Getting here: Singapore and UK

FLIGHT
Both Qantas flights were uneventful although Australian customs did decide my corset needed investigation prior to departure 😁
The airline out of Singapore changed my carefully chosen seat on the UK run and placed me next to the baby area which was one of several seating arrangements I’d sought to avoid. The baby closest to me was pretty quiet but the two year old was another matter. Still I managed about 5 hours of broken sleep and arrived in the UK feeling surprisingly awake. My body held up pretty well considering, but I have the intention of seeking out a cheap suitcase in the morning - one with wheels. I’m already over the backpack thing.  And a tube of hand cream leaked all over my liquid bag, probably squashed under my feet during the last flight.

SINGAPORE
Singapore is a beautiful, clean, vivid, contemporary city with a lot of construction happening. I walked from my hotel Ibis (pronounced ”Ib is” not “I bus”) Bencoolen to the Gardens by the Bay. It took about an hour which was about 25 minutes longer than Google maps thought it should - but then Google maps wasn’t taking photos every 5 minutes.


The Gardens were an effective amalgam of nature and culture done with a colourful Asian aesthetic. Walking the Cloud forest trail it was hard to know where to point the camera - a dilemma clearly suffered by a lot of other people. The trail culminated in a hard biting climate change video which crushed the mood of euphoria completely - so I left feeling quite overwhelmed and not in a good way.
My hotel had given me a late check out, so I caught a cab back as by now my feet and legs were protesting- I’d easily done my 10kms. I decided to go to the airport early in the hope of finding somewhere to put my feet up - and I did. 😊

After a slight delay our plane left a little after midnight instead of before. We arrived at Heathrow around 7.00 am and it took two hours to get through the airport procedures! I did expect some delay as my travel guide did say it could take up to 3+ hours!

UK AND TRAIN TO EDINBURGH
My priority on arrival was to get a SIM card. I’m not happy with what I have got but st least I’m connected again. This blog and Gmail will be my main means of staying in touch for a while, but the phone number I’m using here is 07440 730934

I caught an express  into London Kings X station, availed myself of a Seniors Rail card and joined the scrum to catch the
Train to Edinburgh
Which took around 4 3/4 hours and took me through scenery that reminded me of Ballarat, Daylesford and Ballan countryside except for the prevalence of stone and brick Victorian (and earlier)  houses and barns. This video - not mine BTW- will give my Aussie cohort some idea of the trip.

As this vlogger suggests I took a seat on the RHS and did see the Gormley sculpture Angel of the North. Pretty tired when I arrived so I took a cab discovering that you have to sit in the back - very odd to my Antipodean egalitarian sensibilities. My cabbie had lived in Brisbane for a time (too hot) so we had a cordial chat as he drove me to my guesthouse, at one point taking me down a cobbled street to avoid traffic!

COMING UP
Later today ( its 3.20 am ATM but I slept from about 10) I’m heading out to investigate a couple of Edinburgh’s galleries and catch up with some online friends. My next post will be in about 3 days time when I’ll fill you in on my thoughts and activities in this stunning old city.

Broad itinerary

An early alarm will start me heading off on the first leg of my UK visit tomorrow. I’ll be on board Qantas flight QF 35 departing Melbourne at 11.55 am and arriving Singapore 17.55 pm.
The last weather report I checked for Singapore put the daily temperature at around 30 degrees and rain. Given that I’m currently wearing a jumper and have the heater on low this will be quite an adjustment.

I’m staying in Singapore overnight, departing - all being well - at 11.55 pm on the following evening. My big plan for Singapore involves a visit to the amazing Botanical Gardens, and just a general wander around. Hopefully this will tire me out enough to sleep on the plane, though I imagine I will be somewhat bug eyed at 6.55 am the following day when I arrive at Heathrow.

Once I’m clear of the airport I’m catching a train to Edinburgh for a few days, before wandering around various parts of England and Wales for around six weeks. In my time there I will be catching up with close and extended family, meeting a number of my on-line mates, soaking up art, history, culture and the countryside, attending a dance production at Sadlers Wells in London, a number of exhibitions including a Frida Kahlo costume event, as well as a taxidermy workshop and the Oxenmoot in Oxford.

I’ll be walking a number of labyrinths, gawping at various bits of architecture and laying flowers on the graves of a handful of long dead ancestors and literary inspirations JRR Tolkien and T.S.Eliot. I will be spending about two thirds of my time on public transport, and driving the rest including a stint through the Brecon Beacons. I’m mostly staying at Airbnb’s and have attempted to locate interesting hosts in equally engaging places including  the Lake District, Todmorden, the Cotswolds, the Wye Valley, Glastonbury and Cambridge. My hosts include a beekeeper, farmers, a woman in the film industry, fellow artists and bloggers and another who is a guerilla gardener.

Late October will see me heading to Amsterdam to look at some of my favourite 16th century Dutch still lives, Rembrandt and Vermeer, as well as, (naturally), the works of van Gogh. I also plan to meet with fellow blogger, Marie. Sadly I won’t have much time before I fly to Barcelona, spend some time with Lixie, then head south to visit the Alhambra, before flying out to Dubia via Madrid and then home to Australia where I imagine a damn good rest will be in order.

I aim to post at least once a week but this may vary depending on time and circumstance.

A big shout out to my lovely family and dear friends who are caring for the fur kids in my absence (as well as my house, car and garden).
J