Today we ventured back into Chinatown to pick up Stephen's new suit, and then headed over to Little India and the Malay sector.

We got to Chinatown a little after 10am, and not a whole lot was open. It took us a good while to find the tailor shop again, as the numbering system is not as intuitive as it first appears. But we found it after not too long of looking, and Stephen tried on his suit. You know, it's amazing how a well fitted item of clothing can make a person look quite stunning. Stephen is usually quite attractive, but this suit, well, suits him perfectly! He was very pleased, after of course giving it his typically deep inspection, and asking more questions than I thought possible about its construction.

While Stephen was changing back into his street clothes, the shopkeeper turned to me and mentioned that he had a friend whose jewelry store "down the street" was having a sale. Would I like to go? Wanting to be polite, and more than a little curious I said ok, and asked for the address, to which the shopkeep responded "I get it for you, I call my friend." Ok, sure. So, Stephen comes back out and the shopkeep is talking a mile a minute, in both English and Madarin, and the next thing I know a taxi pulls up to the shop door. Turns out the shopkeep called a taxi to take us to the jewelry shop of his friend. This is where things start to get odd. The taxi driver turned out also to be the cousin of the jewelry store owner. He chats with us a bit, asking us where we're from, how we like Singapore, etc, etc. (He did sneer a bit when he found out I studied Economics and International Relations, and quickly turning the subject back to Stephen's job. Grrrr.) All the while he's driving. Now, Chinatown is not that big, and we were quickly out of it and headed downtown. . .and he keeps driving. . .and driving. Finally, after many worried looks pass between Stephen and I, he pulls up in front of a very rich looking building, which said in very prominant and snooty letters: The Singapore Gem Trading Exchange. Great. He escorts us through the security guards, and into a showroom manned by more hostesses and sales personell than customers by a ratio of 30:1. Even better. So Stephen and I attempt to wander through the various cases (all of which housed beautiful gems in terribly gaudy settings that were way overpriced), trying to figure out how long was polite to stay and yet not be expected to purchase anything. Fortunately we made it out with our wallets and credit lines intact and no jewelry. Friend down the street, my hiney!!

The upside of all of this is that we were just two blocks from our hotel, and were able to drop off the suit before heading back out to Little India and Kampong Glam.

Now this was quite the experience. Definitely the poorer section of town financially, it was rich in sounds and smells of the Middle East. Also fabulous was the fact that the shopkeeps were pretty hands off, offering initial assistance , but otherwise stood back unless summonned or to explain some excentricity or culture perculiarity; unlike in Chinatown, where you are constantly harrassed in multiple languages to "come inside, have a see, best (insert good here) in Singapore, we make you good deal." Very nice change indeed. Also, I am convinced that Indian women have the best end of the fashion world. Not are the fabrics beautiful, sporting the best embroidery man is capable of, but they're comfortable! Long tunics with loose fitting pants and a scarf/shawl (forgive me Lynn, I don't know all the correct terms). Yup, that culture definitely gave their women the better end of the bargain there, and I'm jealous, as well as half tempted to buy one, just for the sheer beauty of the clothing.

After much wandering about the shops, we came to the largest mosque in Singapore, the Sultan's Mosque. We were allowed to go inside (fortunately I had bought a pretty scarf, and had it with me), and wander all but the prayer halls, for good reason. There were a few people around, but otherwise we were free to explore. I wish I had more information about all the symbolic placement of the various arches, pillars, and other architectural and ceremonial elements to better appreciate the space though. But it was very interesting, especially to quietly watch the prayers of the faithful there. Different traditions are astounding, and, at least in this temple, the humility before God was very evidant in the postures and expressions of those praying.

Back onto the street, we wandered about some more, taking a fabulous curry lunch in a little shop in Historic Little India. It was served on a large leaf, with lots of pappadam (sp?) and ginger drink. MMMMMM good stuff. Though we haven't been able to find the fabulous mint chutney since the zoo. I may have to track down a recipe.

From there we walked over to the area of Temples, and to do so passed through the closest thing to slums we have yet found in Singapore. The buildings had definitely seen better days, and a few tattered beggars were on the other side of the street. The interesting thing was, that this area was also under the most intensive construction we had yet seen. The book I read on the plane coming over here (From the Third World to the First by Lee Kuan Yew, Christmas present from my in-laws--Thank You!!) mentioned that the government subsidized modernization of many old (pre-independence) apartment blocks, and so I can only assume that what was going on. It was interesting, because just across the street, was completely modern apartments. Fascinating.

Moving on, we came to the temple area where four Buddhist and two Hindu temples sat, more or less, next to each other. Both Hindu temples had prayer services going on, so those could only be viewed from the outside, and were stunning. More layered statues in a pyramid shape, with walls adorned by more colorful statues. Listening to the chants of the worshipers was a beautiful experience, and made the entire complex come alive with the sounds. The waves of heat made many of the figurines shimmer and almost dance with the rhythm of the voices inside.

Further on, we came to the Buddhist temples, which we were allowed to enter. Only two of them we really understood much as they had some limited information available in English, but all were fascinating to behold, and displayed an interesting mix of the various ethnic symblism of the area.

The largest was established by a Thai monk in the 1920s, and features an enormous Buddha statue, some 50 feet tall and several hundred tons, as well as several relics including a piece of bark believed to come from the tree under which Siddhartha gained enlightenment and a replica of the Buddha's foot print set in mother of pearl. The entrance was guarded by a four headed statue of the Hindu god Vishnu, the creator, meant to guard the temple from all four corners. There was also a statue of Ganesh (elephant-man god of fortune) in one corner that was associated with the early life of Siddhartha. Fascinating symbolsim that. By far the most interesting part of the temple was the series of murals around the base of the large statue depicting the life of Siddhartha/Buddha and his path to enlightenment.

Across the Street was the Leong San See temple built about a decade earlier than the previously mentioned one, that is about half Buddhist, half Hindu. It is dedicated mutually to the Hindu goddess of mercy and compassion as well as the "Sakyamuni" or "Laughing" Buddha. Unlike all of the other temples, this one did not ask its visitors to remove their footwear, and allowed us to wander all parts of the temple pretty much unhindered, except for asking us to explore it in a clockwise motion so as to properly respect the energies of the space. This temple was much more ornate than the previous one, with the ceiling made of exquisitly carved & gilded rafters, featuring an entire room of gilded ancestral tablets over a central altar. It was set one room inside of another, which, presumably, aided in the meditation of the worshippers as they moved through their prayer cycles from the entrance near the penetential kneelers, to the shrine of the patron goddess, to the ancestral room through another mini shrine to another manifestation of the patron goddess, and through a second minor shrine area to a lesser manifestation of the Buddha, back to the main room only in front of the final Buddha, and before exiting, the shrine to the patron gods of the city. I really enjoy all the symbolism of the various buildings, and am very glad that these two temples had detailed cards to help out the unschooled better appreciate the rich surroundings.

Back out onto the street, we made our way back to the hotel, to change, and head out to Orchard Road for a bit of shopping and dinner. We took dinner in a more upscale version of the hawker center, and got some seafood noodle soup, which Stephen really enjoyed but I was not all that fond of. I've found that I enjoy the Indian and Malaysian foods much better than their Chinese counterparts. The flavors suit my stomach better and are much less likely to contain bits of anchovies. Bleah.

So, after some more wandering about, back to the hotel to plan out our final day in Singapore--Wednesday.

Tags: asia,singapore,chinatown,mosque,kapang glam,little india,temples,shopping

After another fabulous breakfast, we headed into Chinatown where we spent the majority of our day. We made a quick stop by a diving shop we saw while on the boat tour, but they weren't open yet (it was around 11:30am). Shops here keep the strangest hours--most don't open until 10:00 or 11:00am and are open well into the night, usually midnight. This is definitely a schedule that I could get used to!! So after looking around, and not finding another one, we jumped back into the Subway, and got off in Chinatown. Chinese New Year is in Two weeks so the whole area was decked out, and lots of street vendors were set up offering great bargains to get people ready for the upcoming holiday. We got quite a few souvenirs taken care of this way.

One place we stopped while looking at some things, invited us in, and offered Stephen an amazing deal to custom make a suit for him. We had already discussed that he desperately needed a new one, and were planning on getting one back in the States. This guy offered him a Marino Italian Wool Suit, hand tailored to his measurements, plus a silk shirt (also custom made) and tie all for the price of a very good suit in the US (though of much better quality than anything we could afford there). So we jumped on the deal, and it will be ready on Tuesday. Huzzah!! Now all he needs is a new pair of black shoes, and he will be set to go. The best part about the deal is that, this tailor will keep Stephen's measurements for life, and all we have to do to order another is email or call him, and he will ship it to the US for no extra charge! Whoo hoo!! So, if you're ever in Singapore, and want a good suit for an exceptional deal, stop by Master Hand Tailor Shop in Chinatown on Temple road, shop number 21. Evidently this guy also makes suits for Bill Clinton and Tony Blair, so his craftmanship is quite good. I'm thinking that after I get my first job that pays over 50k, we'll have to come back here, and have him make one for me. *big grin*

Then we wandered town Temple Street, and came to the oldest Hindu temple in Singapore, Sri Mariamman. Built in 1826, the facade features over 70 Hindu deities in full color! It was a huge complex with many different alcoves and statuaries. They allowed us to take some photography in designated areas, and so I got some really amazing shots of the ceilings and various of the decorated facades!

Next we stopped off at People's Park Complex for a extra tasty lunch in the food court. I got Chicken, mushrooms and noodles in a brownish sauce that was obviously fish based, and Stephen got this crazy seafood soup concoction that looked tame enough, but evidently packed enough chili peppers to clear out his sinuses for the rest of this life. Interesting to say the least, and pretty tasty to boot, though it left me wanting something a bit more familiar (or at least recognizable) to munch on, so we stopped at several vendors to try some of the festive foods available: Thai Coconut (they chopped the top off of and stuck a straw in to drink), Sugar Cane juice, and various types of candied fruits and herbs (ginger, GREEN papaya, tangerines, dates, etc).

Then wandering around we came into "historic" Chinatown, and came across a series of Buddhist temples, the largest of which was Thian Hock Keng, dedicated to the Goddess of the Moon and Sea, as well as a Female Buddhisatva (forgive my spelling). This particular Buddha's focus was on compassion. Fascinating, and amazing craftmanship.

Next door was a Mosque under repairs, but not much further down the street we came to the oldest Mosque in Singapore, Al Abrar. They were having lessons inside, so visitors were prohibited unfortunately. Still quite impressive. It's really interesting how these major religious buildings are set on street level with facades that almost blend into the surrounding area, whole area something of a mystical feel. So paying attention to where you are going is a major plus.

Then we wandered through this beautiful park, coming across several minor temples to various Buddas or Hindu deities, some of which were no more than a statue in a wooden box, others were the size of a standard shop with a little place for people to kneel off the street. Again, lent the whole area a pious atmosphere, and indeed this area of the city was substantially quieter than that filled with vendors and New Year's preparations. The park especially was a nice repose for our tired feet, and presented some nice opportunities for contrast with the surrounding apartment blocks, skyscrapers, and tree lined lanes.

Then we braved the vendor streets once again to head back to the hotel for a quick dip in the pool to refresh tired muscles, a warm shower, and then off to dinner and more walking in the Sun Tech City shopping plaza, the LARGEST mall in a country where shopping is *the* national past time. This turned out to be our craziest adventure yet.

First of all, we walked nearly two miles to get to the mall, ALL of which was underground, one endless string of shops and eateries. So we get there, and Stephen picks the Sushi place that is on the other side of where we are; so, we walk another mile, get there, and it is the weirdest experience of our lives. First of all, they had this conveyor belt that moved plates of sushi through the restaraunt and past all of the tables--the catch? You're not allowed to actually eat it. Then we noticed these computer moniters that said "order here", but you weren't actually supposed to use them. They brought us paper menus instead, that listed California Rolls as "Premium" sushi. So we ordered Bento boxes: Chicken Katsu Don for me, and a mixed sushi box for Stephen, both of which came with miso soup. We get them, and my box had fried chicken, fried tofu, and rice that had crushed up anchovies on it. The miso soup was even reconstituted. Yeah, definitively not tasty. Stephen's seemed a bit better, but he didn't recognize most of it, which was probably what made it appetizing. As discovered earlier in the day, it is amazing what you are willing to eat if you don't know what it is. Yes indeed, the ole "close your eyes and try it trick" from childhood came in handy. So, we finish with "dinner" and walk the 4 miles back to the hotel. The good part of this whole thing is that we discovered a book shop and got the bus and detailed city map that we need to plan tomorrow's adventure, which hopefully will be a little easier on the taste buds. It did end well however, as we ordered dessert from Room Service. Cherry pie with ice cream. The best thing I've had all day.

Where might the next destination be, you ask? Tommorrow's agenda includes the Zoo and the Orchid Gardens. They're a bit out of the center, but only by around 30 minutes (bus and metro, so we'll get to use our nifty cards on the bus). Now, I'm going to pay some more attention to the dessert that just arrived and my darling husband. Ciao!

Tags: chinatown,shopping,temple,asia,singapore