Things to do in Singapore
Recently described as the 'Cinderella' of Asian cities, this once boring and ordered economic centre has shrugged off its reputation and slapped on a new 21st century style. Shopping and food are, of course, essential ingredients to the Singaporean mix, but modern art and youth are now picking up the pace and making their voices heard.
Singapore is well known for its beautiful parks and open spaces. For a free and lazy outing, wander around one of the many areas of natural or cultivated beauty. The Botanical Gardens, Zoological Garden and Jurong Bird Park are all well worth a trip. The Zoological Garden claims to be a model of the "open zoo concept", whereby the animals are kept in landscaped and spacious enclosures separated from visitors by moats.
Along the same lines, the Culinary Academy & Spice Garden is a combination of a leisurely wander and taste buds extravaganza. Follow a hands-on early morning tour around the spice gardens and then watch the fresh produce being turned into elaborate spice ingredients, followed by a tea reception at which you can enjoy not only the excellence of the leaves, but also the fabulous ? and beautifully scented ? surroundings.
One of the things that most stands out about Singapore is that it is fabulous city for shopping. Head for one of the many malls around Centrepoint for a fairly Western experience, or have a nose into the more specialist centres, such as Funan, the mall dedicated to Information Technology, or Mustafa Online ? a bargain basement marketplace popular with both locals and tourists.
Raffles City is one of the most well known shopping districts in Singapore. Lively and vibrant, it is a social centre as much as a retail one. Whether you are looking for new trainers, a decent iPod or some trinkets for the folks back home, Raffles is bound to have it.
Sculpture Square is the city's first contemporary art space, showcasing 3-dimensional art practices and productions by artists from Singapore and Southeast Asia since it was opened in 1999. Located in a former Methodist church on Middle Road in the city's Waterloo arts district, this is an excellent way to get a feeling for art in Singapore today and in the future. As well as two galleries and a library, there are outdoor exhibition spaces and a restaurant.
The city is also well known for its huge variety of temples of different denominations. Standing on the original site of Singapore's first Chinese temple, the Thian Hock Keng Temple ? or Temple of Heavenly Happiness ? is a good place to start. You cannot possibly visit them all, but even popping to a few of these very spiritual buildings will give you a sense of the richness and diversity of religion in Singapore and what a colourful and important part it plays in life here.
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Things to do
