A Cruise on the Singapore River

On our last day in Singapore, we decided to head to Clarke Quay to take a river cruise. In the 1980s it was a noisy place with boats docking and unloading cargo, but today it is a focus of entertainment with restaurants, shops, and handicraft stalls.

It was pretty quiet when we got there around 10:00.

The flowers are so pretty. This lovely orchid bush was right beside the ticket booth for the river cruise.

Just opposite Clarke Quay is Riverside Point, a complex with restaurants and offices.

I couldn’t resist an orchid for my hair, which sadly I soon lost!

There is the police station again with all its pretty shutters.

We passed under several bridges. One was a suspension bridge, but it was built too low and boats can only get through at low tide.

There is that boat again!

This sculpture depicts scenes of the early days of Singapore. Singapore River was once the lifeline and the first migrant communities settled around here. It was not an uncommon sight to see naked boys swinging from trees beside the river and jumping into the water with great delight!

The architecture is incredible with all the different shapes of buildings.

The merlion! I had read that you can’t leave Singapore without getting your picture taken with the merlion. Unfortunately, this is as close as we got, but it was better than nothing!

The flower shaped building in front of the Marina Bay Sands hotel is the art science museum.

The Fullerton Hotel has a great location right on the river and it wasn’t that much more expensive than our hotel. If we ever return…

They look like Lego!

This was a boat like the one we were on. We were sitting on the back of it and only at the end realized we could have sat at the front with an unobstructed view.

The spaceship building is the Supreme Court with the parliament buildings underneath it.

Round buildings, pointy buildings…all shapes and sizes.

And then we were back at the dock 40 minutes later. It was a nice ride and a different perspective on the city and the buildings.

We wandered along looking for a place to have lunch, but few restaurants were open. Nothing seems to get going down here until later in the day. The Forbidden City looked interesting and reminded us of the Terra Cotta Warriors, another great trip we experienced with Barb and Ed. 

A nice water fountain…

Since we couldn’t have lunch, we decided to head back to our favourite restaurant for lunch and come back to Clarke Quay for dinner. Here we are at Cream Bistro, where we have eaten at least one meal each day since we’ve been here. They recognize us now and on the last day when we went in, Barb said "We're home, Mom!" They laughed. (I think they understood us!)

Ed and I had been drooling over these macarons. We weren't even sure what they were, but in typical Singapore fashion, they were expensive, about $2 each. They were sort of like different flavoured meringues with cream in between. By far the best was the salty caramel. Mmmmmm….

Back at Clarke Quay that night. Quite a different place than during the day!

The fountain…

Each restaurant trying to get your attention and business!

We noticed a lot of hookah pipes. With the laws in Singapore, it certainly wasn’t drugs! It's become very popular to smoke different flavoured tobaccos, which are very potent.

We had a great meal at a Thai restaurant and stopped to take our picture on the bridge with the self-timer.

The river scene at night…

Riverside Point really looks different at night!

With one last look at the fountain, we headed home. Clarke Quay at night reminded me a lot of Fremont Street in Las Vegas...without the casinos!

The next day we headed to the cruise ship terminal. Yay! We’re on board the Pacific Princess and ready to sail.

We passed the Mount Faber Singapore Cable Car as we sailed away. One of the cars is the VIP Jewelled Cabin. It has four leather seats, a glass floor, and is decorated with Swarovski crystals.

This is a walking bridge in the foreground...

This yacht was pretty impressive.We heard later that it was owned by a Russian billionaire and is shaped this way so that there is no opportunity for pirates to get on board.

Another pretty green space. Goodbye Singapore! It was a great visit.

Our next stop is Phuket, Thailand…