Twlight Zone . . .

We made the 20+ hours of flight and arrived back home on Monday night.  The throw-up count was zero.  That's right, Keylime didn't throw up once.  (The doses of medicine helped also.)  So if anyone needs blue airline barf-bags, I have lots left over.  I was hording them every chance I got (like a boy scout, I wanted to be prepared or you could call it once bitten twice shy, you choose.)  Maybe I could use them for a school craft project . . . hmmmm, no too gross, even unused! 

The flight to/from Singapore is one of the longest in the world.  Our longest flight was 15 hours in the air.  I have decided that a long flight would be like entering the twilight zone.  You board and take off, then the lights go down and shades are drawn.  Your are now entering the "Twilight Zone."  After you fly for awhile, you have no idea what time it is.  Truthfully, you don't even know when the new day starts.  It's like magic that you get to your destination.  Our flights were very smooth so you almost forgot you were flying.  All along the journey, you are in this groggy, dream-like state, dozing when you are tired and watching movies/tv when you are not.  The nice flight attendants bring you all kinds of food and drinks every time you open your eyes.  When you approach your destination and lights are back on and the shades are up.  You have arrived.  Of course, you haven't showered in more than 24 hours, bed head, and haven't brushed your teeth in way too long.  When did I put these clothes on?  What day is it anyway? 

Of course, as I write this, it is 1:00 a.m. Wednesday morning and I am not even the slightest bit tired.  Ugh, jetlag.  So ignore my dark, baggy eyes when you see them. 

We are signing off, for now, and on behalf of me

(that's right, not only is this picture in Singapore in the classic Long Bar,

but I am sipping a Singapore Sling.  

BTW, I smashed my hair down in this pic.)

my hair,

This is me at a bus stop.  This was actually a "good" hair day so I had it down.  After looking at this picture, I am thinking that was probably not a good decision.  Don't worry, I wore a pony tail almost everyday.  The people of Singapore are nice and frankly, I didn't want to scare them with my hair.  (They don't have hair like this . . . . )

and my "Keen Team" 

want to thank you for following our journey! 

Thank you for all the messages that so many of you sent to us. 

We really love that you followed our blog. 

We had a fantastic journey and sharing it made it even better!

So folks, it is back to the real world for me now . . . cleaning, grocery shopping, doctor appointments, parish picture, soccer practice, laundry, laundry, laundry . . .

One last hurrah . . .

Our flight left early Monday morning (my time) so we stayed at the airport hotel on our last night.  The girls had a blast swimming.

Although none of us felt great when the alarm went off at 3:15 a.m.  We are now in Hong Kong for a short layover and then the long flight across the big ocean!  There is about 19-20 flying hours total.

Drinking lunch

In one of our final days in Singapore, we realized there was something we missed.  So we head to . . . .

This fruit concoction has a lot in it.  For my Fulton friends, it reminded me of a Stabalizer. 

For the low, low price of well, a lot, you can enjoy a drink in this famous bar.  Hang out with the beautiful people in Singapore since the Long Bar is located at the famous Raffles Hotel.  So beautiful people, now you have seen the H's!  (I am sure they were impressed.) 

We are hungry so we go on the search for a lunch.  We can't agree on where to eat.  Not a big shock, given we have been together for 8 weeks solid, no breaks, and well, we are kinda sick of each other.  We have eaten out a lot and we just can't figure out what sounds good.  So many choices.  So we decide to drink lunch and head to . . . 

With a name like this, how could it not be good. 

 

So ladies and gentlemen, that is the story of how we drank lunch! 

Walk this way . . .

The girls and I head to Little India.  We walked through the streets and see shops filled with silks and gold jewelry.  We see lots of grocery stores with all kinds of Indian food (I mean, we are in Little India, what do you expect?)  We find a Hindu temple.  After taking off our shoes and stepping over (not on) the threshold, we step inside a minute to see.  It was really pretty inside with lots of sculptured statues too. 

As we are walking the neighborhood, we go into a spa that has Henna.  You probably know that Henna is an art of temporary tattooing (it lasts a week or so.)  So I don't know much about Henna but I wanted the girls to get one since they are a pretty and traditional Indian custom.  The girl who does the Henna at this spa is really nice but, honestly I can't totally understand what she is saying (you would think I would be better at it by now but well, you would be wrong.)  There is a book of designs and the girls pick out their designs but the book has no prices.  I ask the girl and I think she says $5 each.  Sounds good.  She starts painting away.  They really look pretty.  As the girl is finishing up on Keylime, I pick up a brochure for the salon and browse through.  I see that Henna art is $150.  What?  I was thinking I was paying $5 (which did seem cheap given how pretty the artwork is that she is doing but what do I know.)  We sit there for 20 minutes before we leave and the whole time I am trying to replay the money conversation in my mind.  Did she say $50 each?  UGH.   Sounded like $5.  Ummm, if it is $50, that is a lot for a temporary tattoo (I mean, can't I get a package of 800 from Oriental Trading for $29.99?)  So it is time to pay and I am not sure what to do.  Seems like a bad idea to ask because I would probably pay more than I agreed to (although I don't know what I agreed to at this point.)    I hand her a $10 bill plus a tip and confidentially walk out.  Good news is that no one chased us on the street to get more money so I must have been right.  I would not recommend the yes/no random answering strategy for communication but, it had worked OK so far on this trip.

The girl says the Henna takes 30 minutes to dry but we are there about 20 and we need to go.  Clearly, I didn't think this plan out well.  We have to be somewhere else.  The girls have flip flops and if they put them on while the Henna is still wet it will smear their design.  I mean, I have $10 plus tip invested into this now.  So what would any normal, reasonable mom do?  Of course, I suggest that in order not to be late, I tell the girls to wear only one flip flop back so the Henna has more time to dry. 

Let's make sure you are up-to-date now.  So I say:  Girls, go ahead and go barefoot down the busy sidewalks of Little India, walk blocks and blocks to the MRT station.  Then take the train to the interchange, up and down escalators, past crowds of people, and then get on another train, and walk through the mall to meet friends for lunch.  All with only one shoe!  While you are at it, go ahead and be barefoot in the restaurant so we can be sure it is dry. (BTW, people wear shoes in Singapore but not my two today.)  Keylime thought this was a good idea to go barefoot, kind of funny. Tie Dye, on the other hand, felt a little different about it. 

The barefoot wonders head out to the streets!

After the Henna dries, the dye flakes off and you are left with an orangish/brownish color.  It's really pretty.  Keylime's toes are silver and Tie Dye's toes are pink. 

On your mark, get set, EAT . . .

To keep you up-to-date.  The McDonald's count is at 11 (M thinks it might be more; we may have lost count.)  The war is between Superdog and McDonald's (Oh, I don't think I told you there was a contest between the two but well, there is.  So now you know.)  Things are not faring up well for Superdog.  Sorry S-dog.  It is Keylime's favorite place to eat here (ok, she will pretty much only eat at McDonald's and Superdog so that isn't saying much.  She is convinced that even the turkey at Subway tastes funny.  UGH)  Superdog is a "Chicago" hot dog place and no one has gotten a hot dog there, only burgers.  For the rest of us, it's not our favorite place. 

Truly Singapore is an International Eating mecca.  There are so many different restaurants with so many different types of food, it is almost over whelming.  Rest assured for my foodie friends and relatives, we have eaten at many places that don't have golden arches (sorry H family.  You know we love you!)  Singapore has some signature dishes that they are probably most known for serving. 

Chili crab is one of them.  It is a whole crab in a red "chili" sauce (not like chili with meat and beans that we serve in the winter.)  The sauce has chili peppers in it so it is a little spicy.  I ordered Chili Crab one night for dinner.  We were with some co-workers of M's.  Two of us decide to share an order of chili crab.  I know I am in trouble when they bring me a very large bib but I think ok, they do this at home with some seafood.   The big pot is set in front of us.  Looks yummy.  Ok, they have armed me with a shell cracker and chopsticks.  Ummm, I don't know how this is going to work but I am game.  I am supposed to hold my chopsticks in one hand and the cracker in the other.  I am supposed (notice my word choice here) to use both of them at the same time.  Clearly these people have not met me.  They don't understand that my left hand is just for show, just to balance out my body, just dangling there to compliment my right hand.  It isn't actually for use.  So I am watching and my friend is cracking and pulling and eating (she is from China so chopsticks come easy to her.) and there isn't one bit of anything on her.  I, on the other hand, would have made a toddler eating pizza look neat.  First, I am incapable of using both the chopsticks and cracker at the same time.  I needed fingers to get to the crab meat.  You know the crab that is drenched in chili sauce?  It isn't a finger food kind of dish.   I have red sauce covered from my mid forearm.   My friend has kindly even given me the big "easy" crab pieces and I am still struggling!  I am licking my fingers and eating like it is a fried chicken festival.  Pretty site isn't it?  Napkins are hard to come by here, they don't keep extras out at most places and if you ask for more, you might get an extra one or two thin napkins.  So you can see, I am in a heap of trouble.  It was finger-licking good.  Literally.   Darn white skirt, why did I wear it?  Chili crab was delicious, not neat, but yummy!

Another Singapore dish is Chicken Rice.  This is white sticky rice with cooked chicken.  The rice is made with chicken broth.  It usually has a little soy sauce on the top.  It is delicious.  Sometimes the chicken is sliced up with the bones in it for extra flavor.  It has very mild flavors.  It's really good. 

We have also had Pepper Rice Steak.  I have had this several times.  M and Tie Dye have,too.  It is white rice, thinly sliced pieces of raw steak, corn, and a raw egg.  Before you start freaking out about the raw meat and egg, let me explain.  The food is on an extremely hot pan, almost like a cast iron skillet.  As soon as you get it, you take your chopsticks and mix everything all together and the meat and egg cook while you are stirring since the pan is so hot.  What you are eating is fully cook.  This was one of my favorites. 

This is pepper steak.  All the food is served cooked in this dish in a cute little wok. 

Most of the meals are served with a clear broth type soup. 

Tie Dye has tried it all.  She especially likes the fried rice

(which is very similar to what is served at home.), sprouts and shrimp. 

There is a restaurant chain here that is called Din Tai Fung.  One of its specialties is Xiao (pronounced Chao) Long Bao.  It is a steamed dumpling with pork inside.  Now I will use my highly refined culinary words . . . tastes like a meatball with a thin dumpling around it.  Delicious!  Ask Tie Dye what she thinks, she loves them!  We are eating there again before we leave.  Good news is that even though it is a Chinese restaurant and many times things aren't in English, Din Tai Fung has a checklist at the table that you can order your meal, with pictures on the menu.  It's like ordering for dummies.  Now you are talking.  This is my kind of place.   

In Beijing, we tried uncooked yams (they were white) with blueberry sauce, cooked donkey (not Shrek's friend), Peking Duck, cooked spinach, red bean dessert cake, and egg tarts (very yummy).  We also had steamed buns including Xiao Long Bao.  For lunch in Beijing, we had a more traditional lunch (instead of the fancy-smancy dinner meal.) that was noddles in a broth with some veggies.  Very simple and very good. 

In Singapore, besides Asian food, we have also had Swiss (the Rosti potatoes), German (the girls liked the Spaetzel and of course, the Brezn (pretzel), Mediterranean, Italian, Mexican, and Australian.  Plus, we ate good old USA food which sometimes are in places that look like a 50's diner.  Kinda funny.  So truly, International Eating! 

There are a lot of fast food restaurants here.  Many that you would recognize.  So to answer the question of the week, Mickey D's has the most stores in Singapore, with 121 locations (No, we have not been to all the locations, don't be silly).  Subway came in second place, with 90 locations (which surprised me a little since I don't feel like you see them as much).  Burger King has 43 locations, and coming in last place was KFC at 28 locations.  Although, if we were giving an award for the biggest stores, KFC would win.  They are huge, and always seem to be busy. 

Note to readers:  Don't rely on my data to make any investments in any of these stores (which seriously would you have done anyway?)  What do I know?  I grew tired of counting the number of stores on each of their websites.  Which, BTW, I had to do manually to get the answers.  Note to self, once again, pick an easier question. 

Far, far away . . .

Keylime had decided that it wasn't fair that M celebrated Father's Day in Singapore and Tie Dye and I each celebrated our birthdays here.  She felt jipped that she didn't get "a day."  Ok, now don't even get me started that, well, wasn't this whole summer a vacation?  Oh, a mother's woes!  So she decided that there would be a "Keylime Day."  She carefully considered all her options and decided what we would do for her special day.  M even took off work to join the fun. 

We visited a land "far, far away" from home.  Oh, not Singapore, you already know we are here.  We spent the day at Universal Studios in Singapore.  Well at least she picked something unique to Singapore (not) and cheap (oh, wait, not that either.) 

There were several areas of the park and one of them was from Shrek and another from Madagascar.

 The monkeys loved it. 

Our favorite ride was Battlestar Galactica dueling roller coasters. 

(Dwight Schrute from "The Office" would be so proud.)

The two coasters are intertwined and "race" each other for victory.  Red is a more traditional coaster and blue is one where the track is above you and your feet hang down.  I am sure there is a technical roller coaster word for that but well, let's face it, I don't know what it is.  I love roller coasters and the good news is that the girls do to.  Both coasters are very fast and twisty turny (kinda obvious since it is a coaster, right?)  Well, the girls and M loved the blue one the best.  I also liked the blue one better (and is wasn't just because I didn't feel as pukey on that one :-) 

This picture below you an see both coasters. 

Below, M and the girls (my stomach was done by then.) are on the blue coaster going around and upside down in a circle.  The are sitting in the 4 or 5th row.  Seriously, good luck if you are going to spot them in the picture. 

So after sweating out about 10 gallons of water, spending a ton of money, walking until our feet hurt, we closed the park down (ok, well the park actually closed at 7 p.m. but we DID close it down.)  Keylime had a great day; we all did.  Happy Keylime Day to you!

On the outside looking in . . .

We have been looking forward to August 9th for a while.  It is National Day in Singapore.  That's right, it is Singapore's birthday. (As you can imagine, 4th of July is pretty quiet around here since it is an American holiday.)  Singapore looks good for 46!  That is right, Singapore has been on it's own for 46 years (it was previously occupied by the British, Japanese and Malays at various points.)  The last month, the Singapore flag has been flying everywhere.  The red and white of the Singapore flag is showing proudly.  It is difficult when you are in another country to know about the customs on holidays like this.  What we gather is that the place to be is Marina Bay, especially for the fireworks in the evening. 

So since we have tried to see many things in Singapore, we figure that we have to go celebrate Singapore's birthday.  We, of course, are joining a million or so other people who also have the same plan to celebrate at Marina Bay.  The MRT, cabs, and buses are over-crowded and the streets are grid-locked at the end of the evening.  So, we decide to walk it.  We head straight down the Riverwalk and after walking, sweating, walking, sweating, walking and sweating, walking, sweating (you get my drift), we arrive at Marina Bay.  We arrive, very sweaty and tired but we arrive, nonetheless.  Hurray for National Day! 

Here is my patriotic family at Marina Bay dressed in their red! 

There are people everywhere.  We decide we want to get to the water in the Bay so we head over there.  We go one way, but blocked.  Yellow fence.  No entry. 

Go left and walk, turn, blocked, yellow fence.  No entry.

We keep walking, we are so close to the Bay.  Walk and turn, another yellow fence.

I am beginning to really dislike this yellow fence.  We can see the people inside.  So close.

Like a kid with their faces pressed up to the glass of the candy store, we continue on . . . we want in!

Finally, after walking and walking, we make it inside.  Wow, there are a lot of people in here!  We are hungry and there are not many choices in the fishbowl we have now entered.  So I snap a picture of the floating stadium to show you the mass of people there in red and white.  There are performances going on all day in the stadium too.  This was right across from the picture above. 

After we get some dinner, we know we have to find a spot to watch the fireworks.  M is our navigator.  We know where we want to be, now we just have to get there quickly since they should be starting soon, very soon!  We cut through a mall to avoid the crowd from where we came from, we walk out and turn left, walk, turn, right, walk, turn left.  M has the map on his phone that he is using for navigation.  There is hardly anyone on these streets.  That seems funny.  We walk and turn.  It is hot and it is hard to imagine, but I am sweating even more.  Umm, M are you sure we are going in the right direction?  Of course, he is sure, he is M!  There are high-rise buildings everywhere so we can't get our bearings to see the Bay.  Then we realize that we are right back where we started.  That is right, M pulled a J.  Instead of taking an hour (like me) to walk in a circle, M only took 30 minutes though.  He walks fast.  So he had that going for him.  Although, we have the growing pressure of the fireworks starting any minute so now we are trotting through the streets frantically trying to find any place that we can see fireworks.  I know, that invokes a pretty site, doesn't it? 

So fireworks were starting between 7:30 and 8 p.m.  We are near 8:00 now.  UGH.  Finally, we see the Fullerton Hotel and get our bearings.  We can make it and we did.  The fireworks were awesome!   Our spot was great too.  We had the main show in front of us and there were other buildings behind us that were lighting fireworks from their roofs so it was fireworks all around.

Happy Birthday Singapore!