We leave Yogyakarta early!Another stay up all night deal because of teaching. Another AirAsia flight in the books. This one costing 90$USD for two people. Not bad. First thing we do is load up a sim card. We got the 100GB data plan from Singtel. The cost 13$USD. What a steal next we head to get an NetsPay transit card which allows us to travel on the rails and buses. Finally exchanging any extra currency we have because we know Singapore is going to be expensive. However it is only expensive if you don’t know where to go. =) Now you will though. We hopped on the bus to the rail and off we go.
Singapore
HipsterCity- 9 Circular Rd, Singapore 049365 https://bit.ly/2UaIHfC
- One thing about Singapore is it has amazing Wifi. Even in the airport. It is not like Japan or Seoul where even though it is great it is slow because of so many users Singapore’s is fast. This accommodation had low ping downloads in the high 200’s almost 300’s and uploads in the high 200’s! Finally a place we won’t anything to worry about and we didn’t everything went smooth here.
- Set in an area of town with many bars, historical sites walking distance to everything.
- Not your average hostel! Up top is your bed under is a huge space with desk perfect for teaching and working. Shower pods are clean with top amenities.
- Simple breakfast served daily and a pretty sweet common area as well. Not one thing did I did not like about this place. I did not want to leave. They even made Ray a little office in an area of the reception.
- Price was about 37$USD a night. A little spendy but worth the top notch consistent wifi.
What To Do In Singapore:
- People think Singapore is very expensive, but it all depends on what you do there. We stayed away from the tourist hawker stands found in blogs and explored onces with only locals. We never spent over 6$USD for two dishes. So let me tell you the cheap and remarkably succulent ones. BK Eating House, Maxwell Road, Old Airport Road, Tekka Center(Must try the Indian food there), Changi Village Hawker. While out in Changi Village you can check out the nice water for a swim or head on over to Little Island Brewery for craft beers. Of course this will cost more but you are able to pour your own beers and pay by how much you pour. We put about 30 ish USD on a card there and got to sample every beer and get a couple pints. The food looked outstanding as well.
- Tiger Brewery. We went to the Tiger Brewery and it was an average tour. However trying all the tiger beers after was fun. It is about 13$ USD on weekdays and 15$USD on weekends. You will get tokens to try 5 pints afterwards.
- Gardens By The Bay, walk about the Marina, when we went they had a light festival which is super cool. The mall there has some cool yet spendy shopping and even a DC Comics Restaurant but hey were on a budget lol.
- Long Bar is the original home of the Singapore Sling. However I wasn’t impressed Ray went two years back and it was a more intimate experience. This time the location changed everyone was in a line packed inside. Drinks were made in bulk and I could tell the difference in which ones were made to order and which were made a few minutes ahead. It felt like a turn em and burn em type of deal .For 35$USD for one I wasn’t impressed. I have paid for many expensive cocktails in New York, San Francisco, Boston, Seattle and even Portland Oregon, however this didn’t do it for me.
- Other sites: Kampong Glam,abundance of Christian Churches and Buddhist and Hindu Temples and Mosques.Boat Quay old British area where the city started. Many statues and much information on how Singapore started.
Budget:
We did not do any shopping or go to fancy places. We ate at the cheap local hawker stands, bought Tiger beer from the store and did all the free sightseeing. We did go to Long Bar and Little Island Brewery which did cost more. However Singapore is only as expensive as you wanted it to be. I would suggest 70+$USD for two people a day.
While Singapore is not the cheapest place for a budget traveler or online teacher, it can be done. We want to stay in Singapore for a few months when we come back. Look on airbnb stay further out and for a long stay you can find places for 1,500$USD for two months. The rails and busses are efficient and can get you anywhere for a good price. Endless amounts of foods, bars, restaurants to try and sites to see. Singapore is a breathtaking place and we will be back for sure.
Next we headed to Jakarta, which you already read about in Your Guide To Teaching In Java. Well now that we are all caught up, the next post will be on Sunday about teaching in Kuala Lumpur. This was our first month stay. We will be in the country of Malaysia for 3 months before heading back into Bali. Then onto Eastern Europe.
Thank you for reading and I hope this sparks your interest to travel and teach in Singapore even on a budget.
-Vanessa
Food Travel Life 