March 18th - Singapore

This is the dreaded durian....it looks fairly innocuous, doesn't it?

Enjoying Singapore Slings at Raffles Hotel.

The durian survivors....Ruthanne, Chuck, Marilyn, Don, Larry and Susan.

This very structured society is a bustling center for trade and the hub of the finance and business worlds of the Far East. The government of Singapore seems to be obsessed with cleanliness, orderliness and spoon-feeding its docile citizenry with social guidelines for “the greater good.” These strictures cover everything from courtesy to family size. Society and public discourse are kept on a tight rein compared to the West and there are fines for littering, spitting and other social misdemeanors. Fines are such a commonplace feature of the country that Singapore is often referred to, tongue-in-cheek, as the world’s “finest” city! The government provides housing for 80% of the population and helps them to actually own their units.

Our guide, Elsie, took us to a bakery where we sampled what is regarded as a delicacy in Singapore and Malaysia….a pastry containing durian. Durian is an expensive fruit that is banned from restaurants, hotels and CRUISE SHIPS (!!) because of its hideous and pervasive odor. It is also an acquired taste that most of us in the West do not have. The man tending the “Rich & Good Cake Shop” seemed reluctant to sell these coveted food items to us for fear that we would spit them out and throw them away. (We would have been in BIG trouble…. remember…. spitting is against the law here!) He didn’t want them to be wasted! So we had no choice but to finish every crumb! Then he told us not to drink any alcohol because it can cause a chemical reaction that can cause death!! (Yeah…thanks for telling us BEFORE we ate them…)

After enjoying buying sprees in Chinatown and Little India, a boat ride on the Singapore River, a Chinese lunch (we were able to opt for either forks or chopsticks!), a visit to the orchid house at the Botanical Gardens, and a visit to a Mosque in the old part of town, (whew!!) we appropriately topped the day off with Singapore Slings at the Long Bar at Raffles Hotel where the drink originated….a very civilized ending to an action-packed day! (Elsie assured us that enough time had gone by that the durian wouldn’t do us in!)