Last tour in Singapore... sans backpacks ;p

After the U.S.S fling we headed towards our booked hostel rooms. We almost gave up to check in there as we didn't know exactly where it was & we were dying to hit the hay! We only knew that it was in Serangoon Road. We were advised to take the free bus ride to Vivo City & proceed from there with another bus.We asked a couple of girls for directions. They were a bit uncertain too as they hadn't taken a bus for quite some time. But they were helpful enough & even borrowed their friend's phone for GPS function to direct us using the map. Luckily their friends were just lepaking nearby on the carpet grass.

They told us to cross the road to the nearby bus station & took the bus #165 (if i'm not mistaken or is it #65? :P). Unfortunately, when we reached there, there was a notice saying that the area was under construction and we couldn't board the bus from there anymore. So we had to go below to another bus stop. We actually inquired upon a bus & got assistance from yet another helpful Singaporean. However we were led back to zero. Realising also that we didn't have the bus fare card & didn't have exact money for the fare & didn't know exactly where to go, we decided to try our luck with taxi.

After signalling for like 10 taxis, finally a dark taxi came to a stop in front of us. We stood gaping as it reached us for the taxi was one hel*uva posh display?! What's more surprising was that the driver was a lady. Immediately I thought the driver must have taken curious & pity upon seeing 4 girls backpacking close to middle of the nights by the street where taxis are not supposed to pick up passengers in the 1st place :p But we were SO THANKFUL. Alhamdulillah, another blessing..."You girls just came back from camping?", was her immediate reaction as we all snuggle in the sleek ride. The taxi priced start at SGD2.80 or is it SGD5.00? :P For our 1st taxi ride, in the middle of the night, after hours of walking, we gave it a nod, surely! The lady-driver; Aunt Sally (of Masjih Tanah, Melaka origin), was kind enough to give us a brief explanation to tourist areas, which we passed by en route to The Hive. She even advised us on which bus to take/ a better route plan for our trip around town the next day.

We were warmly welcome at The Hive. We were led to our rooms & briefed upon the shared shower & toilets, kitchen and laundry area along the way. There were free breakfast, wifi & internet service. There's also a stack of free postcards by Zo Cards hanging on a wall :)

The next morning, after a satisfying breakfast of toasts with pandan kaya & orange marmalade, cereals and hot black coffee, we took a walk towards the Melaka-bound bus station. Just after we bought our tickets home for the evening at 5, the lady at the counter offered to look after our backpacks so we could enjoy touring without having to drag them all the way. Oh wow, another blissful offer! We felt so lucky & continued our trip gleefully!


We went to One Fullerton, Tanjung Pagar KTM Station, Mustafa Centre, Orchard Road, Bugis Street & Junction, the Sultan Mosque, Victory restaurant (don't miss the purportedly best Singapore murtabak there) ... Where else aa? Hehe... Of course there are still other places that we didn't have the chance to visit due to limited time. We hadn't scour the Arab Street, the cable car ride, the SkyPark at Marina Bay Sands etc. Definitely have to find time to return there...probably pay a visit to the relatives there too next time, inshaAllah...