existence on feb. 3?

touchdown: 🇸🇬 singapore

(stick around until the end to see my mom's pov）

we succeeded! it was a little difficult, but we both stayed awake for the ~9:30 hour flight from SEA->HND. it was more beneficial for us to sleep on the second flight so we could be ready for a full day when we arrived around 7:00am. the plan went off without a hitch–we both passed out on the second plane ride. in fact, i didn't even wake up when they passed out breakfast and snacks.

we disembarked and entered the famous Changi airport but before exploring the airport, we needed to fill out an online customs form. we got to use an sort of automated customs where it searches our passports and then scans our thumbprint. i had done the same in taiwan–i wonder if this will become more common. after the stress of all that official stuff, we went in search of where we could leave our bags and then breakfast. i tried the famous singaporean kaya toast.

then we took in the beauty of the rain vortex and other natural gardens. there were so many opportunities to practice my photography! not only was the vortex beautiful, but also the building's architecture is too cool. because of our phones and fitbits not switching to the new time zone promptly, we thought showtime was soon when it was really an hour away hahah. while we waited, we checked out each floor and i found our first 7-11. no, i'm serious. asian 7-11 is top tier and saved us from dehydrating and hangry-ness. i'm so glad my mom understands why i rave about it now. pocari sweat, triangle onigiri...what else could a girl want? after that, we planned to go to the butterfly garden, but we didn't know that the attraction is behind security, so we had to skip it 😭. we went through mirror maze (not worth it tbh) and decided to leave to find the hotel.

it was hard to find the MRT from the airport, but after finding it, we got our transport cards and it was about 30 mins to our hotel. on the way, we saw a lot of buildings with different styles, colors, etc. what i love is same with taipei–nature and a city coexisting. when we got to our station, we still needed to walk ~10mins to find the hotel. by this time it's only early afternoon. we took a break, read messages, looked though photos from earlier and we also went to the pool to rest. a robot deliverer "greeted" us as we got on the elevator for the first time.

for dinner we went to a taiwanese restaurant to eat braised pork noodles, pepper and salted fried chicken, veggie of the day (bok choy) and 雪花冰 xue hua bing. i'm so glad i could finally share the taste of snowflake ice with my mom. we got matcha flavor. then we just kind of walked around the area and then early-ish night given we'd been traveling for essentially two days. we are both very tired, but i really want to win against jetlag!

but seriously, did mom and i only exist on february 3rd during our 5 hour layover in japan? pls explain time and space to me

♡蘇晨

pov: JV

The mom-tag-a-long. The airport, featured in the movie Crazy Rich Asians, lived up to expectations! In the center of the Jewel, the world's largest indoor waterfall really is dramatic. It started at 10 AM with symphonic music and fog pouring down from the center of the dome, then the water begins, and soon its a rush of tons of water running from the ring at the top down six floors. The Jewel is a giant greenhouse with a mall inside, and it smells sooooo good! All the plants, flowers, and food. In fact everywhere here smells good. Famously recognized for its cleanliness and love of greenery, Singapore feels a little like Disneyland without the junk. Even the MRT - fragrance free of the usual urine wafting from the corners and stairwells of US subways.

The afternoon humidity and heat are certainly noticeable but liveable. The evening was lovely - warm, humid, breezy. All around us are tropical plants and flowers, and high rise apartment buildings. Lots of fountains too - water features.

Oh my gosh the public restrooms are also really nice and so clean! Family friendly - fold down toilet seats for toddlers, changing tables, bigger stalls for nursing moms. Maybe TMI but when you sit down on the toilet in the Tokyo airport a speaker plays the sound of running water, made me laugh. Also have bidet options in lots of public toilets. And hooks for hanging your bags and jackets - so much appreciated!

The matcha xue hua bing (milk ice) dessert looked like a bowl of lettuce with red beans on top! It's really REALLY airy and light - shavings of flavored milk ice. The beans with matcha was really good.

Off for today's adventure - nature walk and cultural center - after we find coffee.