Girls just wanna have fun

I seem to have adjusted a bit to the heat and humidity in Singapore. Thank goodness. There really is no respite. Day or night. Overcast or sunny. The heat goes on. Air con is your best friend. And cold cold drinks. It's great. Especially when Pam's mum tells us it's 11 degrees in Northumberland. I could be in for a bit of a shock next week.

On Tuesday I walked from Pam's condo near Little India into town. It's about 4.5k so it was a decent stroll. I met T's former line manager, Darrell, for lunch on Boat Quay. I'd not met Darrell before but had heard a lot about him from T so it was nice to put another face to a name and add another piece to the jigsaw that was T's life. On Tuesday night we were scheduled to go to Gold Class at the cinema. I'd heard about Gold Class in Australia and Pam is a huge fan so I was looking forward to lying back in a big comfy reclining chair and having food and drink brought to me in the darkness, but sadly there were no good films on. It may have just passed me by, but as far as I know we don't have Gold Class in the UK but I can't think why. I reckon there might be a gap in the market. Anyway, instead of Gold Class we went for yummy and very cheap sushi. And I was brave and tried a chrysanthemum iced tea. It wasn't bad - maybe a bit like chamomile if I had to liken it to anything - and is apparently very good for you.

Yesterday I met Stella, a Singaporian that I met on the Flying Kiwi bus, for lunch. She took me to a lovely Indonesian restaurant in the CBD where we shared a real variety of dishes. We had BBQ squid, some spicy green vegetables, prawns with a spicy oatmeal crumb, a chicken dish, tofu with peanut sauce and rice wrapped in a banana leaf. Rounded off with an avocado milkshake for dessert. You mix pureed avocado with coconut sugar, milk and crushed ice. It's very green. And it takes one or two tastes to get used to but I really enjoyed it. It was nice to catch up with a fellow Flying Kiwi. No matter how much you tell other people about the trip, they are never going to understand fully what it was like or be able to help you remember things. That's one of the things that's hit me about T not being here. We've spent the past 13 years helping each other fill in gaps or having a laugh about those 'remember when' times. Now there's no-one to do that with. Or at least the people that can are spread around the world. I guess that's the beauty of email and Facebook though.

I came home via Little India. This area really stimulates your senses. Indian music blasts out of the CD shops. There's the smell of fresh and fragrant Indian herbs, vegetables and spices as you walk past the grocery stalls. Brightly coloured saris and fabrics flutter in the breeze at the clothes shops. You look down an alleyway and through an open door you see an Indian woman sat at a sewing machine taking up a hem. Men are making flower garlands to take to the temples. It's a fascinating place and another facet to the cultural melting pot that is Singapore.

As if that wasn't enough excitement for one day, the best was yet to come. I was under strict instructions to be at home and ready to go out by 4pm for a birthday surprise. So I put on my glad rags, whacked the air con up and managed to straighten my hair. It's no mean feat straightening your hair over here when it's so darn hot. Then the minute you step outside it all just frizzes anyway. Hey ho. Pam hailed a taxi then had a discussion with the driver with the door closed so I couldn't hear where we were off to. The next thing you know we're pulling up at Raffles Hotel. Not what I was expecting so I was pleased I'd made an effort to dress up a bit.

Raffles is a beautiful place. The building is stunning. Very colonial. It really takes you back to times gone by. And it's a little oasis in the heart of the city. Lots of palm trees and fountains. There's a really laid back atmosphere, it's not at all stuffy. So, I've guessed we're going to the Long Bar for a Singapore Sling. But I've been there, done that, bought the tea towel. Instead Pam had booked us in for high tea. Not only was it my first ever afternoon tea. I was having it at Raffles! We had a table right next to the buffet. For this is no ordinary afternoon tea; there's an eat as much as you want buffet - noodles, mini chicken pies, curry puffs, spring rolls, dim sum. And that's before they bring you your afternoon tea proper - cucumber, chicken and smoked salmon sandwiches on one tier, scones with jam and clotted cream on the next, and mini lemon meringue pies, mini strawberry and cream choux buns and mini pistachio madeleines on the top tier. As if that wasn't enough, there are seconds and thirds of all of the above on the buffet table, as well as fruit platters. Oh, how I wish I'd skipped lunch. Although I still managed to put a fair bit away. It was such a lovely treat and I'm so grateful to Pam, my lovely friend, for being so generous and thoughtful.

The day was rounded off with cocktails at the New Asia Bar on the 70th floor of the Swissotel-Stamford with Emma, one of Pam's fellow teachers. The views were spectacular. It makes you realise what a densely populated country/city Singapore is. There are condos as far as the eye can see. And if you think about how many people live in each condo and how many condos there are, then that's a canny lot of people. It was lovely seeing the city lit up and all the boats out at sea. That's one of my lasting memories of Singapore from the time I've spent here in the past. The boats all waiting to come in to load up. It's like Piccadilly Circus out there. That and the smell of durians, the world's smelliest fruit. So smelly they are banned on the MRT, Singapore's Underground. Having said that, I'm yet to smell a durian on this trip. Maybe the Singaporians have realised that it can't be good to eat something so smelly.

I'm just about to go and do my 60 lengths in Pam's pool before I head off to Ho Chi Minh City this arvo. I'm a bit nervous about going on my own as I'm just not sure what to expect when I get there. But I've been assured that's it's a lovely city, safe for me to wander on my own, within reason of course. It sounds like crossing the road will be the biggest hazard. I'm meeting Peter, a former colleague and fellow Northumbrian, tomorrow morning then Pam arrives tomorrow evening so it's not like I'm going to be on my own for long. I'll just see how I feel when I get there and if I don't feel safe then I'll stay in my hotel room and read my book. If I feel fine then I'll go exploring and see what I can find. We're back here on Sunday then my flight home is on Tuesday night, so not long to go. I don't know where the time has gone. I guess maybe the old saying is true - time flies when you're having fun. Sometimes it's hard to admit that I'm having fun. But sometimes I am. And I think that's probably a good thing.