We immediately notice that Singapore is spotless and with more laws and fines than you can shake a stick at, the people of Singapore seem to enjoy a city bereft of chewing gum plastered to the pavements. Even the green along the sides of the highway is landscaped and kept trim.

Our hostel in Singapore is situated in the Little India area of the city. The name is very apt. Indian men roam the streets at all hours of the day drinking cans of strong lager with seemingly nothing to do. Having spent over two weeks in the predominantly dry Malaysia being greeted by an Indian squatting on a pavement drinking a can of special brew was certainly a change. The neighbourhood seems to be alive morning through to night giving it a nice vibrant hum all day.

We discover an Indian restaurant called the Leeds Restaurant so immediately I'm interested and end up with a large dinner tray covered with grease paper with a pile of rice, chicken curry, 2 vegetable curries and 2 dishes with soup in all for £2. It was good food if a little too many bones and on the way out I ask the owner if he has ever been to Leeds and he returns with a smile that gives him away and he then admits he has never been there.

We take walks around the city taking in different areas such as the marina with the very odd building that is topped with what looks like a huge boat containing a garden; china town that reminds me of the things I liked about China such as the temples, the intricate architecture, the red lanterns, chopsticks and the trinket stalls; Fort Canning which is where Stamford Raffles who was the European that discovered Singapore made his home. Fort canning is a large hill come park that contains grand buildings, trees, green spaces, spice gardens and also an escalator. I thought the escalator was a very odd addition to an otherwise stately home and gardens. Whilst in the park we were bitten many times by invisible mozzies, I looked like I had the chicken pox again and I can assure you they were just as itchy.

After a few days we realise that our hostel has a resident drunk American tourist called Dave who spends all day sprawled out on one the communal sofas supping beer or sleeping. Of the 4 days we spent at Footprints he never seemed to move very far or even change his clothes. His feet were black.

So it was finally the time for our stay at the Holiday Inn - A gift from my Unilever colleagues. I was feeling nervous and markedly underdressed when I climbed the stairs into the hotel but once at the check in desk there was no problem and we even had a surprise gift from the UK waiting (Chunky kit kats, flap jacks, proper tea bags & coffee, face mask and a Now mag - Enormous thanks to Rachel and her holidaying parents!!) . So after 12 weeks of hostelling it and roughing it we had a massive comfy bed with lovely white sheets, air conditioning that worked and wasn't like the Arctic, a good cuppa and a catch up with any celeb gossip. It was quite an emotional 30 minutes until I got used to this luxury.

To keep in the theme of our day we dressed as smart as we could (Me - skirt, vest and walking sandles, Andy - Shirt, trousers and trainers) and headed out for a Singapore sling at The Raffles hotel. We had read of a dress codes and were unsure if we would be allowed in but during the day the restrictions are less and we were directed to a table. I spotted lots of rubbish on the floor and thought "We can't sit here" surprised that somewhere this posh would be so messy and started to look for somewhere else to sit when I realised there were peanut shells and they were everywhere. We sat down and ordered our Singapore Slings (at about £12.50 each) and got tucked into the large dish of whole peanuts that were on the table and added to the mess on the floor. It was an odd feeling throwing peanut shell on the floor in a posh place. It seemed it wasn't just us who found this strange as a lady nearby threw her shells onto the floor in many different ways with her friend taking photos. The bright pink drink came along with umbrella, cherry and pineapple and was very tasty and gave a nice cotton wool feeling in my head so it must have been good. Whilst supping & snacking we were entertained by 2 pigeons that had flown in trying to build a little dutch courage to get to the peanuts.

That evening we headed for a nearby hawker food mall and tucked into some lovely Chinese food, with Sugar cane juice and finished off with some Tea Talek. Tea Talek means stretched tea and is specific to Malaysia - this had become my favourite beverage in malaysia....yumm yumm. I then finished off with a night swim in the hotels outdoor pool before bed.

Helena + Andy

Croc watch = 0