We were pleased to leave Phuket behind and fly into Singapore for some relief. We expected the city to be bustling and frenetic with lots of character - however we found Singapore to be quiet, unassuming, functional, efficient and a tad on the boring side for a place with so much possibilites...may be we were just looking in the wrong places but we did see a fair bit over the course of 4 days. One of the good things was the transport....no haggling or hot steamy buses. Very efficient tube system and taxis who surprisingly used their meter every time. Also, the vehicles obey the rules of the road and do not try to run pedestrians over which is quite novel! Singapore is famous for its shopping and it is easy to see why. There are no end of malls, plazas and arcades selling everything under the sun including electrical goods which as you know has a certain draw for Steven....we spent the best part of 48 hours in various camera shops looking for underwater casing to allow us to take pictures when diving. We failed to find one for the camera - it hasn't been made yet - but did come away with a wide anlge lens, an ipod and a spanking new dive watch....budget...what budget! We did also get to see some of the sights in Singapore beyond the shopping malls although the lure of new purchases always drew us back. Entering Little India transported us back to the very beginning of our trip - the smells and colours seemed so familiar although it was a lot cleaner and more pleasant to walk around than Delhi! Along with a big Indian community, Singapore is also home to Malays and most noticeably Chinese who make up the bulk of the population. Chinatown was very picturesque and the old buildings have been very well restored. It also gave us the opportunity to get some Chinese dumplings from a street vendor which were yummy! The colonial district is a dead giveaway that the British Empire were once in town - the concert hall, cathedral, city hall and supreme court, even the cricket club all scream "jolly good old chap"! Lording it up over this district is a statue of Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles who declared Singapore to be part of the British Empire in 1819. His name is everywhere now, on cafes, shopping malls and hospitals. Most famously is the Raffles Hotel - we ventured no further than the drop off area outside the entrance for photos. I don't think our casual dress was permitted and we weren't paying 8 pounds for the famous Singapore Sling cocktail! Instead we paid a visit to the Merlion statue (half fish, half lion) who sits on the harbour alongside the river. For some reason he is the island's mascot although no explanation is given as to its meaning. We headed back to Clarke Quay which is a very chic area with lots of trendy shops, wine bars and expensive restaurants. We opted for the classiest eating establishment....'Hooters' - there was football; the ladies in hotpants and tight t-shirts were of no interest apparently!