Super Singapore

Wednesday, July 6, 2011

FOR SUCH a small country, Singapore seems to have it all! A bustling port, iconic buildings, impressive infrastructure, all kinds of tourist come-ons including medical tourism, a disciplined populace, an enviable clean and green environment...the list is endless. However, this super city is not contented to stay as it is but continues to move forward and expand. I’ve been in and out of Singapore since the mid-eighties and I can still visualize how it looked then...what a world of a difference from what it has become today! The transformation simply amazes.

A trip to Singapore is so affordable nowadays because of the emergence of low-cost carriers like Airphil Express. Some weeks back, the airline invited some travel agents (led by Worldwide Travel’s Zenaida Chua who made the land arrangements) for a famtrip to the Lion City.

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This was in tandem with Royal Caribbean International who took the group on a cruise onboard the Legend of the Seas to Thailand.

With so many fun activities onboard, and new places to see in the ports of call, the five-night cruise ended all too soon. Not to worry though, because there was the visit to the Universal Studios of Resorts World Sentosa awaiting our group.

It was drizzling when the resort’s assistant manager for sales, Heather Lee, met us at the entrance of Universal Studios and gave us tips on how to make the most of our visit.

First stop was “Hollywood” where shops lined the street and where different “Hollywood characters” walked around for photo ops with their fans. The hubby and I found a bench to sit on and watched the world go by. Not long after, we saw Zenaida C and Martina “Beling” Go careening down the street in scooter-like wheelchairs. Yes, there are modern wheelchairs for rent for those who don’t feel like walking.

We made our way to “New York” because we wanted to see the Steven Spielberg hosted “Lights, Camera, Action!” spiel. It was unbelievable how an empty soundstage was transformed into a hurricane-clobbered city through camera tricks and shifting of sets. Impressive!

By this time the skies had cleared and we comfortably continued our tour of the Universal Studios. There was “Sci-Fi City” with its Battle Star Galactica rides featuring scary zooming speeds, twists and turns, near collisions and all! Definitely not for the faint-hearted. Nearby was “Ancient Egypt” with its Revenge of the Mummy indoor roller coaster and Treasure Hunters jeep adventure.

Come-ons at The Lost World include the thrilling river raft ride through dinosaur habitats called the Jurassic Park Rapids Adventure; the Canopy Flyer which gives a bird’s eye view of the area; the Amber Rock Climb; and Dino Soarin.

Then we were off to “Far Far Away” to experience the Shrek 4-D Adventure and the interactive Donkey Live sing-along. For the kids, there was the ferris wheel named the Magic Potion Spin.

A look-see at “Madagascar” showed the carousel called King Julien’s Beach Party-Go-Round; and the boat ride dubbed Crate Adventure. We ended our studio tour at a roadside food stall savoring a typical American turkey leg grilled to perfection.

After a day in Universal Studios, we went our separate ways - a group went straight to the airport for the Airphil Express flight back to Cebu while some of us stayed behind to see more of super Singapore.