Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
50
MEDICAL SPAS
Medical spas blur the line betw een
cosmetic medicine for beauty and r ejuve-
nation, and spa tr eatments for r elaxations
and well-being. Medical treatments for the
face and body ar e combined with indul-
gent amenities and services of a luxury spa.
The top medical spas in S ingapore ar e:
The M edSpa,
1 O rchard B lvd., #12-
03/05, Camden M edical Centr e (
&
65/
6887-3087;
www .medspa.com.sg); and
DRx Medispa,
3 Temasek Blvd., #03-52
Suntec City M all (
&
65/6836-1555
), or
583 Orchard Rd., #11-01, Forum (
&
65/
6223-1555;
www.drxmedispa.com).
gaps in medical insurance co verage, or for
privacy for sensitive procedures and recov-
ery. Singapore's international hospitals can
provide health scr eening and cosmetic
surgery, usually at a greater cost compared
to competitor hospitals in M alaysia and
Thailand, but many pr efer the peace of
mind that comes from Singapore's reputa-
tion as a first-world city . It has also nur-
tured a r eputation for high-end surgical
procedures and care in specialist ar eas like
cardiology, neurology, obstetrics and gyne-
cology, oncology , ophthalmology , or tho-
pedics, and pediatrics.
The Singapore government has teamed
up with the top hospitals for
www.
singaporemedicine.com
, a por tal that
answers ev ery question for pr ospective
patients. Hospitals have specialized depart-
ments that handle ev erything from travel
arrangements, accommodations, special-
ists appointments, and ev en tours during
your r ecovery—they r eally handle ev ery-
thing soup to nuts.
COOKING CLASSES
The
Raffles Culinary Academy
at Raffles
Hotel, 1 B each Rd. (
&
65/6412-1256;
www.raffles.com), has daily cooking classes
taught b y chefs fr om Raffles H otel staff .
Individual classes on Asian herbs and
spices, kids ' cuisine, I talian, Chinese,
Indian, J apanese, and Thai, plus desser ts
and pastries, range fr om 2 to 4 hours and
are suitable for professionals and hobbyists
alike. Bookings can be made online.
3
12
STAYING CONNECTED
TELEPHONES
Hotels, with the ex ception of backpacker
hostels, all hav e in-room telephones with
International D irect D ialing (IDD) ser-
vice. This is the most conv enient way to
make international calls, but is also the
most expensiv e, as the hotel will always
add its o wn sur charge to y our telephone
bill.
Public telephones can be found in
phones designated specifically for this
purpose. International public phones will
accept either a stor ed-value phone card or
a cr edit car d. P hone car ds for local and
international calls can be pur chased at
Singapore Post branches, 7-E leven conve-
nience stor es, or money changers—make
sure y ou specify local or international
phone car d when y ou make y our pur-
chase.
To call S ingapore fr om the U nited
States,
dial 011 (the international access
code), then 65 (Singapore's country code),
and then the eight-digit number
booths on the str eet or back near the toi-
lets in shopping malls, public buildings, or
hotel lobbies. B ecause most S ingaporeans
now carr y mobile phones, public phones
aren't always pr operly maintained. Local
calls cost S10¢ (US7¢/5p) for 3 minutes at
coin- and car d-operated phones. I nterna-
tional calls can be made only fr om public
. The
whole number y
ou'd dial would be
011-65-XXXX-XXXX.
To make international calls
from Sin-
gapore, first dial 001 and then the country
