2 more flights to add onto the air miles and we were arguably in our most foreign location to date. Singapore, the country the size of Luxembourg instantly gave off great first impressions. The airport was organised, the streets were clean, everything was translated into English and best of all it was a darn sight cheaper than Australia! You could pick up a really packed plate of food for just over £2 - no more cooking pasta and noodles for me!

Our first day was typically packed full of exploring the erratic streets of this diamond shaped island. The streets are crammed with vendors, shops, mosques, high rise office structures and monuments. We made our way to the National Museum of Singapore which housed some fascinating exhibits on the countries history. There was also a gallery based on the buried city of Pompeii - the roman town covered when Mt Vesuvius erupted in 79 AD. Despite it's ancient history, the artefacts recovered were astounding. The museums history of Singapore was huge and came accompanied by an audio guide which described both events and personal stories. I'd really recommend setting yourself a decent length of time here as the guide is great but our hunger eventually got the better of us and we went to sample some of the local food. It was especially nice to be able to eat out due to the great deals on offer and I've challenged myself to try something new as much as I can - so I ended up having a 'rise and shine' and 'smart aleck' from a local bakery. I can't quite tell you what they were but they tastes incredible! In the afternoon we strolled around the infamous shopping district of Orchard Street. Every other building was a shopping mall which housed every single chain from any country you can imagine. Marks and sparks, Topshop, New Look - they were all there! We then organised our transport to Koh Samui in Thailand which would be our next location before randomly stumbling upon the Singaporean FA Cup final in the football stadium opposite our hostel - free entry, ok standard of football and few free snacks and gifts, great way to finish the day in such a vibrant city.

The next day I wanted to go and take in the incredible architecture of the marina. It was surrounded by stunning theatres, hotels you could only dream of and the sculpture of a half fish, half lion which spouted water from it's mouth. We then wandered into Chinatown where we caught glimpses of the astounding temples decorated with intricate artwork. It really felt like Asia with the commercial side of Singapore surrounding us. Walking through the street markets I stopped for a bite to eat - squid, prawns, some veg in a bowl full of rice and gravy. It's nice to be trying the local food, especially when it tastes so good! After wandering back through the city we awaited our evenings entertainment, the night safari! We hopped onboard a tram complete with live commentary which took us around enclosures based upon the Himalayan foothills and equatorial Africa. There we got up-close to lions, tigers, tapirs and more. Also included was the walking trails that took in a forest of giant trees, fishing cats, leopards and many other nocturnal animals from all over the globe. They even threw on a creatures of the night show which amazed me with a demonstration of many animals predatory and survival instincts. For £20~ it was so worth it and clearly indicates why it's one of the most recommended things to do here. They'd even decorated the park in time for Halloween with scary items hung throughout the forest as you travelled around it, I don't think there's a trick they miss in Singapore!

Onto our last day and with our bus to Hatyai not until 7:00pm we checked out relatively late and took to the streets once more. The plan was to go Marina Bay Sands to climb the monstrous building and get elevated views of the Singapore skyline. With a park and swimming pools upon the roof it was hard not to be amazed. The dining was amazingly expensive (found a receipt for 986$ for a meal) but looked exquisite. It even had a pool with an invisible edge hanging off the side of the skypark, simply incredible. Overall, a great final memory of this extravagant city.

I've loved Singapore and have been so impressed with how easy it has been to stay here. Everything is logical, well thought through and the way you are welcomed by everyone is superb. The hospitality certainly beats any I've experienced before and you rarely feel pressured to do/buy anything. However, it's time to move on and we're off up through Malaysia and into thailand to try and catch the world renowned (for more than one reason) Full Moon Party on Koh Phangan! I