Raffles

Back at the hotel for a quick shower, change of clothes and an aperitif in the bar we booked a taxi to take us to Raffles Hotel for our dinner reservation in the Courtyard restaurant and secretly praying it wouldn't rain. We had a two course meal with lovely starters of Wasabi Tiger Prawns and Vegetable Spring Rolls, followed by Rigatoni Carbonara for Jayne and a Paccheri Pasta for me. All washed down with a glass of Louis Latour Bourgogne Rouge and also a Carrot Walnut Cake for Jayne. Total cost SG$ 199.03 or £119.15 in real money. We then went upstairs and joined the small queue to go into the Raffles Long Bar and partake in a world-famous Singapore Gin Sling. widely regarded as the national drink, was first mixed in 1915. Today, the rich, earthy decor of the two-storey bar is inspired by Malayan life in the 1920s, and the famous counter gleams amid decorative motifs that transport us to a tropical plantation. As a non Gin drinker, I must say, was delicious. The surprise of the holiday for Jayne came when I started eating Monkey nuts and as tradition states in keeping with the relaxed atmosphere, guests are invited to brush peanut shells off the bar and onto the floor – quite possibly the only place in Singapore where littering is encouraged.Read more