Day 52 Canberra

We flew out of Singapore an hour late at 1.30 am this morning and had a reasonably good flight to Sydney.  We got through the formalities with little fuss and transferred to the domestic terminal where we had a lengthy wait in the Qantas Club until our flight to Canberra.

Megan met us and brought us home and we've been unpacking and sorting and washing.

I think its nice to be home - though I'll need a good night's sleep to be certain.

We've had some great experience and a wonderful trip.

Farewell - for this trip at least - to all our dear readers.  Thank you for your interest and feedback.  We've loved hearing from you.

Day 51 Singapore

Another interesting day in Singapore - it was cloudy and overcast with a nice breeze so wasn't as humid as yesterday, so quite pleasant for all the wandering around we did.

We caught the MRT to Marina Bay and spent the morning visiting the Gardens by the Bay.  The MRT system is great, and so easy to use.  We have had people stand up for us on nearly every trip!!

There are two enormous dome structures in the gardens.  The first was the flower dome.

The other was the Cloud Forest, where there is a 35 metre man made mountain covered in orchids and with a waterfall.  There are also walkways that take you out to the edge of the dome and down several levels.

We also walked on to look at the barrage which separates Singapore harbour from the fresh water in the marina, and also controls flooding.

This afternoon we did a 40 min boat cruise around Marina Bay and up the river, which we found interesting and informative.

Then we went to the top of the Marina Bay Sands Hotel, where we got fabulous 360 deg views.

We had a yummy chicken rice dinner with the Fountains, and now it's time to get organised for our flight home.

The end of our holiday is now exceptionally close!!!

Day 50 Singapore

We went to the botanic gardens this morning and had an enjoyable few hours wandering around.  We particularly enjoyed the orchid garden.

We then spent some time wandering down Orchard Road, wandering into some shopping malls and wondering how so many shops can stay in business!

Tonight we went to the marina area where we had dinner, a wander around and watched the laser light show.

Days 48 and 49 London - Singapore

We left the hotel yesterday morning with heavy snow around and with some concerns about whether we would be travelling at all.  However when we got to the airport all was well and we boarded on time at around 10.30.  Our flight was delayed 30 mins while they de-iced, which we were very happy about.

It was a good flight and we were more or less on time into Singapore.  We went through the formalities and caught the MRT to Iris and Philip's.  Philip and Jefrey were at church when we arrived and Iris and Samuel went to join them for lunch.  Alan and I had a rest - it was around midnight London time when we got in so were quite tired.

Iris and Jeffrey

Samuel

We chatted for a while this afternoon, and then went to Chinatown for a look around, and to have dinner there.  We also planned our strategy for the next few days.

Pp

Day 47 London

A very quiet day today - it was so snowy we stayed in.  We ventured out once but it was quite slippery under foot, and the snow was blowing directly in our faces, so we gave up.

We repacked and had a nice relaxing day.

Day 46 London

We heeded the weather warning and came up to London today. It was snowing in Hay this morning and there are all sorts of weather warnings for very heavy snow tomorrow.

Penny and John's back yard this morning

We were disappointed to lose a day with Penny and John and it was sad saying goodbye. We headed out about 11 and drove out of the snow quite quickly.   It turned out to be quite a good trip.  It was as high as 3 deg at times, and we almost saw the sun!!

We dropped the car off and checked into our hotel at Heathrow, and have enjoyed relaxing in our room.

The plus is we can spend tomorrow in London - depending on the weather.

Day 45 Hay on Wye

Another travel day today, but not too far.  Just a 3 hour drive across country to Cusop.  It was quite cold - varying from -3 to 0, and it was very foggy most of the way.

It was good driving and we stopped for a clotted cream tea and had lunch at a pub on the way.

We have been considering our trip to London - we were going to drive up on Friday but the forecast for Friday morning is so dire with heavy snow expected we may have to go tomorrow.  Darn!