on a three-tier platter, while there was a buffet of Chinese snacks (dumplings, siu mai, etc.), fruits, and desserts.

We then wandered over to the Marina Bay area and got to look around at the buildings down that way, including the Singapore Flyer, the Marina Bay Sands Hotel (which looks like a big ship placed on top of three nearby buildings), and the Merlion. Marcelo met up with us and we got drinks at a bar on the waterfront, where we got to watch the light show at the Marina Bay Sands hotel. It was an interesting show, with water fountains close to the hotel (and far from us), lasers pointing from the top of the building, and fires near the fountains.

After the show, it was time for -- guess what -- food! We went for Indian food at a place called Banana Leaf Apollo where we each got a banana leaf to put our curries, and grab with our naan. Good stuff, too.

Last day in Singapore, and then off to Thailand!