Singapore on a Budget: Day 3

1Jan 23: Window shopping and the flight to Cebu.


When we woke up, we thought it was still dawn. But when we saw the clock, it was already 7 a.m. This was how the Singapore sky at 7 a.m. looked like.

I couldn't believe that it was our last day already, and I haven't bought anything for myself. Of course, we were on budget, and I couldn't afford to buy from the luxury shops, but I was desperate to buy a souvenir item from Singapore. So I coaxed the Hubby to go to Vivo City, claimed to be the largest shopping mall in Singapore. I might have luck over there?

When we reached Vivo, we were struck by the number of people there. And then we remembered that it was a holiday, and families were flocking towards Universal Studios. You have to go through Vivo City to get to the tram going to Sentosa.

No luck at Vivo too. What good was it being the largest shopping mall if most of the shops were closed? (Sour graping na talaga ako!) We just ate a scoop of Haagen Dazs to console me from not holding a shopping bag.

The Hubby, bless him, asked me if I would like to go back to Orchard Road to check on the other malls. Of course, I wanted to. We still had the whole day to look around, since our flight was at 12:10 a.m. of January 24th.

We ended up going back to the same malls we went to yesterday, since most of the major malls were closed, like Paragon, Ngee Ann City, Wheelock, ION Orchard, etc. He jokingly said he would have bought some expensive gift for me if the stores were open. Hwag mag-joke sa taong walang na-shopping!!

Anyare?

I finally rested my case. We went back to the hotel to prepare for the flight home.

Goodbye, Swissotel Stamford!
I enjoyed my stay in Rm 2562.

Our flight was still at midnight, so we dropped by the Main Changi first. Of course, we couldn't go through the departure area there, where shops abound, so we stayed at Starbucks for a while. At around 6:00, we decide to transfer to the Budget Terminal. The Shuttle Bus going there were full of Indians.

When we arrived at the Budget Terminal, we were surprised at the number of people who were there. Were they all going somewhere? Later, we found out that out of at least five people there, only one was the legitimate passenger. The others were all 'naghahatid'. We had to endure the sights and smell until 9:00, when the flight of Tiger Airways left. Then, the airport became suddenly still.

Lesson learned: Go to the Budget Terminal at least 2 hours before your flight because that's the only time you will be allowed to check-in and go to the Departure Area anyway.

Remember the liniments the Hubby bought at Guardian Pharmacy? Well, he threw away the spray since it was not allowed in the hand carry bags. We didn't pay for a provision for check-in baggage, because we really didn't need it (budget nga e!), so he didn't have a choice but to discard the Salonpas spray. Naku, ang sakit ng loob niya kaya!

Finally, we were able to check-in at 10:00 p.m. The Hubby went through the X-ray without any hitch, but I was stopped because I had a tiny Victorinox Swiss army multi-tool, which I forgot to leave behind at home, in my purse. They confiscated it, unfortunately. Bye, Swiss Army!

What do you know? There is a Guardian Pharmacy inside the waiting lounge. So guess what, the Hubby bought a Salonpas spray again (or was it two bottles?)! Hayy, ang kulit, no?!!!

The Departure waiting lounge was not at all bad. There was free wi-fi zone, some massage chairs, a duty-free shop, money changer. We grabbed a bite at what looked like a fast food stall, and the food was not that pricey. The waiting lounge needed more lounging chairs though. Overall, it still looked like a warehouse to me.

Boarding time, and it was almost my birthday. 


Goodbye, Singapore! I had the best weekend birthday ever!