Finishing up with our visit to Australia, we were faced with the question "where do we go next?" New Zealand proved to be untenable at this time, as the apartments we researched were either too expensive, or already booked. One of our friends had suggested that, as long as we were in this part of the world, go visit Singapore. Sounded good to us.
It's name is the anglicaisation of the Malay name - "Sinagapura" ( which itself is derived from Sanskrit) meaning "Lion City." It is the world's only island city-state.
It's name is the anglicaisation of the Malay name - "Sinagapura" ( which itself is derived from Sanskrit) meaning "Lion City." It is the world's only island city-state.
The Merlion" (half lion and half fish) is the symbol for Singapore. The fish body represents the city's origin as a fishing village and the lions head represents Singapore's original name - Singapura.
In 1299, the Kingdom of Singapura was established as a trading post city and was inhabited by less than one thousand people. A little over five hundred years later (1819), Stanford Ruffles founded colonial Singapore as a trading post for the East India Company. By 1826, it officially became part Britain's empire.
Marina Bay Sands Resort is the world's most expensive stand-alone casino. Its Skypark (which looks like a boat on top of the building) is 1,120 feet long and can hold up to 3900 people.
Because of the growing impact of the rubber industry on the island, by 1860 population growth exceeded 80,000. In 1963, Singapore aligned itself with several other nearby countries in order to form the independent nation of Malaysia. However, because of strong ideological differences with the other nations of this federation, Singapore was expelled to become solely independent.
Supertree Grove in the Gardens by the Bay.
Considered to be one of the most technology-ready nations in the world, Singapore has four official languages - Malay (from Malaysia); Mandarin (from China); Tamil (from India); and English. It now functions as a global financial center and has one of the largest oil refinery programs in Asia. We are truly looking forward to our stay here.
Part of the Chinese New Year celebrations along the waterfront on January 27th.
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