Singing praises of Singapore: nature makes for Uniquely Singapore

Bob Roberts Mirror 6 Feb 10;

But whether it is party animals or jungle animals, sophisticated restaurants or untouched rainforests, Singapore can offer them all.

Singapore will be partying hard during next weekend's Chinese New Year celebrations. BOB ROBERTS heads there to toast the Year of the Tiger

Take a bumboat to the tiny island of Pulau Ubin and a quick winter trip to Singapore can become a tropical Asian adventure.

The small state at the end of the Malaysian peninsula is famous for its clean and glistening city.

Among Singapore's gleaming skyscrapers is some of the world's best shopping and eating.

But within an hour of the urban jungle is a real jungle.

A 45-minute taxi ride will take you from a five-star hotel to the small ferry station at Changi where, for just over £1, you can hop on board a rickety, wooden bumboat.

The vessel won't leave unless there are 12 people on board so the boatman makes a profit. But whether it takes 10 minutes or an hour, a short trip across the water will take you to the untouched south-east Asia. The island of Pulau Ubin has been left undeveloped save for a Malaysian cafe, a few places to rent a bike and somewhere to buy a drink.

Within minutes you can be walking through jungle, fighting your way through a mangrove swamp or finding a campsite by the beach.

And it's not the only hidden green gem in Singapore. Just half an hour from the Central Business District is the Bukit Timah and Central Catchment Nature Reserves.

Hikes graded from hard to easy take you through equatorial rain forests teeming with exotic butterflies and lively monkeys.

There is a wooden tree-top walk designed, built and overseen by the brilliant and passionate Sandra Chang, of the National Parks Board.

A short climb takes you to the suspended 250-metre walkway in the middle of the forest canopy among the eagles and insects and gives you views back to the city and across to Malaysia.

The southern ridges of Singapore and Hort Park garden provide green space for those with less time or adventure within the city itself.

And back in urban Singapore, there are sights and scenes to rival Manhattan, Hong Kong or Sydney.

A must visit is The Long Bar of Raffles Hotel. Avoid looking too touristy with the pink Singapore Sling and instead sip ice-cold Tiger lager underneath the slowly moving palm-frond fans as you chew on groundnuts and chuck the shells on the floor.

Try also the uber-cool Orgo bar on the roof terrace of The Esplanade Centre with the best views of the Singapore Harbour. Designed by engineer Nick Yen - nicknamed "The Craziest One" - you can rent your own glass-and-steel cube for you and your friends to party amid the sunset or the monsoon rains.

Grab a bite to eat at the food hawker stalls in Chinatown, where you hustle for a seat amid the lunchtime crowds of city workers.

Try simple chicken and rice - the best rice in the world because it is cooked with chicken broth and extra fat.

There are fresh spring rolls, fried duck and, for the more adventurous, pig brains. The Chinese believe eating brains is good for the brains, eating liver is good for the liver. Don't ask what you have to eat if afflicted by a more "personal" problem...

And for the food connoisseurs, find a Peranakan restaurant such as True Blue, for a culinary experience unique in the world. Many of the Chinese traders who settled in Singapore 200 years ago married Malayan women. They blended local ingredients with Chinese spices to create their own cuisine.

You should try the Buah keluak nut from the kepayang tree, which grows wild in Indonesia. The nuts are buried for 40 days to remove poisons.

BAZAAR

After being soaked overnight the kernels are dug out, pounded with secret spices and reinserted into the seeds to make a unique flavour.

Near Chinatown is Little India, another heaving bazaar full of colour, spices and cheap clothes. It is a bustling hive of sights and aromas where you can buy silk, peacock feathers, saris, brassware and jewellery.

For a calmer atmosphere try Arab Street, where you can sip coffee among the colonial architecture looked over by a mosque. It is just a few hundred yards from where Englishman Sir Stamford Raffles came ashore.

He realised the strategic position of the island. The deep waters of its rivers also made it an ideal spot for a port and he founded Singapore.

And, unlike some of Britain's other colonial rulers, he is still respected and revered in Singapore as the founder of the nation.

At night, the newly-developed Clarke Quay offers restaurants and bars alongside the riverfront.

But venture a little further to the original boat quay underneath the skyscrapers. This is where Nick Leeson knocked back cocktails as he lost the billions which broke Barings Bank.

Today it keeps its edginess with allnight jazz bars, pool halls, while nearby girls in short skirts try to lure men into dodgy drinking dens.

Another place to go at night is East Coast Beach, where a string of restaurants offer chilli or black pepper crab and drunken prawns - soaked in brandy before being cooked.

A trip to Singapore is not complete without trying one of the huge crabs, glistening with oils and spices.

For those with children, nearby Sentosa Island hosts theme parks and rides alongside traditional beaches - and youngsters won't want to leave!

Of if you you're after views over the island, head to the Tiger Sky Tower at the Imbiah Lookout. The southern-most point of continental Asia is nearby and you can look out over the hundreds of ships coming into the port and eat al fresco at beach-side restaurants.

For a different kind of view try the Megazip Adventure Park, where two former British Army officers have set up a rope-climbing assault course.

It includes Asia's longest zip-line, where adrenaline junkies can harness up and ride down the wire from 246ft high in the jungle canopy for a 492-yard trip at speeds of more than 30mph. You land on the white sands of Siloso Beach, where the annual ZoukOut dance festival also takes place in December.

Almost 30,000 people gather here for the 8pm to 8am outdoor dance festival on a palm-tree lined beach, which started as a one-off party for the Zouk nightclub in 1991 and has grown ever since.

It has helped make Singapore a premier venue for Asia's party-goers.

But whether it is party animals or jungle animals, sophisticated restaurants or untouched rainforests, Singapore can offer them all.

It is a unique place which has grown from a humble trading post to a bustling metropolis where European influences mix with Malayan and Chinese, and makes a magic all its of its own.

You will certainly need more than a few days to enjoy it all!

GETTING THERE

Singapore Airlines return fare in late February/March from Heathrow to Singapore starts from £655.80. Visit www.singaporeair.com.

Bed and breakfast rates at the Fairmont Singapore start from £129.63 per room per night before tax. Visit www.fairmont.com or call 0845 071 0153.

For more information, visit www.visitsingapore.com.

Time zone: GMT +8hrs

Currency: Singapore dollar £1 = 2.26

When to go: Virtually on the equator, all-year-round tropical destination.