Singapore, Day 2: Universal Studios

APRIL 22, 2017

KT and I woke up early to eat the famous kaya toast at YA KUN KAYA TOAST. Good thing there was a branch near the hotel so we didn’t have to hurry or spend for transportation. We were supposed to meet J and K at USS but it was a coincidence that they also planned to eat kaya toast in the same branch so we ended up meeting earlier.

Breakfast: Kaya Toast with Egg

Since there were four of us, we decided to just take a cab going to UNIVERSAL STUDIOS SINGAPORE instead of the train. We got a bit lost when we were trying to look for the entrance to USS but still managed to find it thanks to the help of friendly Singaporeans. We bought our USS ticket online because we also availed the Express Pass, which saved us time.

We first went to Lights, Camera, Action!, where we got to experience the setting of a Category 5 hurricane in New York City. We were not allowed to take photos but this one was a good attraction. Next stop was Transformers The Ride: The Ultimate Battle, which is very similar to the Amazing Spiderman ride in USJ.

Continuing the tradition of taking a selfie after every ride

Our first extreme ride (and probably the only one haha!) was Battlestar Galactica: Human vs Cylon. It was K’s first time to ride a rollercoaster and we were not sure if he enjoyed it, but at least the other rollercoasters we rode that day seemed like a piece of cake to him. All of us rode Human but K and I backed out in Cylon. Haha!

Just a few meters away from this ride, we could already see Egypt theme in the next portion of the theme park.

We rode the Revenge of the Mummy, which reminded me of Disneyland’s Space Mountain in Tokyo and HK. J recommended this because she liked this ride in Universal Studios LA but she was quite disappointed (and us as well) with the effects – supposed to feel the insects crawling on our skin but we only felt water splashes. ☹ We still went for another ride after using our Express Pass because the waiting time wasn’t that long… but we forgot the time limit in our lockers! We didn’t have any money with us so we waited for the fellow tourists to claim their belongings. Good thing fellow Pinoys came so we borrowed money from them to open our lockers. Lesson learned!

After the 1st ride

After the 2nd ride

Dinosaur era was the next theme we encountered. We went to Jurassic Park: Rapids Adventure and had a lot of fun getting splashed. I braced myself in case there was a surprise drop towards the end but thankfully didn’t happen. Raincoats were available for purchase but we decided to just let the hot weather dry us. Tipid tipid din pag may time.

We had our late lunch in the area – laksa and dinosaur nuggets for me and KT.

No picture because we forgot – but we also ride Canopy Flyer to help us dry our clothes. Haha! Far Far Away land was the next stop…

We rode Puss in Boots’ Giant Journey which is a rollercoaster ride for kids. It was part of the Express Pass so might as well use it as much as we can.

We participated in the Shrek 4D(?), which we did not enjoy as much. The introduction part was just too long that it became boring. The 4D part was okay though. We also attended [Puss in Boots live] and had fun with the interactions.

Fiona and Shrek spotted

Happily ever after ❤

Our last stop was Waterworld, which is based on Nicholas Cage’s sci-fi film. No idea about the movie but it is apparently popular according to my mom. It was the last show for the day and it was crazy how it was very humid at 5PM… so we decided to sit in the SOAK ZONE. Yes, we really wanted to get soaked with lots of water! Intense ng init!

They had an awesome huge set and prior to the start of the show, some of the cast engaged the audience by asking each side to mimic their cheers. They also splashed some people with lots of water! Couldn’t upload the video here but the whole show was freaking great, particularly the stunts and effects! Hands down one of the best theme park shows we have watched.

We rode Enchanted Airways before going to Madagascar, the last portion of USS we have yet to explore. We didn’t ride any attraction but we bought cold desserts… both mango and strawberry were just okay. ☹ There were fruit bits that were too sour for our taste.

After eating dessert, KT went back to Battlestar Galactica to ride Cylon again. The rest of us decided to just wait for her and when she came back, she told a funny story on how her seatmate (big male person) told her after the ride that he couldn’t scream because she was laughing and having fun the whole time.

We left USS and took a cab going to LAU PA SAT for dinner. KT and I got the same food and shared some portions – dim sum from Bao Luo Wan Xiang and duck noodles which I forgot from which stall. We enjoyed the food and everything was incredibly affordable.

All in all, a fun day for the four of us despite the very humid weather. ❤

Bangkok, Day 4-5: Shopping, Sky Bar, and Night Market

MARCH 18-19, 2016

For my last tour day in Bangkok, my initial plan was just to go to a sky bar and night market so my morning and afternoon were both free. I was able to talk to D, a high school batch mate, the night before and he recommended TERMINAL 21 because of the quirky theme per floor. I decided to give it a shot since I had no plans anyway.

Took the BTS since there is a walkway connecting to the mall… and indeed, each floor had its own country theme. I spent a few hours going around here and buying a few more items for myself and my family.

The first floor I was in had the theme of Rome, Italy. Note that this is not the ground floor though.

 

 

The next floor exhibits Japanese theme. I was excited to check out all the clothing stores since I expected them to be the style I like… and it did not disappoint! I did not purchase anything though since I was limiting my budget for this day. I will be back for sure, though!

 

 

 

 

The next floor had a theme from London, specifically the London Underground.

Going up another floor transported me to the floor with Turkish theme. Those lights are TDF!!! I wanted to sneakily take them home.

Up another floor and the restroom had a navy theme.

The topmost floor was where the food court was located. Not sure what the theme was though but the sinks were in different colors.

 

 

Similar to food court in Platinum Fashion Mall and MBK, I exchanged baht for a card with load. I settled for a noodle dish that had duck slices. I already knew that what I ordered had a weird sauce but I was hoping it would taste good… Nah, it really tasted weird so I ended up eating the duck slices only, which were really delicious! Plus the cucumber slices and leafy vegetable.

For dessert, I bought mango with sticky rice and this made me forget about the weird-tasting noodles. The mango was really sweet and the sticky rice had a bit of a nutty taste that I loved.

I went back to Mooncome Homestay after my late lunch and took a nap. After my nap, I prepared for my visit to a sky bar and left the house. Google Maps insisted on taking BTS then switching to a bus so that I can reach Banyan Hotel. But, since I learned that some buses do not follow the bus stops, I persisted in looking for a route that would just entail BTS. I found one (put route here)

From the station, I walked for about 15 minutes before reaching Banyan Sky Tree. I was wishing silently that the place was not yet crowded. When I reached VERTIGO GRILL & MOON BAR, there were less than 10 customers only. Yay!

I ordered a mojito mocktail since I had no plans to dine here. The prices are ridiculously expensive. I have no idea how their food tastes so I really can’t judge the value for money. My mocktail tasted really great though. It tastes like mojito but without the alcohol kick. Perfect drink while watching the sunset from the 61st floor.

 

 

A few minutes after 6PM, I hurriedly went back to Mooncome Homestay to meet up with Katy & Benz. The previous night, I asked Arm if he was free to join me in visiting Rot Fai Market but he was not so I decided to ask Katy. She was free and so was Benz so my last night in Bangkok would be with friends. Yay!

We visited the ROT FAI MARKET IN RATCHADA because the flagship one (which was what I wanted to visit originally) was too far from the city. Since it was a Friday night, traffic was bad and there were lots of people in the market.

 

 

We looked for a stall that had free seats and we ended up in a stall that sells boat noodles. I was fine with this since the boat noodles in Victory Monument was okay so I had no high expectations. Surprisingly, this one tasted better! The serving was quite bigger so we only ordered one bowl each.

Benz also bought squid mixed with chili, green peppers, and other condiments. I forgot to ask what this was called but it was really delicious! The squid was cooked well so it was not chewy, and the spiciness was tolerable.

After eating dinner, we started going around each stall in the market since I wanted to buy a few vintage clothes. I was able to accomplish this mission and before we left, we decided to have some desserts.

Had those sinfully good toasts again — one with milk, another with Milo powder, and one more with chocolate and banana slices. All of them tasted good, even the chocolate one was not too sweet.

So thankful for Katy and Benz because they went beyond being Airbnb hosts. They gave me free ride during our trip to Rot Fai Market, and they paid for our dinner and desserts. We also had fun talking to each other. I will surely book with them again when I visit Bangkok again because these two are now my friends. Katy’s parents were also welcoming, especially her mom who I was able to talk to every breakfast time.

Went home before 10PM since I had to leave early morning the next day for my flight. Katy helped me by calling a cab that would fetch me from Mooncome Homestay and take me to the airport.

So the next morning, Katy was there to send me off and make sure that I did not leave anything in the room. With a heavy heart, I looked at the place I called home during my Bangkok solo trip and bid it goodbye.

I reached the airport earlier than expected and since I had some more time before boarding, I ate breakfast. I chose a Thai restaurant and ordered noodle soup. I realized that I kept on ordering noodle dishes in Thailand instead of rice dishes. LOL.

Our flight (via Cebu Pacific) left on time so I was able to arrive in Manila on time as well. Looking back at the past few days that I spent in Bangkok alone, I was happy to find out that my first solo trip went well and I truly enjoyed it. This trip is very precious to me because people know me as an introvert and shy person. It also made me discover and know more about myself — I can handle things on my own, I have a good sense of direction, I can initiate conversations with people (but I need to make sure first that they look friendly) if I wanted to, and a lot more things.

Bangkok is such a piece of gem and I will definitely be back soon. More importantly, I am quite excited to do another solo trip in the future. 🙂

 

LINKS TO OTHER BANGKOK 2016 POSTS:

Bangkok, Day 1: Preps, Lay Lao, Platinum Fashion Mall, The Best of the Boat Noodle, Puritan

Bangkok, Day 2: Grand Palace, 5 Wats, Thip Samai

Bangkok, Day 3: MBK, Mont Nom Sod, Food Trip