MYSIN Trip 4 - Singapore - 2

There are a few days in everyone's life that becomes memorable for one reason or other. For me, there are few such days that remain etched in my mind. The days of my kid's birthdays. The sequence of events on those two days is still in mind.

Our wedding anniversary is another one. I do not remember all the things that happened on that day or the order in which it happened. But it remains the most important day in that I married a girl who made a profound impact on our life for the past 13 years and counting. 

Since then, it has become some sort of a ritual for us to celebrate the anniversary in some place exotic or have a quiet dinner or do something or nothing depending on the mood in that year. Every anniversary has its own set of memories and whenever we look at the month August every year, there is always something we find to remember about.

So it was this year. This year it was in Singapore and we've planned nothing for that day except to visit Universal studios and nothing more.

 

Amusement parks as a rule do not amuse me much. I am more a guy who prefers to be left alone with a book and good food rather than the excitement of roller coasters. But it was for the kids and at some level, being a fan of Madagascar and  Shrek, I've also wanted to see what fun it can bring.

So the day started with all the excitement that accompanies the visit to amusement parks. Only that J wanted to check on the date and confirm that it was our anniversary. So we did the mandatory anniversary shoot and started.

Universal Studios Singapore is probably the smallest one of all the Universal studios out there and we realized that once inside. Though we rushed into the rides and other fun, there was not much crowd and hence the queues were shorter and quicker, half way through we relaxed a little knowing that we aren't going to miss anything.

One of the things you notice in various places in Singapore is the amount to Chinese tourists that come through. You can find them wearing a similar color hat with the tour/travels name etched in it or following a guy with a flag like we used to do when we go for school tours. It is amazing when you realize that about 70-80% of the crowd in all the attractions is people from China. And they buy like crazy in the gift shops of these places as well. Shows who the next superpower is going to be.

Universal Studios, though with lesser number of rides than in California or Florida, matches them in terms of its overpriced foods, road shows and in the fun quotient. 

 

  The kids managed to go for a second serving in most of the rides and enjoyed the day.

We wanted to cover the Merlion park in the night to finish the day off. The taxi driver explained about the Grandfather, Father and Son Merlion's in Singapore and helpfully, showed us the locations. We managed to catch the grand father and father.

The river front 'Father Merlion' is a beautiful place, more beautiful to see it late in night. There is less crowd (it being Sunday evening) and with the fantastic views, it is the kind of place you want to spend your anniversary evening.

We reluctantly took off from there for dinner in a Thai restaurant (the Tom Yum was fantastic!) and realized that the anniversary is over for this year.