Singapore F1 GP and overnight in KL

[munitalP]

After deciding that we would go to the Singapore F1 Grand Prix as we were leaving the Melbourne F1 Grand Prix, time seemed to slow down, work days dragged out and all in all the wait was laborious, however, on a positive note the Australia dollar was gaining ground rapidly on every other currency – and that was good!

Two days before leaving for Singapore, I made the decision that quite annoyed SWMBO that we would be travelling hand luggage only, especially if she wanted to make use of the day spa at Melbourne First Lounge. After removing “quite a lot” of stuff from her case, then transferring what she needed into her LV cabin roller case, she realised with some delight that it was quite easily achievable. I had no doubt in my mind that we would be purchasing another case in Singapore or Malaysia but that didn’t bother me.

23.Sept.2010

We left home at about 0730 with the cats caged and on the back seat, and headed to the cattery out near Tullamarine. The cats were dropped off at about 0830 (they had to be there before 0900) and I drove to corporate Smart Park, where after some banter with the owner (I am using this park a lot now and they are getting to know me), we got dropped off outside the Qantas First kerbside suite.

On entry, our boarding passes and documents were ready and waiting – I had had a little issue the day before using online check in, SWMBO had the A seat, I had the C seat, we had booked these seats months prior, yet Qantas moved us together (B & C) and because of her seating change, we couldn’t use OLCI. A long winded discussion later (phone) about seat changes, I told the Qantas agent that the person who had trumped me (a DYKWIA moment) better be a Platinum with PG through to end 2011 or chairman’s lounge or better! I also explained that we didn’t care if someone was in the B seat, I just wanted the aisle, and SWMBO wanted a window!

Anyway, the offshoot of that was the B seat was vacant, SWMBO got assigned back to her A seat, I had the C seat and everyone was happy.
The First staff were quite amused at the hand luggage only thing happening, the comment from one lady was she couldn’t go away overnight with only hand luggage, so was very impressed – LOL...

Through immigration and security and we were entering the First Lounge at about 0930ish!

We both had a very nice breakfast of eggs Benedict washed down with some bubbles then I got my laptop out and worked quietly for an hour or so while SWMBO had a facial and all the other stuff on offer. The lounge was very quiet, so we headed down to duty free to buy some booze for Singapore (a poor attempt to save some money) and were (nearly) the only people in the airport! There was a gap between flights and it was quite nice being the centre of attention from the duty free sellers – in fact, the Vodka stand had me leaving there with somewhat wobbly knees!

We had been back in the lounge for a few minutes when nlagalle rang asking where we were. The First Lounge was relaxing, the bubbles were good and I didn’t want to leave, so I asked the concierge very nicely (based on the lounge was empty also) if nlagalle could come in with us. The concierge approved the third guest and in came nlagalle!

After a half hour or so, the First Lounge was starting to fill up, and Oz_mark and his partner called to say they were in the Business lounge downstairs. Unfortunately the concierge couldn’t allow me to host an additional two guests, so we packed our things and left nlagalle eating his lunch and SWMBO and I went down to the Business Lounge.

This is the first time I have been in here since the F Lounge moved, and the lounge seemed adequate and roomy.

It wasn’t long before munitalP & partner, Oz_mark & partner and nlagalle (he arrived 5 or so minutes later) were knocking a couple of drinks back and planning mischief for the flight! Actually the mischief started by inflating red, white and black St Kilda footy balloons and hand balling them around our part of the lounge!
Our flight was quickly called and we boarded – SWMBO in 40A, me 40C, nlagalle 40D, Oz_mark & Chee 41B and C – excellent arrangement!

The flight passed quickly. We had drink serving issues, they just didn’t arrive or if they did, they were not what we ordered and Oz_mark is still waiting for his Hieneken the last time we spoke! The plane was moving though, we travelled an in excess of 1000km p/h for the majority thus accounting for a 6 hour something flight into Singapore!

Highlights of the flight were nlagalle getting the safety briefing card to the FA like a pro – she was bemused that someone knew the timing to an art form, also the CSM coming over to tell me it was OK to have my St Kilda balloons inflated (he was hours late) as they had checked all the manuals and couldn’t find anything to say we couldn’t have saints balloons bouncing around the cabin!

After landing, we bid farewell to nlagalle who was on his way to Deli, and off through immigration and out and met up with some other friends who had come from Brisbane.

Our prearranged driver was late but didn’t matter too much, then off we went to our selected hotels – Oz-mark at the HI somewhere and we were at the Novotel Clarke Quay. After checking in and the usual being screwed around – not the rooms booked, where’s my view I paid for etc, our friends from Brisbane met us downstairs and we wandered down the Quay for a snack and a couple of drinks then by midnight or there about, back to the hotel and agreed on a time to meet for breakfast.

 

[munitalP]

24.Sept.10

Up and about saw us meeting at the restaurant for breakfast. As I have said before in posts, I like the Novotel Clarke Quay and breakfast goes a long way to seeing past any other issues like the slow check in, your rooms never what’s booked etc.

We all ate well, the food selection catering for Euro and Asian tastes and off we went in search of Oz_mark who was using the MRT to get to the Quay.

On catching up, it was decided to head to little India to the Mustafa Centre for a spot of shopping.

Oz_mark, having map in hand, decided that he would lead the group through the urban jungle of Singapore – sorry, bad move. Oz_mark’s internal compass had a polarity change somewhere near Darwin, so needless to say we got horribly lost not to mention walking about 5k’s before we found where we were going to!

Oz_mark can’t take all the blame though (not that we let him in on that) because when we walked 200m (instead of 5km) from the Mustafa Centre to the MRT station, we did notice a huge sign in the subway main hall with an arrow pointing to MUSTAFA CENTRE right – pity we had left the station to the left!

Next to the Mustafa Centre is a shopping centre where the girls went looking for shoes and the boys got a bit bored. We went to the top floor and had lunch – Oz_mark and I had soups, mine was a seafood laska with extra chilli – hmmm, bad mistake (extra chilli that is), Oz_mark’s a more traditional dumpling arrangement from memory.

The others chose food typically seen in an Australian food hall in a shopping centre, and they all complained – served them right methinks.

Back to the seafood laska. When you ask the chef for extra chilli and the chef who is very Chinese, looks at you for a full 5 seconds before answering “are you sure?”... back down!

I had a chilli burst so hot that I was having trouble breathing (through the sobs of pain) – it was good though!

The girls separated from the boys after lunch and went shopping, the boys quickly back past the Novotel for gate passes and cameras were off to the practice round of the Singapore F1 GP.

We got wet. Then somehow, we got wetter.

We walked most of the track and saw a lot of F1 GP cars go past at a squillion miles an hour, the noise, the crowd and the beer was good!
Oz_mark’s partner Chee had organised a steamboat dinner with some of her friends in a neighbourhood restaurant somewhere in Singapore (so we were gone from the F1 quite early) – I couldn’t tell you where but we had a great night eating and drinking.

The restaurant ambience was the following – fluros on the ceiling, when you ordered a jug of beer, the waiter went out back and emptied a bunch of cans into the jug for you (true and amusing!), the windows were open to the road, the musky smell of durian was floating across the road from the fruit seller – this was a locals restaurant with better food than I have had in many silver service restaurants – I wouldn’t have missed it for the world!

We taxied back our respective hotels where my bed was most certainly welcomed!

 

[munitalP]

25.Sept.10

Saturday. AFL Grand final day.

Today was more exciting for me than the previous 2 days – today was when my beloved St Kilda football team were going to break the drought – hence we had come prepared. Signed jumpers and shirts to wear, balloons (red white and black of course!), flags and I had pre booked a table at Boomerang bar along with an esky of crown lager – imaging my surprise arriving to find 50 crownies on ice awaiting our arrival – something lost in translation – we still managed to drink about $300 worth of crown with a couple of pizzas included though!

OK, we won’t talk about the footy suffice to say apart from the result, us and about 250 other Australians had a great time – cheering the saints and booing the pies – amazing, even half way around the world and the pies are still hated...!

I must admit I wasn’t a happy camper, the puff had left my sails and feeling deflated and sorry for myself (and my team), headed back to the Novotel through the Quay, stopped at Hooters for another commiseration drink (it was me and SWMBO left by now) and wondered how I was going to pull off tickets for next week’s grand final rematch! (It ended up a particular Mod from AFF is an AFL Gold member and was able to get 2 extra tickets for the following week - cheers Serfty!)

Joe called and asked if I was going to the GP – couldn’t be bothered, so he grabbed my ticket and him and his partner headed off to the track. SWMBO particularly wanted to have a look at the casino, so after showering and a quick rest, Oz_mark joined us and the three of us headed by cab to the Marina Bay Sands casino.

I had heard so the shock wasn’t quite as great, but locals have to pay for the privilege to lose their money – didn’t make sense then, still doesn’t now – only in Singapore! The hotel and casino – opulence – no wonder it is one of the worlds most expensive. Word of advice – make sure you have your passport on you if you plan to visit or you will be forking $100 to get in the joint.

We wandered around the casino, sat in a bar for a while, had a few Majitos, decided we needed food then taxied to Newton Circus hawkers market for dinner. We ate at stall 70 – Mrs. Tan, good food (mainly seafood), ice cold Heineken (and cheap) and we sat around grazing until way past midnight until bed and a liver transplant beckoned.

 

[munitalP]

26.Oct.10

Over breakfast we decided to hop across the border to Jahor. This would be a bit of excitement as the girls were told about the shopping, the chance to haggle and a good chance to pick up a bargain or two. Oz_mark declined to join us for this excursion.

Now I am going to set the record straight here. Jahor Bahru (JB) has had a bad name forever regarding crime. Mention you are going to JB and the very next sentence muttered is “be careful!” Now I have been in and out of JB quite a number of times in the last few years, and with the usual precautions taken – not flashing your money about, leaving your jewellery and Rolex back at the hotel, and sticking to shopping centres and public areas, I have never (touch wood) had any trouble in JB. I am sure that breaking these simple guidelines will result in “issues”, but not going to JB removes some wonderful shopping and dining experiences from otherwise clinical Singapore holidays.

We caught a blue cab from the hotel to JB. It took 95 minutes – man it was slow going! Once there, we went to the old holiday inn shopping centre about 15 minutes taxi from the international rank, where the first thing we done on entry was to murder some cold drinks and a bite to eat. The sausage rolls in the bakeries in Singapore and Malaysia are divine!

We spent quite a few hours in the shopping centre looking around and of course buying. I bought a knock off Hugo Boss tie clip for about $5 Australia, I was happy and shopped out!

SWMBO was very restrained and only bought a new handbag to replace her now very worn out one, however our friends were hilarious in what they were buying – very entertaining especially their special bargaining skills – I think word got out and they became targets....

Mrs Friend – “how much for that shirt?”
Seller – “500 for you...”
Mrs Friend – “OK, I’ll give you 450?”
Seller – “Sold – you drive a hard bargain!”

It was a hoot and we all had fun but, we had to cut the day a bit short as we had a F1 GP to go to!

We taxied back to Singapore via the International rank and got dropped at the Bugis Street market where we had a quick walk around, and the girls headed off to go do their thing, and the boys went back to the hotel. Oz_mark arrived soon after, and we took a cab to the GP.

The passes we had gave us entry to most of the F1 circuit (Oz_mark had missed out on these tickets) so after a while Joe and I bid farewells to Oz_mark and wandered further around the circuit.

The fun police were out in force... I thought Melbourne fun police were bad, but Singapore takes the cake! We found a nice perch with a good view – we got moved on, where ever there would have been awesome views of the cars, the fun police had erected screens to block the view – all in all I was very disappointed.

Getting more and more peeved at the fun police, we decided to go to the eye, our passes gave us free entry. The fun police limited numbers in each gondola to 8 – ahh, finally a good move, and what an awesome perch it was!

The F1 track was brilliant from up there, so was the view of Singapore, the only thing that ruined the view was the ugliest building in the world, a monstrosity, something than needs knocking down – the Marina Bay Sands – yuck!



We got down trackside for the last final few laps of the GP and not long after it came to an end. The 2010 Singapore F1 GP was over, Webber had disappointed, but even with the fun police trying to ruin your night, I enjoyed it!

On the MRT and we were off to the hotel. I was starting to feel a bit worn out to say the least...

 

[munitalP]

A few more pics...

 

[munitalP]

27.Oct.10

Air Asia – Singapore / Kuala Lumpur

A maxicab ordered the night before was waiting for us at some OMG time where we loaded up, told the driver which HI to go to, picked up Oz_mark & Chee and headed to Changi. SWMBO had bought a new case yesterday which got loaded with most of our clothes we didn’t need for an overnight in KL, and this case was deposited at the safe storage for an overnighter. Joe did the same with a couple of their cases, then we all went up for coffee and toast.

Our uneventful flight into KL LCC had us in the country in no time at all and out onto a transfer bus to the city. This was a first – most people know my aversion to busses of any type so will respectfully decline every bussing from the LCC to KL again.

We got off somewhere near the Hilton – central I believe, then 2 pre-paid taxi’s to the Novotel. Again the usual rooms not ready etc, and our luggage got deposited at the concierge for a later check in.

We went in search of Din Tai Fung – another country to cross off my list and it happened to be in the shopping centre directly across from the Novotel – woo hoo!
Lunch was great – actually, I must say I have never had a bad Din Tai Fung experience and this was no exception. Great food, plenty of cold beer and the exchange rate made it all the better!

Joe and his partner decided to head off to Petronas Towers and Oz_mark, Chee, SWMBO and I went the other direction.

(SWMBO and I decided to upgrade to the presidential suite – nice but dated suite – great shower though and a huge lounge – in fact big enough to fly a helicopter in!)

We saw some shops, and a few more shops. We got rained on and spent way too much for an iced coffee. We got rained on a bit more, found an indoor market, I fell in love with a remote control helicopter then headed back to the hotel where on the way we got, just for something different, rained on.

We got as far as an undercover outdoor bar across from the hotel where we partook in a few buckets of Carlsberg on ice and my VB cap became another on the collection wall. We finally caught a break in the rain and shot back to the hotel to change.

The group decided to go back to the undercover market (mainly due to weather) where we spent a bit more time mooching around the stalls and I ended up buying the helicopter to the amusement of Joe and Oz_mark. By the time stalls were closing, and tempers were getting on edge through sleep deprivation, we ended up at TGI Fridays for dinner, just across from Din Tai Fung – burgers, beer and bed!

 

[munitalP]

27.Oct.10

After breakfast, we went to China Town and the girls went shopping – surprised at that? Shoes and some other smaller items were SWMBO’s main attraction while I sampled the local produce and bought a couple of small insignificant items. Before long, our alarms were singing, time to go, we had a plane to catch, but not before both Oz_mark and Joe bought helicopters – they used the excuse that they were gifts for others! (yeah yeah yeah....)

Bidding farewell to Oz_mark and Chee (who were staying on in Malaysia), we caught a taxi to the airport and checked in for our Air Asia flight back to Singapore. I must admit, my expectations (very low) of Air Asia were dashed. The service was good, friendly staff, helpful and energetic both on the ground and on the aircraft.

On landing in Singapore, we had to clear immigration again to retrieve luggage from storage, a quick repack and in through the First check in with our luggage tagged SIN/BNE. SWMBO and I had 23A & B, bulk heads – what in God’s name did I book these seats for? They would be the worst seats on any aircraft flying today, in the past and will probably still hold the title in the year 2050. I knew they sucked, and I forgot! Cramped, noisy (from J galley) and solid armrests. There should be a public health warning on these seats...

A long flight to Brisbane saw us disembark and bid farewell to Joe & partner, then bus to domestic where we got put on the next available which happened to be less than 20 minutes wait in the J lounge.

I did sleep well and awoke on descent into Melbourne and was glad to be home after a great few days away with some good friends!

 

[Sprucegoose]

Great TR. Well organised travel by all accounts. Interesting to hear the AirAsia comments as well. Haven't been to KL for some time now, often overlooked by bigger Asian cousins

Cheers Spruce

 

[oz_mark]

Oz_mark, having map in hand, decided that he would lead the group through the urban jungle of Singapore – sorry, bad move. Oz_mark’s internal compass had a polarity change somewhere near Darwin, so needless to say we got horribly lost not to mention walking about 5k’s before we found where we were going to!

"I knew I should have turned left at Albuquerque..."

Anyway, what's wrong with seeing the back blocks of Singapore :shock:

 

[totalk]

Great TR, and brilliant pictures. Looking forward to your next TR.

Cheers

 

[KLN]

a very good read. thoroughly enjoyed it.
i might try and get around to writing mine.
went exclusively for the F1, no shopping time for me, or 14 yo daughter. am sure my partner in life is pleased about that.
when you do all afternoon and evening at the track and don't get home until 2am, you're are too tired for shopping.
Yes, love the Novatel Clarke Quay too, but yes, hassles on checking in, and the correct room not ready. got the last executive suite available thank god in the end as didn't want 14yo sleeping at my feet.
Pool is good for resting during the day, and just a very handy spot to stay.
walked to and from the track everyday. easy entrance thru the other different gates, even though we had main grandstand tickets. Gate 1 for this spot is too far away, might as well enter other areas and watch on track action from all the other corners.

that's our 2nd trip to Singapore F1, and won't be the last. did KL earlier in the year too.