We stayed with our gracious friends Helen and Stephen and their lovely boys, who made our stay there so relaxed and inviting. Helen kindly took me and the girls to Chinatown for some shopping, while I was able to leave Adriana happily playing with Finn at home. I knew that wearing shorts or a short skirt would definitely be frowned upon in a temple, so I wore what I thought would be conservative, only to have not one, but two little old Chinese men running up to me at the entrance waving their arms and indicating I must cover myself up immediately. The girls certainly got a laugh out of it as I had to jury-rig some spare sheets as a skirt that they leave at the entrance for that very reason.
The next day Orest joined us for some shopping on Orchard Road. Well actually, it was more like we tried to escape the oppressive heat by hiding from one shopping centre to another. There was one point where Orest and the girls were able to cross the road completely, while I was stuck on a small island with roaring traffic on either side of me. I felt like I was melting into a puddle of sweat on the black tarmac while I waited for the signal to turn green again. I am now sure that I would never be able to survive in a place where I struggle to stay positive as my make-up slides off my face, my hair collapses limply and unspeakable rashes develop in the most private of places on my body.The next day, Orest and I took the children over to Sentosa island, which is like having a resort just outside the city. We spent the day on the beach, playing on the sand and in the water and 
snuck into a resort to have splash at their pool. It appears that if you look the part, they won't kick you out. I spent a good hour trying to figure out what criteria the lifeguards were using to determine who should be there and who shouldn't, but couldn't figure it out. (I think ordering a cocktail from the pool bar helped.) I did come back from the island with a horrific burn on my back, not realizing how strong the sun was even under the shade of the palm trees.
snuck into a resort to have splash at their pool. It appears that if you look the part, they won't kick you out. I spent a good hour trying to figure out what criteria the lifeguards were using to determine who should be there and who shouldn't, but couldn't figure it out. (I think ordering a cocktail from the pool bar helped.) I did come back from the island with a horrific burn on my back, not realizing how strong the sun was even under the shade of the palm trees.
Helen and Steve were kind enough to take us out both evenings and show us the lovely Singapore nightlife. Although the lights were not as intense as in Hong Kong, it still had the power to impress.
On the last night we took a nighttime safari at the Singapore zoo, and because it was Halloween, we had the extra special scares near the end. So we were taken on one of those open trams and all it was was some people dressed up in varying scary costumes (witches, mummies, ghouls, ghosts, etc.) and some even getting pretty close up and confrontational. I thought Adriana was going to have kittens until one of them jumped up in her face and handed her a candy. It was pretty incongruous, this scary guy screaming at her: "Here's a sweetie for you, wooo-aaahhhh!"
On the last day, we had time for a lovely brunch with the Manghams (sans Oliver) and had to say goodbye to our lovely hosts.
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