After such an eventful week, I had not really found time to get any souvenirs or anything. Frankly, I'm terrible at buying gifts for people, because I've just grown tired of buying things on trips. But, I still found postcards to send.
The remaining group at the villa did not seem to excited about having to leave paradise, but alas, the day of our departure had arrived.
After saying our goodbyes, I headed to the airport with Roman, Yoana, and Jenny. Roman and Yoana were heading up to Ubud, so they dropped Jenny and me at the airport, since we actually both were on the same flight. The drive was eventful as we passed various parts of Bali we had previously not seen too much (like kids getting picked up from school on scooters).
For some reason, you have to pay a "passenger service surcharge" of 150,000 Rupiah at the airport, which is basically as simple as "hand over your money and receive a sticker to be scanned in return." Supporting the local economy, eh?
The two-and-a-half-hour flight itself was rather uneventful, and we landed in Singapore right on time (and actually even a bit early). Jenny had a few hours to chill in the city before catching her connecting flight, so she went off to find a city tour. I got a pleasant surprise when I walked out of the walkway: my dad was waiting for me at my gate! (I found this apt shirt later on at the airport.)
We were slightly anxious about crossing customs in Singapore, since I'd left Singapore at six weeks old and never returned. Males born in Singapore are required to serve two years of national (military) service, but since I effectively grew up in the US for my entire life, I wasn't keen on doing this. Plus, I've had US citizenship since I was a little kid.
After I was finally able to renounce my citizenship last year, I could finally return to Singapore without being detained upon arrival and prohibited from leaving until finishing out the two-year national service term (among other unsavory legal problems). All that worrying was for naught, though, as I waltzed right through customs. The only snafu was me inadvertently throwing my candy wrapper (they had a bowl of candy) on the desk when I missed the mini cup for candy wrappers. The customs agent looked at me like I was an idiot as I felt around the counter for the wrapper. Embarrassing.
After checking into our hotel for the night since we were supposed to pick up my sister around 11 PM, Dad and I went to find some food in the food court downstairs. All those legendary stories of delicious food in Singapore are now coming to life for me, and I felt like a kid in a candy shop as I speedwalked through the food court, trying to figure out what to eat for dinner.
I settled on braised duck and noodles in soup, and it was delicious. Amazing, really.
Dad had BBQ pork and noodles, plus he ordered a wonton soup for us to share, too.
After dinner and a quick shower, we went to visit some of Dad's family. I hadn't seen my grandparents in about six years, and I hadn't seen one of my aunts in about 13-14 years. Plus, I'd never met my uncle or those two young cousins. 'Twas quite fun! My aunts offered me a delicious fried fish ball on a stick.
My grandma insisted I eat some chicken rice, too, since she made it (as well as the incredibly delicious and spicy chili sauce). Yummy.
And, of course, we took some pictures of the family, since I'd never actually been here before.
My cousins helped me absolutely destroy the Star Wars-themed Angry Birds app I got for free from Starbucks. Impressive and scary all at once.
We headed back to the airport soon after, because we had to pick up May. I spotted her from a mile away.
Once we got back to the hotel, we finally ate the appetizers/treats the hotel left Dad, since he's a returning guest. Yum. Mochi.
We headed back down to the food court, so May could have dinner. Plus, Dad and I were keen on having second dinner, too. Look! We found Dad's restaurant!
We decided to order two bowls of egg noodles and fish balls, plus one order of shaved ice. I can't even tell you how excited I am to eat all the food we're going to eat in the next two-and-a-half weeks.
Tomorrow, we'll go visit Mom's mom and then spend more time with family — and, of course, eat more food!
The remaining group at the villa did not seem to excited about having to leave paradise, but alas, the day of our departure had arrived.
After saying our goodbyes, I headed to the airport with Roman, Yoana, and Jenny. Roman and Yoana were heading up to Ubud, so they dropped Jenny and me at the airport, since we actually both were on the same flight. The drive was eventful as we passed various parts of Bali we had previously not seen too much (like kids getting picked up from school on scooters).
For some reason, you have to pay a "passenger service surcharge" of 150,000 Rupiah at the airport, which is basically as simple as "hand over your money and receive a sticker to be scanned in return." Supporting the local economy, eh?
The two-and-a-half-hour flight itself was rather uneventful, and we landed in Singapore right on time (and actually even a bit early). Jenny had a few hours to chill in the city before catching her connecting flight, so she went off to find a city tour. I got a pleasant surprise when I walked out of the walkway: my dad was waiting for me at my gate! (I found this apt shirt later on at the airport.)
We were slightly anxious about crossing customs in Singapore, since I'd left Singapore at six weeks old and never returned. Males born in Singapore are required to serve two years of national (military) service, but since I effectively grew up in the US for my entire life, I wasn't keen on doing this. Plus, I've had US citizenship since I was a little kid.
After I was finally able to renounce my citizenship last year, I could finally return to Singapore without being detained upon arrival and prohibited from leaving until finishing out the two-year national service term (among other unsavory legal problems). All that worrying was for naught, though, as I waltzed right through customs. The only snafu was me inadvertently throwing my candy wrapper (they had a bowl of candy) on the desk when I missed the mini cup for candy wrappers. The customs agent looked at me like I was an idiot as I felt around the counter for the wrapper. Embarrassing.
After checking into our hotel for the night since we were supposed to pick up my sister around 11 PM, Dad and I went to find some food in the food court downstairs. All those legendary stories of delicious food in Singapore are now coming to life for me, and I felt like a kid in a candy shop as I speedwalked through the food court, trying to figure out what to eat for dinner.
I settled on braised duck and noodles in soup, and it was delicious. Amazing, really.
Dad had BBQ pork and noodles, plus he ordered a wonton soup for us to share, too.
After dinner and a quick shower, we went to visit some of Dad's family. I hadn't seen my grandparents in about six years, and I hadn't seen one of my aunts in about 13-14 years. Plus, I'd never met my uncle or those two young cousins. 'Twas quite fun! My aunts offered me a delicious fried fish ball on a stick.
My grandma insisted I eat some chicken rice, too, since she made it (as well as the incredibly delicious and spicy chili sauce). Yummy.
And, of course, we took some pictures of the family, since I'd never actually been here before.
My cousins helped me absolutely destroy the Star Wars-themed Angry Birds app I got for free from Starbucks. Impressive and scary all at once.
We headed back to the airport soon after, because we had to pick up May. I spotted her from a mile away.
Once we got back to the hotel, we finally ate the appetizers/treats the hotel left Dad, since he's a returning guest. Yum. Mochi.
We headed back down to the food court, so May could have dinner. Plus, Dad and I were keen on having second dinner, too. Look! We found Dad's restaurant!
We decided to order two bowls of egg noodles and fish balls, plus one order of shaved ice. I can't even tell you how excited I am to eat all the food we're going to eat in the next two-and-a-half weeks.
Tomorrow, we'll go visit Mom's mom and then spend more time with family — and, of course, eat more food!
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