Sunlit nights: The best afternoons in Singapore

Singapore is mostly a futuristic city, with lots of skyscrapers, beautiful roads and people ignoring everyone and going about their own business. At times, the lack of emotion and detachment you face from the locals can scare you! Especially after seeing smiling faces all over the rest of Asia!

Helix Bridge

View from Marina Bay

Marina Skypark

Nevertheless, two wonderful afternoons will always stay in my memory!

Arab Street

What a beautiful place! The palm trees, cafe-lined streets and shops selling rugs, jewelry, hookah, skirts, scarves, and what not. I had some great-tasting Turkish coffee at a cafe - the different varieties of Muslim cuisines were just mouth-watering! There were shops selling Arabic perfumes (of the strong varieties), Egyptian perfume glass bottles and belly dance scarves. Behind Arab Street were Muscat Street and Bushrah Street, just as pleasant and relaxing. It was a stark contrast to the rest of the city. The place gave off an aura of culture, colour and flirtatious friendliness!

The start of Arab Street

Muscat Street

Bushrah Street

Cafes in the inner lanes

Cafes and shops on Arab Street

Arab Street

Botanic Gardens

You can spend an entire day, walking or relaxing in the quiet parts of the gardens. It is definitely not among the top attractions, but a good place to go to if you have a week or more in Singapore. I visited them on a hot, sunny day and after a few hours of walking and lunch at 'Casa Verde', I was dead tired. So I lay down in the first place I saw (I think it was called Upper Palm Valley). The heat was making me drowsy. Closeby, two musicians were playing Spanish songs on their guitars, I recognised Bamboleo. When I closed my eyes, I could almost imagine that i was in Spain! It was one of the most relaxing siestas I have ever taken!