Back to the Shoppes@MBS!

Yeah as the title suggests, I went back to the Shoppes at Marina Bay Sands again! For some reason I really love this place. I went to see the Fountain Show and for a general visit (more to escape the rain) in the middle of the year. So in a way, I've seen the Shoppes - both in the daytime, and at night.

This time, I went in the afternoon after exploring the Marina Bay area. To be honest, I haven't even finished exploring the new areas!

Passed by our good ol' Swirling Vortex of Terror feature. It's actually designed by artist Ned Kahn, and is known as a rain oculus. At certain times of the day, water flows through the hole at 6,000 gallons per minute, and this lasts for around 15 minutes. In the acrylic "bowl" above - which is 22 metres in diameter, a whirlpool action is involved. This feature doubles up as a natural light source and an attraction.

I got the description from this website - Good Home Ideas.



But first...before I started my trip around the Shoppes...LUNCH! I was soooooo famished by the time I reached, so I had pear juice, some water pear, Hokkien Mee (of course!) and cold Horlicks. Honestly, I reckon the stallholder was intrigued - as I ordered pear juice AND water pear! But they're actually made from different types of pear.




TWG nearby. The tea is really high quality. I've got some packets from one of my friends.



And yes - the Titanic exhibition is open at the ArtScience Museum! I'm so tempted to catch it again, though I've been to the one in Melbourne Museum. Honestly I'm not sure if they're the same. But - it's worthwhile, considering that I've never been to ArtScience Museum.



Since the water oculus was going to be activated again at 5pm, I had plenty of time to kill.

So yeah, down the canal I went. I bought a kaleidoscope too!








And of course, there were a number of people enjoying boat rides. I wanted to, but was running out of cash. So I just went along and took pictures.










Had around 10 minutes to spare (before the oculus was activated) when I took these shots here.





One of the last boat rides before the oculus was activated.

In fact, before the oculus was activated, there were people crowding around it, and some were even ensuring that they got good views of it - both from above and below.




A favourite spot for people - the bridge, and the area closest to the lift. I chose the bridge.



And there it goes! First started off with a brief gush of water...



Then it came at full force.

And some were even braving the choppy current, just to get close to it.







Water flow wasn't very consistent though, but it was definitely impressive.

And yeah - this is what I mean by "finding a good spot"...



Some more pictures of the oculus - it was starting to die down by then.




And it finally reduced into a trickle, and was back to normal. People resumed their usual activities after that too.




Unfortunately there were some who missed the show, but managed to get a glimpse of the gorgeous masterpiece. Honestly I'm really fascinated by it too.




Sunlight was also streaming from the massive bowl. And oh my gosh I love the lighting!!!




You could actually see people through the massive transparent bowl. Here's one random person talking outside.



And this is the giant bowl from street level.



Took some more random shots of the city area before boarding the bus.




I was sitting on the upper deck of the bus when I saw this: a smiley sunflower sitting on the edge of another bus - as part of an advertisement! So I took pictures of him of course! :D

And yeah that's it for now! I'll definitely go back to the Shoppes @ MBS. I'm falling in love with that place! It's just soooo gorgeous!

Christmas Decorations - Orchard Rd

Did some effects using ColourSplash - one of the apps on my iPod.

Christmas decorations are springing up all over town! Especially along the shopping area - Orchard Road. I went the day after I landed in Singapore, just before the rains drenched everything. It's the monsoon season in Singapore now.

Found this cuddly stuffed lion at the supermarket too! He was a new mascot for some chocolates. And speaking of which, I'm craving for chocolates...AGAIN. Genuine choco-holic!

And one of the jewellery shops had a music theme this year - so there were French horns, violins and everything musical! :D YAY!!



This is Orchard Road at around 10am in the morning, from the reflection of a Christmas decoration.

I used lots of reflections this time...



And these light up in different colours - all outside the Mandarin Hotel.










Christmas trees along Orchard Road. I heard that one of the trees around this area caught fire, but I don't remember which tree.




And of course, Ion Orchard had gorgeous decorations as usual. This time, they had snow globes with different decorations inside.






The massive tree outside Ion had not been fully built yet...so it wasn't open to public.

But there were lots of good pictures to take!

And yep, the use of more reflections...I can actually see myself in the reflection.

The famous Christmas tree within Takashimaya.




Decorations on the other side of the road - outside Paragon. It's been a year since the dreaded ATCL exams.




This was outside Topman/Topshop, and when I first got there, lots of people were fighting to get pictures with the tree. They finally left, though!



And of course, the use of MORE reflections! ;)




Dropped by Orchard Central straight after.



The ground floor had many stalls selling crafts, jewellery, and even food. And this was where I bought a bracelet with 5 charms - including a grand piano charm! :D Finally got a grand piano charm! And of course, we bought chocolates and I had a nice time tasting them.

The stalls look like houses in mid-winter, with snow draped all over them.




And of course...I FINALLY HAD MY HOKKIEN MEE!!!

Honestly - enduring 4 months of Hokkien Mee deprivation nearly drove me crazy! I was so glad to see the Hokkien Mee stall, that I literally bought a massive plate and finished it all.

And there'll be more Christmas decoration posts to come!