Wednesday 25 July
We only have 3 days left in Singapore and it's difficult to prioritise what we should do, but we decide to visit the Marina Bay Sands Hotel Complex, because on its 56th floor it has a Skypark open to the general public. At a cost of S$20, you can zip up in the lift at lightning speed and experience an amazing view of Singapore city.
The complex, developed by Las Vegas Sands, cost S$8 billion to build, including the cost of the land. It is constructed of 3 towers, each 57 stories high, joined at the top by a boat-shaped "sky-deck". Last night when we viewed the Singapore city night skyline from the waterfront with our Singaporian friends, Terence and Thiam Hock, this new icon building was a dominant feature, twinkling with a myriad of lights, symbolising the modern, successful, forward-looking Singapore.
The building includes the world's largest casino (which Singaporians are discouraged from using because they have to pay a S$100 entrance fee before they even think about placing a bet - foreigners don't) and a shopping mall with exclusive glitzy shops so expensive that "ordinary people" wouldn't even venture in. I feel sorry for the shop assistants as we walk past - I don't see a single customer in any of the shops. Still, I guess just one sale (a week, a day?) would justify their existence. There are some extraordinarily rich people about, and some of them are staying in this hotel, where there's an ice skating rink and theatres amongst other attractions.
There's no doubt that the view from the sky-deck is spectacular, We wander about, taking photographs like everyone else. At this point, I just want to detail a conversation I have with Reg, to show you what he's had to put up with during this past 3 and a half months.
Me: "It's lovely up here but where's that posh 3-towered building we saw from the harbour last night? I wanted to take a picture of it,"
Reg (incredulous): "You're standing on the top of it".
There's a little shop selling novelties (aimed at people like us - hotel guests have their own exclusive area of the skydeck, with swimming pool). There's a restaurant open to the general public, selling an expensive lunch; or you can have a drink at the gift shop, but there's no shade, and nowhere to sit - so there's no encouragement for people to stay on the skydeck for long. We didn't really have to queue to come up, and there's a continuous tide of people arriving, staying for a short while in the intense heat of the day, and then zipping down again in the lift.
It's one of those things I'm glad we do while we are in Singapore. Back on the ground floor, we pop into a smart cafe have a drink (a cappuccino for me and a green tea for Reg) plus a "posh cake"- a chocolate eclair for me and a fruit tart for Reg. There are a few high tables to sit at, and high counters bordering the room, and some tall silver bar stools - but not enough for everyone who's using the cafe, so some people are standing while consuming their refreshments. The eclair is lovely, though!
In a way we're on a tourist conveyor belt - doing the things people do who are visiting Singapore. Some of the attractions have been specifically designed with tourists in mind - in contrast, for example, to the "Great Wall of China" or other historic feature, where tourists visit something already there. One such tourist-orientated new attraction is surely The Garden by the Sea - only recently opened and really near the Marina Bay Sands hotel. We have a wander around, but Reg comments that this garden will be a lot better in a few years time, when it's had a chance to grow and mature.
What impression does Marina Bay leave us with? What is our reaction to this pristine, glamorous Singapore oozing money and the high-life? We know that we've only scratched the surface, but underneath this "dream house" without a "cushion" out of place, there must be a "home" - the community of the real Singapore. People living worthwhile lives, family-orientated, caring about others, trying to make a difference, interested in putting people first , and not just in "making a quick buck." Apparently, Singaporians work the longest hours in the world.
We only have 3 days left in Singapore and it's difficult to prioritise what we should do, but we decide to visit the Marina Bay Sands Hotel Complex, because on its 56th floor it has a Skypark open to the general public. At a cost of S$20, you can zip up in the lift at lightning speed and experience an amazing view of Singapore city.
The complex, developed by Las Vegas Sands, cost S$8 billion to build, including the cost of the land. It is constructed of 3 towers, each 57 stories high, joined at the top by a boat-shaped "sky-deck". Last night when we viewed the Singapore city night skyline from the waterfront with our Singaporian friends, Terence and Thiam Hock, this new icon building was a dominant feature, twinkling with a myriad of lights, symbolising the modern, successful, forward-looking Singapore.
The building includes the world's largest casino (which Singaporians are discouraged from using because they have to pay a S$100 entrance fee before they even think about placing a bet - foreigners don't) and a shopping mall with exclusive glitzy shops so expensive that "ordinary people" wouldn't even venture in. I feel sorry for the shop assistants as we walk past - I don't see a single customer in any of the shops. Still, I guess just one sale (a week, a day?) would justify their existence. There are some extraordinarily rich people about, and some of them are staying in this hotel, where there's an ice skating rink and theatres amongst other attractions.
There's no doubt that the view from the sky-deck is spectacular, We wander about, taking photographs like everyone else. At this point, I just want to detail a conversation I have with Reg, to show you what he's had to put up with during this past 3 and a half months.
Me: "It's lovely up here but where's that posh 3-towered building we saw from the harbour last night? I wanted to take a picture of it,"
Reg (incredulous): "You're standing on the top of it".
There's a little shop selling novelties (aimed at people like us - hotel guests have their own exclusive area of the skydeck, with swimming pool). There's a restaurant open to the general public, selling an expensive lunch; or you can have a drink at the gift shop, but there's no shade, and nowhere to sit - so there's no encouragement for people to stay on the skydeck for long. We didn't really have to queue to come up, and there's a continuous tide of people arriving, staying for a short while in the intense heat of the day, and then zipping down again in the lift.
It's one of those things I'm glad we do while we are in Singapore. Back on the ground floor, we pop into a smart cafe have a drink (a cappuccino for me and a green tea for Reg) plus a "posh cake"- a chocolate eclair for me and a fruit tart for Reg. There are a few high tables to sit at, and high counters bordering the room, and some tall silver bar stools - but not enough for everyone who's using the cafe, so some people are standing while consuming their refreshments. The eclair is lovely, though!
In a way we're on a tourist conveyor belt - doing the things people do who are visiting Singapore. Some of the attractions have been specifically designed with tourists in mind - in contrast, for example, to the "Great Wall of China" or other historic feature, where tourists visit something already there. One such tourist-orientated new attraction is surely The Garden by the Sea - only recently opened and really near the Marina Bay Sands hotel. We have a wander around, but Reg comments that this garden will be a lot better in a few years time, when it's had a chance to grow and mature.
What impression does Marina Bay leave us with? What is our reaction to this pristine, glamorous Singapore oozing money and the high-life? We know that we've only scratched the surface, but underneath this "dream house" without a "cushion" out of place, there must be a "home" - the community of the real Singapore. People living worthwhile lives, family-orientated, caring about others, trying to make a difference, interested in putting people first , and not just in "making a quick buck." Apparently, Singaporians work the longest hours in the world.
It is said that the architect of the Marina Bay Sands Hotel Complex, Moshie Safdie, was inspired by a deck of cards when designing it. We all know what happened in the Western world when the financial bubble burst, when the house of cards came tumbling down. To the tourist like myself, Singapore appears to be a stable, thriving society- even if it does have the largest casino in the world on its territory. Perhaps it's just sour grapes if anyone should dare to criticise any aspect of this glitzy society, especially if anyone should mention the widening gap between rich and poor. Due to public criticism of this widening gap, the Prime Minister of Singapore, Lee Hsien Loong, took a 36% pay cut in his salary in 2010, but he still earns 4 times the salary of the President of the USA.
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