BlaringSmelly

Now, here is a city anyone can have fun and wanting to come back for more. My first impression about Singapore is the constant smell of food in the air. It began as soon as you step into the airport terminal. Even walking out from the hotel gym, by the swimming pool, I smell roasted duck.

One can spend hours and hours in the Singapore Botanic Garden. The varieties of orchards and other exotic plants were beyond my comprehension. Even though the heat and humidity made us extremely uncomfortable, I didn’t mind at all being sweaty and sticky being outdoor browsing different garden areas.

Excellent food anywhere we went in Singapore. We traveled far and ventured into different areas of the city looking for local favorites and eateries recommended by food critics.

There is definitely nightlife in this sleepless city. Nearly midnight, Orchard Road are still alive with streetlights, jammed traffic, and shoulder-to-shoulder pedestrians.

I also noticed a good amount of art displays in public areas. In the downtown area, MRT and malls are connected with tunnels. These cooling underground passages ways showcases contemporary and experimental art pieces.

Installation pieces are also common in outdoor shopping areas.

It’s not fair to compare Taipei with Johor Bahru, a city right by the Singapore and Malaysia border. However, the place is definitely not tourist friendly.

Before the trip, I was warned by many about Johor Bahru’s notoriously high crime reputation. Pedestrians were known to be robbed under broad daylight. Some more hairy stories involved victims getting hammered on the skull before their purses were snatched. And because of serious population, it was also not recommended to swim, jog, or cycling.

So my days spent in Johor Bahru were limited to napping and watching tv. We only went out for food or visiting family, and the means of traveling were restricted to car.

Kuala Lumpur was by far a more happening city. The buildings and streets are cleaner and carry more characters. The twin towers stands tall and can be seen day or night from any corner of downtown area. There are pockets of hip hangouts and good eateries in the city. But it’s hard to find unless you have locals to show you around. During my short stay, the capital of Malaysia still didn’t strike me as a place I would like to revisit.