It’s hard to believe I’ve been here for two months already. My original 30-day tourist exemption is long over, and I extended that an additional 30 days by renewing at the Chiang Mai Immigration Office. I certainly could have done a border run and got renewed for another 30-days for free, but here are a few reasons I didn’t:

  1. At midnight when trying to fly to Thailand from the U.S., Delta Airlines forced me to buy a budget ticket out of Thailand or they would refuse to allow me to board the plane. So on June 17th, I bought a ticket from Bangkok to Singapore on August 12th.
  2. Doing a border run by land only buys you another 30 days until you have to do another border run. If you have too many 30-day tourist stamps, they start to get suspicious and may deny you entry on any random attempt.
  3. I knew I was staying in Thailand longer than 30 days. With an actual tourist visa that you get at a Thai Embassy while outside of the country, you’re good for 60 days without having to do a border run, and you can extend that for another 30 days by visiting an immigration office and paying a fee.

I decided that Option #3 was the best, and I already had a ticket purchased to get out of the country thanks to #1. As complete, random luck would have it, within my first two months of staying in Thailand, a friend from Boulder moved to Singapore and was gracious enough to let me sleep on the couch. Looks like I’m heading to Singapore!

Bangkok to Singapore

As with all statements about Bangkok transportation, it was easy. Since I have now spent more than a month in Bangkok, I learned the best way to get to and from Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport is not necessarily the best way that I mentioned previously. Though, I’d rank what I’m about to tell you as #1a and the previous way on the BTS and #1b. It just depends on where you happen to be within the city that will dictate which one you choose.

For me, staying in Silom, the MRT (subway) is the better option even though the BTS (train) interchange are both just steps apart.

Taking the MRT to Suvarnabhumi Airport from Silom is SO EASY.

Simply get on the MRT at the Si Lom station, change trains to the Airport Rail Link (SA City Line) at the Phetchaburi station, and get off when you can’t go any further. That’s the airport.

Once in Singapore…

I Googled directions to my friend’s place and since I wasn’t intimately familiar with Singapore’s MRT system, it seemed like taking the bus with just one transfer was going to be easier than using the MRT with 3 different transfers.

I was wrong. But that’s only in hindsight.

It was almost annoying though, that the bus drivers assumed I had absolutely no clue what I was doing and I needed to have a 5 minute conversation of broken English, smiling, pointing, and cell phone-showing just to convince them I knew where I was going and that I was in fact on the right bus…for each bus. I do not think they realize how powerful The Google and Them Internets are.

No Same Same

Singapore ice cream shop flowersSingapore is not the same as Thailand. Singapore is basically America with a lot less white people.

Gone were the hoards of scooters. Gone were endless rows of street vendors. Gone was cheap food. Gone were the feelings of the Wild Wild West. I couldn’t even find coffee in this neighborhood. You can’t spit in Thailand and miss a coffee stand. I wandered into an ice cream shop, thinking I could have an ice cream and hang out for a couple hours on their wifi. Nope. Singapore isn’t a huge fan of widely available wifi either. So I hung out (and ate — barf) in McDonalds where it is available.

But I did find out that with high enough contrast between your subject and the background and a slightly longer exposure, you can almost create a white room effect without distorting the subject. That was accidental and probably useless knowledge.

I eventually made it to Allison’s and met her rambunctious young daughter. I also found Singapore’s version of cheap street food….which was still four times as expensive as Thailand’s.

Goodnight, Singapore.

Singapore Skyline at Night

The Next Two Days

I didn’t do much of anything. I worked all day the next day, and the following, which was Friday, I made my first trip to the Thai Embassy about 5 minutes before they closed.

You see, Thai websites aren’t always a definitive source of information. Even when it’s something official that could stand to land you a big fine or jailed if misinterpreted. Because Asia. — Adopted saying from fellow SE Asia traveler and climbing homie Elizabeth Bandy.

During these two days, I became intimately familiar with Allison’s dining room table. But then Saturday and Sunday happened.

Gardens By The Bay

Before visiting…wait, no….even after visiting….when I would hear the word Singapore, I would think of an ultra-modern, ultra-chic city with crazy architecture. Kind of like UAE’s younger cousin. The features that most stick out in my mind are from Gardens by the Bay. And I finally got to visit them.

Singapore's Gardens By the Bay

You also walk by the incredibly famous Marina Bay Sands Hotel.

Marina Bay Sands Hotel

And take in the sight of the Singapore Flyer:

Gardens By the Bay-3

And eventually, walk past those crazy tree looking things.

Once you step foot inside the Flower Dome, it’s easy to be overwhelmed by the visual stimulus.

 

Gardens By the Bay Flower Dome

The roof is art in and of itself.

Flower Dome Roof

But then realize, it’s time to bust out the macro lens.

They even had flowers that weren’t actually flowers.

Break time!!!

Gardens By the Bay

And then off to my favorite part of the day — Cloud Forest.

Walk in and be greeted by a towering, multi-level waterfall.

I particularly liked feeding time.

Cloud Forest Watering

But the rest of the structure was pretty equally as impressive.

Once down from the very top, you’re greeted with a video that predicts what the world will be like 100 years from now if the global temperature continues to rise. *IF* what they predict is accurate, a temperature rise of just 5°C is quite scary.

But one of use was more interested in the Splash Park. I guess the view was ok while waiting.

Gardens By the Bay Splash Park

On the way out, I couldn’t help but feel like we were being watched.

Gardens By the Bay

And we caught one last glimpse of the skyline before heading down to the MRT.

Singapore Skyline

The sun was setting on the day,

Singapore Sunset

But there was just one more picture I had to take. Goodnight.

Singapore Night Photography

Treetop Walk

When I landed in Singapore, I grabbed a magazine from the airplane that had “50 Things to do in Singapore.” Everything we did the day before was listed, but I was going to do those regardless. On Sunday we chose one from the list — The Treetop Walk in MacRitchie Reservoir.

I had visions of monkeys swinging to and fro and walking on endless suspension bridges from treehouse to treehouse. It was a whimsical good time!! In my head.

The reality, is that it’s quite a long hike. On the ground. In incredibly dead air. And the monkeys we saw were either semi-aggressive or just sitting on their asses.

There was one cute guy. But he was just as boring to watch after 30 sec.

Singapore Treetop Walk Monkey

There was one, *A*, singular suspension bridge.

Singapore Treetop Walk

And it put you out in the open with just the canopy to see…which looks like any other green canopy I’ve ever seen.

Singapore Treetop Walk canopy

Perhaps you can’t tell, but I was unenthused with the day…..to one’s fault except the damn magazine I grabbed. Karma?

Singapore Treetop Walk

Once done with the hike, which was about 10km, we were all pretty spent. The only cure was air conditioning and the pool. So back to the apartment we went.

Thai Visa in Singapore

Now it’s Monday, and I can finally go back to the Thai Embassy to apply for my Visa. My last visit at 5 minutes to close wasn’t a complete waste. I’ve heard stories of getting a new visa without having an outbound trip within 60 days already booked, but I also heard the Thai Embassy in Singapore is super strict. When I showed up the first time, I was definitely going to try get my visa without a plane ticket out of the country.

No dice.

They absolutely required you to have your flight itineraries printed out for coming back into Thailand as well as leaving Thailand.

That kind of sucks for me because who the fuck knows where I’ll be in 30, 60, or 90 days from now? I ended up buying a plane ticket to Vietnam and spent the extra money so I can change dates without penalty.

So, what you need to get your Thai Visa at the Thai Embassy in Singapore:

  • Passport
  • A new passport picture taken within the last 6 months
  • A filled out visa form
    • Have the address of your first stop in Thailand available
  • Flight itineraries for in and out of Thailand
    • The flight out has to be 60 days or less from the day you come in
    • You can still renew for another 30 days at the end (for a total of 90 days) but since it’s not guaranteed you’ll be granted the extension, they still need to see that you’re able to get out of the country by the time you absolutely need to.
  • 50 SGD (Singaporean dollars) — about $35.50.

Anticlimactic Ending is Anticlimactic

Sorry, nothing profound to share. I only came to Singapore for one reason, and I accomplished that. I wasn’t looking for worldly enlightenment, but I’m glad I came.

Despite not being my scene, I still got another stamp on my passport and got to exchange Asian experiences with Allison and her daughter. I saw just about all the country has to offer in just 2 days. Anything else there is to see…you can see the exact same thing in the U.S.

I grabbed my visa on Tuesday and on a plane back to Bangkok by Wednesday amidst the edginess of another bomb going off somewhere in the city.

Like I said, it’s the Wild Wild West.

And I love every bit of it. Except the bombings.





Don’t Miss Your Chance

I was stuck in Corporate America for 9 years. I was miserable.

Then I took control.

You can too, and it starts right here.