I've been back from vacation for a week now so I could have written, but January's cold has turned me lazy. If I had a choice, I'd watch Sex and the City episode after episode, which I do anyways in whatever time I leave myself.

As to not bore my remaining loyal readers, I will keep my trip short, only highlighting the main points. Singapore is absolutely gorgeous. It is the cleanest city I have ever seen. They have a strict policy on smoking in designated areas. Chewing gum is not sold, and if imported, Singaporeans are fined 500$. A world without chewing gum? Get real! I can't imagine it, especially as a citizen of a country where we take pride in a wall covered in old, grimy, chewed gum. Check it: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bubblegum_Alley.

A beautiful river runs through Singapore, with two main nightlife areas on the water known as Boat Quay and Clarke Quay. They were amazing, full of life. The climate was tropical, but mild, around the 80s. Unfortunately for me, a sun worshiper, it was rainy season. A local bartender told Krystin and I on our first night, "December is the worst month to come to Singapore." No regrets. Rain or shine, this city-country still had it all.

Singapore is a British colony, so most everyone speaks beautiful English as well as Chinese and a few other languages. A lot of the younger generation are bilingual and speak their own colloquial English, Singlish. It was amazing to hear everyone speaking in English.

It is a very walkable city. I learned this quickly from my 8am morning strolls, while waiting on my fellow travellers, Krystin, Reuven, Andy and Dennis to wake up. "Like mother, like daughter"...it couldn't have been clearer during this vacation. As much as I've resented my father calling me my mother's clone over the years, I have finally accepted it after this vacation. I didn't lose a minute of travel time. I will never be a museum/cathedral junkie like my mother, but I will soak up every minute of the day exploring. I've inherited her sense of adventure. I'll finally admit it.

On the other hand, I can't see my mother, even in her 20's, dancing till five in the morning in one of the biggest night clubs. I certainly did not inherit party life and late hours from her, that would be thanks to my father, Wild Bill. Holla! Singapore has an outstanding economy, but a beer or cocktail go for roughly 15$ a pop in the more bustling areas, such as Clark Quay. So, when the opportunity presented itself for five free drinks on Ladies Night at this huge club, Attica, I jumped at the opportunity. Plus, I'm a sucker for dancing my life away. Korea isn't big on dancing, and my body was aching for it! Unfortunately, none of my friends were up for it, but that couldn't deter my plans. I went alone, met the nicest Singaporean girls, they took me under their wing, and the rest is history! It was my best memory there!

Eventhough I was up till an unruly hour, I was still buzzing with energy, woke up at 8am again and took off to a teeny island called Pulau Ubin. It's known as the original Singapore, what it used to look like before booming into a modern beauty. The natural beauty of Pulau Ubin far surpassed the modern marvels back on the mainland. I love both areas for different reasons. I rented a bike for 5 bucks and toured around the whole island for a few hours. It was amazing how many different changes of scenery there were. At one point, I was zooming down a hill in the rainforest, monkeys overhead. Next thing, I'm in a big, lush, green field that ends at a rock quarry. A little later, swampland appears out of nowhere and breaks into a beautiful rocky coast, boasting clear, torqouise water. It had a very rustic charm: old, rundown, colorful houses and stores, rusty bicycles forgotten in overgrown grasses, tiny fishing boats tied to rickedy docks. It was such a simple, natural wonder.

Despite Pulau Ubin being my favorite, back in the city, there were phenomenal Buddhist statues everywhere, amazing shopping deals and fantastic food (especially fresh fruit!). One of my favorite areas was Chinatown because of my extreme passion for fashion (aka shopping). We hit the jackpot because during the Christmas season, a very central road known for high fashion shopping, Orchard Road, was decked out in the best display of lights I've ever seen.

Singapore was a wonderful choice, a country I knew nothing about. I hadn't even heard much about Singapore until I flew Singapore Air to Korea. Even then, what did I know... Singaporean flight attendants wear pretty floral pattern uniforms... quite the educated traveller. Such a small country, I really felt I did get the opportunity to educate myself and explore most everything Singapore had to offer.