IndiVine Post: The Dream Destination

If you could take your family or friends to any place on the planet, where would that be and how would you make your trip the happiest one ever?

For me, my dream vacation would be in Singapore. Not only is the country one of the safest places in the world, but because it is where one my most favorite people in world lives: my sister, Roopsha.

If had to take just one person along with me for the dream vacation, without a doubt, I would choose the one person I love the most in the world: my mother, Indrani.

I have been to Singapore twice before. Once, all on my own, and next time with my mother and aunt. And being there for two weeks and twelve days, respectively, made me believe that this could be a dream destination for me.

The advantage about already knowing the place you're going to visit is that you can plan ahead. You already know the places where you should go in order to make the trip the happiest and the most memorable. Supposing I was to take my mother on a trip to Singapore for a week, here's what we would do:

Day One: Sleep In, Eat Out 

From experience, I know that the first day, even though we reach Singapore around eleven in the morning, we are far too tired to go on any real sight seeing. So it's better to just sleep in that day, and eat at some fancy place outside. Singapore has a lot of places for that to offer.

For example: My sister and I had dined at a place where their specialty was fishes. I do not remember the name of the place, but I do remember it was inside the West Coast Mall.

Day Two: Visit Jurong Bird Park 

If you are fan of nature, then Jurong Bird Park would leave you impressed. Well it certainly left me impressed. With the talking parrot, Amigo, who can sing in three different languages. He can also count up to ten in both English and Chinese. Imagine that. The birds can be downright little showoffs. I still remember the owl rotating its head 360 degrees, in order to impress the spectators. 

What would clearly attract anyone towards Jurong Bird park are the two shows they put up: Birds & Buddies and The Birds of Prey. They are both informative and extremely entertaining as well. The best part is, these shows are not charged. You only need to pay the entry fee to get inside the Jurong Bird Park.

Since I have seen both these shows twice, I can say that they keep improvising all the time. Especially The Birds of Prey show. 

Roaming around, and exploring the different birds in the birds sanctuary would ensure that half of your day gets spend there. After this, I doubt anyone would be up for anything else, except tucking into a good meal and going off to sleep.

Added Bonus: They even let you interact with the birds that perform in the two shows.

Day Three: Sentosa 

Now that you've spent your previous in the world of Birds, be prepared to spend the next day in the company of fishes and dolphins. Oooh, and not mention, seals. And like the Jurong Bird Park, even in Sentosa there is a show where the sea otter and the dolphins show off. You are going to actually want to jump into the swimming pool where the dolphins perform since it is so breathtakingly beautiful. Words cannot describe the magic the trainers and their dolphins create during the twenty five odd minutes of show time.

And you can walk through the tunnel...or rather standing the moving platform, which lets you see the fishes swimming in their natural habitat. Imagine that! You can actually walk in the belly of the water body, where the fishes are kept. After seeing these beautiful creatures, most of us non-vegetarians would have a sudden desire to turn veg. ;)

The only dolphin I had seen with my own eyes before this was Flipper. I was extremely overjoyed to watch this particular show, and I know that my mother, who loves all living things, would simply enjoy this show. Even though we have seen it before...there's something completely bewitching about it!

A closer look at the dolphins at play: 

And can you imagine, that this is underneath the water?? You can stand there and observe the fish in their natural habitat. Now, who wouldn't call this a dream destination! 

And we should not forget the very cute sea seal:

Then we'd come home, very happy and exhausted, and fall asleep...dreaming that we've turned into the Little Mermaid and are living very peacefully in the Under Water World.

Day Four: Shopping!!! Followed by The Night Safari. 

We shall take a break from the sight seeing on the fourth day, and go for a little shopping. Singapore is known for its pretty clothes and wonderful junk jewelry. The best part is, most of the things come in attractive deals...and one of places to shop at in Singapore, in my opinion, is the Bugis Junction. 

If you keep your eyes open, you will surely spot clothes which look really inviting and nice. Most ear rings shops here have a deal that you can take eight ear rings for $10. And they can be of any shape, size, length, color...just $10. People who love clothes and accessories are surely going to go crazy in this place... 

Then after a quick trip to dump off the newly purchased things, we would head off to the Night Safari. If you are going to be in Singapore, this is one place you should of course go to:

There are two trails in the Night Safari, and in my first visit I was misinformed saying that the trail that you have to take by the train, is the same as the one (the leopard trail) we take by foot. They are actually two very different trails... The Night Safari, especially the trail on the train, makes you feel like you've entered the heart of Africa. With the elephants and hippos, and the rhinos and all kinds of animals and with your guide rattling off more information than you can keep in your head! It really is a wonderful experience. And just like the Jurong Bird Park, they have a show called "The Creatures of the Night, which is very enjoyable. To prove my point, here's a map of the place -

A trip to Singapore without a visit to the Night Safari is going to be incomplete. So, we will be sure to visit the place, and make many happy memories....

For obvious reasons (no flash allowed on cameras) you can only take pictures of the human beings here, and take pictures of the creatures of the night in your head. Another sure way to never forget the memories made here.

Day Five: Trying Something New...

Lunching in Arab Street is definitely going to be on one of the days. They do serve the food unique to the Arab culture, and the food is good. Anyone with an interest in trying new food, would like this place.

Don't the clean plates tell you, how yummy the food is there? ;)

I don't know whether this will be my mother's cup of tea, but when I had gone there, I'd quite enjoyed it: The Mind Cafe. They serve you drinks along with letting you play board games. Of course you pay for those vouchers that they have, like 2 hours of board games plus drinks. Just check out the link, if you would like some information for yourselves. I am not sure if there are such game cafes in Kolkata, but it seemed like a very innovative idea to me. That's definitely something unique, and would indeed ensure a very remarkable and happy trip.

Day Six: Universal Studios 

How can trip to Singapore be complete without a visit to the Universal Studios? A theme park of sorts, anyone who loves movies, would love this particular theme park. Especially the show they put up to demonstrate how they depict a thunder storm in New York City. If I am not mistaken, the show is called Lights, Camera, Action.... 

Doesn't this look familiar? It's the icon for Universal Studios of course. This wonderful theme park also offers rather heart racing rides as well. My sister had coerced us into taking a ride called, "The Return of the Mummy". My mother later dubbed that as "The Death of the Mummy." Pun intended. The ride wasn't so bad. In hindsight, I think wolfing down this amazing lunch, was the real problem:

All in all, visiting Universal Studios is really worth every penny...and you even get to take your picture in wonderful settings:

Day 7: Time To Say Goodbye 

The best part about the flight back to Kolkata, India from Singapore is that it's usually at night. Which means you go off to the airport in the evening...and you still have almost whole day to do all the last minute things you wanted to... 

You also spend it relaxing, with your feet up. Taking a break from holidaying happily, and from your daily life by just keeping quiet and remembering the joyous six days.

Now wasn't the trip lovely? 

Even though I have been to Singapore twice, I have my own Wish List for the next time I visit the country:

• To visit the pool on the 57th Floor of the Marina Bay Sands Resort in Singapore:

• To visit Orchard Road: 

• Spend more time in the East Coast Park:

In this list I would added going on the giant wheel, and the rope way, but being scared of heights, I think I'll pass those attractions up!

I have always had a nice time in Singapore...and more than the attractions, what I love best about the place is that my sister lives there....and it is thanks to her, and her husband that I know so much about this country. 

Thank you both! 

You made it so much enjoyable for me to dream up a vacation to Singapore with mummy in tow... 

Happy Holidays to us. 

P.S. All pictures watermarked with anieshabrahma.blogspot.in are property of Aniesha Brahma. Other pictures are courtesy Google Images, and What The Fuck Facts. 

This post is a part of the contest 'Creating Happy Travellers' by http://www.yatra.com/