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Photos of SingaporeClick photo to expandSingapore, July 6-11, 2018Singapore is an independent city-state on the Singapore Straight, between Malaysia and Indonesia. A former British colony, it has been self-governing for more than half a century, and has become the financial and commercial center of Southeast Asia. Though ruled by democratically elected leaders, the city has a well-earned reputation as a no-nonsense law-and-order nation. The leadership has taken care that all citizens are housed and provided with excellent health care and education. Scrupulous cleanliness is the rule. Dubbed "The Fine City" by some, playing on the word "fine" - for example, chewing gum in public will cost you a hefty fine, because you might spit the gum out in an inappropriate place. As you will see in these photos, the result is a city of beauty and grace, where all those willing to play by the rules appear to enjoy life thoroughly. Changi Airport"Changi is almost universally regarded as the world's best airport, and rightly so. The facilities here are phenomenal, with so much to see and do, eat and buy that you pretty much never want your flight to take off. The only tiny downside is the long hike to some of the gates." - Der Jayesh, in a Google review, January, 2021. A total of 19,317 reviewers had given Changi Airport an average of 4.7/5 stars as of 2021-01-19. 
DowntownWhile most of the main island of Singapore is very densely populated, there is a clearly defined business and commercial center (*ahem* centre) around Marina Bay. 
City NightCities at night can be both beautiful and lively. Singapore is an exceptional example of this. 
Far East SquareFar East Square is a redevelopment project undertaken in the 1990s by the Far East Organization. Apparently it aquired a parcel of older shop-houses near downtown on Telok Ayer street, and rather than razing the small, old buildings, they determined to completely refurbish them in a fashion that captured the historic spirit of the original design. It seems most were gutted, walls and floors were repositioned as necessary to provide commercially functional space, and exteriors were repaired and repainted. An alley to the east, Pekin Street, was converted to a pedestrian walkway with space for outdoor dining. An interior alley north of Telok Ayer Street was cleared and glassed over to become covered food court. Several of the shop-houses facing Telok Ayer Street were combined and fashioned into a small boutique hotel, named the Far East Amoy ['ej moj], joining about 100 other Far East Organization properties in Singapore, Malaysia, Japan, Australia, and Europe. I stayed at the Amoy in August, 2018. It is a very interesting hotel, successfully combining a sense of colonial Singapore with modern amenities. Not all the rooms are “accessible” because the floors of the joined shop-houses are not all on the same level. Even the room in which I stayed was on two levels, joined by 2-3 steps. The windows looked out on the glass-roofed food-court. (While laying over in Singapore to go to Bali, I had stayed at the Far East Changi Village hotel, a very different and also wonderful experience. There are a few photos in the Changi Village section below.) 
Gardens by the Bay at NightThis is the jewel in Singapore's efforts to be a city of gardens: a 110-hectares (270-acres) garden-park with unique “Supertrees”, two enclosed bio-habitats (one of which was listed in the 2015 Guinness Book as the largest glass greenhouse in the world); several theme gardens, including one for young children. Owing to my conference schedule, I was not free during the day. It turns out that my evening expedition was one of about 50 million visits during 2018. Admission is free (though the bio-habitats require payment for entry). The Gardens feel truly magical at night, but I hope I'll be able to return soon and see them during the day. Truly unique! 
ShippingThe Singapore Strait is a highly strategic link, the shortest connection between East Asia and South Asia, the Near East, Africa, and Europe. Its one of the busiest shipping channels in the world, and its position has brought incredible wealth past (and to!) Singapore. 
Changi VillageChangi Village is at the northeast end of Singapore's roughly kidney-bean-shaped island. Most of the east end is occupied by Changi Airport, which is the major passenger and cargo air hub for Southeast Asia. But as everywhere in Singapore, even here there is room for gardens and a public beach...though, alas, not for much peace and quiet, given its the Big Neighbor the airport. In addition to the beach park and a small marina, there's a shopping center, a number of government buildings, clubs, a Hindu temple, and the beautiful Village Changi Hotel, where I stayed for my overnight layover flying from Japan to Bali. The orchids in the photos are all in front of this hotel. Orchids are the national flower of Singapore. I chose this hotel because it is so close to the airport. It is less than a quarter mile from the airport property, but turned out to be about 35 minutes shuttle bus ride to the nearest terminal, on the far side. Staying at the Amoy downtown the following week, it took about 45 minutes to get to the airport terminals by MRT (subway). But I'm glad I didn't miss Changi Village! 
Photo ArtNight photography is always tricky, So many shots have great potential but get blurred
for one reason or another. Frustrating! The colors and groupings are so interesting.
I hate to hit the delete button on them, so I've taken to turning them into “photo art”.
Singapore's Superlative TransportThe primary (avowed) purpose of my visit to Singapore was to attend the UITP 2018 world conference. But also, Singapore's own urban transport system has been written up frequently and highly lauded, adding another reason for going. Singapore's reputation as a model of urban planning, energy efficiency, and climate adaptation has also received respectful interest from around the world, so the combination put a visit to this island city-state high on my bucket-list. UITP is the Union Internacional des Transports Publiques, and the conference drew transportation professionals from around the world. But seeing the actual operation of a world-class system was equally important to me, since at the time I was on the Board of Directors of our local transportation authority, eager to bring back the latest best practices from around the world. So I shot a fair number of stills and video clips of the system, and
shorly after my return, I created the video linked below. |
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Copyright © 2020, Laurence John Krieg | ||||||
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