| Hightlights |
The area north of New Bridge Road is Singapore's Chinatown which is a fascinating area to wander around with its maze of streets, shops and stalls. Singapore's most interesting temples are the Thian Hock Keng Temple on Telok Ayre Street, the Sultan Mosque on North Bridge Road (biggest mosque in Singapore), Temple of a Thousand Lights (15 metre seated Buddha) and the Hindu Temple on Serangoon Road. The National Museum is the best place to learn about Singapore's unique history.
One of Singapore's main attractions is the incredible diversity of restaurants on offer, from the extremely plush options in the famous five star hotels to the more colourful Chinese night market restaurants where ordering a meal, without a true comprehension of Cantonese or Mandarin, is an exciting, different and more often than not rewarding experience. Singapore has a large selection of parks and gardens including fine botanical gardens on Clung and Holland Roads. The zoo is one of the best in Asia, with the world's biggest aviary and largest collection of South East Asian birds, as well as birds from Arctic dwellers to birds of paradise, flamingos and vultures. Shopping is certainly one of the main attractions when visiting Singapore with a number of excellent bargains to be had: Clothes are cheap, carpets, electrical goods, Chinese, Indian, Malay, Balinese and Filipino antiques, silks, spices, food, perfume, silverware are all good value - as long as you do a little research and watch out for fakes you will enjoy a very large selection of goods on offer. Raffles Hotel is 'a must'! Although not the most luxurious of hotels anymore it is regarded as Singapore's most historic monument. You can sip a 'Singapore Sling' at the Writer's Bar or enjoy 'a cuppa' on the lawn!
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| Country Facts |
Singapore is an island at the southern tip of the Malaysian peninsular; thriving on international trade, banking, tourism, a fast growing light industrial set-up and hard work, the island has grown to support one of the world's most unique societies. Singapore City is known to be the cleanest city in the world (which is hardly surprising seeing that dropping a Mars bar wrapper can result in a jail sentence!), the population is a colourful mixture of Chinese (76%), Malay (15%), Indian (7%) and 2% of any and every nationality you can imagine from South American to Polynesian to 'ex-pat' British. The 238 sq. mile island is located no more than 60 miles north of the equator and has the climate to match. |