By Monday, 25 February, there wasn’t much we hadn’t done in Singapore. Both Trevor and I were relieved that we were able to tick just about everything of our Singapore wishlist. There were really only two more things to do: go grocery shopping, and eat durian.
And yes we did.
Trevor and I headed to a nearby supermarket with our host, Jennifer. We went a little mad buying all sorts of things we couldn’t find in Korea, but it would have been a lot worse had we not been limited by the amount of luggage we could take with us (a measly 15kg). Among our loot was our favourite chocolate, Milo cereal, Maggi instant noodles, instant mashed potatoes, spices, vanilla essence, Colgate toothpaste and more chocolate. Priorities and all that.
In the evening we headed out in the worst bout of rain we’d had all week. It rains every day in Singapore (give or take), but usually only lightly and not for very long. But on Monday night it came down hard, which meant wet shoes, frizzy hair, and getting poked by lots of umbrellas.
We met up with Scott and some of his work colleagues at a fruit vendor. Trevor and I were both jealous to see how cheap fruit was in Singapore compared to Korea, and how much bigger, brighter and more colourful everything was. (Apples, bananas, kiwis and oranges are only so appealing, and then it gets old.) We watched a durian being chopped open and weighed, and then it was time. Yes, it really does smell that bad and yes, it really does taste that… strange.
And when in Rome! We made use of the opportunity to try a variety of tropical fruits. It was fascinating to see the insignificant insides of the massive jack fruit. Although I didn’t enjoy peeling the dragon fruit, the taste wasn’t bad at all. We had one or two other fruits too, all of which escaped me soon after.
On the way back, everyone stopped at a vendor for ice-cream sandwiches (literally). A block of ice-cream is folded in a slice of (coloured) bread. I passed on this due to my very particular relationship with bread, but those in the know said it was tasty. I was just too happy to take their word for it!
On the morning of Tuesday the 26th, it was time to face the inevitable – packing. With all the groceries and souvenirs, both our bags were full before we’d reached the weight limit, so we put our problem-solving skills to practice in order to fit everything into our check-in luggage.
Far too soon, we were on the plane and outta there. We arrived back to a cold, icy Munsan early the next morning.
Singapore stole my heart. If given the choice to ever return somewhere I’d been before, even if it means doing all the same things again, I’d pick Singapore hands down, no contest.
To see all the photos from Day 6, click on me:
Dragon fruit fingers!
To see the last few random photos from Day 7, click on my kitchen:
The loot!
Diary of an expat, teacher, comfort-zone seeker 