Entry #8 Melbourne & Singapore: May 9 - May 19, 2019
Greetings from Melbourne & Singapore!
For the past 3 months we have lived a wonderfully nomadic life. It makes us smile to see the kids transition effortlessly as we drift through different countries, time zones, climates and cuisines. They appear to be unfazed by the disorienting routine of calling a new location “home” every couple of days. Change has been constant and we have loved it.
When we left New Zealand we made another significant shift, from the natural wide open spaces to the crowded concrete jungle of big city living in Melbourne and Singapore. And, like the troopers they are, the kids have morphed back into city slickers - appreciating the many wonderful opportunities in these two amazing places.
We started by landing in Melbourne. We opted for a good old backpacker’s hostel right in the core of the city. Melbourne is such a walkable city because there is something exciting to be found on every corner. The city fuses together historic buildings with modern architecture, elegant little lanes filled with Parisian styled bistros and artfully defaced graffiti covered alleys.
The best part was discovering how many monuments, museums, galleries and even streetcars were completely free of charge! It says a lot about a place when the city ensures open access to spaces that promote learning and a love of the arts.
We spent lots of time wandering through the Victoria State Library which housed a fantastic collection of ancient texts and modern literary treasures. We whispered our way through a game of chess and climbed the many floors to get the best view.
The National Gallery of Victoria was also fantastic! A great place to escape the rain and try the mind bending activity of making sense of modern art.
It’s always such a treat to connect with a long lost friend, and we got the chance to hang out with Lee’s friend Steve who graciously gave us an incredible tour of his hometown. From strolling on the boardwalk at St. Kilda’s to stalking wild kangaroos in Breswick, to family visits and even a night out on the town, we so appreciated being together to see the sights and reconnect.
Melbourne is a genuinely warm, inviting, and exciting city. It has such a great vibe and is filled diversity in every sense. It was a short visit, but well worth the trip!
Our next stop was Singapore. Lee and I had been charmed by this uber clean, culturally diverse and modern city 10 years ago and we knew the kids would have fun exploring its varied districts. We settled ourselves into Little India - an area we had loved a decade ago - and it was just as vibrant (and delicious) as we remembered.
It was hot! Not since our time in Sri Lanka did we have to contend with this kind of heat. So we made sure to have creative escapes from the oppressive sun. This included going to the movies and joining in the Pokemon craze.
Then we soaked up the AC in the cavernous lobby of the famous Marina Bay Sands Hotel, and then went and actually got soaked in a super fun splash pad in the Gardens by the Bay.
We also spent the day at Singapore’s enormous S.E.A. Aquarium on Sentosa Island. This aquarium has the second largest tanks in the world, so visitors can by hypnotized by a swarm of sharks at feeding time, and then chill out in front of a meditative scene of giant manta rays flying through water.
Some of the most memorable activities revolved around futuristic light shows. When evening comes at the Gardens by the Bay, visitors flock to the Grove of Super Trees. Think… the landscape of AVATAR! We laid down on the pavement and had a perfect view of massive illuminated towers that were covered in living flowers and vines.
Their soft glow and twinkling lights against the curtain of the night sky made it a dream-like image… until the full spectrum of their illumination came to life in a brilliant light show choreographed to a medley of 70’s music! We were spellbound by the sight and had a blast rocking out with the classic disco tunes!
Another spectacle of lights was the entertaining animatronics of the Crane Dance at Sentosa Island. This show included fireworks and very clever fountains of water that created the illusion of flapping wing on the robotic birds that could extend as tall as a 10 story building.
Singapore is phenomenal! We grew to appreciate it even more a decade after making our first visit and we were as wide-eyed and impressed as ever!
In some ways, Singapore is perfectly manicured, organized and sleek; in other ways, it has colour, crowd and chaos. We loved it all!
As impressive as Singapore can be, from its architecture, and cleanliness, to the way it can stitch together its ever evolving modernity with its historic roots, one of the best things about Singapore has to be the food! Hunger had nothing to do with meals. We would take any excuse to try the multitude of delicious options we’d come across, from satay in hawkers markets to dim sum in nice restaurants, to our favourite… dosas from the eateries in Little India.
The only thing that can top the mouthwatering fare of Singapore, is the food heaven that is Thailand. And that’s where we are right now, in the wonderful company of our good friend's Yosi and Anya who moved to Thailand from Toronto last year! We have just arrived and we already know this place will steal our hearts and widen our bellies! And we couldn’t be happier!!!
Sending lots of love ~ The Zwaigens
For the past 3 months we have lived a wonderfully nomadic life. It makes us smile to see the kids transition effortlessly as we drift through different countries, time zones, climates and cuisines. They appear to be unfazed by the disorienting routine of calling a new location “home” every couple of days. Change has been constant and we have loved it.
When we left New Zealand we made another significant shift, from the natural wide open spaces to the crowded concrete jungle of big city living in Melbourne and Singapore. And, like the troopers they are, the kids have morphed back into city slickers - appreciating the many wonderful opportunities in these two amazing places.
We started by landing in Melbourne. We opted for a good old backpacker’s hostel right in the core of the city. Melbourne is such a walkable city because there is something exciting to be found on every corner. The city fuses together historic buildings with modern architecture, elegant little lanes filled with Parisian styled bistros and artfully defaced graffiti covered alleys.
The best part was discovering how many monuments, museums, galleries and even streetcars were completely free of charge! It says a lot about a place when the city ensures open access to spaces that promote learning and a love of the arts.
We spent lots of time wandering through the Victoria State Library which housed a fantastic collection of ancient texts and modern literary treasures. We whispered our way through a game of chess and climbed the many floors to get the best view.
The National Gallery of Victoria was also fantastic! A great place to escape the rain and try the mind bending activity of making sense of modern art.
It’s always such a treat to connect with a long lost friend, and we got the chance to hang out with Lee’s friend Steve who graciously gave us an incredible tour of his hometown. From strolling on the boardwalk at St. Kilda’s to stalking wild kangaroos in Breswick, to family visits and even a night out on the town, we so appreciated being together to see the sights and reconnect.
Melbourne is a genuinely warm, inviting, and exciting city. It has such a great vibe and is filled diversity in every sense. It was a short visit, but well worth the trip!
Our next stop was Singapore. Lee and I had been charmed by this uber clean, culturally diverse and modern city 10 years ago and we knew the kids would have fun exploring its varied districts. We settled ourselves into Little India - an area we had loved a decade ago - and it was just as vibrant (and delicious) as we remembered.
It was hot! Not since our time in Sri Lanka did we have to contend with this kind of heat. So we made sure to have creative escapes from the oppressive sun. This included going to the movies and joining in the Pokemon craze.
Then we soaked up the AC in the cavernous lobby of the famous Marina Bay Sands Hotel, and then went and actually got soaked in a super fun splash pad in the Gardens by the Bay.
We also spent the day at Singapore’s enormous S.E.A. Aquarium on Sentosa Island. This aquarium has the second largest tanks in the world, so visitors can by hypnotized by a swarm of sharks at feeding time, and then chill out in front of a meditative scene of giant manta rays flying through water.
Some of the most memorable activities revolved around futuristic light shows. When evening comes at the Gardens by the Bay, visitors flock to the Grove of Super Trees. Think… the landscape of AVATAR! We laid down on the pavement and had a perfect view of massive illuminated towers that were covered in living flowers and vines.
Their soft glow and twinkling lights against the curtain of the night sky made it a dream-like image… until the full spectrum of their illumination came to life in a brilliant light show choreographed to a medley of 70’s music! We were spellbound by the sight and had a blast rocking out with the classic disco tunes!
Another spectacle of lights was the entertaining animatronics of the Crane Dance at Sentosa Island. This show included fireworks and very clever fountains of water that created the illusion of flapping wing on the robotic birds that could extend as tall as a 10 story building.
Singapore is phenomenal! We grew to appreciate it even more a decade after making our first visit and we were as wide-eyed and impressed as ever!
In some ways, Singapore is perfectly manicured, organized and sleek; in other ways, it has colour, crowd and chaos. We loved it all!
As impressive as Singapore can be, from its architecture, and cleanliness, to the way it can stitch together its ever evolving modernity with its historic roots, one of the best things about Singapore has to be the food! Hunger had nothing to do with meals. We would take any excuse to try the multitude of delicious options we’d come across, from satay in hawkers markets to dim sum in nice restaurants, to our favourite… dosas from the eateries in Little India.
The only thing that can top the mouthwatering fare of Singapore, is the food heaven that is Thailand. And that’s where we are right now, in the wonderful company of our good friend's Yosi and Anya who moved to Thailand from Toronto last year! We have just arrived and we already know this place will steal our hearts and widen our bellies! And we couldn’t be happier!!!
Sending lots of love ~ The Zwaigens
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