Day 18: The Peak

We took the tram up Victoria Peak and walked along the Hong Kong trail. Amazing views, mediocre weather and terrible mosquitoes.






In the tram going back down the mountain. Yes, down. We were hurtling backwards like in The Bat at Wonderland.


Hong Kong streets lit up at night.



Rooftop view from the garden of the new Hysan Place mall.

Day 17: Ferrying

Dim sum at Eighteen Brook with the family. I don't think I could ever get sick of dim sum.


Foggy view from the restaurant.


We took a scenic ferry ride to Tsim Sha Tsui afterwards, which is on the Kowloon side of Hong Kong. Octopus is the ultra convenient stored-value card system Hong Kong uses for public transit payment.




My dad and his tourist backpack.


My dad framing up.


The crowded Tsim Sha Tsui terminal. Seriously, Hong Kong is crowded everywhere, all the time.


Toddlers and ice cream!

Day 16: Back in Hong Kong

Back in Hong Kong, and we hit our first rainy day of our trip. These boys were still playing soccer on their concrete pitch.


Man picking out a crab on the roadside. Lots of vendors sell live seafood in stores that spill out onto the sidewalks.


This badass old man illegally crossed the street while taxis and buses whipped by him. Priceless is the watching man's face in the background.


Causeway Bay is ridiculously packed on the weekends.


People-watching.

Day 15: Arrival, Take 4

We packed up yet again and took a cab to Changi Airport in the morning. I was so sad to leave Singapore, and I wish we could have spent more time there. I feel that there is so much more to do there that we missed out on.


The coolest art installation was in Terminal 1: Kinetic Rain by ART+COM. Over a thousand copper-covered raindrops suspended from wires moved in choreographed patterns. So mesmerizing.


Changi even had an entire butterfly conservatory inside!



Up in the air.



Hong Kong again! Finally, our last foreign arrival.

Day 14: Last day in Singapore

This is the Raffles Hotel, named for Sir Stamford Raffles of Britain who founded Singapore in 1819.


Raffles' Long Bar is where the Singapore Sling cocktail was invented. Tempted to try one, but we had a full day of walking ahead of us.


We grabbed a few pots of tea and some scones instead.


Entrance to museums was free today because it was National Day, so we visited the National Museum of Singapore. Sometimes I like looking at the people who go to museums more than the exhibits themselves.




Kampong Glam was up next, an ethnically Malay and Muslim neighbourhood. Lots of restaurants, street vendors, delicious aromas and thick crowds.






Taxi-ing back at night, our last look at downtown Singapore.

Day 13: Chinatown and Sentosa

The day started in Chinatown. So many cute colourful houses here, like many other Singaporean neighbourhoods.


Strings of red paper lanterns floated over the vendors on the streets.


For lunch we went to Maxwell House, which had a similar indoor-market format to Lau Pa Sat. The vendor food in Singapore is seriously delicious, and extremely affordable.


A Singaporean specialty is Hainanese chicken rice.


And another is ice kachang, which is shaved ice over red bean, corn, and jelly, topped with syrups and coconut milk.


We took a monorail to Sentosa, an island resort. There are hotels, golf courses, a beach, and even a Universal Studios.


Palawan Beach, where you can access the southernmost point of continental Asia.


There were peacocks wandering around all over the island.


I really love aquariums, so we stopped by the Underwater World in Sentosa while we were there. Can't resist jellyfish.


Their shark tunnel had a travelator!