History Lesson

Everywhere you go, you see the name Raffles so you begin to wonder-- who is this guy Raffles? Well, it seems he is the founding father of Singapore. Sir Stamford Raffles landed here in 1819, and working for the British East India Trading Company, he bought the land from the local rulers and set out to establish a British trading post. There is a nice statue of him at the mouth of the Singapore River where he supposedly landed.

So I set out to find the famous Raffles Hotel, which is said to be one of Singapore's grandest colonial treasures. It really is impressive, and although you can't go in the hotel unless you are a resident, you can visit the shops and restaurants in the hotel complex and the beautiful Raffles Courtyard. The bar here is famous for inventing the drink the Singapore Sling (didn't try it), nor did I come back for the Mother's Day Brunch that was advertised for SGD 208.00 per person. (That's $155.55 in Canadian currency).

Raffles Hotel

Courtyard at the Raffles Hotel

I continued to wander the colonial area and saw several other historic buildings, parks and memorials. You can't exactly hustle in this heat- you have to move slowly. Even the locals say it is extremely hot and humid right now. I sat in another courtyard and got refreshed with a cold drink (Jasmine Green Tea) and then continued on. I ended up at a beautiful church, St. Andrews Cathedral, an Anglican church built in 1861 by convict labour sent from India. It is the largest cathedral in Singapore and is said to have a vibrant Christian community. I saw a couple doing wedding photos on the front lawn, and heard a group of young adults singing choruses in a Saturday afternoon service. I was impressed with all of the services they offer and the many ministries they are involved in. One that caught my eye was classes for autistic children and plans to build a Centre for Autism.


I went into the church and sat by an open window to rest and try to catch some breeze. As I looked out the window and saw the sky getting darker and a storm rolling in, I remembered that the tour bus operator had told us that this church had been struck by lightning TWICE. I decided to leave. As the downpour started, I took out my umbrella and felt very smart for bringing it. Can you believe it's the same one I took to Scotland in 2007? Ready to try my first solo taxi experience here, I lined up in the taxi queue outside of a hotel and when my turn came, I got driven back to the hotel for SGD 4.60, or less than $3.50 Canadian. It was worth every penny. It was a pretty loud thunderstorm. They actually say "chance of thunderstorm" every day in the weather forecast, but this was the first one since we arrived.