Shopping Finds

I am still in Singapore through the invitation of the Singapore Tourism Board for the ongoing Singapore Food Festival 2009 (till July 26, 2009) and through the recommendation of Stratworks, a dynamic marketing communications in the Philippines. (Thank you thank you)

I am supposed to be shopping on this FREE day but I am in the mood to work and show you the fun and exciting places I have been aside from the coverage I did for the Singapore Food Festival 2009. It’s not all work here,you know. Here are a set of short video clips that I took of some of the the activities of the Singapore Food festival.

Hotel Accommodations through Swissotel Merchant Court
For the past 4 days, my office is this cool table at my hotel room. I love how the electrical outlets are conveniently located when seated to my left.

It helped that I had a lovely view of the Clarke Quay, the venue of the Opening Ceremonies of the Singapore Food Festival 2009

I love the other basic amenities, the comfortable king-sized bed, the Lavazza coffee maker and an iPod deck so I have the right music to set me in the mood to work. It also helped that the hotel had a fast and reliable internet connection that made uploads of photos and videos so easy.

It’s a very compact hotel room with a beautiful view behind my table. It’s just right for business travelers like me. I feel so pampered here. I just wished they had more table space for my makeup and accessories. I guess most business travelers are men and don’t need all that table space. I placed mine at the bathroom.

Singapore Flyer

The Singapore Flyer is best experienced. Here is a video preview I took while I rode on it.

I thought I would have a problem with heights but since it took off really slowly, I didn’t feel it. Being in the Singapore Flyer gave me a bird’s eye view of the past and the future of Singapore.

Flying 165 meters up in the sky, I just loved the conversation as I gazed at the breathtaking view of the Singapore skyline. I am amazed at the development of Singapore in just a short number of years.

Read more about the discounts and packages for guests at SingaporeFlyer.com. Oh, you can dine inside too. When I was there, the car beside us was being prepared for a bridal dinner.

Fish Spa at the Kenko, Singapore Flyer
After the Singapore Flyer, my tour guide brought me for some fish spa experience right there at Kenko. It is nothing new to me because I tried Doctor Fish in 2007.

I found out their fishes came from Turkey. I chose medium sized fish to tickle my feet and finished the massage off with the larger fish on the other end of the spa.

It’s going to take more than 30 minutes of fish spa therapy to smoothen my thick soles but the massage action was very relaxing. I needed this break because I had a full-packed schedule ahead of me for my first day covering the Singapore Food Festival 2009.

Spa Experience at the Damai, Level 5, Grand Hyatt

I was looking forward to a relaxing sunday and the Damai does not fail me. See those blue lights? It is supposed to simulate waves of the water. As you walk past it, the lights move along with you making you feel you are passing waves of water. Really cool. I got the 90 minute Damai Orchid Massage which lulled me to sleep.

I really enjoyed the Damai Singapore Spa experience. I can really see how the spa brought in the cultural healing philosophies, techniques, and traditions of Chinese, Malay, Indian, and European cultures. They even had a meditation room just before the therapy started.

Shopping at Arab Street
What is Singapore if I don’t go shopping? But I was just here last June and bought quite a number of items at Orchard Road. This time, I wanted to try the inner communities like Arab Street.

Perhaps it was the constant exposure to Pernakan culture that it inspired me to buy ethnic inspired clothes. I got a fashionable tunic and lovely Chinese silk coat at Silk Studio which I think gave me a reasonable price compared if I got it at the shopping mall at Orchard Road.

Singapore Sling at the Long Bar, Raffles Hotel

Of course, Singapore Sling is something I should try even if I am allergic to alcohol. The Singapore Sling is a cocktail that was invented by Ngiam Tong Boon for the Long Bar in Raffles Hotel in Singapore sometime between 1910 and 1915; it is a kind of sling, a traditional type of cocktail.

The sad thing is I could only take 1/8 of the drink as I soon felt warm and flushed all over my head. I was afraid that Wee Toon Hee would be carrying me bodily to the hotel if I drank more. I really loved the taste though. It’s sweet and has no alcohol taste but still I felt myself spinning somehow.

And that my dear readers, is how I got to balance work and fun time in Singapore.

Now off I go to Manila so I can meet my daughter who is arriving from New York two hours after I arrive at the airport.

You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.