Down by the Bay

Sorry this post was delayed a few days, I've been busy preparing for Mike's 30th birthday tomorrow. It's a lot harder for me to shop here, for a number of reasons. First of all, I hate shopping and I hate being in malls, I get cranky after about 10 minutes and I want to leave. Secondly, obviously the stores are different here, and I'm not sure what they sell or what the quality is. For example, there's a store called Pull and Bear, which sounds like a hunting or taxidermy store but it actually sells hipster clothing from Australia. Anyway, it took awhile, but I finally got him some presents I think he'll like, and luckily we have a three day birthday weekend because Friday is Hari Raya Puasa, which celebrates the end of Ramadan. I don't know how Muslims do it, I can barely go five hours without eating something, I know I couldn't last all day without seriously injuring someone and then probably trying to eat them. Hats off to you, Muslims, and thanks for the day off!

We had a very full Saturday, which kicked off with the Chunk Fest, the annual Ben and Jerry's ice cream festival. People really like Ben and Jerry's here, which is great, except it's imported which hikes up the cost. I'm not paying $15 for a pint of ice cream, not when I can get a mango ice cream sandwich for a dollar right outside. Although, the last time we got ice cream from a stand, we noticed the side of the package said "meat," which doesn't exactly fill me with confidence. Oh well, we haven't died, so I'm sure it's fine. Moving on, the ice cream festival was fun, even though it was still $5 for one scoop. But we got to try some new flavors, including a Boston cream pie one and a coffee malt that I liked a lot. There was a maple one that the Canadians got, stereotypes be damned! People were supposed to dress like hippies for the festival, but I'm not sure everyone understood what a hippie is, because I saw some girls in skin tight minidresses with huge heels. Close, ladies, but no.

Since the festival was down by Marina Bay, afterwards we wandered around and took some pictures. The weather felt SO good, it was overcast and there was a breeze coming off the water. I know no one actually wants to hear about the weather, but it was seriously the most comfortable I've been outside in Singapore. We made our way over to the edge of the bay, where there is a giant stone statue of a Merlion. What is a merlion, you might be asking yourself? Well, friends, a merlion is half lion, half fish, all awesomeness. It's the mascot of Singapore, since "singa" means lion (Singapura means "lion-city"), and the fish part dates back to when this was a fishing village and it was called Temasek, or "sea town." But that's besides the point; the point is that it's a giant stone mermaid with the head of a lion and looks like something from Napoleon Dynamite. It also shoots water out of its mouth, but I don't know if that's like a power it has, or if it's just a fountain. Either way, I am so loving the Merlion. Talk about the ultimate surf and turf!

After spending some time basking in the glory and dignity of the noble Merlion, we headed out to get some dinner and drinks. We stopped at a German brauhaus for a beer and some sausage, which tasted sooo good. It's actually kind of nice not eating Western food for awhile, because then when you finally eat it, it tastes a thousand times better. Absence makes the heart grow fonder and all that. Next we stopped off at the world's largest fountain, which was a bit of a disappointment because it wasn't working properly. We did see a laser light show that they reflect off the water, though, which was...also slightly disappointing. Perhaps I'm expecting too much out of fountains.

Lastly we went to Chijmes, which is an old church in the center of downtown that used to be a convent and is now a big event space. I think they use the church for weddings and parties and such, and the courtyard is divided up into shops and bars and restaurants.

It's really pretty, and it was fun to drink a beer in the shadow of an old church, although I think Mike kept expecting nuns to run out and start scolding him. There were lights strung up in the trees, giant TVs playing rugby, and the big church looming over us; honestly, it felt a little surreal.