CY was finally able to fly back from Melbourne to Singapore via Vaccination Travel Lane (VTL) this year. It has been two years since CY was back home in Singapore. This time round, she brought Kevin along with her.
There are several rules to be adhered to during travelling via VTL - specifically, pre-departure Antigen Rapid Test ART (for COVID) in Melbourne, and on arrival nasopharyngeal PCR test at Changi Airport, followed by daily ART for next 6 days (two of which have to be done under supervision at dedicated centres). And lastly, pray hard that there is no last minute change to the flight schedule because of unforseen circumstances (e.g. manpower crunch).
Apart from family gathering, catching up on lost face to face meeting/chit-chating due to COVID pandemic, the highlight for the trip is local cuisine and sightseeing.
CY and Kevin had a field day gobbling down local food delights - fried oysters, prawn noodles, laksa, mee siam, Hainanese chicken rice, LorMEE, satay, kopi (local coffee) and teh (milk-tea), and not forgetting LoHei 捞鱼生 (a traditional festive dish well-known among Chinese in Singapore/Malaysia/Indonesia). We ordered black pepper crab and Chilli crab for dinner, before both of them flew back to Melbourne.
We brought them to several touristic spots -
1. Morning hike from Telok Blangah Nature Park to Faber Hill
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| Hiking towards Henderson Wave Bridge |
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| View of Reflection @ Keppel from Henderson Wave Bridge |
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| Walk passed Henderson Wave Bridge to Faber Hill |
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| Hiked up the slope for a view of the wishing bells |
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At the peak of Faber Hill
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2. Drive pass Chinatown, viewing the light decors for Chinese New Year (didn't stop for photo taking)
3. A stroll @ Marina Bay (and Marina Bay Sands) and Marina Bay Barage
4. Explore the Light to Night light decors, and a brief visit to Fullerton Hotel.
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| City Hall light decor |
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| Victoria Concert Hall |
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| Fullerton Hotel |
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| Inside Fullerton Hotel |
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| School of Koi Fish in Fullerton Hotel |
5. Morning hike from Mac Ritchie Reservoir to Tree Top (a grueling 5km walk)
All of us were visibly exhausted when we walked out from the Tree Top. We decided to take a shorter walking trail to Windsor Natural Park (~3.5km) and took a Gojek ride to our car @ Mt Alvernia Hospital (we parked our car there).
6. A visit to Haw Par Villa and Labrador Park
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| The iconic arch at the entrance |
Various artistic statues depicting characters from Chinese folklores
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| Monkey God's 花果山 |
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| Romance of Three Kingdom 桃园结义 |
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| 八仙过海 |
Entrance to Haw Par Villa is free. It is a good place to get to know some of the ancient Chinese folklores and appreciate the colourful statues.
The 18 Level of Hell which depicts various punishments leveled on past misdeed before death is now housed in a museum - the entrance ticket costs $18 per person. It used to be free in early days many years ago. It can be quite a scary experience for young impressionable children (be warned!). We did not visit the museum.... it was closed at 5pm. Furthermore, we didn't it was worth the price to visit the place (since we have seen it before).
A short walk @ Labrodor Park, enjoying the view from the waterfront.
7. A visit to the last fishing village in Singapore
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| Fishing village |
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Waterfall at Nantah Lake
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| Yunnan Garden |
Hearsay that the Hives is the obligatory photo stop for tourists visiting NTU.
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| The Hives |
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| Interior view of the HIVES |
And of course, there was traditional visits to relatives on the first and 2nd day of Chinese New Year.
Overall, it is a good time for family gathering! I am glad that Kevin could come along with CY to spend Lunar New Year here.
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