singapore visa run

[froggy]

Just a note on the singapore run, It really was a terrible time, the crowds, the lights , hell it felt like I was in New York or something, with $10 beer!!! Some may like it, but it represents all the things I am trying to get away from when I moved to bali, getting off the airplane into a taxi heading to Ubud was such a relief, the next day we grabbed a bite to eat at Nuries, ran around town on the scooter, and followed our new "Rain Rule" & if your out on the scooter and its about to rain, grab a massage till it passes, beer=$1 food=$2 massage for1.5hrs $4 piece of mind&tranquility= priceless . yes life is good here. But I wil never, never go back to crappapore...... Frog

 

[tintin]

Hi Froggy,

FYI, Singapore is known in Bali as "The Third Reich with palm trees." :lol:

 

[Thorsten]

Will fly Germany - Bali via Singapore next week, the first time without a stopover, no interest at all to stay in Singapore although I hate the long flights, still fed up due this 10 U$/beer from Hong Kong last year (gee, that was expensive for the last nights!).

Ok, ok, there is also another thing because I cannot wait to get to Bali, but that's another story :wink:
Will be at Nuri's for tuna night at 12th Jan, still hope this Balinese angel will show up this time :roll:

best regards
Thorsten

 

[iainsomers]

As a city I like S'pore. Nice mix of cultures. Not comparable with Bali I think it's also a nice place in the world in complete a different way.

 

[Roy]

it's also a nice place in the world in complete a different way.

Do you mean it's nice not to find drug free zones in the middle of the city or in cafes?

 

[drbruce]

I'm quite fond of Singapore. It's wonderful to get out of the jungle and just shop for electronics and books. It would be nicer if it was cheaper, but if you get out with the locals there's some very interesting activity that goes on after everything is supposedly shut down.

Have to run down to Denpasar and do the Indonesian citizenship thing. Thanks for all the help yesterday, Roy. Tell Eri that Su sends her thanks as well. We hope to make it down to Ubud in a few days after we find out what's up with everything.

 

[froggy]

Oh yes I saw some after hours nightlife, after returning late from the night zoo, I ran out to get a bite to eat, I felt as though I was on the menu as I passed all the little bars with girls grabbing my butt, I think its still a little bruised, I was kinda taken back a little as I didnt think sing. had that kind of activity, being as how hard the laws are.... well I made it back to the room with the wife&kids... but I must admit I did ask if anybody wanted seconds! several times! Frog

 

[Sanurian]

I'm not a big Singapore lover but it's not all bad. I agree with drbruce:

...I'm quite fond of Singapore. It's wonderful to get out of the jungle and just shop for electronics and books. It would be nicer if it was cheaper, but if you get out with the locals there's some very interesting activity that goes on after everything is supposedly shut down...

Not everybody in Singapore is a "millionaire". Ordinary Singaporeans have their lives too. If one has the time (and inclination), one can find more or less "normal" people trying to survive in a rather strange place. But it's not all hermetically sealed. Being in areas like Little India, Arab Town, the Malay quarter and the hundreds of China Towns can help you forget you're in Singapore. And those places are generally far cheaper than the main stream.

If you're not on a visa run from Indonesia (meaning your passport is being held by your visa agent/Indonesian Consulate), it's a great place to move into other parts of the region, like peninsular Malaysia, a train/bus trip to Thailand, and so on. The range of food in Singapore far surpasses what's available in Indonesia. The libraries, museums and bookstores are brilliant. A very pleasant change from the general crud that's available in Indonesia. And then there are the international concerts: I think I just missed Eric Clapton.

Like anywhere else, you have to have time to scratch below the surface. There are gems to be found there. No one's saying Singapore is "perfect"...it's a far cry from that. I just don't think that people who go there for a few days, or even a week or two, necessarily see all it has to offer. And these days, it's harder because of all the glitz.

 

[Roy]

[/quote]The range of food in Singapore far surpasses what's available in Indonesia.

A very true comment from someone who gets their daily sustenance from bakso carts!

 

[drbruce]

Been years since I've had a regular meal from a bakso cart. One of the best places that I've eaten in is a little shop in ChinaTown. During my regular trips there, I became friendly with the owner's son and it was an interesting operation. But little India is another place that I found to be fairly amusing during my years of being married to a Tamil. There is, as Phil says, far more than meets the eye below the surface. Umm, maybe too much scotch. Back in 86 I was offered a job as a cook on a freigher sailing to Oz. My job qualifications - I was a moving body. Unfortunately, I felt obligated to fulfil my contractual obligations to my school.

 

[Sanurian]

I don't eat bakso any more, Roy.

I'm not fond of borax and formaldehyde as food ingredients, unlike many Balinese/Indonesians. Put it this way - since the borax scares, I reckon bakso doesn't taste as good. There are signs in supermarkets these days claiming to sell "borax-free" bakso. The trouble is you can't believe the signs either. A whole lot of so-called "energy drinks" throughout Indonesia have been "banned" because they're "dangerous". The "pure bottled water" scams still continue. "Organic produce" in Indonesia is another excursion into fairy-land.

I might add here that this sort of stuff is not endemic in Indonesia. Recent studies in England, for example, have found that lots of so-called Basmati rice is adulterated. I recall in one of your posts that you have a penchant for Thai jasmine rice. Me too. I can't remember the last time I bought such a rice in Bali. The real Thai rice gets cut in Thailand and cut again in Indonesia. No way can you buy pure jasmine rice from Thailand in these parts (not even in London, or so it seems). Of course, I always stand to be corrected.

:roll:

 

[drbruce]

These threads seem to drift from topic to topic. Just to keep this on singapore and not rice - good thai rice in Pakistan as well - Singapore has one great bookstore. I forget the name right now, but it is Japanese and starts with a K.

Check out some of the local food courts - no girls grabbing you - but decent food at a decent price and they let you sit around for hours without any hassle.

BTW, my dog loves Bakso and he is one of those save local pups.

 

[Jimbo]

I dream of Bakso and Coto Makkassar but all the tickets are booked for July and my whole tribe is coming with me so I will be eating it then.

Talking of rice Maria prefers the Thai Jasmine rice which we get with no problems but myself and my second son prefer Basmati because we like a "harder" rice. My favourite rice however is Brass Mandi (Spelling) which was always twice the price of normal rice last time Iwas home but which was worth it for the tast and aroma.

 

[froggy]

Well, I guess I have alot to learn, I am fond of the Uncle ben microwave minute rice, But as to singpore for a few days on a visa run, it wasn't my cup of rice, I should have went down under for a week or so and explored the outback, but thats just me, But I'm sure you could find a few great things about Spore.....Frog

 

[FreoGirl]

What a good idea froggy if you've got the time and $ to do it - fly to Darwin for the visa run, then spend a few days in Litchfield Park, or Kakadu. Much more my cup of tea than Singapore, or any other large SE Asian city for that matter.

 

[Jimbo]

Froggy

Most of us are rice eaters and have been convinced by our better halves what is the best rice to eat. Rice eaters are those if they have not eaten rice today they have not eaten.

Just think of the varieties of potatoes and the multiply it by a factor of ten and you will understand the number of different types of rice out there.

It is so important to Indonesians that they have a basic of 3 names for it and cook it in at least 10 different ways

 

[wepro]

Coming back to the topic "Singapore run".
Does anybody know some agents in Kuala Lumpur which do the "embassy run" for you like some do it in Singapore? For me - I like KL more than S'pore. And-AirAsia flights to KL are pretty cheaper than Garuda flights to Singapore

 

[froggy]

I have recently discovered its best to contact an agency where you are heading to, I'm in Hong Kong right now and going into N china , The agency in Bali had No idea on what to do, Putting it nicely.......Frog

 

[niksing]

Re: RE: singapore visa run

These threads seem to drift from topic to topic. Just to keep this on singapore and not rice - good thai rice in Pakistan as well - Singapore has one great bookstore. I forget the name right now, but it is Japanese and starts with a K.

Kinokuniya Bruce - it is in Ngee Ann City on Orchard Road, part of the same complex as the Takashimaya department store. There is also a large Borders in Wheelock Place, at the top end of Orchard Road opposite the Isetan department store.

Kinokuniya have a website where you can search to see if they have books in stock. there are also a couple of great kids book stores if shopping for childrens books. The best one is Bookaburra which is in the Forum Shopping Mall on Orchard Road.

Nikki

 

[DCC]

Dear Dr. and Nik -

Just got back from my boarder run and report the following. 1 - this is the second time I visited and again alone which sucks cuz city travel isn't great solo. 2 - there is so much cool stuff there that I'm glad I get out after 2 days. 3 - if you can buy happiness S'poreans would be the happiest people on earth. Both Boarders and Kinokuniya were again PACKED with people in fact the whole of Orchard Road was packed (starbucks after work was a mad house). 4 - Kinokuniya is son big I searched their titles from laptop before returning, ha!

Niksing, I believe you just moved from Singapore, yes? I must admit to both an attraction and repulsion to the place. The positives are evident in the financial power and infrastructure of the place being on par with other great capitalist centers, and that makes for a strong contemporary cultural arts scene. But is the obsession on money over done? The lead stories in the Straits are always biz oriented - no world news on the cover! And that’s one surreal drive from the airport to downtown; beautiful, yet nothing to see.