Melbourne and Singapore

In a travel blog some time ago I remarked that the most dangerous part of a trip was likely to be the ride to the airport.  I've reconsidered.  The most dangerous part of our current trip, so far, has been the ride from the Melbourne Airport to our hotel.

The fact is that this trip did not get off to a great start.  The plane was several hours late in leaving Hobart and when we arrived in Melbourne, the baggage carousel suddenly stopped in the middle of spewing out  luggage from our flight.  On asking one of the airline  staff what the problem was, we were told that the carousel had stopped.  Duh! Like we hadn't already figured that out.  Eventually "the powers that be" deigned to tell us that there had been a "mechanical problem," that it was "being seen to" and that we should have our bags "before too long." 

The one thing good about the delay (or so we thought) was that there wouldn't be the usual rush for taxis.  We were right and walked straight out into the first cab in the rank.  And that was where the ride from hell began.  The driver not only didn't know the hotel we wanted, he didn't know the suburb.  He asked the dispatcher who gave him some hurried, general directions and off we went along the freeway. When our driver missed the appropriate exit ramp and we pointed that out to him, he immediately stopped and backed down the busy motorway until he could use the ramp.  After further confusion about where to turn he finally got us to our hotel, stopping some distance away.  We made a hasty exit, dragging our bags behind us.

When we told the hotel receptionist what had happened, and she finally stopped laughing hysterically, she welcomed us to Melbourne and very kindly upgraded our room.

After a good night's rest we headed to the airport and departed for Singapore.

Before moving along, I want to digress a bit.  When checking e-mail, I discovered that Better World Books, one of the on-line book dealers I use is now selling a "hands-free" reader. This is a fascinating technological breakthrough and you can read all about it by clicking here.

What can one say about air travel? It is boring: films you aren't really interested in, mediocre food, and cramped conditions.  Not that much different (except for the films) from travel in the 1850s when it took three or four months to go from Sydney to London depending on whether one travelled by sail or in one of those new-fangled steam ships. Arriving in Singapore, however, is always a tremendous lift to the spirits. and  As usual everything was as smooth as one might wish.  Changi airport certainly sets the standard by which others can be judged and most fall far short of the mark.  Compared to Singapore, Heathrow seems positively third world.  Thirty minutes after landing we had cleared immigration, picked up our bags, passed through customs and were in a cab with a driver who knew where we were going and how to get us there swiftly and safely.

Merlion - The Symbol of Singapore

The airport is a fascinating place.  For one thing, it is carpeted and this keeps noise down to a minimum.  Everything is smooth and up-to-date. There are free internet access kiosks.

Internet Kiosks

Like the rest of the city-state, the airport is constantly reinventing itself.  And while it does it, it provides a delightfully restful haven for travellers.  There can't be that many airports in the world that have a butterfly garden!  The terminals are full of plant life and statuary.  It is almost worth a visit to see the airport alone.

Statue in Arrivals Hall

Garden in the Airport

One of the things that we noticed in Singapore was the absence of solar panels. So, why is it that a city lying on the equator doesn't make use of its abundant sunlight and continues to import most of its power needs?  I suppose it has something to do with the fact that a small city-state with a large population has only one direction in which it can grow and that is upwards.  Most Singaporeans live in apartments in high-rise buildings and solar panels on the roof would hardly dent the electricity needs of the tenants.  It may also have something to do with the high cost of the panels.  Interesting, n'est pas?

In the morning as we got ready to go back to the airport for the next leg of our journey, there was a huge thunder and lightning storm.  One of those kind that you might see in Miami or in parts of Queensland.  But, as we were told by three different people, it is the year of the Dragon and such storms can be expected, particularly on Monday mornings.  But, we were assured, they only last thirty minutes.  Well, you might scoff, but the majority of the storm had passed in thirty minutes although the rain didn't diminish for another half-hour.

And then back into an airborne sardine can for the next segment, Singapore to London.