One of the delights of travel is seeing the skyline and landmarks in a city, architecture which is a delight to the eye, a delight to passers-by. Tourists, more than those scurrying to and fro, can see the city afresh, pause and take photographs.
Landmark Buildings Worldwide
Wherever you go, you can admire the big landmark buildings of the city, also the bridges. Famous symbols you know and recognise before you even see them include Tower Bridge in London, San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge, and Sydney Opera House in Australia.
London also has The Shard, where you can visit the inside for a fee, if you have both time and money, or just admire it from nearby or afar. Tower Bridge can be visited from inside, with its glass walkway recently added to offer views of the river and boats below. London has other bridges such as the bouncing bridge.
But a journey around every city also reveals innovative housing development designs, unusual local buildings, and even windows, doorknobs and curtains, in unexpected colours and shapes.
Driving From Changi Airport
When I take the taxi from Singapore's Changi airport, the journey is always a delight. First, the airport itself, modern, yet filled with statues, flowers, trees, waterfalls, exhibitions, and the butterfly garden.
Sheraton Towers Hotel - oasis
Sheraton Towers Hotel is an oasis of calm. You can run up a bill of about £20 just having coffee for two after work. However, the first three Mondays of most months, often including public holidays, you can attend a Toastmasters International speakers club meeting as a guest.
Arrive by 6 pm in order to sign in as a guest. For a guest fee of $20 you can enjoy four or more speeches from Singaporeans and members from around the world. Before the meeting starts you have a small buffet light supper. When I was last there in 2016 I enjoyed rice, noodles, Indian Bread, sandwiches and fruit. I could have helped myself to coffee and milk, hot and cold water and slices of lemon. This is the biggest and oldest speakers group, attracting perhaps a hundred people. Smaller meetings of about thirty people take place all over Singapore most days of the week, regularly Monday to Friday, often on Saturday, occasionally on Sunday.
Community Centres
Every area of Singapore has community centres. From the outside you can see the basketball court in the open air, usually another inside. You can usually eat and meet and have coffee or a snack in a fast food outlet such as McDonalds or Starbucks. Each community centre is different, adapted to age and food preferences of the local clientele.
Water, Fish, Tortoises
A water feature is an Asian favourite. Hotels have fountains and waterfalls.
If you visit a friend, relative or work colleague at their home, or inspect property with a view to buying or renting, you will see the fountains or water features in the lobby, near the lifts, or in the gardens at the back. A pond usually contains large fish and often tortoises.
Community centres have mini gardens with curved or S shape paths. Water is thought to attract wealth, which is why there is a huge fountain in the financial district.
(More photos being added to this article and previous posts.)
See my previous posts such as the one on the Butterfly Garden in Changi Airport.
Angela Lansbury, travel writer, photographer, author and speaker.
