Singapore Day 2: Gardens by the Bay, Little India, and more!

Continuing our year-end "escapade" in Singapore was a visit to Bras Basah, followed by Little India, before being trapped at Singapore Botanic Gardens for three hours due to a heavy rainfall. We then ended the day with a Christmas Wonderland visit at Gardens by the Bay. Despite the rainfall, we successfully concluded the day with more attractions and new treats.

Marina Bay Sands at night, as viewed from Gardens by the Bay.

Notes:

• This blog is the third (Day 2) of five parts of our 2024 Singapore Year-End Trip, spanning from Days 1 to 4. See these links for our flights, Day 1, Day 3, and Day 4.
• Exchange rates between currencies are: 1 Philippine peso = 0.017 USD and 0.023 SGD.

Cathedral of the Good Shepherd

It started as a usual Sunday morning on December 29, 2024. Of course, as practicing Roman Catholics, we started our day by going to church. With my mother and aunt, as well as my aunt's husband, we first rode a Grab for nine dollars from our residence in Bukit Merah to the Cathedral of the Good Shepherd.

The Cathedral of the Good Shepherd, the oldest Catholic church in Singapore.

First founded and constructed in 1833 as the first permanent Catholic house of worship in Singapore, it first existed as a small chapel built with light materials. The current structure was completed in 1847. By 1888, it became a cathedral when the Diocese of Malacca, previously suppressed in 1838 when its territory was ceded to the Apostolic Vicariate of Siam (present-day Archdiocese of Bangkok), was revived. More territorial changes soon followed until the current Archdiocese of Singapore was established in 1972.

Interior of the Cathedral of the Good Shepherd in Singapore. Taken after Mass.

The cathedral serves as the seat of the Archbishop of Singapore, currently His Eminence William Cardinal Goh. In 1973, it was gazetted a national monument by the National Heritage Board (NHB) of Singapore.

We arrived five minutes late for the 10:30 Mass. Makeshift tents were set up for guests that did not make it to the cathedral’s capacity. After Mass ended at 11:44, we had an opportunity to mingle with the presiding priest. After telling him that we came as pilgrims from the Philippines, he even greeted us, “Maligayang Pasko!” Soon after, we went inside and took pictures of the cathedral’s interior.

A lunch at Bras Basah

We then walked for two blocks to a public food court in Bras Basah. After eating lunch, the rest of my entourage shared some travel stories while I focused on writing my journal entry for this day.

My favorite chai tow kway, also known as the Fried Carrot Cake.

LET'S TALK ABOUT FOOD! One of the dishes I ate was chai tow kway. This dish, also known as the fried carrot cake, has become my favorite in Singapore since 2022. It consists of stir-fried cubes of radish cake, with two variants: “white” and “black”, depending per food court or restaurant. It is best paired with fried rice for a full meal. The entire lunch set that we ate as four people cost S$34 (US$25.13, 1,478.26 pesos).

We then made our way to the MRT station, where we rode two lines until Little India, with us interchanging at Dhoby Ghaut.

Little India

Little India is an ethnic town in Singapore. First settled by the Europeans as a cattle trading district, Indian migrant workers soon found jobs there. The main commercial road in this town is Serangoon Road, where you can find various buildings that, personally, almost resemble that you’re in Mumbai.

Various shops lined up in Indian-styled buildings along a road in Little India, Singapore.

We found a phone shop where I replaced my phone's transparent OtterBox case with a new, blue case for S$5 (US$3.70, 217.39 pesos). After walking more of the city, we saw thunderstorm clouds coming to us.

Sri Veeramakaliamman Temple, located beside various buildings on the background

Before heading to our next stop, we made our way outside Sri Veeramakaliamman Temple. Built in 1881, it plays an important role to the local Hindu community.

You can watch my video of Little India here:

Orchids at Botanic Gardens...and a heavy rain!

A taxi ride to Singapore Botanic Gardens soon followed. The tropical gardens were first created in 1859 on a thirty-two-hectare-land in Tanglin.

The National Orchid Garden at the Singapore Botanic Gardens.

Within the gardens, you'll see the National Orchid Garden, where you will see and mesmerize yourself to the beautiful orchids!

Mokara orchids at the National Orchid Garden

As we finished our visit, however, we were soon hit with a heavy rainfall with thunderstorms. As reported by The Straits Times, the heavy deluge caused flash floods at neighboring Bukit Timah, located just beside Tanglin. The Public Utilities Board (PUB) of Singapore reported that day's rainfall to be at 134.6 mm in central Singapore. The rainfall not only caused a three-hour delay in our activities, but also caused a portion of the guests' holding area at the park to get flooded that staff of a souvenir shop beside us closed its doors.

A Christmas Wonderland at Gardens by the Bay

Of course, Christmas is a worldwide celebration, and perhaps this is the most vibrant I visited. Christmas is (mostly) everyone's favorite season.

For S$13 (US$9.60, 565.22 pesos), we bought our tickets at the last minute. Access to this is not included in the regular admission tickets to Gardens by the Bay. The fair began on December 1 and ended on January 2.

Gardens by the Bay partnered with Trip.com for this annual fair, which draws three million tourists annually. It features food stalls, live bands, Christmas decoration set-ups best suited for picture-taking, and even a meet-and-greet location for Santa Claus! For the Santa M&G, however, we decided not to line up and wait for almost an HOUR due to time constraints.

The Supertrees during the Garden Rhapsody show at Gardens by the Bay.

The main centerpiece of the attraction are the Supertrees, accessible by the OCBC Skyway. Every night, it hosts the Garden Rhapsody, a lights and sound show. It is shown twice daily at 19:45 and 20:45; an extra third show was added at 21:35 solely for the Christmas Wonderland. Editions differ each month, you can view the full list here.

After strolling around and eating dinner with some desserts, we left before 22:00 and headed to the nearest MRT station, Bayfront. This station is connected to Marina Bay Sands, another must-go for tourists with its famous observatory deck. We then rode multiple lines back to our house in Bukit Merah.

See the next part of this five-part series here.

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