I didn't do much research on this country so I did not have many expectations, but as the poet Eli Khamarov points out, "the best things in life are unexpected." I thought my life was complete after seeing the Sydney Opera House--then came the Esplanade in Singapore. The Esplanade is the Singaporean version of the Sydney Opera House, and this performing arts venue looks like a durian, an exotic fruit from Southeast Asia. The Youth Olympics also took place when I was in Singapore and I was fortunate to see the fireworks during the closing ceremony. Singapore was the place where I had my first visit to a fish spa as well. That experience was amazing! You put your feet down in this small pond and let your mind think that many small doctor fish eat your dead cells away, slowly. I also went to Singapore’s famous Night Safari (open from 7 p.m. to midnight). It was a nice experience to be on their 40-minute tram because I felt like I was in Africa! It's funny because some tourists were taking pictures with their flash on. Really? Come on people, it's a night safari, why would you want to attrach the animals? The animals were not heavily barricaded and some like hogs only had a few sticks protecting them from "flashy" tourists.

One of the things I will always remember about Singapore is getting there in the first place. My flight from Sydney to here took a LONG time not because of the duration of the flight, but a passenger got reallyl sick! I sat across her at the waiting terminal and she seemed fine, but once the pilot introduced himself, she started to feel very ill. The pilots turned off everything and wait for the ambulance to come. I sure hope she's ok. Ok, moving on, food..food! O.m.g food in Singapore are so good! My experience in this country was so amazing because of the food! You see a food court or stall on every block, literally. I remember being confused and frustrated because there were so many choices! Not only are they cheap, but they're food to die for! I loved the feeling of rushing in a food court, paying a few dollars, and enjoying the delicious food while bathing in the sun.

Everyone knows about the no gum-chewing policy in Singapore, but did you know that once convicted of a crime, you cannot defend yourself? It's only a matter of sentencing. The phrase "innocent until proven guilty" does not apply there. My cousin, who is working in Singapore for Yahoo, told me that practicing law is difficult in Singapore. Law practitioners usually work to lower the sentence instead of refuting the crime. Another interest thing is that Singaporean will not say "yes" if they agree, instead, they'll say "can." So, if you asked "Do you like me?" they'll answer "Can" haha! Oh, if you ever come here, you should definitely go to CBD (commerical business district) and take pictures of the skyline and the Merlion. The Botanical Garden is really BIG! All tourists go to the Marina Bay Sands and Flyer, the two biggest attractions and the best thing is that they are all next to each other! Check out the massage parlors too, they're pretty cool. I never had a massage and this was my first time! Dang, it seemed like I did everything for the first time here (spa, massage, aloe vera, real satay on a stick, night safari!). I remember that the masseuse had a hard time with me because she said my legs were nothing but bones! She also said she knew I was runner from the density of my bones haha! She then "tried" to massage my back but I didn't let her because it was so ticklish!