Travel Monkeys

Singapore and Malaysia Trip Report – Day 9

May 15, 2022: Sandakan, Sepilok, and Kinabatangan River in Sabah, Malaysia (Author: J)

part of the pygmy elephant herd; the baby crosses in between adults for safety

Finally, the morning we had been waiting for: our chance to see the famous dancing orangutans of Borneo. Just kidding. We were actually in Borneo to see proboscis monkeys, the primates that P had asked to see many moons ago as an adorable 6-year-old. Fortunately, as a 9-year-old, he is still just as interested in monkeys as he ever was, so he was pretty excited to be setting off for almost guaranteed monkey sightings.

It was a good thing that P was excited because it promised to be a long day. We were up at 4:30 thanks to our alarm and the wake-up call that the hotel had arranged. (I am always paranoid about alarms not going off, so kudos to the Shangri La for removing that stress and allowing me to sleep). We were dressed and in the lobby to grab our breakfast boxes and officially check out before 5 am. Everything went seamlessly; our driver arrived just as we completed check out and we were on our way to the airport ahead of schedule.

Because I was worried about our bags being overweight, I had paid for checked baggage. This was probably overkill as no one asked to weigh our carry-ons during any of our flights. Still, since I had paid for tickets that included checked bags, we all checked our bags. Then we found an ATM, something that proved more difficult than anticipated because some of the ATMs in the airport were out of order. Once we had our ringgits, we proceeded through security and took a seat near our gate to wait for our flight. (I was surprised that we were allowed to carry the juices in our breakfast boxes through security, but – in Malaysia – you are allowed to bring larger liquids if they are factory-sealed). I am not someone who skips meals, so I ate my pastry and fruit and drank my juice while I was waiting. D and P often skip breakfast — despite it being the most important meal of the day — and they rejected their boxes. I ate an extra croissant, put the juices in my backpack, and pitched the rest.

Boarding for our flight was confusing. Our gate area was being used by 2 flights. They announced the flight to KL in both Malay and English, but no announcement was made about the Sandakan flight as far as I could tell. Our boarding time came and went without any word. Fortunately, I decided to get up and check what was going on; at that point, I realized that there was a queue of people with tickets to Sandakan making their way through the boarding gate. I frantically gestured to D and P and we proceeded through the gate and on to our flight.

The flight to Sandakan from KK is less than 30 minutes from takeoff to landing. But Malaysia Air did not allow the short duration of the flight to get in the way of good service. Once we reached cruising altitude, the flight attendants came through the cabin to distribute orange juice and peanuts. As soon as they reached the back of the plane, they hustled to the front to collect our garbage and prepare the cabin for landing. Before we knew it, we were bouncing along the runway (literally, thanks to a bumpy landing) and deplaning in Sandakan. When we arrived at the luggage carousel, our bags were already waiting for us. We grabbed them and headed into the arrivals area where we were met by our Borneo Ecotours guide. (This is a place where the benefit of taking a few notes becomes apparent because I do not remember the names of any of our guides in Borneo; fortunately, I do know that they were all excellent).

We were the only Sukau guests arriving by plane that morning, so we had the tour bus to ourselves as we headed to Sepilok, a 20 to 30 minute drive from the airport. Given the delays in boarding our flight, I had been worried we might arrive at the orangutan rehabilitation center too late for the morning feeding. Instead, we arrived early, which gave us plenty of time to stow our bags in lockers and use the restrooms before starting our tour. When it was time to enter the rehabilitation center, our guide paid our entry fee and we paid the camera fee (which is charged only for actual cameras and not phones and was why we needed cash). The rehabilitation center cares for orangutans who have been orphaned as a result of logging and the pet trade. It abuts a protected area where some of the orangs who have been successfully rehabilitated are released. It seems like the center’s work and the work of other conservation organizations in Sabah are paying off because the number of orangs in Sabah has been increasing in recent years.

Although our guide warned us that orang sightings are not guaranteed, we caught our first glimpse of one nearly immediately. A juvenile had built a nest close to the boardwalk trail and we saw him as he woke up and made his way to the feeding platforms for breakfast. This was a situation where having a guide really paid off because a sleeping orang looks an awful lot like a pile of leaves. After snapping some photos, we made our way to the first feeding platform where the babies are fed. The center has installed seating behind a viewing window, allowing visitors to get a great view of the action without disturbing the babies too much. We arrived just as the fruit was being set out. Soon, we saw some movement in the bushes and then a little head appeared. It was a pig tailed macaque ready to take advantage of the free buffet. One of the center employees shooed him away. But as soon as the employee’s back was turned, the macaque made a beeline for the feeding platform. I have never seen a monkey stuff bananas into his face so quickly.

While our monkey friend was gorging himself, baby orangs started to arrive, using the overhead rope system to swing themselves to the feeding platform. More macaques also arrived, scampering from the bushes and shimmying onto the platform. Fortunately, there was enough fruit to go around and we enjoyed watching everyone have their breakfast. Once the orangs had swung off, our guide led us to a second feeding platform where larger orangs (and more macaques) were served their breakfast. We would highly recommend a visit to the Sepilok orangutan rehabilitation center at feeding time; it was a really neat experience.

the viewing area provides an excellent vantage point to watch the action

After seeing the orangs, our guide suggested a drink break, which sounded great to us. He unlocked the bus for us and we rummaged around looking for the promised beverages. At that point, we realized that the guide expected us to have our own drinks. Fortunately, we did have the juice from our box breakfast. D ran to the lockers to grab it for us. This is an area where the tour company probably needs to rethink things; they just eliminated single use plastic and advised us to bring refillable water bottles. But since you cannot carry a refillable water bottle full of liquid through security at the airport, they should expect that most people will arrive for their tour without their own drinks.

It was then time to visit the orangs’ neighbors, the sun bears. Sun bears are the world’s smallest bears. They are threatened by bear bile farming and, due to their incredible cuteness, the pet trade. Because there is not a set feeding time at the sun bear rescue, it is a little trickier to see them than it is to see orangs. We were fortunate to see several foraging for food and delighting the crowd by walking around on their hind legs – a sight so cute that it borders on ridiculous. I understand why people might think that baby bears are appealing pets — but the harm done to the bears by being kept in captivity is also made apparent by a visit to the center. Multiple bears suffer from permanent health issues caused by their time as “pets.” Unfortunately, my camera chose this opportunity to freeze again, so I wasn’t able to get any decent pictures of the bears.

the front side of a sun bear is the cute side

After a wonderful morning visiting the orangutans and sun bears, we headed back to Sandakan and had lunch at a local hotel. Because the buffet did not offer any vegetarian main dishes, our guide arranged for a special vegetarian noodle dish for us. I confess that I was not expecting much, but the noodles turned out to be amazing. We rounded out the meal with some fruit and desserts from the buffet. After settling the bill for our drinks (lunch was included in the tour), we had a short time to walk around Sandakan before our boat transfer. We powerwalked to several malls to look for cameras, but ultimately returned to the bus sweaty and camera-less.

It was a quick boat ride to the marina for our boat transfer to Sukau Rainforest Resort. After another opportunity to use the restroom, we boarded a speed boat and set off for the lodge. I cannot tell you much about the boat ride because the early wakeup got to me and I slept through most of the ride. When I woke up, we were already making our way up the Kinabatangan towards the lodge.

At the lodge, we were welcomed with juice and room keys and had an opportunity to rest a bit before our afternoon river cruise. At the time of our visit, Sukau had only recently reopened to international guests. While it did not detract from our trip, it was fairly apparent that Sukau had weathered the pandemic by laying off its staff and shuttering the lodge. The most obvious impact of this neglect was on the swimming pool, which was roped off because it was now a hole instead of a pool. (Post-trip research tells me that the pool collapsed at some point during the pandemic and the lodge is waiting on a replacement). In the same vein, some of the cabins at the lodge were roped off while workers got them ready for guests. The disappointment at not having use of all of the promised facilities was largely offset by the excellent service that every member of the team at Sukau provided.

After settling into our cabin (the same one that Judi Dench stayed at when she visited), we headed back to the dining area for afternoon tea. We enjoyed some tea and fried bananas and then met our guide for an afternoon cruise along the river. Just minutes into our cruise, our guide got really excited and it wasn’t hard to see why. A herd of elephants was crossing the river. We sat and watched them for quite a while, as did boats from many other lodges. Our guide told us that this packed audience represented just a fraction of the boats that would have been out in pre-covid times. He also told us a bit about Borneo’s elephants, a pygmy species endemic to the island. We were apparently in the perfect spot to see a river crossing as the elephants prefer to cross at bends in the river where the current is strong; that provides a measure of protection against crocodile attacks on the cute little baby elephants.

In addition to elephants, we saw proboscis monkeys, long tailed macaques, and a variety of hornbills. As it started to get dark, we headed back to the lodge. For those keeping count – as P was – we hadn’t even finished our first day in the jungle and had already seen 4 species of primates. Unfortunately, the environmental issues in Borneo were also readily apparent. We passed lots and lots of palm oil plantations, highlighting the extent of the deforestation on the island, frequently smelled smoke from intentionally set brush fires, and saw lots of plastic in the water. I later learned that the plastic bottles were not trash, but rather markers for fishing nets, which took some of the sting out of seeing so many of them.

We were a bit early for dinner, so we decided to make another attempt at our vacation ritual of pre-dinner drinks and cards. We were more successful this time because the bar at Sukau was open. I ordered a Sabah Sling, their tasty riff on a Singapore Sling, and we played a hand of go fish. As we were wrapping up, one of the restaurant staff let us know that dinner was served.

Meals at Sukau are buffet style. If you have special dietary needs, as we do, your main dish is delivered to your table. Our dinner the first night was my favorite of the bunch: a vegetarian beef rendang. With fruit, rice, and pumpkin from the buffet, it made for a delicious meal. (One thing we did notice is that there are apparently no desserts served at Sukau; the fried bananas at teatime were as close as it got).

After dinner, we headed back to our cabin for bedtime, dodging low-flying bats along the way. As we walked along the boardwalk, I suddenly heard a horrible screeching sound coming from my left. I screamed and ran. It turned out to be two juvenile macaques playing with one another. Fortunately, they ignored my behavior, despite screaming and flailing about being highly offensive in monkey-society. We completed our walk to our cabin without incident. An early bedtime was in order because we had another early wake up the next morning.

Singapore and Malaysia Trip Report – Day 8

May 14, 2022: Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysian Borneo (Author: J)

The Shangri La’s location makes it a great base from which to explore the surrounding area, including Tunku Abdul Rahman Marine Park. But with only one full day at the hotel, we chose to relax and enjoy the resort’s amenities, rather than venturing out to explore.

We started our day with breakfast at Café Tatu, the resort’s buffet restaurant. The selection and quality of the food was amazing. Like Town at the Fullerton, Café Tatu had Western, Indian, Malay and Chinese options, but where the Fullerton had one or two selections in each category, Café Tatu had one or two tables of selections in each category. There were also several action stations, including an egg station and a teh tarik station. I feel confident in predicting that just about anybody will find something to like at the Café Tatu breakfast. We were sad that our early departure the next morning meant only one chance to sample the selections.

After breakfast, we went up to our room to put on our pool gear. The plan was for P and I to swim while D visited the spa for a massage. We arrived at the pool just as it was opening. P and I were some of the first to jump in. The pool area at the Shangri La is nicely situated overlooking the ocean and features a large pool, several slides, and a water play area. Every time that I book a hotel with a waterpark, I imagine P having a ball on the slides. Then we get to the hotel and I am reminded that P hates waterslides. He refused to even try the slides at the Shangri La, so I decided to give them a try myself. The slides were fun and offered mild thrills suitable for most anyone – except P, of course.

Tiger beer on the beach at the Shangri La

P and I spent most of our time in the pool swimming and playing with a beach ball that we purchased from the beach toy cart near the pool. The fun came to an end when I decided to get out of the pool to dip my toes in the ocean and take some beach pictures. My camera chose that moment to die. The lens jammed halfway between open and closed, the camera flashed an error message, and that was it. I thought that perhaps new batteries would help, so I ran back to the room for those. Unfortunately, the battery change had no impact, so I decided to shop for a new camera. I learned that the Shangri La does not sell them, but I was able to find a camera store in town with some affordable options in stock.

While I had been desperately trying to fix my camera, P had been swimming on his own. His patience for that was beginning to run out. We decided to head to lunch. As we were drying off, D returned from his massage. We headed to Coco Joes, the outdoor bar and grill, as a group. Coco Joes has mainly Western style food. P ordered pizza, D ordered shrimp, and I had the veggie burger. My burger was very enjoyable; it was topped with beet relish, jalapenos, and a creamy dressing, making for a nice combination of sweet, spicy and creamy flavors. Service was also excellent.

After a leisurely meal, we went up to the room to change. I was planning to call a Grab to go camera shopping. On a whim, I gave my camera another try before heading out. It turned on! Since the camera seemed to be in working order, I decided not to spend the time or money on a new camera. (This turned out to be a mistake because the camera lens repeatedly jammed throughout the rest of the trip and there was nowhere to buy a replacement once we left KK).

Good service at a hotel is often difficult to describe in words because it is often small, unobtrusive touches that make your overall experience great. But what happened next provides a very nice illustration of the level of service at the Shangri La. I checked my phone to find a What’s App message from the concierge. They had noticed that we had an early transfer to the airport the next morning and were reaching out to arrange a wakeup call and complimentary box breakfast. I was delighted to say yes to both offers and used the opportunity to let the concierge know how much we were enjoying the resort and how sad we were that we could not stay another day.

We did very little for the rest of the afternoon. P watched some soccer on TV while I repacked our suitcases and did some bird watching from our balcony. Eventually, we convinced P to leave the room to play some pool and air hockey in the game room. After that, we made a quick visit to the hotel’s clown fish discovery center, a sad room of barren tanks full of fish. Then, P headed back to the room for more TV while D and I took a walk along the beach. As we were watching the ocean, we were approached by a local who was excited to see foreign tourists back in KK. He told us a bit about his time studying in the US in the 70s, chatted with us about the US NBA basketball playoffs, and shared his insights into Malaysia’s government. (His opinions were of the sort that you would expect from that one uncle – you know the one — at Thanksgiving here in the US). He was very interested to hear where we were headed after KK but seemed almost disappointed when we told him we were heading to Sandakan the following morning. “Haven’t you seen orangutans in zoos?” he asked. Then, after a thoughtful pause, he said, “The problem with the wildlife here is that no one has trained it.” When we didn’t respond, he continued. “Have you been to Thailand? They teach the monkeys to dance there. That’s what we need here, but we don’t have the skill to train them.” “It’s not so much skill,” I replied. “They just give the animals a good beating.” Our new friend didn’t know how to respond. I was tempted to say more about how seeing animals in the wild was the main attraction for us, but I didn’t want to be too rude, and I really wasn’t sure if the dancing monkeys remark had been a joke. We transitioned back to the safer topic of basketball. Eventually, we made our excuses and headed back to the room to find P.

Our family has a vacation tradition of playing cards at the hotel bar before dinner and we attempted to continue that tradition at the Shangri La. For this particular trip, we had purchased a deck of cards with pictures of dachshunds, which meant that we could start each game with jokes about playing with wieners. Yes, we are very mature. Unfortunately, the lobby bar was closed – I assume due to staffing issues – and wind made it impossible to play cards at the beach bar. We gave up on the wieners and headed for an early dinner at Shang Palace, the resort’s Chinese option. Even though it was a Saturday night, the restaurant was mostly empty, save a few tables of guests there for peking duck (which requires preordering). We ordered a selection of items from the a la carte menu, including braised bean curd, mock chicken in sweet and sour sauce, and vegetables with fermented bean curd sauce. We wrapped up a nice meal by sharing a few desserts. This was one place where supply chain issues seemed to come into play because several items on the dessert menu were unavailable.

After dinner, we headed back to the room to relax; with a 4 a.m. wakeup call the next morning, an early bedtime was in order.

Singapore and Malaysia Trip Report – Day 7

May 13, 2022: Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia (Author: J)

view from our room at Shangri La Tanjung Aru

After 5 wonderful nights at the Fullerton, it was time to check out. Because we had an afternoon flight to Kota Kinabalu (the only flight I could find between Singapore and KK at the time I booked), we were in no rush. We began the day with a leisurely breakfast at Town. I decided that we would finally take advantage of Town’s patio overlooking the river, so we requested an outdoor table. Although it was already muggy, the patio had large fans to circulate the air, making outdoor dining somewhat comfortable. The opportunity to enjoy the sights and sounds of Singapore waking up one final time made up for the humidity and bugs.

Our breakfast at Town was excellent, as usual, and we were sad to say goodbye to the hosts and waitstaff who had treated us so well during our stay. Afterward, we headed back to our room one final time to grab our suitcases and do the compulsory sweep of the room to look for forgotten items. When we emerged from the elevators into the lobby, we were immediately greeted by a bellman who offered to hold our bags while we waited for our ride. We took him up on that offer, as well as an offer to call a taxi for us. Just moments after our bags were whisked away, we were told that our taxi was ready. “Now we’ll have to wait for our bags,” I said. I was wrong. The bell staff was already loading them into the taxi when we went outside.

The ride to the airport was quick, giving us plenty of time to check into our flight. With covid protocols, we had not been able to check in online. I’m not sure why because no one at Air Asia verified our vaccination documents, instead taking our word for it that we had the proper paperwork and had downloaded the MySejahtera app. The next thing to deal with was luggage. Although we were travelling with only carry-ons, I was worried because we knew that one of them was over the maximum weight. We decided that the thing to do would be to check it and carry on the other two. However, I made this call too late, and we missed the deadline to buy a checked bag online. That meant that we needed to wait for an agent.

When we explained the situation to the agent, she felt guilty charging us for a checked bag. She suggested that we remove some items from the bag to make it lighter and she would check it as a carry on. So we took items from our overweight bag and moved them into our other suitcases, rendering those overweight. Then we checked the compliant bag and carried on the two overweight bags.

With that pointless reshuffling of our possessions out of the way, we went through immigration and security and located our gate. Then, because we were so early, we decided to wander around the terminal a bit. We started at a small food court where P had some pizza. Having once again not eaten his breakfast, he was hungry for elevenses. We then explored the cactus garden, which serves double-duty as the smoking area. Finally, we poked our heads into a few shops before resigning ourselves to spend the rest of the wait sitting outside the gate area.

The flight to KK left only a little behind schedule and was, on whole, more pleasant that my prior dealings with Air Asia had led me to expect. Upon arrival in KK, I turned on my phone to find a Whatsapp message letting us know that our airport transfer was running late. Fortunately, the line for immigration was tremendous. After a long wait in line, we presented our passports and proof of vaccination (downloading MySejahtera was apparently on the honor system) and, much to my relief, were allowed to proceed into Malaysia. Finding our driver proved to be the next challenge, but we were able to identify him with the help of a photo that he texted me.

Kid’s side of the room in the family suite

The drive to Shangri-La Tanjung Aru was quick, as was check in. With all of the delays at the airport, it was after 4 by the time we arrived – pretty close to our 5:30 reservation at the Sunset Bar. We headed to our room where we decided to put our swimsuits on under our clothing so that we could go swimming after our reservation. (The pool at the Shangri-La closes early).

On our way to the Sunset Bar, we stopped to play with some of the lawn games that the hotel has out for guests. P’s favorite was a supersized version of pool where you kick a soccer ball into other balls. Just before 5:30, we arrived at Sunset Bar, which is an outdoor bar built on a platform that juts out into the South China Sea. We were shown to our sun lounger and settled in. The first thing that we noticed was that the views were wonderful, although taking them in required squinting into the sun. The second thing that we noticed was that the sun lounger was really uncomfortable.

When the server came by to take our order, it became apparent that there had been a misunderstanding regarding our reservation. When I booked our spot, I was told that there was a per table minimum if we wanted to order from the a la carte menu. However, the bar apparently does not offer that option anymore, requiring everyone to buy a package that allows each guest to choose one drink and one food item from a limited menu. The pina colada I was trying to order was not on that menu. The server decided to bend the rules and let us order a la carte, which meant I got my pina colada. When the drink arrived, I was immediately taken with its presentation; it was served in a cute little coconut emblazoned with the bar’s logo. Then I took a sip and became less enamored. The drink was more or less entirely rum. While I know that many people would be happy with such a strong drink, I had been hoping for something more coconutty.

After spending 30 minutes at the bar squinting into the sun and nibbling on some bar snacks, P and I decided we would head out for a swim. D said he would stay to finish the drinks and would meet us at the pool. P and I had a pleasant swim and then bought ourselves some ice cream. The views of the sunset from the pool area were beautiful. (Although I know that the Sunset Bar is highly rated, I would personally recommend skipping it and enjoying the sunset from one of the many less expensive and more comfortable locations elsewhere at the resort).

When the pool closed and there was still no sign of D, we decided to head to the room to look for him. He wasn’t there. We waited a bit. Still no sign of D. Although logic told us that there weren’t many places that D could have gone, we were starting to worry. We decided to head back to the Sunset Bar to look for him there. At the bar, we didn’t find D. What we did find was an unpaid bar tab, which we settled; no one at the bar could remember when D had left, though. By this point, I was angry. But with no other obvious place to look for D, we headed back to the room.

D arrived shortly after we did. He had apparently had a lovely time watching the sun set while little fish jumped out of the ocean – so lovely that he had no memory of his promise to meet us at the pool after he finished his drink. He had instead ordered more drinks and stayed at the bar until the sun went down. Words were exchanged. Eventually we called a truce and put on a soccer game for P while D and I read. Both P and D passed out with the game on and could not be budged when it was time for lights out. That’s how I came to spend our first night in Borneo in the bunk beds in P’s room. It was a tough choice, but I went with the bottom bunk.

Singapore and Malaysia Trip Report – Day 6

May 12, 2022 – Singapore (Author: J)

Our last full day in Singapore followed a now familiar pattern: up early and ready for breakfast by 7:30, greeted warmly and overfed by the staff at Town, ready for adventure by 9. Our original plan for this morning was to visit Sentosa, but we decided against it after researching operating hours for the attractions. Many – including the aquarium, which D wanted to visit after watching the Singapore Airlines arrival video — were still operating on a limited schedule because of low pandemic crowds, I assume. While we certainly could have found something to do on Sentosa, we decided to instead stick closer to the Fullerton.

P voted for visiting a museum and, to my surprise, selected the National Museum of Singapore. The museum was a doable 15-minute walk from the Fullerton, so we decided – over P’s objection – to walk. We were no more than a few blocks from the hotel when P began complaining that he was thirsty. He hadn’t had anything to drink at breakfast; eating and drinking when meals are actually available has always been anathema to him. I opened my mouth to argue, but soon realized that I was wasting my breathe. Instead, I promised that we would look for one of the many drink vending machines that Singapore conveniently has along the sidewalk. (As it turned out, we had already passed the only ones along our route).

I had selected a walking route that took us through Fort Canning Park, a hilltop park full of historical sights and gardens. Unfortunately, if you are going to enjoy a hilltop park, you need to get to the top of a hill. That meant climbing an imposingly steep staircase. Despite P’s attempts to quit and turn around, we made it to the top of the stairs and set out through the park. Along the way, we stopped to swing on a bench swing, take photos of birds, and look at a display about archeological excavation at the park. (The hill on which the park sits was once the site of a 14^th century palace; a portion dig sight has been retained – safely covered with a clear top – so that park visitors can view it).

Park mural of important events in pre-Colonial Singapore history

There was a lot more to see at the park, but P was getting increasingly cranky about the lack of beverages, so we continued on to the museum. We arrived just as the museum was opening, purchased our tickets and headed to the café. Then we waited because – though the café said it opened at 10 – there were no humans in sight. Finally, we went back to the ticket counter to ask; we learned that the café would not be opening until 11. We tried to convince P to drink some tap water from the bathroom, but he rejected that suggestion, which was probably for the best.

Since we had quite a while before the café opened, we headed into the Singapore History Gallery. The displays in the gallery trace the history of Singapore from pre-colonial times to present day. The gallery had a nice selection of artifacts displayed in interesting ways. We were most surprised to see a bell baring the familiar words “Revere Boston.” Apparently, Paul Revere’s daughter was married to the first American consul to Singapore, so Revere sent Singapore a bell — as one does.

By 11, we had reached the displays on World War II. Rather than rush to cover the rest of the gallery before our snack break, we decided we would return to explore modern Singapore history after our snack. We powerwalked our way through 80 years of history and made a beeline for the café. It was mercifully open, so we grabbed a table and ordered. Even though we hadn’t yet had lunch, D and P settled on ice cream sandwiches and bottles of soda; I had a tea. Then we powerwalked from the 1200s back to the WWII era to resume our tour of the Singapore history gallery.

We spent a good chunk of time in the WWII gallery. I always enjoy when history is presented through the stories of individual people and this gallery included first-hand accounts from locals who lived through the Japanese occupation, along with interesting military and civilian artifacts. We then learned a bit about the birth of modern Singapore before we exited the history gallery. It was getting close to lunch time at this point, so we decided we would visit one final gallery.

We headed up the stairs and walked through the first door we saw, which took us into Story of the Forest. This is a multimedia display by teamLab, the same collective that created some of the exhibits at the ArtScience Museum. Inside a dome, animated plants bloom as local wildlife like tapirs putter around.

After visiting our forest friends, we hoofed it back to the Fullerton in the heat of the afternoon sun. The walk was grueling despite our beautiful surroundings. We had lunch at Breworkz at One Fullerton, which met our only criteria for a lunch spot: close to the hotel with open tables. We all had veggie burgers and D and I each had a beer. Then, we headed back to the Fullerton to rest, swim, and get P his final free ice cream of our stay. I also dealt with the unpleasant task of packing

For our final dinner in Singapore, we decided to go to Herbivore, a vegetarian Japanese restaurant that had excellent online reviews. Herbivore is in the Fortune Centre, a short walk from the Bugis metro stop. The neighborhood between Bugis and the Fortune Centre was packed with locals on their way home from work, giving it a nice energy.

We arrived at Herbivore at the start of the dinner rush and we were seated at one of the few open tables. We had a hard time selecting items from Herbivore’s extensive menu, but settled on a sushi roll, curry noodles, and a seitan katsu bento box. When the food began to arrive, it was clear we had ordered too much. The bento box alone, which included not only the katsu, but also soup, salad, fresh rolls, a number of side dishes, and a kanten dessert, easily fed two people. Despite our best efforts, we had lots of leftovers and had to reassure our server that we had enjoyed our meal.

We took a different route back to the metro, which took us past Bugis Junction. I really enjoyed walking in this neighborhood, which had lots of interesting restaurants, shops and even a cat café. It was a nice end to our trip (and reminded us that we would need to return to Singapore at some point to explore its many neighborhoods).

Singapore and Malaysia Trip Report – Day 5

May 11, 2022 – Singapore (Author: J)

Our third full day in Singapore began much like the prior two. We were up early – though not as early as the day before – and headed down to breakfast around 7:30. We were greeted by name and seated quickly. Adjusting to the time zone meant that our appetites were not what they had been. P and I ate just buffet items, while D ordered a main dish and ate very little from the buffet.

The weather was looking a little ominous this morning, so we went back to the room after breakfast to wait out the storm. Around 8:30, the weather map showed that the rain was starting to clear, so we decided to take a gamble and call a Grab to our destination.

After some nail-biting moments in rush hour traffic, our driver dropped us safely at Bukit Timah Nature Reserve. The hope was that we might see some more monkeys, but in the wild this time. Although it was still drizzling, the reserve was packed with locals walking and jogging. We started with a short hike to a quarry, where we enjoyed some nice views, but saw no monkeys (other than the ones on the sign reminding hikers not to feed the monkeys). Then we did a longer hike on one of the trails – longer being a relative term, because we didn’t get too far between the heat and our difficulty reading the trail maps.

We spent about 90 minutes total hiking various trails and looking for wildlife. Other than a few lizards and what was either a ground squirrel or some type of shrew, we came up empty. But being outdoors in nature is always a nice experience with or without wildlife sightings.

After a rest break to cool off, we headed out of the reserve towards our lunch destination: the hawker center at Beauty World, which was a short 10-minute walk from the reserve. Given my failure to locate an adequate meal the night before, I was a little frightened that we were in for another miss. Fortunately, when we arrived at the 4^th floor of the mall where the hawker stands are located, Guan Yin Vegetarian was open for business. Guan Yin serves vegetarian versions of traditional rice and noodle dishes. The owner told us that he had two choices available that day; I ordered one of each despite not knowing what either dish was.

When our order arrived, we had one dry noodle dish with broad noodles and various types of seitan, veggies and tofu and one noodle soup with thin noodles and assorted seitan, veggies and tofu. Although both had similar looking brown sauce, the differences in seasoning and noodle types gave them different flavors. Everyone was happy with this meal. (P says it was his favorite of the trip). It was filling, tasty, and only around $10 total. The two dishes were more than enough to feed all three of us; we actually wound up with leftovers. My only complaint was that I was not able to add chili paste to my food since I was sharing with two people who are anti-spice.

After lunch, we stopped to buy some kueh lapis (colorful rice flower and coconut treats) at a table set up just outside the hawker center. Then D needed a minute to admire a painting of a cat at an art shop before we left the mall. There was a short wait for our Grab, but we still arrived back at the Fullerton by early afternoon, just in time for our traditional afternoon activities of ice cream and swimming.

I mixed things up a little this afternoon by taking a solo walk to visit Merlion Park while the boys got started on their swim. I started out walking in the wrong direction, which gave me an opportunity to take some pictures of Boat Quay. Then I retraced my steps and made my way to the park for some merlion selfies. When I got back to the room, D and P were still at the pool, so I grabbed my book and joined them for another afternoon of relaxing jackhammering sounds.

After our swim, P asked if we could return to Gardens by the Bay to see the Cloud Forest Dome. I agreed and decided we would make an evening of it. We once again took the metro to the gardens and then walked to Satay by the Bay. It was a longer walk than I expected, and we arrived hot and sweaty.

Satay by the Bay really seems to be hurting due to the reduced number of tourists. Very few stalls were open, which was just as well because there were very few humans around to purchase any food. We ordered food from a Turkish/Indian stall and a coconut and some juices from the drink stall. The food was just above okay in quality, but it was convenient and got the job done.

After dinner, we had our first big wildlife sighting of the day – a monitor lizard wandering near the exit to the hawker center. Then we walked to the Cloud Forest Dome and bought our tickets. My frugal minded side didn’t love this plan because it costs more to buy individual tickets to each dome on separate days; had we seen both domes on the same day, we would have saved about $25 by purchasing combo ticket for each of us. In the end, though, I was glad that we splurged.

Unlike the Flower Dome two days earlier, the Cloud Forest Dome was crowded with people. It was impossible to walk in certain areas of the dome without stepping into people’s selfies. I didn’t even try to get the classic Instagram shot standing in front of the giant waterfall. It was enough to admire it in person.

Because I am afraid of heights (and had a panic attack boarding a skyride on our last vacation), I was a little nervous about the sky walkways. For whatever reason, though, my no worries attitude from the flight continued and I was able to not only do the walkways without panicking, but also enjoy the views.

After enjoying the Cloud Forest Dome, we decided to get a treat before the Garden Rhapsody light show. We stopped at Shake Shack and ordered three shakes to go. Although its an American chain, I have never visited a Shake Shack before and nothing about our experience in Singapore made me want to visit a second location. Our shakes were watery (about the consistency of skim milk) and not the least bit indulgent. Because they were pricey, I dutifully carried mine around for a while, but I only drank about ¼ of it.

From Shake Shack, we headed to the Supertree Grove to get a good spot for the light show. (Note that this was entirely unnecessary; we just had nothing else to do and needed a place to sit). We passed the hour before the show lying on our backs looking up at people on the OCBC Skywalk. As it began to get dark, we noticed that someone on the Skywalk was holding a glowing red stick. P was sure it was a lightsaber and began creating new Star Wars characters to fit the setting. He started with more erudite choices like “Grovey Wan Kenobi,” and “Grove-gu,” but it wasn’t long before the names devolved into “Grove Grove Grove Grove,” which is, of course, a play on Luke Skywalker.

Eventually the OCBC Skywalk Sith disappeared and the light show started. Laying up on my back watching the trees light up on yet another evening of perfect Singapore weather, I felt very lucky indeed. D was thinking similar thoughts, although his came with an added layer of guilt because he was thinking of his father, who always vowed to travel when he retired, but passed away a few weeks short of retirement. In a way, I owe my FIL a thank you for this trip because his death reminded D that our adventuring time is finite. Suddenly, vetoes of certain destinations began converting into “why nots,” and we have been able to have wonderful experiences in a number of countries. Our magical evening at Gardens by the Bay is definitely near the top of that list of experiences.

Singapore and Malaysia Trip Report – Day 4

May 10, 2022: Singapore (Author: J)

a sign in the Fragile Forest exhibit at the zoo

Possibly the World’s Best Zoo

We were up early again on our second full day in Singapore, although we all did a better job of sleeping to a time that technically counted as morning. We made reservations online for breakfast in the hotel restaurant (which we had been told was necessary, but didn’t actually seem to be), got ready for our visit to the zoo, and arrived in the lobby a little before 7. We were greeted by the hosts at the restaurant, who remembered us from the day before and chatted with us about out trip until the restaurant opened at 7.

The breakfast buffet choices were similar to the prior day, with some variations (e.g. different muffin flavors, different dim sum); the selection of menu was the same from day to day. After eating a ridiculous amount of food, we realized that we were ahead of schedule, so we went back to the room to apply bug spray and sunscreen before calling a Grab to the zoo.

Because the Singapore Zoo is still doing timed admission (as of June 9, 2022), we pre-purchased our zoo tickets before leaving for Singapore. In keeping with advice from the TripAdvisor forums, the plan was to enjoy the park before the heat got too oppressive. Fortunately, I was able to secure an arrival time of 8:30 a.m., which is the zoo’s opening time.

We enjoyed the Grab ride to the zoo, which took us through areas of Singapore that we had not yet had a chance to see. As we got close to the zoo, P was hopeful that we might see some macaques; all we saw were signs warning drivers to watch for monkeys.

The Grab dropped us in a designated drop off area in the parking lot. From the lot, there is a well-marked path to the various zoos: the regular zoo (Mandai), River Adventure, and the Night Safari. We were headed to Mandai, often described as one of the best in the world.

part of the huge baboon troop at the zoo

While I haven’t seen every zoo in the world, Mandai is certainly one of the best zoos I have ever visited. We particularly enjoyed the Fragile Forest exhibit, which has a greenhouse area where you can see animals like mouse deer, flying foxes, and saki monkeys with no barrier between you and the animals. It was a really unique zoo experience to be able to literally reach out and touch the animals (although we definitely did not because petting zoo animals is a no no). The zoo also has varied primate species including lemurs, orangutans, and many species of monkeys – all of them in large enclosures where they seemed to have the ability to decide whether they wanted to be indoors or out. P was in monkey heaven.

We enjoyed exploring the zoo for a few hours and then had lunch at Ah Meng, one of the zoo restaurants. I was surprised at how enjoyable this meal was. We had another Indian thali set, a plant based rendang, and – most importantly – some cold drinks. Even though it was an overcast day, the heat was really taking its toll and rehydration was crucial.

After lunch, we hopped on the zoo tram to take in more of the zoo’s exhibits. By 2 p.m., we were exhausted and decided to head back to the hotel. Even with a solid 5 hours at the zoo, we did not see everything there was to see. I really can’t imagine trying to see all 3 zoo parks in the same day, although I suppose you could combine Mandai or the River Adventure with and the Night Safari if you have lots of stamina and don’t mind being super sweaty.

We called another Grab to head back to the Fullerton where we repeated our afternoon ritual of ice cream, rest and swimming. Our friends with the jackhammers were still hard at work ensuring we had an appropriate soundtrack for our swim.

Possibly the World’s Worst Singapore Walking Tour

P and I had chatted at the zoo and decided to head to Little India for dinner. When we announced our plans to D, he made a face that made it clear he was not excited. Thus, I made the ill-fated decision to head to Chinatown for dinner instead. Although I could not figure out if any of the vegetarian stalls in the hawker centers there were open, I figured we would be able to find at least a few options in the non-veg stalls.

We took the metro to Chinatown and started walking in the direction of Maxwell Hawker Center. It was still oppressively hot and, despite the interesting surroundings, it would be a stretch to describe the walk as pleasant. When we arrived at the hawker center, it was clear that my dinner plans were going to be a bust. Many stalls were closed and those that were open had meat, meat and more meat. I was hungry enough that I decided to once again ignore the risk of shrimp paste and order from the rojak stand. I got in line but, while I was waiting, I saw a roach skuttle up the side of the stand. That was one animal ingredient too many for me. We left Maxwell hungry and headed for a vegetarian restaurant that I found on Google Maps. But when we arrived there, we learned that it was operating on a reduced schedule due to the pandemic.

By this point, we were getting cranky, but we had no choice but to continue our journey. Google Maps showed another vegetarian restaurant in the area, so we headed there. The address was for an office building, which likely had a hawker center inside. We couldn’t figure out how to get in, so we decided to give up and call a Grab back to the hotel. After waiting 10 minutes for our ride, we received a message from the driver telling us he had arrived. I messaged back that I didn’t see his car, which prompted him to cancel the ride. I tried calling another Grab, but none were available. And so, grouchy, hungry, and covered in sweat, we continued our walk. We realized at this point that we could choose between a 20-minute walk back to the Fullerton or a 15-minute walk to the nearest metro stop. We decided to walk the extra 5 minutes.

The walk took us past temples, sidewalk cafes, and interesting pedestrian malls. “This is kind of a nice walk,” D remarked as we whined and grumbled our way back to the Fullerton. And it was, but I was in no state to appreciate it.

We arrived back at the hotel with empty bellies and no plan on how to fill them. In the end, the solution was takeout pizza. It did not quite save the evening, but at least we didn’t go to bed hungry.

Singapore and Malaysia Trip Report – Day 3

Singapore – May 9, 2022 (Author: J)

After a great first evening in Singapore, I slept peacefully until about 3 a.m. and then in fits and starts until around 5 a.m. The beds at the Fullerton are quite comfy, so the culprit was jetlag. By 5:30, P and D were also awake, so we decided to get a very early start. The trouble, of course, was that nothing was open. Even after enjoying the rain shower and marveling at the toilet of the future (the Fullerton toilet lid automatically raises when you enter the bathroom and has a heated seat, built in bidet, and self-cleaning feature), we still had 30 minutes until breakfast started at 7. Since free breakfast was included in our room rate, we decided it was worth waiting for.

We went down to the lobby early and poked around in the Heritage Gallery, which has a small display on the history of the building. At about 10 to 7, we positioned ourselves outside the restaurant and did our best to look pitiful and hungry. There were already a group of business travelers waiting for their meal. (During our stay, it seemed that most of the hotel guests were there for business judging by their attire). We were the second party seated when Town restaurant opened.

Town restaurant is located on the lobby level of the Fullerton and has a choice of indoor and outdoor seating overlooking the river. After a 2-year hiatus, the breakfast buffet is operational again and has a wonderful array of food. On the upper level, you will find cheeses, meats, yogurt, fruit, oatmeal and muesli. On the lower level, there were assorted pastries and rotating hot options including daily dim sum and Indian options. Everything was well-marked so that I could identify veg options. Drink options included juices, assorted milks (including soy), tea, and a machine that made coffee and cappuccino to order. Although the buffet has more than enough options to make a complete meal, you can also order a main course from a menu of Western and Asian selections. I was excited to see that kaya toast was an option and ordered that. D had fried eggs and P ordered the pancakes. I wasn’t that excited about my kaya toast, to be honest. It was the variation made with a soft roll spread very thinly with kaya jam; I suspect that I would have been happier if I had been able to try the same jam with crunchy toast and butter. P was much more excited about his breakfast because the pancakes were served with a side of ice cream.

After stuffing ourselves, we set out for the day’s activities. The plan was to visit Gardens by the Bay before it got too hot and continue on to Marina Bay Sands to visit the ArtScience Museum and look for swim googles. (P’s goggles turned out to be the one thing we forgot to pack). Although Gardens by the Bay is a walkable distance from the Fullerton, I was wary of taking a long walk in the heat before walking around the gardens in the heat. We therefore decided to travel by metro.

The closest MRT station to the Fullerton is Raffles, which is a mere 5 minutes from the hotel. We had a general sense of where we were going because we had passed the station the prior evening, but I was still happy to have the crutch of Google Maps. We arrived at the station, stepped onto the escalator, and were shocked to find ourselves rocketing down into the station. Escalators in Singapore are much faster than those in the US, it seems. In the station, we checked a map to confirm our route and then proceeded to the turnstiles. By incessantly watching every video about Singapore that popped up on YouTube, I learned that you can use a credit card or phone that is contactless payment enabled to ride the subway. I wasn’t sure if you could tap two people through the entrance with one card, so I brought two. I tapped the first one, the little plastic doors opened, and P scurried through. Then I tapped my second card and walked through behind him. (Note that signs in the metro advise you to pull your card out of your wallet before tapping to avoid having multiple cards charged at once). At that point, we realized that D had not followed us. He was stuck on the opposite side of the turnstiles ineffectually waiving his credit card around. “Just tap it where it says to tap,” I barked sweetly. “I am tapping,” he replied. More ineffectual waiving followed and then a confession. “I’ve never used the contactless payment option before.” “You literally just tap,” I offered helpfully. More waiving. At that point, I attempted to tap the card for D, but it is physically impossible for someone who has already entered the subway to let someone in behind them – assuming no one in your group is an octopus. Fortunately, by this point, we had attracted the attention of an MRT employee who patiently showed D how credit cards work. We were finally on our way.

The MRT is well marked and easy to navigate provided that you know which line you are looking for and which terminus you are headed towards. Having lived in the Boston area for a number of years, we were interested to note the differences between our MBTA system and the Singapore MRT. For example, the platform in Singapore is marked so that those waiting for the train know to stand out of the way of those exiting. Once the doors open, people start shuffling on to the train as others are coming off – but this is done in an orderly fashion with everyone keeping to their assigned boxes on the platform flowchart. Unlike the MBTA, the MRT is also free of mystery liquids and offensive odors, the trains come on a regular schedule, and we did not see a single train on fire during our 4-day stay in Singapore. All in all, even though you can’t drink your Dunkin’ jumbo iced coffee on the MRT, we would give it a slight edge over the MBTA.

After a short and enjoyable subway ride, we arrived at the Marina Bay station and followed the signs to Gardens by the Bay. The exit put us right at the edge of the gardens; I was delighted to see some SuperTrees peeking out in the distance. Since we had no particular destination in mind this morning, we decided to just start walking. Our route took us through the Malay, Indian and Chinese gardens. We saw few humans but heard plenty of birds chirping and saw various small critters darting around. Our route eventually took us to the Flower and Cloud Forest Domes. I knew from my research that the Cloud Forest Dome was closed for maintenance, but I agreed to P’s request to visit the Flower Dome. We bought tickets at the ticket booth, put on our masks and head into the dome. The first thing I saw was a sign asking us to excuse appearances while a new exhibit was being put up. I had a momentary twinge of regret, sure that we had visited on the wrong day. But my concerns were soon alleviated because just one small portion of the dome was closed. The rest was ready to explore and we had it all to ourselves for most of our visit.

We spent a solid hour exploring the flower dome and then exited through the gift shop where we purchased some drinks and a magnet. Then it was off to the ArtScience Museum, a walk that took us through more of the outdoor gardens. (Although we kept a sharp eye out for wildlife, particularly otters, we only saw more birds and lizards).

The ArtScience Museum, which is in the building that looks like a flower, hosts a mix of permanent and temporary exhibits. They are separately ticketed. We all wanted to see the Future World exhibit, but D, who is an anime fan, also wanted to visit the temporary exhibit on Attack on Titan. I suggested that he visit that exhibit on his own, but he was fairly adamant that we join him. We therefore bought combo tickets for the two exhibits for all three of us. Your spoiler is that this was a waste of money. The Attack on Titan exhibit is designed for fans of the series and held no interest for P and I, who had no idea what we were looking at. As a result, P sped through it at top speed, leaving D to go through the exhibit on his own as I chased after our child.

But before P and I didn’t enjoy the Attack on Titan exhibit, we spent some time in Future World. This is the exhibit that includes the Instagram-famous tunnel of light, along with some interactive features like animated walls you can add your drawings to, and pits full of light up balls. We had fun playing with the exhibits, but I ultimately do not think that the museum was worth the price of admission given its size.

After visiting the museum, we headed next door to the shops at Marina Bay Sands. We were not able to find googles for P, but we did find a coffee shop to grab some sandwiches. They were nothing special but did the job after we were unable to find suitable veg options in the food court.

After lunch, we took the metro back to the Fullerton. (The alternative was a 20-minute walk). One fun amenity that the hotel provides is a free daily ice cream scoop for each child staying at the hotel. P was very interested in enjoying this amenity, so we went back to the room to pick up his ice cream pass and then went back to the lobby to acquire said ice cream. We felt weird taking up seats in the dining area to eat a scoop of free ice cream, so we decided to go downstairs so that P could enjoy his treat near the koi pond.

After P ate his ice cream, we went back to the room where I did some laundry in the sink (we travel carry-on only, so I bring “Sink Suds” detergent and wash some of our clothing every few days) and then took a nap. D also had a nap. P has been steadfastly opposed to naps since the age of 18 months. He played on D’s ipad while we slept. After nap time, we decided to check out the hotel pool.

The Fullerton has an infinity pool beautifully situated overlooking the river. It’s not a huge pool, but it was never crowded while we were there. Despite the lack of goggles, we had a nice time swimming and relaxing on our loungers. (There is no shade over the pool, so we took enforced shade breaks under our sun umbrella to reapply sunscreen). Unfortunately, there was construction going on nearby, so the soundtrack to our swim was incessant jackhammering.

We finished our swim in time to get dressed for dinner. Because it was my 40^th birthday, I had made dinner reservations at National Kitchen, a Peranakan restaurant located in the National Gallery. Aside from having a separate vegetarian menu, the restaurant had the benefit of being walking distance from our hotel. It was an enjoyable walk across the river and through an area containing a number of colonial buildings. Although the entire walk was about 7 minutes, P asked to stop for multiple rest breaks – a sure sign that his ongoing nap boycott was having consequences. Fortunately, we had plenty of time, so stopping to sit and admire our surroundings was not a problem. We still arrived at the National Gallery a few minutes before 6.

To get to National Kitchen, you need to walk through portions of the National Gallery, which gave us a whirlwind tour of some of the exhibits as we looked for the restaurant. We were seated promptly at 6. It was definitely a good thing that we had reservations because the restaurant is small and every table was full. We ordered tau hu goreng (tofu with peanut sauce), meatless meatball rendang, and eggplant. Although it wasn’t clear to us from the menu, the dishes are intended to be served family style, so this was a good assortment of food. Our server brought everything out quickly because she could see the P was barely holding himself upright. This was a fun call back to D’s 40^th birthday, when a 5-year-old P literally tipped over and fell asleep at a restaurant in Edinburgh. P did perk up for dessert, as he is wont to do.

After our dinner, we had a pleasant walk back to the hotel. (The temperature really drops once the sun sets). Because it had been such a great birthday, I decided to forgive my family for forgetting to wish me a happy birthday. I did, of course, make a note to shame them about it in my trip report.

Singapore and Malaysia 2022: Trip Report Days 1 and 2

Flight SQ21 and Arrival in Singapore (Author: J)

May 6: Friday

This trip report starts the day before our flight because that is when we began our travel. We currently live just north of Boston, but booked a flight from Newark, NJ. Flying from Newark had the benefit of allowing us to fly on Singapore Airlines — often cited as one of the world’s best airlines — on a direct flight: SQ21. SQ21 was, in 2020, the longest flight in the world. My understanding is that the current longest flight in the world is a Cathay Pacific flight that needed to reroute for safety reasons due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. So we lost out on the longest flight bragging rights when we postponed our trip, but SQ21 still seemed vastly superior to flying from Boston on a flight with one or more connections.

We packed our bags on Thursday night and D and P went off to work and school respectively on Friday morning. I went to the salon to get my nails done. (I had worked the previous 2 weekends to get all of my grading done and submitted so that I could have Friday off; in addition to my little birthday present to myself, I also cleaned the house and got the pets ready for the pet sitter, so it was not all fun and games for me — just mostly fun and games). I picked D up from work around 2. We then picked up P and hit the road. With traffic, it took us about 5 hours to reach my parents house in NJ. We had dinner with them and visited a bit before heading to bed.

May 7: Saturday

After a terrible night of sleep (which was fine with me since I was hoping to sleep a lot on the plane), we were up early to get ready for our flight. With almost 19 hours of plane time ahead of us, we went for comfort over style in our clothing selections. Goodbye pajamas. Hello sweatpants. We rolled out the door a little more than 3 hours before our flight. I would have preferred less time at the airport, but we hadn’t been able to complete online check-in and the airline recommended that we arrive at least 2.5 hours before our flight to check in.

The drive to the airport was quick and painless, the wait to check in to our flight, less so. There were just a few families in front of us in line, but the process of checking passports and Covid documentation was slow. I was relieved when we were issued our tickets and could proceed towards security. Once we were through security, we had more than 90 minutes to wait and not much to do as there wasn’t much open in the airport. We poked around in the small airport bookstore, looked at the planes at other gates, and then resigned ourselves to sitting.

When the plane began boarding, we did the thing that they tell you not to do but that most people do anyway. We stood and milled around waiting for our boarding group to be called. Soon enough, we were walking past the swanky business class pods to our seats in premium economy. (SQ21 has only premium economy and business class seats). The premium economy seats are in a 2, 4, 2 configuration. P and I had 2 window seats and D had an aisle seat in the same row. We elected not to pay the upcharge to get D one of the single seats near the window at the back of the plane (although this was the seat that D would have had if we had flown in 2020). Fortunately, the seat next to D was empty, making his seat selection more attractive than it otherwise might have been. Once we were settled, P and I tried a trick I had picked up in a YouTube video and took some chewable allergy tablets. As promised, these really did help minimize ear popping and I will definitely be taking children’s allergy meds with me on future flights.

The premium economy seats on SQ21 are pretty comfortable. They are wider and cushier than standard economy seats and they have fun features like a leg rest, book light, and extra recline. For a short person like myself, they still come up short (or maybe it’s long) because the footrest could not adjust so that my feet actually reached it. I did my best to compensate by pulling my backpack out once we were at cruising altitude and positioning it under my feet. I definitely recommend compression socks for anyone taking this flight, but especially those who might have to deal with dangling feet. Despite the mismatch between the seat size and my size, I did not have any circulation issues on this flight thanks to the socks and frequent walks to the restroom. The included pillow, blanket and noise cancelling headphones helped to keep things cozy.

One thing that I had been looking forward to on this flight was the meals because Singapore Airlines is known for its meal service. We preordered vegetarian meals for all of us. (P and I are vegetarian, and D eats fish, but not other meat). Our first meal was an Asian style noodle dish with mushrooms and vegetables. It came with a flatbread of some sort, fruit, and a lentil salad. Other than the flatbread, which was dry and hard to chew, the items in this meal were enjoyable. When the flight attendants came around to give out ice cream to the passengers without special meals, I requested one for P. Although he gladly gave P an ice cream, the flight attendant told me that the ice cream was not for those with special meals because “they come with their own dessert.” I guess the fruit was supposed to be our dessert.

After the first meal service, I did my best to sleep for a bit to try and transition to the correct time zone. (There are toothbrushes and other toiletries in the bathroom to help get you bedtime ready and I had also brought along makeup remover wipes and face mist). Thanks to the glass of wine that I had with my meal, I was able to doze a bit even though it was early afternoon at home. I woke up for the next meal, a light snack. The non-veg option was a chicken sandwich. The veg option was a vegetable sandwich of dry, unseasoned vegetables on wheat bread. This meal was not worth eating, but I ate it anyway. P rejected his.

I passed another chunk of time watching movies, reading, and taking P to the back of the plane to experience the snack cart. They had a nice selection of chocolates, granola bars, chips, cup noodles, pastry, and dried fruit, along with drinks. At some point, the fact that it was the middle of the night in the US caught up to me and I fell asleep for another, longer, nap. After my nap, the rest of the flight passed in much the same way as what had come before. More movies, more reading, and another meal. Our third meal was an odd one. It had a bean salad, fruit, and roll, much like the first meal. But when I opened the dish containing the main meal, I was greeted with mashed potatoes and mashed potatoes and more mashed potatoes, with a side of broccoli. In fairness to the mashed potatoes, they were tasty, but I am not sure who decided that they are a complete meal. I had some of the potatoes, the bean salad and the fruit. No one else in my family ate any of this meal.

After we ate, the flight attendants came around with coffee and tea. It’s served in real teacups with no lids. I mention this because right after the tea service, we hit some really wild turbulence. The plane dipped like we were going down a drop on a roller coaster and I spilled my tea all over myself. As I was cleaning up, I realized that – although I hadn’t enjoyed the turbulence – I also wasn’t overcome with terror by it like I usually am. In fact, I had remained calm and happy throughout the flight. I have no explanation as to why my fear of flying seemingly vanished on this trip, but I am hoping this is the new normal for me.

By this point, we were nearing Singapore, which was fortunate because I was nearing the end of my patience for sitting in a plane seat. The last 30 minutes or so of the flight were a challenge for me. (We were delayed about 45 minutes, so perhaps it was just the psychology of knowing we should be there already). I would, however, recommend this flight without hesitation. It was more comfortable and seemingly passed more quickly than many 5 or 6 hour flights I have taken and the Singapore Airlines service was as good as anticipated — other than some lackluster meals.

May 8: Sunday

When we finally touched down in Singapore, the caption came on the intercom to welcome us and let us know that disembarkation would be delayed because the airport had forgotten to send someone to hook up the gate. Coming from the US where airports from time to time send their staff home without remembering to unload entire flights of passengers, this made us feel right at home. While we were waiting, I turned my phone on and ensured that it had service. It took just a few minutes to get a message from Google Fi welcoming us to Singapore and assuring us that we had data coverage.

When we were finally able to deplane, we were met at the gate by a representative from the Fullerton. This was a pleasant surprise as I did not realize that our airport transfer included gate to front door service. The representative walked us to customs, confirmed that we had submitted our online arrival cards, and advised us to split into two groups. (For whatever reason, Singapore customs won’t let families clear customs together). P and I picked one line and D stood in another. As soon as D got to the front of the line, it became clear that he had not read any of the itinerary information I had shared with him. Thus began a friendly game of telephone where D shouted questions like, “Where are we staying?” and “How long are we here?” and I rolled my eyes and shouted the information back to him. He would then dutifully repeat the information to the customs agent as though she was unable to hear it herself. Fortunately, the customs agent let D into the country anyway. P and I also cleared customs without issue. (We had to show our passports and proof of vaccination and were photographed and fingerprinted).

We were then escorted to our car. As we drove, I thought about the part of Lee Kuan Yew’s autobiography where he talked about greening Singapore so that visitors arriving from the airport would be struck by how cosmopolitan the city was. As far as I could see, the plan had succeeded. I was struck by how green and shaded the drive away from the airport was. Before too long, we were looking at the Super Tree Grove at Gardens by the Bay and other Marina Bay landmarks. I might have gotten a little teary-eyed. Then, it was the moment 3 years in the making – our arrival at the Fullerton.

The Fullerton is a beautiful hotel. Check-in was quick and efficient, and we were soon in our room getting cleaned up and ready to enjoy the evening in Singapore. Our plan, based upon advice from the TripAdvisor forums, was to walk to Lau Pa Sat for dinner and that is what we did. It was nearly 7 when we arrived at the hawker center. At that time, all of the vegetarian stalls were closed. We had no trouble finding suitable options at other stalls, though. We picked up an Indian thali plate and some carrot cake. (Based upon my research, I am fairly certain that the carrot cake contained fish or shrimp paste, despite frequently being listed as a veg friendly option in blog posts on Singapore food. We decided to try it anyway). Once we had our food, I set out to find drinks. At the drink stall, I tried to order a lime juice, a beer, and a sugar cane juice. This is when I learned that each vendor at the drink stall is specialized. I was in the lime juice line, so I could only get the lime juice. Then I had to move to the next line for the beer, and so on. Drinks in hand, I made my way back to the table and we dug in to our first meal of the trip. Everything was delicious, which came as a relief to D who had worried that our mashed potato plane meal was representative of Singaporean dining options.

After dinner, it was dessert time. We headed to Food Folks, a shop attached to the hawker center, for ice cream and some packaged snacks. We enjoyed the ice cream in the shop and brought he snacks back to our room in case we woke up at odd hours with the munchies. (That did, indeed, happen, which is how I came to eat a bag of wasabi chips in my bed at 3 a.m., something that turned out to be a surprisingly acceptable middle-of-the-night snack).

As we walked back to the hotel, I checked the time and realized that we were just in time for the Spectra lights show at Marina Bay Sands. We found a spot with a good view of Marina Bay Sands and settled in to wait. P was not impressed by the show (probably because he was exhausted by this point), but I thought it was the perfect end to our first evening in Singapore. It had been everything I imagined it would be.

Singapore is also some things I didn’t imagine, like home of this ele-corn.

Ecuador 2021 – Wrap Up (Days 12-14)

(Author: J)

May 21, 2021 – Mashpi Lodge

Our last full day at Mashpi was much less eventful than the previous day. We woke up early for the hummingbird breakfast, which is a picnic breakfast held on a portion of the lodge property that is at just the right elevation for hummingbird watching. Our guide was still scared to let us walk anywhere, so we were chauffeured back and forth (although we did a short walk along the road to look for other bird species before starting our picnic). The breakfast was once again quite elaborate, and the lodge prepared enough to feed 5 families. We would highly recommend this experience to anyone staying at Mashpi. Eating breakfast while you watch dozens of hummingbirds flutter by is an enjoyable way to start the day. P loved getting more close-up photos.

After breakfast, we headed back to the lodge to relax. I took advantage of the lodge’s spa services and enjoyed an hour-long massage before lunch. The masseuse did not speak any English, but between my mangled Spanish and some commonsense guesses about what a masseuse was likely to ask, we got by okay.

After lunch, we did a shirt making activity. I got the sense that parents usually send their kids to do this activity on their own, but we chose to do it together as a family. We started by gathering interesting leaves. Then we coated the leaves in t-shirt paint and used them to stamp leaf designs on the shirts.

It rained steadily while we were crafting but cleared up as we were completing our project. We took advantage of the nice weather to go back to the Life Center – at P’s request – to show D the butterflies. Again, we saw a nice variety of birds, along with some small mammals.

The highlight of the day was our night walk. Again, Gabriel was frightened to make us walk (especially because it involved crossing a shallow stream; the difference between waist-deep water and a puddle was apparently not significant as far as their insurance carrier was concerned). We somehow survived though and managed to see a variety of frogs, snakes and interesting insects. For P, who loves frogs almost as much as snakes, this was a great wrap up to our time at Mashpi.

May 22, 2021 – return to Quito

One night thing about Mashpi is that your departure is timed to allow you to enjoy a final leisurely morning. After breakfast, we visited the lab to chat with the scientist who is studying the wildlife on the property. This did not go as planned because P was in a bad mood and refused to speak with anyone, but it was still a nice opportunity to learn about the work that our tourist dollars were supporting.

Our ride back to Quito was scheduled for mid-morning. We were provided with box lunches for the ride, which was – again – private due to the pandemic.

We chose to stay at Swissotel again because none of the airport hotels had a swimming pool. This proved to be a distinction without a difference because the capacity limits at the pool meant that we could not use it. We, instead, spent the afternoon sitting in our room. In the evening, we went out for Mexican food. I woke up in the middle of the night quite ill (I suspect due to my decision to order a blended drink, my first experience with unfiltered water). Fortunately, I was able to pull myself together the next morning and leave for the airport as scheduled.

May 23, 2021 – flight home

We used Medical VIP (which Ecuadorians pronounce “Medical veep,” in case you need to ask for directions) for our covid tests. The process was quick and easy and we had our negative results in hand several hours before our flight. Because our bags were full of dirty clothing, it seemed logical to me to check them through. Mistake number 1. Once through security, the plan had been to use the extra time to eat and shop. But with my stomach still feeling off, I spent most of the time sitting in a chair and whining. I felt bad for P, who had been looking forward to souvenir shopping. Given my state, I put D in charge of buying food for the plane. For some reason, he decided to wait until the flight was boarding to attend to that chore, limiting options to whatever could be grabbed quickly — muffins. Mistake number 2.

Our American Airlines flight to Miami boarded on time. But then it sat there. And sat there some more. As the minutes turned to hours, the crew of the flight made no announcements to inform us of what was going on. Indeed, the flight attendants seemed to be intentionally ignoring the passengers, refusing to even acknowledge anyone who tried to speak to them. By the time we finally took off, several hours late, many of the passengers were panicked because it was clear that the ability to make connections was at risk. Again, the flight attendants ignored all attempts by passengers to ask questions about our landing time or how to make connections. Making matters worse, American had suspended all food and drink service due to the pandemic, so we had only water and tiny stale pretzels during the flight.

We landed in Miami with less than an hour until our connecting flight. Because of the lack of any guidance or help from the flight crew, exiting the plane was a free-for-all with those who had connections (everyone) pushing and shoving. All that pushing and shoving was for naught though because, once off the plane, we needed to collect our bags and go through customs. Once again, American provided no help on basics like where we should go to get our bags. We finally found the correct carousel, but once a few bags had popped out, it shuddered to a stop, apparently broken. In a panic by this point, I looked for someone – anyone – to help us. I found a woman in an American Airlines uniform, explained our predicament, and asked for help. Her response was, “No one here can help you.” I tried again, asking a man who was also in uniform; he was less blunt, but also clearly unwilling or unable to do anything.

With less than 30 minutes until our flight, the carousel finally started again. Bags in hand, we hurried to go through customs and recheck our bags. When we got to the front of the bag check line, the American employee who was taking bags told us that we were too late for our flight and would need to get into another long line to get vouchers for a hotel and fly out tomorrow. “Isn’t there anything you can do to help us?” I asked. The answer was, predictably, “No.” “You should be ashamed to work for an airline that treats customers so poorly,” I snapped in reply. At this point, the employee literally cackled before responding, “I feel no shame.” Since it was clear that any further attempts to get help from anyone at American were going to lead nowhere (except, perhaps to a tasering if I pushed my luck), we got into the long line for rebooking.

As we stood in line, I grumbled under my breath about how terrible American’s service was. This opened the door to conversation with other stranded passengers, some of whom who had been stuck in this room – a room with no food, drinks, or toilets — being shuttled from line to line for hours. Apparently, due to tech issues, multiple American flights had been delayed and American apparently decided the best approach was to strand all of those passengers in Miami — rather than making any effort to help at least some of us make our connections.

While we were waiting in line, I made the executive decision that we did not want to entrust American with our bags again. We tore the checked bag tags off, planning to carry the bags on the next day. As we waited, poor P, who had no raised a peep of complaint, informed me that he needed a bathroom. When I told him he would need to wait, he began to sob quietly. Sensing an emergency, I flagged down an American employee and asked if she could please help my son get to a toilet before he had an accident. At this point our luck turned around; we had apparently found the only helpful American Airlines employee in Miami. She asked where we were headed. When she found out it was Boston, she looked puzzled for a minute and then said, “That flight hasn’t boarded yet.” She then helped us speed through security and to our gate. At the gate, P was able to use the restroom. What we were not able to do was purchase any food or drinks because we were so severely delayed that all of the airport concessions were closed. Fortunately, our flight to Boston offered us the hearty meal option of a bottle of water. But, unlike the hundreds of others that American had stranded in Miami that day, we were going home, at least.

Ecuador 2021 Trip Report Day 11

May 20, 2021 – Mashpi (Author: J)

Today was one of the most memorable days of our trip – not necessarily in a good way, but I think it makes for a good story. Things started off innocuously enough. Although we weren’t meeting our guide until 9 a.m., we were up before 7. After failed attempts to go back to sleep, we accepted that our body clocks were on Amazon safari wakeup mode and went to breakfast.

We chose to dine outside again to enjoy the lovely views of the forest. Napo is fairly all-inclusive, with all non-alcoholic food and drink included in the price, so we had cappuccino with breakfast. We also had a nice selection of pastries, fruits and cheeses brought out to us and were offered a choice of hot items from a menu. It was too much food, but we did our best to eat everything.

After puttering around for a bit, we reported for our hike early. I think someone must have then radioed Gabriel, because he came running from the staff quarters. He assumed that maybe there had been a miscommunication about the time, but we assured him that we were just excited to get started.

Our plan for the morning was to hike to a waterfall for a swim and then take a “shortcut” back via the dragonfly skyride. We assumed that shortcut had the common US meaning: a shorter available route. But it seems that at Mashpi, “shortcut” refers to a route just as long as the original with the added requirement of wading through waist deep water for an extended time.

We set out on our hiking route, a steep but doable route to our first waterfall. There, we stripped down to our swimsuits and spent some time splashing. Then it was on to our next stop. To keep our clothing dry, we hiked between waterfalls in our swimsuits and rubber boots. It wasn’t far to the second swimming hole, which offered both a deeper pool beneath a waterfall and a shallower area. The current under the waterfall made swimming difficult for P, so he chose to splash in the shallows and use soft wet rocks to draw on himself and the riverbank. When we tired of swimming, we dried off and changed into our hiking clothing. Naively, I took particular care to make sure everyone had dry feet before putting on our socks. Wet feet are the path to blisters after all.

Since it had taken us no more than 30 minutes of hiking time to get to the second pool, I assumed it would be a hop, skip, and a jump back to the dragonfly because . . . shortcut. Imagine my surprise then, when after 10 minutes or so of hiking, Gabriel mentioned we had to cut through the river. He then showed us how to stand on one leg and empty water from our boots. I was starting to get suspicious about this short cut.

We entered the river and began trudging along. I did my best to keep to shallow areas to so my boots would stay dry. P, who is a bit smaller than me, had no such option. His boots immediately filled with water. And then he took the first of many falls on the slippery rocks. The water was deep enough that he went under, but the poor kid was determined to keep a stiff upper lip.

This was not my shining parenting moment. I was so concerned about keeping myself dry that I didn’t really give though to how scary falling into a river fully clothed in heavy rubber boots might be. Soon enough, though, we came to a spot in the river so deep that I had no choice but to step into a deep place. My boots filled with water and I filled with rage. I then foolishly decided that the solution was to pick up the pace. I didn’t pay attention to my footing, stepped on a slippery rock and went under. As I hit the rocks, I felt a shooting pain in my left arm and a surge of terror that I was submerged in water. But I didn’t lose it until I was back on my feet and saw my soaking wet camera. “This isn’t waterproof,” I said softly as I began to sob. My 8-year-old son, who had, himself, repeatedly fallen, was now comforting me. D, a stoic Midwesterner – he did not even cry at his own father’s funeral for fear of making a scene — was mortified.

But when you are stuck in a river, you have no choice but to keep on sloshing. That is what we did. After a hiking time at least as long as our hike down to the waterfalls, we arrived at the dragonfly. We were wet and, in my case (and probably P’s), in pain. We then climbed up the tower and started the loading process. Gabriel helped P into his seat on the skyride and, as he did so, it lurched like a bucket hanging on a string (which, I suppose, it was). As you may recall from my earlier posts, my family does not like heights. Seeing my son in mortal peril – or what passes for it to someone with a phobia of being up high – I took sensible steps to protect him. I left him alone in his lurching basket while I proceeded to have a panic attack. It featured shaking, hyperventilating, and repeatedly sobbing, “I can’t do it.”

While it is possible that I would have eventually calmed down enough to get on the dragonfly, the decision was made that we would instead hike back to the lodge. It was another 20 minutes uphill in soaking wet clothing. D actually carried P for parts of it, something that was no easy feat given the steepness of the path and the large size of the son. By the time we arrived back at the lodge, I was no longer panicked. I had reached the point of embarrassment that I had let my family down and subjected an already tired and hurt kid to a steep climb.

Poor Gabriel was probably thinking that he was going to be fired. He handed us off to the manager, mumbling to himself, “Most people love hiking through the river.” At this point, I foolishly declined medical attention in favor of lunch. The story of our misadventures had already gotten around, although the common understanding was apparently that my family was just not very good at hiking. Did I offer a sarcastic reply when the waitstaff asked if the hike was “too long?” Perhaps. Did that further embarrass D? Definitely.

Having had the benefit of lots of time to reflect, I have been able to forgive myself a little bit for the panic attack. Despite my fear of heights, I am usually able to keep myself calm enough to endure (but never enjoy) something like a skyride. I had no history of panic attacks before his incident, in fact. But on this day, after months of enduring the pandemic, and stuck inside a body that was both soaking wet and injured, my brain just really needed to let go of some stress. I have been pretty decent at coping since then (other than occasional nightmares in which I abandon my son to plunge to his death from a platform in the jungle). So maybe the panic attack was a good thing.

I have also started to view Gabriel’s suggestion that we take this particular hike more charitably. I initially couldn’t imagine that anyone in their right mind would actually enjoy wading through the river. But perhaps for a taller person who could accomplish the hike without repeated falls, it might be enjoyable. It was not the right hike for a family with an 8-year-old and a 5-foot tall mom, though.

After lunch, D was still pretty mad at me for showing emotions in public, so he decided to stay in the room. P and I went down for our afternoon visit to the Life Center. Everyone was pretty surprised to see us. In fact, they needed to radio for Gabriel again since he assumed we were boycotting future activities with him.

A cautious agouti (perhaps sensing the tayra)

Anyway, we really enjoyed the Life Center. There’s a deck there for birding, as well as a butterfly house where they raise the insects for release into the forest. We saw a tayra, an agouti, a good number of birds, and even some more howlers. P loved it and poor Gabriel was a good sport throughout. I would have to imagine it was awkward for him, but he never let on.

After the life center, we headed back to our room to relax for a bit. Then we had dinner. I cannot remember the details of what we ordered, but I do know that everything was good. But the portions were so large that I could not finish my main dish, something that caused the head waiter to come over to make sure everything was okay. I explained that I was saving room for dessert, which mollified him only slightly.

Then it was off to bed before another early wake-up. (In case anyone was wondering, it took my arm about a week to recover. There was no lasting damage, but I probably should have seen the first aid person on sight at Mashpi. Our feet recovered eventually too, helped along by the fact that I always bring blister bandages on vacation).