Singapore: HOHO Bus, Night Safari & Little India

Kevin still had his work exercise, so he was not joining us in Singapore until later tomorrow, so the Schwartz and me and the girls decided to try the Hop on Hop off Bus (HOHO) around Singapore today.  We paid for our tickets, packed snacks, studied the brochure then jumped on the first bus.  The kids were very excited to ride at the top of the bus.  They all found perfect seats and enjoyed the sites of Singapore as they passed by.

It was awful hot and Monster was super tired, so he fell asleep while the bus was going around town. We were realizing that there weren't a lot of stops that were close to each other that we wanted to stop at, and we also found out that to get to other parts of town we would need to transfer to a different line.  HOHO busses are super easy without kids, but long rides and the kids start to complain.

One of the stops that we got off at, had an old ancient temple.  We walked through an outdoor market before getting to the Hindu temple.  We enjoyed buying some fresh fruits and eating them as we walked.  

The Hindu Temple was so colorful.  It was bright blue with sparks of every other color running across the top dotting the figures.  We couldn't go in the temple, but it sure was cool seeing it at the end of the market.

The kids were super hungry by this point and it was well past lunch time, so we went in search of a restaurant.  We found a McDonald's and got the kids food.  Monster was tired and not loving the heat, and Little A looked like she was about to faint.  She also was complaining about all the walking.  I didn't think the two littles were going to make it any further and since I didn't have Kevin with me to help, I decided to take the next HOHO bus back to the hotel and Big Sis and M&M stayed with Cori and Dustin to see more sites. I got back to the hotel and both the kids took a nap. Big Sis and M&M came back and said they had the best time.  The went to two more stops and one of them was Little China.  They saw a neat temple and a big square with hanging decorations that M&M absolutely loved.

After everyone got back, we had only an hour or so before we needed to leave to make it to the Night Safari, so we ate some food, packed snacks and took a Taxi to the Singapore Zoo.  We had all bought tickets on Klook, so we didn't have to wait in the long lines, we just went to a kiosk and printed up our tickets.

We walked around the outside of the zoo for a while before making our way to the Night Safari lines. The kids loved all the statues and canopies.  It was fun letting them all just run around and smile and laugh together.

The Night Safari is a way for the zoo to stay open at night.  It really is a brilliant idea.  Everyone gets on a trolley/train sort of contraption and with a virtual tour guide telling you what you are passing.  They focus the most on the nocturnal animals, and for the most part we were able to see those animals roaming around.  The kids absolutely loved it.  They loved seeing all the animals and riding on a train to see them.  It was super dark, and there wasn't much light, so that way it wouldn't interrupting the animals too much. I was really impressed with it all.

When we got off the Night Safari train, we went straight to the Night Animal Show.  The show focused on the nocturnal animals and had them running across the stage, interacting with the zoo keepers and flying over our heads. It was late and the kids were getting tired, but they were sure loving everything.

The best part of the show is when they asked for volunteers and Dustin put his hand up and they picked him.  All the kids went wild.  The zookeepers had three volunteers, but they didn't tell them what they were helping with.  In the end, a snake came slithering out and the volunteers helped to hold the snake up.  One of the girl volunteers was so scared she was shaking.  It was so funny.

We got the kids all ice cream and walked around the shops for just a little bit before we decided to get them all home.  The kids were super awake now and all chatting endlessly about Dustin and the snake and all the animals they saw on the train.  Going to the Night Safari was definitely a great choice.

The next morning, the kids and I wanted to see Little India, so we got up early and decided to take the subway to Little India.  There was only one minor problem, I didn't have a SIM card for my phone.  Yesterday I stopped at all the places that sold SIM cards and their machines were all down, so I was only using WIFI.  I was worried the kids and I might get lost, so we decided to just go to Little India, which wasn't very far.  We made our way to the subway and successfully made it to Little India.

The colors were so bright and beautiful.  All the girls were ooohhing and awing at the buildings.  It was fun to walk through such a colorful part of town.

We ended up spending a good part of the day walking around Little India.  We got lunch, ice cream and some juice before deciding to head back.  We tried to get into the subway, and noticed that it was beyond confusing.  The kids and I ended up getting lost, and without cell phone data, I couldn't use maps on my phone to figure out where we were or how to get home.  I didn't know what subway line to use.  I was so frustrated and mad, and the kids were tired and hot and complaining.  I was ready to break down and cry.  In the end, we ended up walking to get back to our hotel.  I could see in the distance the tall building that was next to our hotel, so we walked in the direction of the tall building. The kids were such troopers.  We tried to make a game out of it and stay in the shade as much as possible.  We finally made it back to the hotel, and I was so grateful to be back.  I have learned that no matter what, no matter the price, I will always get a SIM card, so I always am able to use maps and the internet to find my way around subways and cities.  It was not fun to learn that lesson with four kids in tow, but lesson learned.