3rd day in SG: Trip to Chinatown, Cable Car Ride to Sentosa, Merlion and SG Flyer at night

Our third day at Singapore was jampacked! Tiring yet fun day that almost felt like we are on an episode of the Amazing Race, with all the stops we did. haha!

Morning Rush

It was a Sunday, so for the morning we first went to Mass at Church of the Holy Trinity, which is the nearest one when you're in Simei. First mass was scheduled at 6:45am and as expected, we only made it in time for the homily. The main hall where the mass was held was at the top floor to which none of us knew. So now you know :)

After Mass, we headed back home, took a bath, ate breakfast, and off we go again! :) After some small mishap in searching for a money changer (screw google maps), we now went straight off to our first stop. Chinatown!

This little bird still asleep.

We rode the train alighting at Chinatown station. Once you get out of the train, go follow the signs pointing to Pagoda St. and once you're out you'll see the whole stretch of touristy stalls with Chinese lanterns hanging above. Hello Pagoda St.!

Hello Chinatown!

Some stalls along the lane where still closed when we got there before 10am, so if you would really like to enjoy the vibrant Chinatown street market, it's better to be there at night (5pm onwards) to enjoy the night market and food fare (along Smith St.).

After passing along Pagoda street and turning right at the end of the street, we saw our first stop. Sri Mariamman Temple. 

Sri Mariamman Temple

An interesting and colorful temple with intricate designs, you won't miss this for its tall group of sculptures atop which I noticed is common on Hindu temples. Shoes should be taken off before entering the temple. Taking pictures inside comes with a price (S$ 3) so we just looked around for a minute. We didn't took much time inside as the smell of incense was too strong for us and also worried for our footwears left outside. Nevertheless, it's still a good place to visit when you're in the area.

Walking farther down the street, is our next stop. The Buddha Tooth Relic Temple and Museum which you also wouldn't miss as its a large red and white temple along the street. It's very open for visitors without any need to pay for anything, just your respect and cooperation when you roam around the area. You should also be dressed modestly before entering so they have cloths, near the entrance on the way up, that you could borrow to drape around your body while roaming around the temple.

Buddha Tooth Relic Temple and Museum

Walking along the temple, you'll really feel the spiritual and peaceful atmosphere it exudes. Taking pictures are allowed in most parts of the temple but be sure to lessen your noise and respect the people who are in deep prayer.

Done with the 3 temples, we headed to Maxwell Food Center for lunch. There's a lot of food to try when in Singapore, so I'll make a separate post for that. :)

After lunch, we took the bus going to Vivo city for our next stop.


Afternoon Fun

Part of our 3rd day was also to spend time exploring Sentosa Island. We took the cable car ride going to Imbiah Lookout inside Sentosa, just for the experience. Honestly, I would opt it out if it was only me. Though if you insist, better start from Mt. Faber and be on a big group (4 or more) so you could have the whole cabin for yourselves.

We only got to ride the Skyline & Luge ride and ate at KFC while waiting for to stop. We were still supposed to visit Palawan beach but we just decided to cut our trip around Sentosa and move on to our next stop. Boo rain! 

Evening 

The evening was spent visiting the Merlion which we missed during out first night. We took the bus (Bus 57 or Bus 131) across Vivo City and alighted at Fullerton Hotel which is just a few steps away from the Merlion Park.

And as usual, we took all the photos we could get while having fun posing weirdly with the Merlion. We also tried to look for the S$1 ice cream which we eventually found near Esplanade. Unfortunately, it was already sold out when it was already our turn. Boo :( And it is already priced at S$1.50, btw.

We had our dinner at Makansutra Glutton's Bay which offers a variety of Asian cuisines where you dine in a open area near Marina Bay. 

After dinner, I only came to realize that our voucher for the SG Flyer was missing. And it was my fault, as I forgot to bring it before we went out earlier. We got stressed for awhile as we tried looking for a printing shop where we could print the voucher from our phone as it was instructed to have a printed voucher upon claiming. It was already getting late as we decided to just go to the ticket claiming booth and fortunately, everything ended up fine. I only presented my passport/ID and the voucher number. Lesson learned: Don't hesitate to ask and DON'T ever forget your documents before going out. I really felt bad that night but good thing I have nice and supportive friends so we still enjoyed the ride even if it was already late. :)

The plus side of riding the SG Flyer an hour before it closes - having the whole capsule by yourself or atleast with a few people. :)

My camera already died earlier that night so I'm only left with my phone (which is also running out of battery and barely living out of my powerbank), thus the crappy photos.

Indeed, it was the most jam packed day out of our trip. We got to visit Chinatown, ride a cable car, get thrilled through the Skyline Luge, try out unique dishes at Maxwell and Makansutra, pose with the Merlion and see Singapore's city skyline and city lights, 540 feet high from the ground, all in one day!