Japan and Singapore

Another brief trip to Japan and Singapore. Notably, this was the last trip to Asia before COVID changed everything. When we traveled, there was talk of a flu virus moving around parts of China. Two weeks later, masks became mandatory in APAC workplaces. A few weeks after that, things shut down.

Singapore

At long last, Anna made it to Singapore. I traveled across the Pacific via Japan; she traveled across the Atlantic via London. The heat and the travel time took a lot out of us, but I got to show her some of my favorite places. The city-state was festively decorated for the upcoming Lunar New Year (Year of the Rat).

I finally made it to the playground of Sentosa, best reached by cable car. In addition to luxury resorts and theme parks, the island is also the home of Fort Siloso, the colonial-era defensive works now home to a World War II museum. A fun way to avoid the climb up to the Fort is taking the elevated Skywalk. It is easily accessible by elevator, which is good because the website says it is 11-stories high.

Other sightseeing included the undulating pedestrian bridge of Henderson Waves and a Singapore Sling at the historic Raffles hotel (touristy, as expected). The food stalls are more popular due to the Crazy Rich Asians film. I also love the Muslim Quarter neighborhood of Kampong Gelam and no visit is complete without a night walk at the Gardens by the Bay. Anna took in the Botanic Gardens while I was working, seeing unique orchids named after celebrities like Margaret Thatcher and the Obamas. Alas, the Singaporean Art Museum was closed for renovation.

And it would not be Singapore without the rules.

Strangely, the Changi Airport is always a fascinating visit and well worth allowing extra time. This time, it hosted displays from the Peranakan Museum. The term “Peranakan” refers to an ethnic group of mixed heritage where someone from abroad moved to Singapore and married someone locally. Most often, this was Chinese traders marrying a local Malay or Indonesian woman. The resulting art and neighborhoods from these blended cultures are distinctly Singaporean.

Since our visit, the Peranakan Museum reopened in a permanent location

parkrun

While in Japan and Singapore, I took the opportunity to visit new parkrun sites: Futako-Tamagawa in Japan and East Coast Park in Singapore. While I am still not a running fan, parkrun remains a great way to see other parts of a country, meet like-minded locals (and fellow travelers), and get outside.

As it was, Futako-Tamagawa became (and remains) my fastest parkrun time ever – much to my surprise. East Coast Park began earlier than usual parkrun times (East Coast started at 7.30am) to avoid the sultry Equatorial heat. While it was still broiling level temperatures, the course afforded a view of all the cargo ships parked outside the harbor.