Singapore-Day 5

This was our day to go to Kampong Glam, the historic part of Singapore, where Malay royalty lived.  It used to be a fishing village when it was on the waterfront...Beach Street is one of the borders of this neighborhood.  The Arab-Malay influence is strong here and it is the place to go for beautiful fabrics.  The main part of this district is the Sultan's Mosque, which allows visitors.  We did not go in today, but did the next day because  you must go in before noon so as not to disrupt the prayer times. 

Anyway, the neighborhood is lovely.  Many beautiful fabric stores and silks.  Also, you can buy any number of sequins, laces, ribbons.

There are, of course, shophouses-another lovely enclave of low buildings amidst the skyscrapers of Singapore.  The mosque is a strong presence.

It is on Bussorah street, a lovely walking street where we had a delicious Turkish lunch

While mom rested at the restaurant after we ate, Margie and I walked over to Haji Street, a  wonderful alley which has become the Soho of Singapore with galleries and expensive shops mixed in with more shophouses.

Mom was well cared for by the owner of the Turkish restaurant who kept her ice tea filled and helped her up and down the stairs.

This neighorhood definitely deserves another visit.  

I think the part of Singapore that stands out for me the most are these wonderful neighborhoods that are  so culturally diverse.   You can change cultures just by going from neighborhood to neighborhood.

Margie went off to work and we went home to rest and then met her for dinner at the Singapore Botanical Gardens-so lovely at twilight.  The flowers are incredible and you can walk and jog in the evening since it is too hot to go out during the day...many dog walkers and runners.

There are lilies that look a lot like the Victoria Regia on the Amazon in Peru.

We saw incredible varieties of ginger flowers. We will try to get back there once more-there is still so much to see.