As we planned our itinerary for our world travels, we had just a few key places that we wanted to visit and the rest happened because it was the cheapest way to get from point A to point B. Singapore was just that. A cheap way to get from Asia to London to the Dominican Republic. And since Singapore is a pricey place to visit, we planned to stay for just a few days to get a taste of the city. Our time there was a quick stop to Singapore that led to a big blessing!
Accommodations
Singapore was really hard to find affordable accommodations for our family of 6. We didn’t have very many options in our price range. So, although our apartment ended up being great for what we needed, it was also in one of the not so nice parts of the city.
Transportation
We were so impressed with the transportation in Singapore! The buses and trains were nice and clean. It was a breeze to maneuver the busy city. We easily took a train from the airport to our neighborhood and then walked the rest of the way. And each day we mixed our transportation up from bus to train to taxi…whatever was more convenient. It was affordable and clean. Win win.
To Do
Since we didn’t have much time in Singapore, we kept our schedule pretty simple. We waked through large malls, ate street food in China Town, walked around the Gardens By the Bay, ate ice cream sandwiches on the bridge, attended church, and walked and walked and enjoyed the fountains, monuments, and buildings sprinkling the city. It was low key and nothing really special. But it was great to see another new country.
Blessing
After our short couple of days in Singapore, we packed up our bags, wheeled them to the train and lined up at the airport. We successfully checked in, found our gate, and settled in. With just a short amount of time left to depart, we got a text from the airline that our flight was delayed. They gave us Burger King meal vouchers for the inconvenience. And it was the grossest meal we’ve ever had! After more waiting, we got another notification that our flight was further delayed until the next day. Thankfully the airline put us up in a 5-star hotel for the night….and more Burger King meal vouchers….that we sold and bought better food with the money 😉
We got up bright and early the next day to find out that our flight was delayed yet again. After a lot of waiting at the airport and a lot of unknown, our flight was finally cancelled late that evening. It was a crazy 2 days at the airport with a lot of waiting. But our kids were excellent! They were so good at being patient, at going with the flow. So the airline put us up in the 5-star hotel for another night.
The airline called us late that night and told us they could get us out on a plane super early the next morning….with Qatar Airlines…the top rated airline in the world! We had the most comfortable and pampered flight we’ve ever had! So even though we wasted 2 days of our time in London at the Singapore airport, we ended up getting 2 nights in a 5-star hotel, all of our meals paid for, and reimbursed $4500 for our hassle. Wow. What a blessing!
We could have chosen to be grumpy, to be mad, to be impatient. But we just went with the flow, figured everything out as best we could and had some major blessings because of it! That’s the beauty of full-time travel. We can afford to be flexible and make things work.
Our quick trip to Singapore was pretty forgettable. But our time at the airport was definitely memorable! It was the nicest airport we’ve been to around the world. We made it our home and enjoyed the ride. And it definitely ended up being a big blessing.
