C'est combien?: January 2007

Blading in East Coast Park

So, some of us partners decided to head out to East Coast Park and do a bit of rollerblading. There were 8 of us that went, 2 on bikes and the rest blading. Only 3 of us had ever bladed before but everyone picked it up really fast and soon we were zooming down the path.

But the highlight had to be stopping at McDs for a drink, complete with Skate Thru!

"Hiking" in Singapore

Really it is more of a walk. Hiking doesn't really describe it. We did one of the hardest of the hikes and although it does go through jungle and we did see some wild animals, it can only be described as a nice walk.

But it really was a nice walk, it was a bit drizzly out so we were nice and cool and there were no crowds, even on the suspension bridge which is noramally really busy on weekends.

The suspension bridge is 250m long and allows you to see the jungle canopy. It is the safest, sturdiest suspension bridge we have ever seen. We're talking steel girders and reinforced decking and full sides. You could not get the thing to bounce or even budge while walking on it. Very Singaporean style.

Visitors

After traveling through Vietnam, Cambodia and Thailand over Christmas we had to come back to Singapore for Doug to start classes - his parents continued on to Australia, boy were we jealous!

But then it was back to Singapore for them before making their way back to freezing cold BC. So we snuck Doug out of school at every opportunity, which wasn't very often, and showed them around. Some of the things we did we hadn't done before, waiting for visitors to come to do them with. So we went biking in East Coast Park, to the Asian Civilizations Museum, for a boat ride on the river, to the night safari, to the National Orchid Garden and relaxed by the pool as well trying to eat in as many of the great places around as possible. Singapore really is about the food! (and shopping - but yuck!)

- oh and of course we went to have Singapore Slings in the Long Bar at Raffles Hotel

The Last of Christmas Break

The last stop on our Christmas Break tour was Ko Lanta - a very laid back small island in Thailand. We stayed at a great resort right on the beach.

Day one was a snorkeling/diving day, some of the clearest waters we have seen yet!

And day two was spent relaxing on the beach. A nice way to end a busy trip!

Around Siem Reap

Although the big draw is of course the ruins of Angkor Wat, there are a few other things to do around Siem Reap. We decided to do only part days at the ruins so that we wouldn't get templed out and with the rest of the day saw some of the other sights.

One afternoon we went out to the National Silk Centre. Here they teach people how to make and weave silk to take back to their villages as a trade. We had no idea how much work went into a hand made silk scarf that we could then buy for $3! Although the ones sold at the silk centre were more like $30 but really were nicer.

Another evening we went out for a sunset cruise on Tonle Sap Lake. The view and sunset were great but the whole time you are out there you have boats of kids coming to sell you drinks. Unable to say no, and to the amusement of the boat driver, Doug's dad ended up with about 5 beer, and 10 cans of Coke - good thing we brought a backpack! But they kept us refreshed and we were able to drink them all before leaving the next day.

The kids who live on the river we are sure can paddle before they can walk! This little guy was making awesome time in his bowl!

Angkor Wat

Well we think we were some of the last Singapore Inseaders to make it to the famous ruins of Angkor Wat. After hearing so many others say how amazing it was we were a bit worried that our expectations were set to high and we would be dissapointed - well we weren't, they were spectactular! And it helped that we got very lucky with our timing at the temples and had very little crowds, even though most hotels were fully booked.

We flew in New Years Eve to a bit of hotel disorganization but thankfully we had a bed to sleep in, in the end, although due to the mix up we missed the buffet dinner banquet and ended up with a very low key New Years, oh well. Doug's parents flew in and joined us New Years Day to start our year by looking at the past. Hiring tuk-tuk driver Vanna worked out really well and was a much better way to see the temples then by car or bus as it allowed us all a window seat with a great view.