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How to Spend Two Weeks in Singapore

Have you seen anyone write about how they spent two weeks in Singapore?

Two weeks in Singapore without leaving the country? You mad, bruh? I’d die of boredom there.

Perhaps I am. The average visitor stays in the country for 3.5 days. The Lonely Planet guidebook provides only a one-day itinerary. Even the Tourism Board doesn’t have a plan that lasts more than seven days. What are people to do if they’re staying with their friends or loved ones in Singapore for a few weeks, though? It’s tempting to spend a significant number of days in Penang, Bali, Bangkok or some nearby city, but that needn’t be the case.

So here’s the brief I set myself: Create a two-week itinerary for slow travellers that takes in the major sights and more. Give them a glimpse of everyday life and introduce them to the history of the country from more than one perspective.

Challenge accepted.

(Updated: March 2018)

[Read on]

The Iran Visa on Arrival for Singaporeans (and Most of the World)

If you have adventurous friends, they might have told you that Iran boasts gorgeous scenery and hospitable people. Decades of negative news coverage about the Middle East mean that many people don’t realise it’s also safe and easy to visit. The Iran visa on arrival is available to many nationalities, including Singaporeans like Yours Truly.

There is a lot of confusion about the Iran visa on arrival process on the Internet, however, with people describing wildly different experiences. What I went through was also very different from what I read, and having spent three hours waiting and watching with two of my friends, this is what I have to share about the experience at Tehran’s Imam Khomeini Airport.

(Updated March 2017)

[Read on]

A Singaporean Guide to a NZ Working Holiday

If you think it’s difficult for Singaporeans to travel long-term or work abroad, nothing could be further from the truth. Under New Zealand’s Work Exchange Programme, up to 200 Singaporeans between the ages of 18 and 30 may work and stay in the country for 6 months on a New Zealand Working Holiday visa, as long as they meet a few other criteria. Unlike other schemes that you might have seen, you can arrange it yourself without going through an agency or being tied to one employer.

There are worse decisions one could make than a New Zealand working holiday. It’s perfect if you have just graduated from the polytechnic or university. Get a change of scenery, live independently, discover your resourcefulness, deal with a foreign culture and see a bit of the world – there won’t be any lack of moments to share with everyone. I speak from personal experience (and I paid for everything – this post isn’t sponsored in any way).

In this guide, I’ve put together a few things that my friends and I learnt to make your journey smoother. Interested? Then read on.

(Updated April 2017) [Read on]

Polish Food: A Quick Introduction

Foodies need not approach Poland with fear, even after sampling the culinary delights of France, Spain and Italy and the beers of Belgium, the Czech Republic and Germany. Polish cuisine has a history just as long as its counterparts elsewhere. It shows its Slavic and thanks to the innovation of cooks and homemakers around the country, it survived the difficult days of the People’s Republic. (Here’s an article that offers an insight into what meals were like in Communist Poland)

There is a more exhaustive list on this TripAdvisor thread, so instead, I’ve put together a list of the delicacies that I have tried and enjoyed (sometimes unexpectedly), the places I found them and their (hopefully correct) pronunciations. For the less adventurous, there are also plenty of Italian and fast food restaurants, but I can’t see why anyone else would choose them when the local food is tastier and often cheaper too! [Read on]