On to a Singapore Sunday!

 

Woke this morning about 4:30 am – and actually, Debby and I both got up about the same time! And it was definitely an overcast day.  But first … “dinner” Saturday night.

 

Neither of us were particularly hungry, so we decided to see what was available at the Executive Lounge at 5:30 pm.  Turns out, they had so much food, that it became dinner – there were different Asian noodle and rice dishes available – along with a variety of offerings from other countries – including mac and cheese for the Americans.  They had a nice cheese board, with a variety of breads along with fruits and tiny desserts.  More than enough for a meal.  They were serving both red and white wines, beer, and champagne along with non-alcoholic beverages.  I had a lovely glass of sauvignon blanc.  Debby had ginger ale.  I was so tired that I was ready for bed by 8 pm!

 

This morning, we had breakfast earlier than usual – about 7:30 am, and by the time it got light, we could tell that it was really going to be a rainy day!  (Be careful what you wish for, because after the full-on sun-day yesterday, we were lamenting the fact that the rain had gone away!  Can’t make some people happy, obviously!)  

 

Decided that today would be a good day to go to BattleBox, which is the underground bunker at Fort Canning where the British managed their side of the battle of Singapore; unsuccessfully, as it turned out.  Reserved tickets for 10 am, when they open.

 

Grabbed there about 9:30 am in the pouring rain – and were dropped off about 20 minutes later.  Fortunately, there was an overhang on the building which provided cover for us to wait until they opened the doors.  Once inside, we were checked in, and a very nice young man helped us to download a program on to our phones that would conduct us through the exhibit.  I had my ear buds, which worked to perfection (I’m still learning…) and they were even able to provide a connector so that Debby could use her plug-in ear-phones and hear everything perfectly!  They were truly kind and helpful, which was really appreciated!

 

We were led about 25 yards up the hill from the Visitor Center to the entry to the Bunker, where the audio tour began.  It was, in a word, fascinating; a combination of some signage, the audio tour, a movie, as well as a way to look at one room with colored glasses to see both the English perspective (blue lenses) and the Japanese (red lenses).  We worked our way through about 14 different rooms – the orderlies room, the signal room, the telephone room, the cypher room, etc. – all the places where the men worked providing information in and out on the on-going situation in Singapore.

In front of BattleBox

At entrance to the bunker

In the Orderlies room

Telecommunications center

Cypher center

Huge map where different colors explained the different sides

Looking at strategies as information came in

Final discussions before surrender

To briefly summarize the situation, very simplistically:  The British really believed that Singapore was the “Gibraltar of the East” and could never be taken.  However, in their hubris, they overlooked the determination and definitely the intelligence of their enemy – the Japanese. Turns out, the Japanese had an excellent spy system throughout Southeast Asia, and were aware that the British guns were trained – and all fortifications were aimed – facing toward the water, to fend off an attack that way.  The Japanese, however, came down the Malay peninsula – over land, and marched straight into Singapore.  It fell within two weeks.  While the British may have had the advantage in manpower – by about 3-1, they were dealing with a war-hardened fighting force that knew very well how to fight in the jungle.  The British commander unconditionally surrendered to avoid what he felt would be a full-scale slaughter of both troops and civilians.  Unfortunately, that really happened anyway, once the Japanese had possession of Singapore.  The atrocities were incredible, especially for the Chinese which the Japanese had been fighting since they invaded Manchuria several years earlier.  Thousands of civilians were summarily executed, and the misery continued until the end of the war in 1945.

 

It was a very moving experience.  Glad we went, but honestly, so sad.

 

After the tour, we Grabbed back to the hotel to drop a few things off and decide where to head next!  Debby has wanted to go shopping, so we decided to head to Bugis Street Market.  Took about 10 minutes to get there, and Wow!  It was amazing!  Lots of little stands and stalls in a covered market area, with lots and lots of “stuff” all around!  There were clothes and souvenirs, and shoes, and you name it, it was probably there!  What wasn’t there, however, was a tea towel, which Debby has been looking for!  (I got one at the Raffles Hotel, but that was for sentimental reasons…)  Deb is still looking, although she got a lovely Singapore coffee mug, and I got a Singapore t-shirt, so the trip was very successful!  Even better, they had a great food court, where we got lunch!

 

Bugis Street Market - very busy!

Lots of stuff!

Told Debby NO body piercing 

Debby buying her mug!

Lovely ladies at lunch!

My fabulous chicken chop fried rice

Deb's chicken rice with soup

Across the street from Bugis Street Market

I got “Chicken chop fried rice” and Deb got “Chicken rice” which came with soup.  My fried rice was absolutely fabulous – and as you can see from the photo, there was a lot of food, very tasty, and all of $7 Singapore dollars – about $5.45 US.  Deb loved her chicken, rice and chicken soup, which she ended up mixing together very successfully!  We sat next to four really lovely Singaporean ladies who were having lunch, and very kindly answered our questions as to how to proceed at this particular food court! 

 

Back to the hotel after this for a rest (much needed, as we were up at 4:30 am) and now I’m blogging before we get picked up at 5 pm for our wild and crazy evening out!

 

Tonight we’re taking a small tour (15 people) with Viator – boat trip on the river, then a ride through town with a couple of stops, and then two evening light shows!  Not sure what to expect, but we will definitely find out soon!

 

So, see you in a bit!

Lots of love for now!

m

xxx

PS - Got back at 10 pm and am too tired other than to post this; more tomorrow!