What's a trip to Singapore without seeing the iconic Gardens by the Bay and Marina Bay Sands? I don't know about you guys but a trip to Singapore isn't complete without a visit to these places. So on our third day in SG, we planned to visit the most famous Singapore tourist places. 

I only see these places in social media, from marketing materials to photos of my friends that's already been to SG. I mean, hello? Who among us doesn't have a friend that's already been to SG, right? It's as if it's just a province of the Philippines that Filipinos just come and go. And with this trip, I surely know why! 

Singapore's beauty despite its size is really something. I mean not in an architectural way but the way things are. They are very organized, little to no litter at all in the streets. And you know what I envy the most? The discipline that most Filipinos lack!

And while I really admire the country so much, their cost of living makes my wallet cry. It's only evident that before visiting such country, we should really be prepared with the expense. And to tell you the truth, this is one of the trips that I am not really ready. Yes, it was booked months before but with the holiday season just a few weeks back, it's really hard budgeting your money well.

But here we are. We can only enjoy and make memories. :) So our third day consists of mainly visiting the Gardens by the Bay vicinity and the Marina Bay Sands vicinity.

Gardens by the Bay is actually free for all. Yup, entrance is free. There are just some attractions or places that have entrance tickets. 2 of them are the Flower Dome and Cloud Forest. We bought our tickets from Klook so it was a breeze at the entrance. We just had to scan the barcode then ta-da! No hassle in buying it at the ticket counters. 

Gardens by the Bay's attractions are as follows:

So is the Flower Dome and Cloud Forest worth the money you ask? Well, for me... I would say yes. I mean you're already in Singapore, why not just enjoy. It's okay to budget but try not to limit yourself to attraction tickets. 

If there's one thing you would want to always save a few bucks from, it is the accommodation and not splurging so much on food. I mean authentic food can always be bought in the street (of course pick the one with clean surroundings) and for accommodation, it's no use spending too much when you only got it for spending the night.

Flower Dome is a large greenhouse replicating the cool and dry Mediterranean climate. Of course, flowers are the main showcase. The place is airconditioned to sustain hundred of flowers that are not available everywhere. What I liked it that they always have a theme regarding of what is being celebrated by that month. 

During the time of our visit, it was already few days before Chinese New Year so the design inside is very CNY. There are Chinese lanterns and even a replica of Chinese zodiac animals.

Everywhere is like a backdrop of an instagram photo! And I am not even joking. You could just stand and the photo will still look good. lol. 

We around the area for like an hour or so. There's just too much to see. If you want to see the whole Gardens by the Bay and Marina Bay Sands, you should at least allot a whole day to see and enjoy everything.

Once we saw everything, we went straight to the Cloud Forest.  Cloud Forest, on the other hand, is like Flower Dome but with huge indoor waterfalls in the middle. Once you enter, you will be greeted with mists all over. The concept is different. You will have to go up using the elevator and from there, the journey starts going down. Most of the flowers located in the area are like tropical flowers. The place is actually mimicking a mountain exploration.

The view is spectacular as well. If you're a nature lover, you will like this place.

Inside Cloud Forest

Supertree Grove

After seeing Cloud Forest, we're supposed to head straight to the Supertree Grove... you know, the ones we usually see on Instagram. Lol. But, to our luck, it was actually raining hard and the weather's quite not good. It was also a bit dark wherein if you're like an IG enthusiast like me, you would know the lightning is very bad thus not good for photos. lol.

We tried waiting for the rain to stop. It stopped for awhile but before we actually get satisfied with our photos, it rained again. And since we're already tired, we decided to go back to the hostel first and rest for awhile. I was also not feeling well as I was sick for the whole duration of our stay in SG.

You see, Gardens by the Bay is very big that we haven't even visited half of it. One of the once I also want to try is the OCBD skyway. It's an elevated pathway inside the Supertree Grove and while there's also an entrance ticket, I believe the view is awesome. Too bad though it was closed because of the rain. 

We were up right before 7 then we decided to see the iconic Merlion statue. And guess what?! It was closed for renovation/maintenance. I don't know! It seems like it's national month of renovation in SG. First is the temple we want to see around Little India and now this! And that's the story how we don't have a picture with the Merlion.

So instead of getting sad over that, we just decided to walk around, take photos, and go back to Gardens by the Bay to at least see it at night. And yet again, it was already closed. Lol. Aren't we so lucky? Imagine the disappointment. 

We were so starstruck with Marina Bay Sands. The view is just amazing and we just can't help but think about how among the richest of the richest already stayed in such posh hotel. We also walked the vicinity and went inside the hotel lobby. 

Exploring

Singapore Flyer from afar

We tried cheering ourselves up by having a good meal at Makansutra but it seems that the resto we ordered from isn't really something to try. The Hokkien Mee they are serving is nahhh. The one I tried here in Manila is better! haha. Even the sugarcane juice is not nice. 

So it's how our day ends... We wanted to go to Clarke Quay but we are already tired from all the happenings. We also need to wake up early the next day because it's our USS day! yey! haha. I'll blog about is soon. :)

For now, here's a photo of me being a turista. =)))