Arriving here from New Zealand, which felt very much like the UK at times, it was good to experience Singapore with its eastern cultures. Singapore’s population of 3.04 million is mostly made up of Chinese, with the rest of the population made up by Malay and Indian, so the Chinese culture tends to dominate. We found Singapore incredibly clean, efficient and very well organised, however we did struggle with its tropical climate.

The Hotel we stayed in was called the `New 7th Storey Hotel’ (see photo below), and was well located in the centre of Singapore. It’s name is a bit misleading, as it isn’t `New’, as it was built in 1953, and it has 9 floors not 7. The building itself was also leaning, like the leaning Tower of Pisa!

It was not just the heat we struggled with in Singapore (which was usually in the high 30s degrees C), it was the high humidity (typically 75%+). We found it difficult just to walk, let alone contemplate training runs.

We found the best way to get around Singapore was by the air-conditioned and wonderfully clean and efficient MRT (Mass Rapid Transport) system. We did a trip on the MRT, going around most of the MRT route. It was a great way to see Singapore (as most of the track is above ground) cheaply and in air-conditioned comfort. Seeing all the high-rise housing blocks, you start to realise how the 3 million people of Singapore’s population are crammed into such a small area. Poles of washing hanging out of the windows on the high-rise building is a common site.

We explored Singapore’s Zoo, Botanical Gardens and Art Museum, as well as doing regular trips to the cinemas and outdoor swimming pools. We found several good swimming complexes, all with out door Olympic sized pools. They were fantastic value with admission generally the equivalent of 35p. Below are a couple of photos taken at Singapore’s Zoo and Botanical Gardens.

We enjoyed the food available in Singapore; Chinese, Indian, Malay and European cuisine. It was the sheer variety on offer and the low prices, which made it so good. In Singapore you can eat virtually anywhere and not worry about being poisoned, and the tap water is safe to drink. We ate most of our meals in food courts, which contained several food stalls, with each stalls specialising in a national dish. There was usually a mix of Chinese, Indian, Malay and Muslim stalls, though Chinese cooking tends to dominate. They were always very busy and some stayed open 24 hours. You can buy an excellent meal for about the equivalent 2 pounds per person. We also enjoyed meals in Singapore’s Chinatown, and `Little India’, where we ate curry served on banana leaves and ate with our hands!

We spent about one month in Indonesia. Most of that time was spent in Bali. We also visited Lombok and Java.

Bali has its fair share of poverty, mostly people from Java coming to beg from the tourists. Although the locals are constantly hassling you to buy souvenirs and offering you ‘transport’. Getting around is best by self drive either a car or small motor bike. We both suffered from gastric problems, as do many western visitors. It’s not a great place for dog lovers either, as there are a lot of wild dogs who are severely emaciated, just laying on the side of the road. Saying that however, Bali is a beautiful country and the people are very friendly. We also loved the Balinese art, woodcarvings and its cultural varieties.

We spent most of our stay in Bali at Ubud, which is pretty central, so a good place to travel to the rest of the island. There are some lovely walks around Ubud, especially through the rice paddies. Below are some photos we took on our walks around Ubud.

Below is a photo taken at one of the many wonderful restaurants in Ubud.

We hired a small motorbike to explore the island. It turned out to be an ideal way to get around, if not a bit dangerous (especially with my broken arm), as the roads were so chaotic (much like the roads in India). But it did mean we could get off the beaten track, and see the real Bali. It also meant we could avoid the constant bartering for taxi/bemos (public buses) and being hassled by people on the streets for souvenirs. The views of the terraced paddy fields, lush green fields, royal palms swinging in the wind and wonderfully colourful flowers were a common scene around the island. Also the smells of spices drying (especially cloves) at the side the road, which were almost over powering while we were riding along, were wonderful. The only downside to the motorbike (beside the constant fear of being flattened) was that you get covered in a thick film of dirt. (I hate to think what went in our lungs!). Below is a photo of the bike we hired and a photo we took in our travels.

Whole Balinese families get around on motorbikes, it’s not uncommon to see Mum, Dad and two children on one bike. They also carry some amazing things on their motorbikes, from crates of eggs, to baskets stuffed full of live ducks!

From Ubud we headed up to the north coast, and stayed in a small village in the mountainous centre of the island. All the hotels were very run down; the one we picked in the end was the best we’d seen but still pretty bad, when we went to bed we could hear rats scurrying about in the roof. The next day we headed to Lovina, which is on the north coast, where we stayed for a few nights. The first day we went snorkelling, it cost 2 pounds per person including all the equipment and a private boat to take us to out to the Coral Reef. There were heaps of colourful fish, but nearly all the coral was dead. It’s terrible the see dead coral especially after seeing what it should look like a few weeks earlier at the Great Barrier Reef in Australia. The following day we got up at 5.30am to go out Dolphin watching, there was over 50 boats all heading out to sea to the Dolphins feeding grounds. The first thing you see is lots of large tuna jumping out of the water, because the Dolphins are chasing them. Then the Dolphins start jumping out of the water, all the boats suddenly converge, trying to get there ‘customers’ as close as possible to them.

Next we headed to the volcanic region on the island. Again it was pretty run down with very few tourists, although it was supposed to be high season. We met 2 friendly German couples staying in the same Hotel as us. We teaming up with them in the evenings and join them for a walk up the volcano to the crater’s edge, to watch the astonishing Balian sunrise (which meant getting up at 3.30am!).

From Bali we went to Gili Air, which is a very small island just off Lombok. It was such a small island it only took us about 1 hour to walk the whole way around it. There are no motor vehicles on the island only horse drawn carts ‘cimodos’ (see photo below).

Gili Air is very relaxing, although the guest house we stayed in was pretty basic; it didn’t have hot water, the sink, shower and toilet all used cold saltwater. (As did most places on the island.) Our landlady had 7 cats and 7 chickens, as did everybody else and at a 5am the chickens start clucking and the cats start fighting and that was the end to any thought of sleeping! There was good diving around the islands. Graham scuba dived, but my arm wasn’t up carrying or putting on the heavy equipment needed to dive, so I just snorkelled.

From Bali, we flew to Java, and spent 5 days in Jakarta (the capital city of Java). We stayed in a smart hotel in central Jakarta. Jakarta has a population of over 10 million (about the same as London), with the rich and poor living and working very close to each other. There’s 40% unemployment in Java, but amazingly people seem happier and much friendlier than in Britain. The city is very noisy and polluted; most people walk around with a handkerchief over their mouths. Below is a photo of Jakarta taken from the top of an observation tower in the heart of the city. As you can see, we couldn’t see very far because of the smog caused by the pollution.

Not many tourists stay in Jakarta, so we were a bit of a novelty; as we walked on the streets people would keep saying hello to us, and practising their English on us. The most dangerous thing to do in Jakarta is crossing the road. There aren’t any pedestrian crossings, so you had to fend for yourself while crossing the very busy roads. We had to wait for other pedestrians to arrive at the side of the road and run out when they did, holding up our hands to the oncoming traffic!

Below is a photo of a typical Jakarta street. Motorised rickshaws were very common.

It is so hot and humid in Jakarta, really too hot to do much during the day, so we mainly ventured out in the evening. The highlight of Jakarta for us was the ‘Karioke style’ live music in the restaurants, where people expected us to sing as well. (We weren’t brave enough, but enjoyed listening to those who were.)