KL MALAYSIA

BOOK V MALAYSIA

You cannot live in Singapore and not go to Malaysia, especially since you can drive there, take the bus there or do what I did, fly there which is only 45 min. Kuala Lumpur, or "muddy confluence" in Malay, had been beckoning to me for a long time. My "girl-power" side wanted to see the architectural feat which is the Petronas Twin Towers, because it counted a lady among the chief engineers and architects. The Petronas Twin Towers were the world's tallest buildings from 1998 until 2004 when Taipei 101 surpassed them. The towers are quite spectacular although I wasn't able to go to the top as I had wished. The tours were in the morning and I had come in the afternoon. Still, I got a wonderful view of them. The ground floors are for the shopper in all of us!

ANGKOR WAT...CAMBODIA

BOOK IV CAMBODIA

Cambodia or Kampuchea's emblem that is also on its flag, are its crown jewel, the temple of Angkor Wat, and the many many many other vedic temples near it, located in the city of Siem Reap.



Siem Reap is a bustling city where the transportation of choice are motorcycles and tuk tuks (just like in Colombo) and motorcycles (just like in Male').



Siem Reap was extremely hot and humid when I visited in the month of September. The temples were truly breathtaking... The one that struck me most was the temple that was entwined in the roots of a large tree. The tree, still alive, was literally growing atop the temple...



Many hotels and notable restaurants, spanning all price ranges, welcome the Angkor Explorer.



Angkor Paradise Hotel is ideally located between the airport and Angkor Wat and modestly priced.

MERLION and SENTOSA

The Merlion is the landmark of Singapore. It is a statue with the head of a lion and the body of a fish. It stands boldly in front of the Fullerton Hotel (a great place to have high tea), on the banks of the Singapore River. It is major tourist attraction as is its much much larger replica located on Sentosa, an island resort that's part of Singapore.

Sentosa Island is readily accessible via bus at the Harbour Front MRT Station, by car and more excitingly by cable car in the enclave of Vivo City. The cable car route although short and fun, is NOT for the faint-hearted. About 4 to 5 people can fit inside one, so it's quite small. I was excited about flying above the Singapore River to visut Sentosa but the cable car landed not a second too soon... There are lots of cool things to explore at Sentosa like Imbia Lookout, the Merlion, the Butterfly Park and Insect Kingdom, the Dolphin Lagoon and many other attractions.

SKYSCRAPERS...AND LUSH GARDENS

Before arriving in Singapore, I thought the city was full of skyscrapers and skyscrapers...and skyscrapers! Mea maxima culpa for this assumption. The island is lush, green, fragrant with parks and green spaces all over. I don't know how the engineers engineered the roads, but I appreciate the quasi-golf courses and mini botanic gardens that lie on each side of the major highways. Very relaxing.


And this is not only true for the major roads, even in the residential areas, beauty is the name of the game. The view from my window was... well check it out and YOU tell me...

In case you miss winter with its snowmen and luge, in Snow City you will feel that you were, once again, speeding down the snowy hills of Gstaad, all in the tropics. Snow gear and everything else you need (including helmets for the little ones) are all available. Snow City makes for a great family day.

BOTANIC GARDENS SINGAPORE

There are many many beautiful things to visit in Singapore. For the orchid-inclined, the Singapore Botanic Gardens are a place you owe it to yourself to visit. Simply amazing! Is the fragrance seeping through the computer screen? I thought so too. Lovely, lovely, lovely!

NIGHT SAFARI and SINGAPORE ZOO

Night Safari??? Yes, Singapore hosts the world's first Night Safari. You get on a little tram and you see the animals at night! How can you see animals at night when it's pitch dark? There are lights in strategic places that allow you to see the animals in their natural environment and it's marvelous. I couldn't see the fences that separated me from the animals( it is very well done), but I know(???) that there is something keeping that regal elephant with those magnificent tusks from charging at us. The lines are always very very long. But as with all things in Singapore, everything is so well-organized that the wait is easily bearable. The most notable event I found was the Creatures of the Night Show. Owls flying through the audience to their trainer and ferrets who have given recycling a new image. Truly remarkable. Pictures aren't allowed though during the show and the tram ride. As the Emcee indicated, how indeed would we feel if we had a gazillion flash bulbs flash in our faces in the dark. So I have just this one picture of some dancers.
The zoo is equally amazing. It is a major component of the Singapore Zoological Gardens. I had never seen a white tiger before!!!

SIR STAMFORD RAFFLES' MAGNUS OPUS

BOOK III SINGAPORE
Singapore, the Lion City (in Malay)is an island city/nation/state and capital all in one. When Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles discovered it on 29 January 1819 it was made up primarily of fishermen. That was then! Today it is a sprawling financial power house with one of the highest standards of living in the world, leading the Tigers of Asia.
Many believe that Raffles foresaw the economic potential of Singapore, establishing the British East India Company there in view of making Singapore a trading hub. Talk about a good hunch... History proved him very very right as the endless skyscrapers and the representation of every single imaginable financial entity in the world, testify. Singapore is Asia's second largest foreign exchange trading centre after Tokyo and number 4 world wide, up there with London and New York.
All these things work together to make Singapore a very let's say shopping-friendly place. Someone said that were shopping an olympic sport, no nation could hold a candle to Singapore! Indeed, shopping shopping and yes more shopping is a major activity.
I arrived in Singapore in July, during the legendary "Great Singapore Sale"!!! The shopping is truly a sport, an enjoyable sport, but a sport nonetheless!!! Tie your shoelaces, ready set go!!! This is the best time, if you like to shop, to visit Singapore. All the major retailers, all the great fashion houses are all somewhere on Orchard Road, Singapore's shopping haven. There is mall, after mall, after mall. If you have young children, you will find all of what you need at the Forum for the fashion-conscious, baby, toddler and tween. For yourself, if you believe in the best and but the best, the Paragon (EVERYTHING is in the name) will bring a smile to your face and so will Ngee Ann City with its flagship Takashimaya Shopping Centre . They are exactly across the street from each other, so if you don't find it in the Paragon , cross the street and check out Ngee Ann City (it actually is a small city and my preference lies in the Tiffany's, part of town!). There are many, many, many other shopping malls. These are just the most notable.
Here are a few malls in Singapore to explore...

• Raffles City
• Bugis Junction
• SuntecCity
• Millenia Walk
• Marina Square
• Wisma Atria
• Tangs
• Tanglin Shopping Centre
• Tanglin Mall
• Specialist's Shopping
• Shaw House
• Palais Renaissance
• Lucky Plaza
• Hilton Shopping Gallery
• The Heeren
• Far East Plaza
• Centrepoint
• VivoCity
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

CEYLON TEA...AND CLOTHES?

If you are a tea connoisseur like me, then I am sure you will concur with me that Ceylon tea is in a class by itself. When I was in Male', a dear friend had brought me some hand picked tea from the hills of Kandy, another major city of Sri Lanka located in the center of the country. A teaspoonful would have the apartment smelling like a hillside country retreat with scents of sheer paradise! Yes I like tea! So when I went to Colombo I made sure I enjoyed fine, pure fresh tea every moment I was there.
Then there is the shopping. Some well-known garment manufacturers have some of their clothes made in Sri Lanka. So be sure to check out O'Dell's and House of Fashion to pick up some things.
The food in Colombo is really good and really affrordable, a combination that I am very sensitive too.
I had wanted to visit the Elephant Orphanage on the way to Kandy but I wasn't in Sri Lanka long enough. I did have the opportunity to visit the zoo, and the legion of elephants that the zoo houses, was more than a consolation for the trip to the Elephant Orphanage that I couldn't make.

DO YOU LIKE GEMS?

There are three things that one must do when one is in Colombo:

• Get a least one emerald
• Get at least one sapphire
• Manage to take back as a souvenir at least one measly little diamond!!!

I feel it is safe to assume that everyone knows at least one person who is NOT adverse to receiving a little gem! The mining industry in Sri Lanka is alive and well, I am happy to say. The emeralds, sapphires, rubies and my personal favorite, the diamond are a necessary souvenir of Sri Lanka. The stones I saw in the shops in Colombo were absolutely amazing, from the flawless to the affordable, all were a treat for the sight. Some stones were mounted with absolutely superb craftsmanship, and some were just patiently awaiting an acquirer.

All were becknoning to me!!!

COLOMBO, SRI LANKA

BOOK II SRI LANKA

Sri Lanka,"resplendent land" in Sanskrit,is an island off the southeastern coast of India. Some people pronounce it Sri Lanka, other Shri Lanka. I asked Sri Lankans in Male' as well as in Colombo what the proper pronunciation was and apparently both forms are acceptable. It was called Ceylon up until 1972 and there are still plenty of vestiges from that time. Interestingly enough with different spellings: Ceylon and Ceylan, land of Ceylon Tea. I arrived there at night and the road leading from the airport to the city was quite dark. It was a 45 minute ride from the airport to the hotel.
The Galadari Hotel was very pleasant. It was relatively inexpensive ($70 a night) and right in the center of town not too far from the beach.
The next morning was exploration day! As I was walking by the world trade center and wondering why the city appeared so calm and quiet, an impromptu tour guide provided some information. It was Poya Day (full moon day in Sinhala) which is a religious holiday for Buddhists. There was a huge elephant with perfect ivory tusks chained to the front of a Buddhist temple and people coming to what seemed to me, pay their respects. Tuk Tuks are an important means of transportation in Colombo amd how many people, including adventurous tourists like me, get from one place to another. Tuk tuks are motorcycles fitted with a carriage. They are very fast and riding in one can be a little unsettling if a person is unaccustomed. It is a lot of fun nevertheless.
And all around the city, or at least all around the part of city where I was, there were patches of greenery with horses tied to a pole roaming around the garden. Quite interesting!!!