I got in pretty late to Singapore last night / this morning from Australia. I sat next to an Asian graphic artist that had me mesmerized by his skills on an iPad Pro. I landed, and they took my thumbprint
at the airport, a first in my travels. The 
immigration card said in big, bold red letters that drug traffickers would be killed, so there’s that. It reminded me of a film my friend shot called A Better Place Than This. It is about a Singaporean executioner that befriends an Australian woman on death row due to her importation of drugs to the country. Being of both Australian and Singaporean lineage, he took the topic close to heart.
I took a shuttle into town after finagling a location that was by my hostel, as my place was not listed. On the drive in, I was astonished by the architecture here, namely putting 3-5 stories in a building for just trees. I got in and got to bed, my first actual pod, with little problem. I woke up at 9 am to have the included breakfast, and set out to do the two things on my list for the day: 1. Find the Merlion and 2. Go to Sky Park.
First, however, I needed to stretch my legs. Singapore has some incredible diversity, and coming from Mosque Street, I walked passed a Hindu Temple and then made my way to the Buddha’s Tooth Relic temple. There was a service going on, and I wandered in. There were monks and worshipers there praying and chanting. Whether it was the jetlag, being alone for almost a month, or some other factor, I was almost moved to tears. I found the Merlion and then set out to Sky Park. Walking past an outdoor mosque, I made my way past various Singapore landmarks, including the Fullerton Hotel.
I accomplished one of my major goals for the trip; I had a drink 56 stories above Singapore. I headed back for some lunch, which was great because I was in Chinatown and right next to a humongous food court or hawker. I got back, took a shower and, a nap then headed back out. I had dinner #1 of beef satay before walking to Sentosa Island. I took the MRT back, had dinner #2 of Bao, and a beer then dinner #3 of a meat pancake. Singapore is fantastic!
I started my last full day in Singapore. I got up and had breakfast. I then headed out. I took the Mass Rapid Transit subway or MRT to the hop-on, hop-off bus. I think that is what I am going to do on the first days in a new place so I can figure out what I need to do and see. I traveled around two circuits today. One I ended up doing twice. I learned a lot about Singapore, mostly why there are so many crazy rich Asians. It is government taxes being redistributed:
Real estate: 80% of the people here live in “government housing.”
Cars: People need to buy a license for $50,000 before they can buy their car.
I went to the Sultan Mosque, which made me feel like more of an outsider that I have ever felt in my life, even though the staff was incredibly helpful. I hopped back on the bus and went to the botanical gardens. Later in the afternoon, I traveled to their war memorial—the Civilian War Memorial, more commonly known as The Chopsticks. Singapore is a crucial shipping gateway between East and West, and during World War II, the Japanese knew it. After the British surrendered the colony on 15th February 1942, the Japanese military started a campaign of purging the male Chinese population of supposed subversive and hostile elements using the Japanese Army’s secret police the Kenpeitai. 
This lawless campaign of arrest and murder lasted from the 18th until March 4th. While the estimations vary, 5,000 to 70,000 were people killed during this campaign of Sook Ching (purge through cleansing) in Singapore and Malaysia. The real total will never be known. When the mass graves of the dead began being discovered in 1962, it was decided to build a memorial to those that were murdered. The Chopsticks stand about 220 ft (67m) high, representing the four main groups of people living in Singapore. At the base, words are inscribed in 4 languages English, Mandarin, Malay, and Tamil, and they read: Memorial to the Civilian Victims of the Japanese Occupation 1942-1945. Fitting, I stood here in the rain. A gentleman approached of Asian ancestry. He nodded to me, and I to him, then I left. I then had dinner #1 at the Michelin rated Liao Fan Restaurant, then went and had a beer. Then dinner #2 of dumplings, then another beer, I came back. Singapore has been incredible.
This day was to be my last day in Singapore. I am sad to leave as this was the best I have eaten on my voyage thus far. I got to the airport and walked around a bit. I ended up finding another hawker at the airport and had lunch for S$2, all my remaining change. They do security differently here in that you go through screening at the gate. Anyway, we had some technical difficulties with the plane, but we still got out. 4:40 hours later, here I am in Taipei. They sure do like scanning fingerprints over here. Customs took forever. Anyway, Iʼm off to the hostel! Woo!
