Day 65 of 111. Singapore, Singapore

Luckily, our excursion for the second day in Singapore did not begin early. Ron slept well after the heat of Cambodia and we had a nice breakfast before we left for some views of Singapore. The first stop was to a Taoist Temple built in 1821. It was built by several wealthy Chinese merchants and was the first spot that newly arrived Chinese visited to give thanks for the safe voyage. I enjoyed the dragons and wonderful patterns. One interesting feature is the flaming ring on the first building of the temple. When you stand in just the correct spot, you can see a pearl on the second building encircled by the flames. The flaming pearl (the Dragon’s Pearl) is a symbol of good luck, prosperity, wisdom and truth for the Chinese.

The second part of the excursion was to take the same river boat ride that I took the night before. The scenery looked completely different during the day than during the night when the bridges, buildings and waterfront shops were lit up. We drove by the Merlin Fountain, the iconic symbol of Singapore. My favorite stop was the refreshing stop at the Raffles Long Bar where the fruity drink, the Singapore Sling, was first invented. The Raffles Hotel is a very fancy spot, but you are encouraged to throw your peanut shells on the floor. This is the one place in Singapore where you are allowed to litter without getting a fine.