Singapore 2

Dear All,
Today after indulging in a buffet breakfast courtesy of our hotel we were picked up by a mini bus that took us around Singapore via Little India where we picked up some other tourists to take us to the hop on hop off bus, This started near the giant wheel-the Singapore Flyer and the fantastic development Marina Bay Sands. This is not quite finished but we had read about it yesterday. This comprises three tower blocks of asymmetrical shapes that had an almost boat shaped roof garden that linked and extended beyond the three structures. This will include a five star hotel. We decided to do the bus journey without jumping off for the first trip. When we arrived at The National Art Gallery of Singapore we realized we had done the rest of the circuit on our initial trip to meet the tour so made this our end. This meant we arrived at a great time at the gallery. Once again our Senior's cards worked a treat. This is a wonderful gallery and this time had exhibitions of two artists who combined Eastern and Western traditions. Yeh Chi Wei was influenced by the colour and pattern of S.E. Asian textiles such as Ikat and Batik printing. He linked Chinese accuracy with Impressionist techniques. Wu Guanzhony worked in inks or oils often using a range of grey tones. He felt his works bridged East and West and was more than merely imitating tradition. He considered that his work invited emotional responses from all traditions. Afterwards we went to a the Art Garden part of a Children's Season at Singapore Art Museum. Initially was attracted to this by an excellent activity book. The exhibition included an enchanted room assemblage by Sandra Lee and an installation of Floribots by G Drake Brockman an Australian artist that include a room of sculpted robotic flowers that grew and then reverted to their original size. Hello Walter, a giant rabbit that pops up in common places was on the second level outside area of the gallery. After we jumped on the bus to have a relaxed panoramic view of Singapore on the SingaporeFlyer. This was my first experience on a giant wheel. We both loved it. We must come back and see the completion of all the new buildings. Our day in Singapore coincided with a rehearsal for their National Day in August. Huge numbers paraded in different coloured uniforms. We looked down on them at great height. Later we saw a parade of tanks - Singapore's military might. Because of blocked streets our next trip took a different route. There was no evidence of the floods of a couple of days ago. Managed to con the man on the bus to let us off at the stop of the local bus 36 which saved us an expensive taxi fare to our hotel. A Chinese lady on the bus told us about the PP store opposite us - this is Singapore's Chadstone. Had a look at the shops but am not really interested in shopping at the moment - and am certainly not the right size here. Had tea with the locals in the food court. Returned to our hotel via a giant pedestrian walkway over the busy roads to collect our luggage- change for our flight and to blog. Shuttle awaits. Thanks Gwen for enabling me to do this - a gigantic break through for me though my one or two finger typing is shown up by all around me.

Off to Europe
Cheers Jo