(Note: For elaboration of the Singapore Tour Guide (3rd Time), it will be published at a later date as I am still compiling all the related photo and receipts :) )
It can be noticed that the title got "3rd Time". My "first time" was with my partner last 10-14 August 2012 while the "second time" was with my parents and youngest sibling last 02 - 05 January 2013 (as part of the Southeast Asian Christmas Season Tour 2012). I wasn't able to come up with a blog for my role as the "tour guide" due to my busy schedule when I was on my previous employer, and the transition between my previous and present employer. For the sake of relating the first two Singapore tours, I have to provide some ideas on what happened.
The pattern for my "Singapore Tour" when I did it for the first time was different from the second time. The first tour (with my partner), we went to Universal Studios Singapore and spent the whole day going to different rides and attractions to fully utilise the S$74 one-day pass (discounted to S$60, thanks to MasterCard). We were able to explore Sentosa - from Waterfront Station where Resorts World Sentosa is, up to Beach Station where Siloso, Tanjong and Palawan beaches and several attractions like Skyride and Luge can be found. We went to Marina Bay Sands and took lunch at Din Tai Fung with my brother (Whew, it costs us S$80 for the three of us but worth it! We were able to taste their special dumpling!). We had a "city tour by foot" from Marina Bay Sands to St. Andrews Cathedral via Gardens by the Bay, Esplanade Theatre by the Bay, Merlion (which was, unfortunately, under construction then) and War Memorial. We spent also part of the vacation by going to Bugis Street and buy lots of souvenirs like T-shirts, key chains, bags, plates.
The arrangement of the second tour with my parents and siblings was a bit similar to the first one. Though we went to Sentosa, we stopped until the Lake of Dreams since we reached there past 10 PM. We went to Marina Bay Sands but weren't able to go to Gardens by the Bay due to rain (and with that, we just decided to return to hotel and go instead to Sentosa). Instead of having a "city tour by foot" from Marina Bay Sands to Merlion, we instead planned to go for Singapore Zoo the next day, hoping to see the two pandas Jia Jia and Kai Kai (only to see them sleeping and having siesta!). We went to Bugis Street to buy souvenirs. My parents and my youngest sibling bought souvenirs except for cap and T-shirts (expensive as compared to those bought from Kuala Lumpur but same quality).
The third tour, this time, was with my female cousin, who was the closest with me for many reasons (no need to elaborate at this point :) ). She was about to go to UAE but opted to have a very brief vacation in Singapore. It was so brief that, technically, she was only here for full two days! Since I am an "experienced" (!) tour guide, I came up with a very efficient schedule, covering the essential attractions (excluding the need to ride some of the tourist attractions, just took photo of it!) and tweaked the itinerary from the previous two tours facilitated by me. We spent our first day walking along Orchard Road (shopping capital of Singapore) from Napier Road (where the British Council is) up to Plaza Singapura at Dhoby Ghaut MRT Station. Then we walked around Clarke Quay area. Our second day, we spent few hours at SkyPark at Marina Bay Sands, then going through Gardens by the Bay (including OCBC Skyway which was not included in the first tour, and Merlion (with some few water and ice creme breaks!). After that, we went to Sentosa via Vivo City, covering from Waterfront Station up to Beach Station (similar to the first tour). The third day, we went to Bugis Street to buy few stuffs (one T-shirt, two plates and one beach dress) and spent time looking for clinic accepting Tokio Marine MediPlus as I was sick (we ended up at Hougang town area!).
Since I have a hard time to sleep tonight, I have some realizations that I want to share:
1. Some opportunities just come once in a lifetime; there will be no repeat. Realizing that it will never (or highly unlikely) to happen, I accepted the request and took the responsibility as her "sponsor", even if I am not physically (I don't have enough rest due to past concreting works and IELTS preparation, which both took place on the same day of her arrival in Singapore.) and financially (my funds were diverted to taxi expenditures due to consecutive late night works) prepared.
2. Recognizing that an opportunity is once in a lifetime, make the best out of it. I may not have the best accommodation or have the best available room amenities, I tried to make her feel at home and make her stay memorable and worth to tell her family, partner and future kids, and friends. I tweaked the schedule and make it more different from the previous two itineraries as I want her to experience the best I could think and imagine of.
3. Money is not everything, but is something. I kept on stressing that I don't care about the cost, as long as the person I am with is happy and satisfied with what we are doing. I will be very happy if the person I am with is elated and contented. After all, a successful vacation mostly depends on planning (including maximizing resources available) and genuine intention of the "sponsor", which was me for this case.
Yes, I have a hard time to sleep because I am missing those recent (very short) times where I had a good laugh and a personal conversation with someone I am close with. Now all I can hear is the sound of the air conditioner. I feel empty. It is very hard to be alone. I hope that this is just an initial feeling which I can overcome after few days. I will be very busy these next few weeks and I can only hope of only one person to remove my feeling of loneliness. God willing, there would be no need for me to wait for so long. Inshaallah.
