August 20, 2012

Singapore in 2 weeks


My travel to Singapore last June 11-June 23 was awesome. Even if I traveled alone, I never experienced any boredom there. Singapore is a fine city. Even if you walk at night, you will feel secured and safe. For 2 weeks, I enjoyed walking around and appreciating the beauty of Singapore. Also, the city is so small you can tour just by walking.. I did that.. walking from Lavender to Little India, then Bugis, then City Hall. Amazing right? That's Singapore. Every place is so close to each other.

Talk about Malls. Singapore is the place to be. I've went to every Malls in the City. My favorite is Suntec City Mall because it is huge and it has the largest fountain the world, the Fountain of Youth. 









Sim Lim Square is my favorite among electronics mall, because of it is cheap but I advise you research first and canvas before buying. Some are not credible. Ask the reception in the ground floor of where to buy your product. They told me that the stores with "STAR" mark in their floor are the ones who are credible. So watch out. For myself, I bought itouch in 'Song Brothers' in the ground floor. They are cheap and credible.



 I also went to Merlion Park, The Esplanade Theater, the Singapore Flyer, and of course, my ever loved Marina Bay Sands. Unfortunately, I don't have someone to accompany me on top of it. Maybe next time I will go there and see what's in the top of Marina Bay. I heard there is infinity pool. Wow.










Temples? I am not a fan of visiting Temples when touring but in Singapore, with lots of time, I visited EVERY temple in the city. Not actually on purpose, but because I usually walk, I took the chance to see them. In fairness, I enjoyed some of them.









I recommend to go to Chinatown if you are looking for the cheapest souvenirs like keychains, magnets, shirts, and other Singapore items. Little India is ideal if you are only food tripping, but you can't see any special in this place for sight-seeing.






The hawker foods in Singapore are just the best! I visited one of the top hawker food courts in the city, Maxwell Centre in Chinatown. Usually one serving is good for 2-3 persons so if you will have a food trip, go find someone with you. I didn't taste everything in the top list of hawker foods, maybe next time. I'm referring to this list -- http://www.cnngo.com/singapore/none/40-singapore-foods-we-cant-live-without-810208

 






 

That's it!

I really enjoyed my trip in Singapore. 

I'm sure I will be back in Singapore with friend/s next time! 

I would love to!

Alexey Shved


I love Ricky Rubio before because of his flashy style in Spain.

Now, I am really hooked to Russian guard, Alexey Shved. I see him play in this London Olympics 2012 games. I'm officially a fan. He got the moves, the style, and he is a shooter.

I can't wait to see him play in the NBA next season. 

Joining Love and Rubio in Wolves, great! 

Good Luck!



"Multiply" to close in December

I am really sad that multiply will close soon.. this is the only website where I upload ALL my photos. Well, I guess I need to just accept the fact and move on.

Here is the letter posted in Multiply.

_________________________________________

Hello. Stefan here, writing you from Multiply HQ in Jakarta, Indonesia. 

As most of you are probably aware, Multiply's mission has evolved over the past year and a half to become the biggest and most beloved ecommerce marketplace in two very exciting markets, Indonesia and the Philippines. As our focus has shifted, we have reviewed all of our operations, and made some decisions that will affect everyone here.
  • From December 1st, we will unfortunately no longer be able to support Multiply in its current form - notably we will be removing the social networking and content sharing part of Multiply (photos, videos, blogs, social messaging, etc.). We have decided to discontinue providing and hosting these services, as we have concluded that other Internet sites who are committed to social networking services will do a better job serving you than we can.
  • For our existing users of social networking features, we will be providing easy ways for you to either download your stuff (photos, blogs, content, etc), or migrate it to other online services. We'll announce the precise details shortly. It will be your choice whether to download, migrate or just let your content lapse (and get deleted).
  • For our existing ecommerce users (both buyers and sellers) in Indonesia and the Philippines, there will be no action required.
  • Regarding any existing Multiply Premium subscriptions we will refund any unused balance, and apologize for any inconvenience this will cause. Please contact customer service to request a refund. Note that this is for Multiply Premium, not the ecommerce related Multiply Trust product.

I am aware of how disruptive this news may be, and understand the disappointment that it may cause. Ultimately this was a business decision, critical to our to success moving forward. Instead, we are excited to pursue our own mission to give the 350 million consumers in Indonesia and the Philippines a great way to buy and sell items online. Our singular focus now is for Multiply to retain its status as a vibrant e-commerce destination in Southeast Asia in the years ahead. 

I suspect that many of you will not like this news, and am sorry to have to deliver it now. I hope that you will be able to understand the reasons for our decision and thank you for being a part of the Multiply community over the past eight years. 

Stef 

Green Kiwi Backpacker Hostel

After staying in my friend's condo in Kembangan area for one week, I decided to try some hostel in Singapore for the remaining week. I choose Green Kiwi Backpacker Hostel because I read so many good reviews in the internet and also because I read that the receptionists are Filipino.

view from the room
The place is cozy and laid-back place to stay in Lavender area which located near public transport, walking distance to Mustafa Centre (the only 24-hrs open mall in Singapore) and also walking distance to the food court.




The hostel is very clean and the beds are the best. They use the same thick and comfortable mattresses in 5-star hotels so you won't feel any back pain in the morning. The rooms are new and air-conditioned.


This is a hostel so expect shared bathrooms but don't worry because there are many available cubicle without queues. Showers are separated to the main toilet. Think of gym showers, just bigger.




The best thing in this hostel is their free breakfast. You can have unlimited healthy fruits such as watermelon, dragon fruits, and oranges, alongside toast and coffee or tea. A range of spreads (jam, butter, peanut butter, kaya) are available for you to choose from. 


They also have a rooftop garden if you want to chill at night or exercise in the morning.



The staff are all very friendly I cannot ask for more.

The hostel also offers discount to the main tourist attractions in Singapore such as entrance to Sentosa, Night Safari, Universal Studios, etc. You can also borrow several board games from them if you are bored.


Of course, wi-fi is important so how about experiencing their 5-digit kilobytes/sec speed in the hostel? Awesome. It is very fast you can watch every movie you want online without buffering and download songs in seconds. Just the best wi-fi same as Korea's. If you don't have laptop or ipad, then you can use their 3 desktop computers for free.


The only thing I didn't like is that they don't have a lift. You have to carry your bags upstairs because they are located in the 2nd floor of the building. But I guess, this outweighs by the beauty of this hostel.

I highly recommend this. If I will come back to Singapore, definitely I will stay here.

See and experience to believe.

The Green Kiwi Backpacker Hostel
280A Lavender Street, Singapore
www.greenkiwi.com.sg

Bugis Street, Singapore


Singapore is not really a place to shop for cheap clothes but Bugis Street is one of the few places where you can score shopping goodies in Singapore at relatively affordable prices so don't miss this out. Actually this has been my favorite hangout during my 2-weeks stay in Singapore because of cheap and good foods around. Bugis street is not actually literally in the street, but it is like a small covered 4-storey mall which sells mostly clothes and food.



 

Near the entrance of Bugis street, I saw the a stall selling Roti buns. Thumbs up for this. The roti bun is so big  that can probably feed an entire family. Gosh I miss this already! I tried the kaya and peanut roti bun. Don't miss this!


Also, you can see other stalls selling all unique kind of street foods of Singapore.



While walking around Bugis Street, you may get to see many stands selling sliced fruits and shakes. There are lots of watermelon, apple, kiwi, cantaloupe, dragon fruit, and other refreshing fruits whose name I may not be familiar with. My favorite is the Green Kiwi shake!


Going deep inside Bugis Street, there is a spot filled with lots of hawker stations. But I didn't had the chance to try because I'm quite full.

When you get out of Bugis Street you can see the famous $1 ice cream in the street. Try everything as much as possible! They are all good. You can choose from different flavors to put into your sandwich bun or wafer.




Bugis Street is also home to many high-end shopping malls like Bugis Junction and Iluma where you can see the biggest Uniqlo store, and high-end hotels like the Intercontinental Singapore. 





So that's it. My favorite place in Singapore, Bugis street. Awesome.