Statue of Francis Xavier in Malacca. Doesn't he look a little like Singapore's Stamford Raffles?

You may wonder, is this all to SE Asia?  Of course not!

If you can find a day or 1/2 day free, you might find a chance to go out of the city center, to experience other parts of Singapore, or if you’re more daring (and have more than 6 months validity on your visa, try going out of the country to visit nearby Malaysia or Indonesia.  Johor Bahru (JB for short) and Malacca (about 2-3 hours away each way) in Malaysia offers a contrast to the super modern urban landscape that makes up downtown Singapore.

Our tour desk offers two tours going out of town to JB and Malacca and gives you a safe return.  We recommend going with the tour (especially if you’re thinking of going to JB; tourists are often targets of scams).  You can find the tour desk near the foyer of the Ballroom.

Enjoy!

(PS – want more detail?  Check out Chris’ earlier post on traveling to Malaysia)

p.s. No need to reply to this, but some of us got here late last
night; any recommendations about where to explore today?

Here’s my short answer.  Hopefully others can chime in via comments.

Shopping: Try the north part of Orchard Road (Tangs, Takashimaya).  The new ION Orchard Mall is less than a month old.
History: try the National Museum at the base of Fort Canning.
Walking: try Chinatown or Little India.  Avoid afternoon sun if possible.
Tech: Try Sim Lim Square.
Nature: Try the Southern Ridges (see blog post: http://www.colips.org/blog/acl-ijcnlp-2009/index.php/175/)

Uniquely Singapore (brought to you by the Singapore Tourism Board) has a lot of information for walking tours, etc. too.

Jason Eisner replied:

Thanks a bunch!  I’ll forward that to the other 5 ACLers on my plane.

Southern Ridge Treetop walk (courtesy Bernardoh@flickr)

In a few previous posts, we already highlighted a few of the nature spots in Singapore. In May 2008 (quite recent) the Urban Redevelopment Authority (Singapore’s urban planning division; self acknowledged sim city folks ) opened up a series of parks stretching from right outside the Vivocity shopping mall and stretching all the way West to NUS. The park, called the Southern Ridge, features two architecturally distinct bridges and a very nice treetop canopy walk that’s entirely free of charge. This a great budget way to spend two hours to get your fitness walk and commune with nature in our urban city. Perhaps start late

Alexandra Arch (courtesy chooyutshing@flickr)

afternoon near the Alexandra Arch bridge and end your walk at Vivocity. You’ll be treated to nice views of the city and harbor and a nice sunset, and end up in Singapore’s (current) largest mall, with plenty of eating options to satisfy your cravings.

Yee Fan had commented:

Practically each time when the SG gahmen wants to promote something, a website is created. The southern ridge is no exception: http://www.nparks.gov.sg/southernridges.html