Dis-organised

Squeezing the eraser,
I try removing the grids,the numbers, the red and black,
but the black lines keep reappearing ,
the grids form  and the numbers slowly attack.

After that month,that sheet is flipped or torn,
hidden till it resurrects after another three sixty five days.
That date and month will haunt you mercilessly till you are reborn,
the days of the month shift silently like a pack of wolves and preys,

Why can't there be infinite months, infinite dates,
not one single combination to repeat.
make new memories unassociated with numbers ,as a new sun awaits.
let it remain loose ended ,continuous and incomplete.

Merlion Memories : Visit to Singapore : Days 5&6

Day 5 : Universal Studios Singapore and Chinatown

There was a sense of calm in the morning as we has already booked the tickets to USS the day before/ After a very quick breakfast (not much to expect after having stayed at the same hotel for the last three days of course),we took the MRT to Harbor Front and the Sentosa Express from the fourth floor of the VivoCity Mall. USS opens at 10 am ,and we were there by eleven am. A mandatory picture by the rotating globe (logo) of Universal Studios and a map in hand , we were ready and excited to explore what Hollywood had to offer! The Theme park is divided by themes : Hollywood, Sci-Fi City, Ancient Eygpt,The lost world, Far Far Away land and Madagascar (as my memory recalls). Hollywood had characters from Seaseme street and we went on a Spaghetti chase with them (well, I'm too grown up for the Big Bird) , There was a ride in a one-room movie set ,it was bought to life when they simulated a tornado destruction(narrated by Steven Spielberg) Good !.We watched live shows of Monster Rock and some dancers who did some kick ass B-Boying and Hip-Hop. The Sci-Fi City was next ,and the transformers fan in me could wait to take the ride. The Transformer ride was brilliant. Very well done and just a joy ! We fought Megatron and the decepticons. Wohoo! This ride is the best pick of all the rides! Must not miss under any circumstances. The battlestar Galactica Roller coasters looked like a thrilling ride, but it was closed for maintenance that day. Bad luck. To avoid any more rush, we moved back to Madagascar right after quick lunch. The Madagascar characters are my favorite and the merchandise was very adorable, was too tempted to buy them all ! The crate ride was good. We entered Far Far Away land with the Shrek and his folks. The mini roller coaster ride was fun. The 4-D adventure of Shrek would have been much more enjoyable if not for our stupidity of picking the wrong seats ! We sat in seats in the middle portion, only to realize in the end that it has restricted movement designed intentionally for young kids who'd get scared otherwise! A little disappointed. We entered ancient Egypt, and the ride was mind-blowing. It was thrilling and scary as it plunges you into darkness! Another ride one shouldn't miss. The lost world had a ride where you get completely drenched in water. Lucky that we were carrying rain coats(it was a gloomy day in SG) , thus they came handy. Ponchos were provided for 10SGD as well. Was a good ride ! Some more photos with good merchandise! Exhausted but very content. Thank you Universal Studios Singapore !

We really did “Ride the Movies” .

Late evening already and one place that was checked off in our list. Chinatown. Took the metro to Chinatown and started with the intention of window shopping,but ended up buying quite a bit. The oriental Chinese work was new to us and very interesting. Dragged our tired feet home. A day well-spent.

Day 6 : Mustafa Center and departure from SG

Last day at Singapore and it felt good. I loved the place,don't get me wrong , this is to say I was more than content with what Singapore had to offer. Our flight was at 4pm,giving us some time in the morning. Having heard a LOT about the Mustafa Center at Little India,we decided to visit it. Mustafa Center is a shopping Mall that roofs everything from hardware to clothes for a discounted price and is open 24 hours. Huge warning on very bad facilities management here . I did find some reasonably priced phones and other electronics ,might be worth picking up . We were back in time for lunch and took the cab to the airport. Hadn't mentioned previously in my post (Day 1) , but Changi Airport is huge and very well-maintained ! Explore the vast airport before boarding the flight.

Reviews :

-- Plan a visit to Universal Studios on a weekday to avoid long queues for rides.

-- Carry a Rain Coat/poncho to save on further expenses of buying a poncho for the rides that would drench you.

-- Carry lunch if possible ,eating at USS might be slightly expensive.

--Lockers to keep baggage for some of the rides(namely at ancient Egypt) are free for the initial 45 minutes and cost 10SGD for the following hour. Plan well to avoid excess expenditure.

-- Souvenir shopping on streets of Chinatown and Bugis appealed more to me than in Mustafa Shopping Center.

     Thank you Singapore for a wonderful time !

Merlion Memories : Visit to singapore : Day 4

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Day 4 : MacRitchie Reservoir, S.E.A aquarium and Songs of the Sea.

   This was by far the best day in the travelogue. We set out earlier than usual to get to MacRitchie Reservoir for a hike. Took a bus , but got off the wrong stop and asked around for our way . Although traveling by bus is straightforward , the metros are more convenient. We started our hike from the reservoir. A vast dam reservoir were activities like still water kayaking and canoeing  can be done as well (well,of course you need to be one star certified to rent a kayak). A board of the many well-marked hiking routes caught our attention but we choose the hike to the treetop walk. The hike was a slight climb and the tall trees kept the shade. Quite a number of people were hiking , running the incline and even practicing some tai chi. It is a good 5km walk (seemed like more somehow) to the tree top walk. Hikes always make me happy,this was happy till we saw the sign . We hiked a good five km to reach the tree top walk only to find out that it is closed on Mondays .very bad planning on our part. The tree top walk looked beautiful nonetheless and I heard from a couple of localities there that they have a guided tours on the last Saturday of every month where one can spot the feathered visitors . As compared to have trekked only in India,this is my first to notice well marked routes and even a ranger station , the facilities at the rangers station was very kept , I couldn't help but draw the comparison with bad facilities even in a city bus stop in India . Generally the hike ends at Bukit Timah national park , on the other side of the treetop walk. Unable to complete the hike at Bukit Timah, we traced our way back and but instead walked on tar roads alongside the Singapore Island Country Club . Took a bus back to Little India and gobbled up some good food and masala tea.

        The next destination was S.E.A aquarium ,Sentosa resorts and Universal Studios . We went around in little India asking for good prices for the tickets . It's rather expensive otherwise ,75SGD for USS. One of the travel agents gave us a good deal of all these three inclusive for 99SGD. Happy with the reduced rates ,we took the MRT to Harbor front and took the Sentosa express to the island . First up South East Asian aquarium,the world's largest aquarium. The marine life at its finest,this place is a must visit and the fishes look happy as well. My favorites were the eels and the baby sharks . It was very touristy as well though with a lot of flash photography and videos being taken. After spending close to 2 hours at the aquarium, we took the metro which runs within Sentosa to the beach station and joined the long queue to catch seats for the songs of the sea show. It is a light and sound show on the beach. Was enjoyable,but kids would enjoy it a lot more and this is when the song of "Singapooora Singapooora" caught on.

Reviews -

-- MacRitchie- start off early to hike,can avoid the hot sun as well. Make sure to check when the treetop walk is open. They claim that many migratory birds can be spotted,carry along a binoculars.

-- Find travel operators in Little India or Chinatown  to get discounted rates for Universal studios and activities at sentosa island. 

Hiking Routes at MacRitchie  :

Glimpse of marine life at S.E.A Aquarium :

 Eels :

Sharks :