48h in Singapore

The quality of internet in Indonesia is very disappointing, especially after experiencing a super speed wifi in Singapore. The photos are already on facebook so I will not be putting them again here. It takes forever to upload them!

I was looking forward to see Singapore, I don't really know why because it is quite a new city/country without a depth of history like Thailand or Malaysia and therefore there is not that much to sightsee. I roughly knew that its very, even pedantically clean, quite expensive, its mostly made of tall corporate buildings, it has a famous zoo and botanic gardens (to which I didn't go) and that chewing and selling a chewing gum is prohibited.

I found out that people call it a 'fine city' because the famous ban signs are everywhere and you can get fines for almost everything: littering, smoking, eating, drinking and chewing the gum (government calculated that removing used gums from the pavements is more expensive than banning it all together).

I loved how clean and well maintained the place was, every detail of the city seemed to be thought through. I definitely loved the super extra fast internet (about which I only found out 2h before my leaving to the airport as it uploaded lots of my photos within seconds which normally take hours...), and at the end it wasn't as expensive as I though it would be - still cheaper than UK and the airport was fantastic: free hotspots and TV screens which play different films everywhere, so your time at the airport flies by.

On the flip side, I was the only backpacker I saw there. Singapore looks and feels like 'posh Asia', everyone is extremely elegant and everything seem very materialistic: the label of your shoes and brand of your phone matters. It has a fast pace environment and everyone around is wearing work uniforms and ID's hanging from their necks. Rush  rush rush.

Apart from walking around and admiring and absorbing the city vibes and views from outside, pretty much the only activity I did was the Flight Simulator Experience. The reason for it was because I only had one full day in Singapore and I wanted to do something I havent done in Asia before. I have seen places like Botanic Gardens. Animals in captivity (ZOO) and even Warner Bros Studio (something like Disneyland) were not quite what I was looking for.

 There are only few simulators like that for a public use, I know for sure one is in Melbourne and one here in Singapore. Although it is an exact replica of cabin of Boeing 737, the graphics through the 'windows' were not that great ( I choose to fly from Krakow to Katowice but first time I realised that there is a desert between these two cities). The simulator also didn't move while turning the airplane which I'm sure would be a fantastic addition. Although I think the price was a bit high for it (around £80 for 30 min flight), it was an amazing experience and I will never have the same feelings while entering an airplane again because now I know what the pilots in a cabin are doing :)

Kuala Lumpur

Kuala Lumpur was all about people to me. I spend there 5 amazing and full of attractions days and its the only place in Asia so far I could imagine myself living for a while if I get really bored with Europe :) Why is that? Because unlike my assumptions and expectations of visiting another Third World country capital, KL really surprised me with its vibrant and modern lifestyle, good public transport system, rich and London level night life, high end looking yet affordable apartments and so many Westerners living and working there.

Petronas Towers are just majestic

Inside of Petronas Towers

Wedding in the garden (on this picture it reminds me of Polish summer parties, especially in Debki and this car only adds more memories)

My favourite Malaysian dessert! Although the wedding had enormous food selection, it was so hot, I only felt like eating desserts, especially this one: coconut milk, brown sugar, ice and jellies. I think I had like 4 of them :)

The family of bride or groom waiting for them to arrive (not sure which family house was the wedding at)

And here they are!

Behind the house is a palm garden and tropical river

Rini's apartment building!

Rini and her friend took me to Batu Caves - the Hindu temple where every year in January a famous festival takes place where men pierce their cheeks and attach hooks to their skin and pull some religious statues etc.

What are you doing here on top of the stairs on a temple's wall???

He was standing next to my hostel and for first few days I thought it was a real person... but overall I think its a good idea!

Pertonas Towers in a day light

  KL Tower

When I was coming back to the hostel that day, the sky and everything around had weird orange colour. Almost like there was a huge fire outside of the city giving it a golden glow