Singapore

So our mates aren't with us today as they've headed back home. But didn't stop us from having a full day.

Breakfast was from when we got up and wandered downstairs. Luckily they know the room 2217 breakfast compications so we were waved through thankfully as we were ready to share the full story. Again :/

I can't beilieve I pack in so many carbs on holidays - toast with ham and cheese and tomato; coffee; pancakes with maple syrup; coffee; vegemite toast...and while having brekky we planned our Little India day.

A quick MRT ride to Little India station. But it's been pouring here for days so everything is a little cooler, a little slower and a lot wetter. We poured out of the MRT startion and immediately hit the Saturday morning streetside markets - not the Tekka Centre at this stage. So, stalls of beautiful shiny fresh produce: so many types of eggplants, herbs, fresh legumes,still in their pods, salad stuff, root vegetables - potatoes, turnips, beetroots, pink carrots, cauliflowers, gourds, okra, cabbages, tomatoes it was so pretty :)

Every second stall were fresh flowers and leaves for garlands and then the grocery stores at the back selling stainless steel cooking implements, indian groceries and snacks, nirvana gear and saris.

We crossed the road in the rain to the Tekka Centre to the wet markets. Always a treat to see more local produce. I'm always happy to give the chicken and red meat a miss but the seafood section was glorious - so many colours (sorry, dead fish but they were beautiful). Really fresh fish, prawns, crabs. squid and fish from tiny silver beer snack anchovies to big tunas. Silver, blue, yellow, turquise, grey, white, pink, black, green, orange. So many colurs. The only thing I didn't like were the little sharks - I dont know why, but the big tray of fish heads on offer for fish head curry wasn't a problem - go figure.

The vegetable section was pretty similar to what we'd passed in the street so we ended up buying some red and yellow cherry tomatoes, a cucumber and some mangosteens for our eat-in-dining here in our room. We are starting to miss cooking home cooked meals. Like the hawker centres are great and cheap but it doesn't replace home cooking when you get to a certain stage of your travels.

Upstairs at the Tekka Centre I was on my quest for dupattas - no luck - but so many beautiful sparkly things for so cheap it's overwhelming. And like, when am I going to wear this lovely stuff? Move on Jane....

A walk to the Mustafa Centre past a long shopping strip of Indian shops selling mens' clothing, toys, gadgets, junk, religious stuff, junk, saris, shoes, tyres, junk, furntiure, mobile phones, junk. And tailors which was cool. Using their machines with bobbins and cottons and ribbons to make and repair clothing. And a lot of music..

So the Mustafa Centre. I bought 3 batiks for tablecloths which ended up being polyester so hmm, shit, but at least they will last and were cheap. Ho hum..

Back to the Tekka Centre for a biryani lunch. A huge mound of rice with chicken leg/thigh, cucumber pickes, dahl and a boiled egg. And a beer.

We thought it was too early to go back to the hotel so we ventured down to the Indian Cultural Centre which was basically an Indian museum which was very interesting. Funny, it was SIN 8 per adult but they gave us the seniors rate without us even asking or us showing our seniors card for SIN 5; so funny.

Some very modern museum displays of Singapore as a colony and the Indian figures and presence. Then a floor of magnificent sculptures, paintings and jewellery and textiles. A Pakistani blue tiled doorway and a Chennai wooden carved doorway were the highlights

Back to the hotel for R&R and drinks. A shared pizza across the road for dinner and off to bed soon.

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