Get set for Singapore
Seven sensational sights you should explore when visiting
FORGET a brief stopover, give yourselves a week and settle in. There’s so much to do in Singapore – it’s an urban carnival.
1. Buddha Tooth Relic Temple and Museum
This huge, beautiful, fivestorey southern Chinesestyle Buddhist temple’s main drawcard is the left canine tooth of the Buddha, reputedly recovered from his funereal pyre in Northern India. The main hall is lined with thousands of gold Buddhas and you can purchase, by donation, a helpful booklet on how to live your life according to the Chinese zodiac.
2. Sri Mariamman Temple
At the other end of Chinatown is one of Singapore’s oldest Hindu temples. This one dates back to 1823, and a brightly coloured tower, added later, soars above the street front. Inside deities jostle for primacy and worshippers do their thing but tourists are also welcome.
3. Raffles Hotel
You may not be allowed into the inner sanctum where the toffs stay but you can enjoy the eateries and bars and other attractions of this historic hotel. Opened in 1887, the hotel is “a symbol for all the fables of the exotic east” according to author W. Somerset Maugham, who stayed there. The most famous local tipple, the Singapore sling, was invented there.
4. Singapore Art Museum
Two blocks west of Raffles, situated in a heritage building, SAM, as it’s known, fuses historical charm with a strong contemporary feel. A highlight is the Wu Guangzhong gallery, which features a rotating exhibition of art donated by the father of modern Chinese painting.
5. Fort Canning Park
It was never really going to work as a fort because the cannons couldn’t reach the harbour from this hilly patch. Sir Stamford Raffles built his original residence here in 1822 before it was a fort. The fort was demolished in 1929 although a gothic gate remains. Military offices now house art organisations and the underground bunkers are part of a World War II exhibit. The park itself is extensive and lush and provides a wonderful respite from the hustle and bustle below.
6. Singapore Zoo and Night Safari
If you were only visiting Singapore briefly this is an attraction you couldn’t miss. Is it the world’s best zoo? Some say so. Set in central Singapore away from the urban centre, there’s much to see by day and at night. Instead of hitting a nightclub, visit a crowd of a different kind at the Night Safari – the zoo’s nocturnal animals.
7. Pulau Ubin
Just a 10-minute bumboat ride from Changi Village, this small island remains a rural, unkempt expanse of jungle full of lizards, birds and the occasional shrine – a land that time forgot. The little ferry requires 12 passengers before it leaves. On Ubin hire a bike and explore. Later graze at Changi’s hawker market.