A FINE RESTAURANT FIND IN SINGAPORE

JUST RETURNED FROM A DELIGHTFUL, DELICIOUS DINNER AT CASA TARTUFO.

The food was creative and nicely presented. The owner, Alex Calabro, was charmingly attentive, suggesting specials that were really special. At one point he apologized for the crying of his 4 month old son who was in a back room.  We hadn't noticed until he mentioned it.  Soon a lovely young woman came by to ask how everything was.  As it turns out, she is Alex's wife and the baby is theirs.  Before you know it, we all became friends.
At desert time Alex brought a candle-lit dessert for us to celebrate our anniversary.  Alex is from Sicily and often consults with mother about recipes.  He is very particular about the quality and freshness of his ingredients.   The restaurant has just been nominated for "Best New Restaurant of the Year".

Earlier in the day a guide and driver
      Taught us some history including a stop at a museum
Showed us the Raffles Hotel (rooms $800 - $8000) and Raffles Landing
                       (Raffles was a founder of Singapore in 1819.)
Walked us through the Chinese district and the Indian district  
                      Took us into a Buddhist Temple and a Hindu Temple
Walked with us at the marina.  There we saw small old shack-like
   spaces that used to be warehouses and are now shops and restaurants.
    Behind them stand the tall modern buildings of many different shapes.
    Our guide told us that the unusual shapes are the result of Feng Shui requirements.
     Before a proposed building gets a permit it is reviewed by a Feng Shui consultant.
        

More Singapore pictures and hot experiences

March 18
Yesterday we roamed around by ourselves.
                   IT IS HOT HERE
Walked in the shade and underground as much as possible.  Underground there is a whole clean city of shops and restaurants along wide  pleasant corridors   AIR CONDITIONED.
A cold drink on the open air terrace, 57th floor
of Marina Sands Hotel in the large shopping mall.  Looked at the infinity swimming pool up there.       Pictures of that to follow.

Went to an Art Gallery and saw originals done by Picasso, Dali, Renoir, Matisse and others. Works different than we have seen before.
On to the modern art museum.  Interesting exhibits.
Tired out, we tried in vain to get a taxi.
 
 Found the subway, figured how to buy tickets and make the necessary transfer.  Very crowded.  None of the young people offered us their seats. (That would not have happened in the UAE)
                                   Voila, we made it to the proper stop in a mall.
Now to get a taxi to the hotel. Too tired and hot to walk.  Found the long cue and waited like all the other people til our turn to get into the next taxi.
                      
                              Congratulated ourselves.  Successful adventure in a foreign city.
                                                          But tomorrow we will hire a guide

Singapore Esplanade Theaters

CELEBRATING IN ABU DHABI

THE  ANNIVERSARY  BED

SURPRISE

SHEIKH ZAYED GRAND MOSQUE

At the big mosque in Abu Dhabi we befriended a nice woman who allowed us to take her picture.
However, she insisted in covering her face.  She was beautiful!!

ABU DHABI TO SINGAPORE

ABU DHABI  MARCH 16    written en route to Singapore  -  8 hour flight
       while in taxi TALKED TO DENNE IN LAKE TAHOE,  sounded like she was in the
                 next  room. 
                 She was in Thursday and we were in Friday all at the same time

Going back to yesterday:

Hotel Hilton in Abu Dhabi    When we arrived yesterday at reception we were given welcoming COLD wet cloths.
(In Abu Daubi, at the Haboot Grand it was a fruit drink.)

All service people here are very attentive in a friendly way.  The hotel has  7  restaurants,  (since we left home I have been hungry only one time for a few minutes).
Walking under a short, clean, well decorated tunnel, the hotel has private beach front.
There are 3 swimming pools and 2 restaurants and a few bars there.

No schedule today.
Breakfast at beautiful enticing buffet.
Swim. ......
Taxi around Abu Dhabi for Bob to take pictures of the AMAZING tall buildings.
Dinner at the beachfront ...    delicious Arabic food ...
                                                   romantic setting...lanterns,,reflections

This section of the trip blows my mind.......in many ways ....
Women’s bank, women’s taxis driven by women
I saw a photo of Abu Dhabi in 1968    A lot of sand and some shacks
                           
OIL        EXPLOSION OF DEVELOPMENT

Now    DEVELOPMENT  CONTINUES    so fast.   so modern   so extensive 
                   so luxurious     the buildings spare no cost

Since the economy slump some developments have stopped in Dubai       
            *************************************************
 MARCH16
ALL DAY TRAVELING
Plane ride SEEMED easy ......moved clock 4 hours ahead............

SINGAPORE ......Shangri La Hotel .....11 PM
We were not tired so we had a drink and listened to a fine singer, pianist drummer and bass player combo.  
 

ADDITION TO DUBAI POST

I think it was March 12, well one of the Dubai days....

Guide and driver picked us up early and we drove out of town....  Desert, flat with scrub little greens here and there.    Not what I had envisioned, but the wide open spaces were refreshing, and quiet.
Good roads.  Car alerted the driver when he exceeded the speed limit which was a temptation.
                       (Taxis seem to have this warning too .....are all cars equipped this way????)

Guide explained that there are a lot of circumstances for ...... FINES:  

Speeding,     if stopped,  checked for drinking and if found, big consequences    could be JAIL

Train   (METRO  behavior ...............   chewing gum or sleeping

Further along beautiful mountains.     Cutting them for concrete     aluminum
Along the wadis   (streams)    date trees b
Lunch and a  SWIM IN THE INDIAN OCEAN  Felt Fabulous!!!!!

On to another city along the coast... Furairah .......
    Fast development, growing into another megalopolis.
       Oil refineries and shipping.
On the way back the desert was the way I expected, Dunes and sand. 
 BUT lots of electric wires  crisscrossing into many patterns delivering the needed power into the brightly lighted sparkling city.  Once in the cities all wires are underground.