Day1: Home to HarbourFront

It's a sunny day, so I have that going for me. Temperature is 82 degrees.

On this inaugural day, I got a little breakfast and a late start as I wanted to drop the kids at school.
We decide to start here: On the corner of Orchard and Tanglin Roads.


A quick shot with the kids
 

After a quick detour, I picked up on Orchard. Orchard Road is the shopping hub of Singapore.
Think of it as 5th Avenue New York, only more-so, with mall after mall, some of them going 5 stories up and 3-4 stories deep. Here's one of my favorite:

A view of Ion Orchard - note the ever present construction.

Its a 1 mile walk down Orchard Road before I veer off for Fort Canning.


Fort Canning (formerly known as Bukit Larangan or "forbidden hill") was the ruling home of Malay kings and served as the British Fort for the island leading up to WWII.

There are great views of the city from here, showing both the old and the new, sometimes in the same snapshot.

A view from Fort Canning over Clark Quay

Exiting Fort Canning, I headed down to the Singapore River and walked along Boat Quay.

Boat Quay, great restaurants next to the financial district.

Bumboats run up and down the river offering taxi service and some great sights, especially at night.

 

Its getting hot now, so I walk down to Marina Bay and get a cold beverage.

Here you can find the Merloin; half lion, half fish and the mascot of Singapore. 

It's also a good place for people watching.

 

Behind the Merlion, there is the "Theatres by the Bay", two bug eye shaped buildings where they have both indoor and outdoor concerts. Many folks say the building also look like the local and very stinky fruit: durian.

 

After a rest, I wrap around the theatres, across the bay to Marina Bay Sands, a hotel/resort that defines the Singapore skyline.  

A view of Marina Bay Sands from the theatres

Its 90+ degrees now and I'm pretty hot, so instead of following the outside route, I decide instead to take my point A to point B inside the giant mall that's part of the resort.

 

Rounding the other side of the bay, you get this view:

Marina Bay from the west side of the bay

Near the end of day 1, I head north to Amoy Street, once noted for its Opium Dens. I like the architecture here.

Shops along Amoy Street

 Heading south and west again, I finally hit the coast. Here its clear that the industry that made Singapore strong was shipping. There are literally thousands of containers here.

One last push, gets me to VivoCity, the starting place of my practice run in March. It was none too soon as the sun was beating down and my water ran out.

Grabbing a quick drink, I hit the MRT and head back home. A good day overall.

We'll pick up here again tomorrow.

 

Total route (due to some missteps and getting sidetracked: 10.39 miles. 2 hours and 53 minutes

 

 



The Big Plan

Okay, so here's the plan:
At my rate, it will take 11-12 separate walks to get around Singapore. I'll do these in a relatively short time, taking time off for work, weather, or just wear and tear. Start date is today, April 7th with the expectation that all will be complete by the 25th of April.

Day1: Home to HarbourFront:  

Down Orchard Road, across Fort Canning, through Clark Quay, around Marina Bay, down to HarbourFront.


Day 2: HarbourFront to Haw Par Villa:

Past Sentosa, around Keppel Island, through Labrador nature Reserve to HawPar Villa Theme  Park



Day 3: Haw Par Villa to Chinese Garden

Through West Coast Park, around Pandan Reservoir, across the Jurong River through the Japanese Garden.


Day 4: Chinese Garden to Jalan Maurai

Through the Chinese Garden, along the Jurong River, past NTU, into the Choa Chu Kang Columbarium to a bus stop in the middle of nowhere.


Day 5: Jalan Murai to Kranji

From the bus stop, past the goat farm, a quick view of Malaysia, then across the Kranji Reservoir.



Day 6: Kranji to Admirality

A quick backtrack to the WWII cemetery, skirting the border crossing at Woodlands, up to the coast, then through the park.



Day 7: Admirality to Yishun

A quiet walk through Sembawang, back to the coast, along the waterway to Yishun.



Day 8: Yishun to Punggol

Through the park, across the Lower Selatar Reservoir, past the Seletar Airport, onto Barat and Timor Islands, settling in Ponggol.



Day 9: Punggol to Changi Point

Across another reservoir, along the Selarang River, past the Wild Wild Wet WaterPark, up to Old Changi Village.



Day 10: Changi Point to East Coast Lagoon

Ocean view of Changi Airport, a couple of pier views of the Johor Strait, down to East Coast Seafood, one of my favorites.



Day 11: East Coast Lagoon to Home

East Coast to Gardens By the Bay, Past Marina Bay Sands to complete my loop, through Chinatown, and then back home.



The last two walks are a little long, so I may break them up into 3.
Total distance: 97.69 miles.