HAPPY NEW YEAR! Singapore: Fireworks

Just in case you missed seeing traditional fireworks on New Year's Eve, here is a short video/set of photos (as it doesn't seem to work as video!) of some of the firework display in Singapore, taken from the balcony of our hotel room:

Singapore: Gardens by the Bay

Gardens by the Bay from the Singapore Skywheel

 David's inspiration for wanting to visit Singapore was a picture of the Gardens by the Bay... these are quite spectacular gardens: thanks to the climate there are orchids growing everywhere, the design shows a lot of variety in garden styles from different cultures, and it's just a beautiful place with great views!



Then there are the two 'cool conservatories' to give the sweaty visitor some relief and more variety - the big one (photo below) is again a variety of plants from around the world, including an Australian section (!), the taller one is a 'cloud forest', with incredibly high humidity inside just like where the mountain gorillas live... when the 'cloud' appears (thanks to thousands of mist sprays) you can hardly see... anyway, all brilliantly done, beautiful and very interesting.

And then there are the 'super trees', which are actually ecological features providing solar power and effectively acting as cooling towers for the conservatories... and they look surreal and spectacular too.

And just to totally freak you out and add to the surreal feel of the gardens, there's this 9-metre-long floating baby...

Singapore December 2013: family photos at dinner

Some family photos for Natalie:
First night in Singapore... Boxing Day - we arrived late afternoon and found the hotel, which is above a shopping mall. On the ground floor there is a large food court/market area and we had dinner in a Japanese cafe/restaurant called Osaka Ohsho - lovely!