Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Also her e, G-Max Reverse Bungy (3E Riv er Valley Rd.; & 65/6338-1146; www.
gmax.co.nz) will strap you and two buddies into a cage and fling y ou around at the end
of giant bungee cords for only S$45 (US$30/£20) each. You'll go up 60m (197 ft.) high
at 200kmph (124 mph). Woo! Despite its name, the next-door Xtreme Swing is slightly
less extreme, propelling five people above the river and back for $40 (US$27/£18) a time,
though it's still not for the fainthearted. Stop by during weekdays from 1pm to 1am, and
on weekends from noon until late.
River Valley Rd. west of C oleman Bridge. & 65/6337-3292. www.clarkequay.com.sg. Free admission.
Clarke Quay MRT.
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Esplanade Park Esplanade Park and Queen Elizabeth Walk, two of the most famous
parks in S ingapore, w ere established in 1943 on land r eclaimed fr om the sea. S everal
memorials are located here. The first is a fountain built in 1857 to honor Tan Kim Seng,
who gave a gr eat sum of money to ward the building of a water works. Another monu-
ment, the Cenotaph, commemorates the 124 Singaporeans who died in World War I; it
was dedicated by the Prince of Wales. On the reverse side, the names of those who died
in World War II have been inscribed. The third prominent memorial is dedicated to Maj.
Gen. Lim Bo Seng, a member of the Singaporean underground resistance in World War
II who was captured and killed by the Japanese. His memorial was unveiled in 1954 on
the 10th anniversary of his death. At the far end of the park, the Esplanade-Theatres on
the Bay opened in October 2002. Fashioned after the Sydney Opera House, the unique
double-domed str ucture is kno wn locally as the D urians, because their spiky domes
resemble halves of durian shells (the building itself is actually smooth—the “ spikes” are
sun shields).
Connaught Dr., on the marina, running fr om the mouth of the Singapor e River along the Padang to the
Esplanade-Theatres on the Bay. Daily until midnight. Free admission. 10-min. walk from City Hall MRT.
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Merlion Park The Merlion is Singapore's half-lion, half-fish national symbol, the lion
representing Singapore's roots as the “Lion City ” and the fish r epresenting the nation's
close ties to the sea. B et you think a magical and aw e-inspiring beast like this has been
around in tales for hundreds of years, right? No such luck. Rather, he was the creation of
some scheming mar keters at the S ingapore Tourism Board in the early 1970s. D espite
the M erlion's commer cial beginnings, he 's been adopted as the national symbol and
spouts continuously every day at the mouth of the S ingapore River.
South bank, at the mouth of the Singapore River, adjacent to One Fullerton. Free admission. Daily 7am-
10pm. 15-min. walk from either City Hall or Raffles Place MRT.
Sri Thandayuthapani Temple One of the richest and grandest of its kind in
Southeast Asia, the Sri Thandayuthapani Temple is most famous for a thoonganai maa-
dam, a statue of an elephant 's backside in a seated position. I t's said that ther e are only
four others of the kind, located in four temples in I ndia.
The original temple was completed in 1860, r estored in 1962, and practically r ebuilt
in 1984. The many sculptur es of H indu deities and the car ved Kamalam-patterned
rosewood doors, ar ches, and columns w ere ex ecuted b y ar chitect-sculptors impor ted
from Madras, India, specifically for the job . The Hindu child god, Lor d Muruga, rules
over the temple and is visible in one form or another wherever you look. Also notice the
statues of the god S hiva and his wife, Kali, captur ed in their liv ely dance competition.
The story goes that Kali was winning the competition, so S hiva lifted his leg abo ve his
head, something a woman wasn't thought capable of doing. He won and quit dancing—
good thing, too, because every time Shiva did a little jig, he destroyed part of the world.
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