One of my favourite days in Singapore was spent over on Pulau Ubin. Head over to Changi Village and grab a bumboat over to the island that time forgot. It's amazing that in such a thriving metropolis this piece of history remains.
Hire a bike for approx. S$8 and ride around the island - there's wild durian growing by the side of the road, monkeys and we even were slightly terrorised by a family of wild boar! It's a long time since the tiger crawled under the billiard table at Raffles, yet on this little island, it all seems possible again.
Pulau Ubin has a feeling of remoteness, even though you're actually just a 10 minute boat ride for the city. We only had a few hours to explore, so we rode straight to the Chek Jawa Wetlands. The ride is easy, but on our steamy, overcast day we needed water & mosquito repellent so don't forget to bring them (and my tip, think back pack not handbag, ladies - I'd foolishly taken a large shoulder bag which kept falling off as I rode).
My favourite though, was the house now used for the information centre of the Chek Jawa Wetlands. It is an oddity in this overgrown jungle, and it is a example of the English influence of another time. Built in the 1930's as a holiday house for Chief Surveyor, Langdon Williams, it is a Tudor-style cottage like nothing else on the island. It even has the last working fire place in Singapore!
While we were out on it's jetty, the wild boar came tearing past again, blocking our access back to the island - while nervously debating what to do, the boars moved on and the very excited children raced inside to safety.
Given the people turning up for lunch, I'm guessing the seafood restaurants on Ubin are very popular with the locals. Alas, we didn't have the time, and had to leave a lot of the island unexplored.
I would consider a full day, if you can, as it's a really enjoyable experience and such a different view of Singapore life and history.
Of all the things we did this trip, our visit to Palau Ubin was my favourite. There is something quite special about stepping back in time. To para-phrase their tourism ad, you think you know Singapore? Get lost in history & nature...Time travel to a Singapore of long, long ago, where History and Heritage still feels alive.
Practicalities:
The Bumboats leave from Changi Point Ferry terminal (at Changi Village). They wait for 12 passengers, so there are no set departure times. You need to be mindful of this in terms of organising timeframes for meeting people. We didn't wait long to get there, but waited about 20 mins to come back. S$2.50 per person
A myriad of bike hire places - take your pick. Quite cheap - we went midrange at S$8 a bike.
Wild Singapore http://www.wildsingapore.com/ubin/index.html
Pulau Ubin http://www.pulauubin.com.sg/
National Parks https://www.nparks.gov.sg/cms/index.php?option=com_visitorsguide&task=parks&id=29&Itemid=73
Chek Jawa http://chekjawa.nus.edu.sg/
More on Singapore:
And other suggestions at http://www.weekendnotes.com.au/singapore/
Linking with #MCoW and #WednesdayAroundtheWorld
I have a friend who comes from Singapore so I've heard about a few of these places. It ounds like a very interesting place with its own unique melting-pot culture. Loving that oven, just quietly.
ReplyDeleteThere was a sensational temple & festival stage too, but alas only one photo could make the blog...apparently going at traditional festival times is the thing to do.
DeleteWow, great photos. We went to Singapore when my oldest was 9 months old. We found it very kid-friendly to get around with a pram, so it was a good holiday for us, but I'd love to go back now with my kids being older. I really loved the Zoo - but some of your suggestions would be terrific for seeing a different side of the place.
ReplyDeleteThe Zoo now has the Night Safari and River Adventure is in the process of opening - we didn't do River Adventure as they were still setting up some of the exhibits. Maybe next time...
DeleteWow what a comprehensive guide to the Island. I've read many of your posts but you have a real flair for travel writing. Succinct and to the point with all practicalities covered and some cracking recommendations to boot.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for linking up Lydia! Hope to see you again - Rachel
Thanks :) If I could, I'd travel endlessly...so much to see & do. And will try to be more organised with The Lounge. I just forget!
DeleteAwesome photos Lydia, and a side to Singapore I've never heard about. Glad you linked up! Hopefully I make it back there someday soon and can check out your recommendations, once I'm off the well-trodden Singapore Sling route :)
ReplyDeleteI've never really thought about visiting Singapore! I've been in the airport a number of times though!
ReplyDeleteIt looks beautiful. But wild boar! OMG! Scary!
Also I like the idea of bum boats ... boats for unfortunates or boats for people like me with generous behinds? Either way i endorse the bum boat concept!
Thanks for really good guide and showing Singapore from yet another angle. It will come handy when I head there!
ReplyDeleteIt was the first time I visit this blog, and here I found a lot of interesting info related trip to china. thanks, your article has inspired me
ReplyDeleteLooks like a great side trip from Singapore!
ReplyDeleteThat looks like fun. I'm adding it to the list for my next trip to Singapore - its certainly a different side to the country. #WednesdayWanderlust
ReplyDeleteYou had a wonderful journey "off the beaten path", didn't you?
ReplyDeleteNice photos - I hope you'll share them at http://image-in-ing.blogspot.com/2015/05/tally-ho.html
I will keep this in mind because I love to find the wilder, more natural, side of cities. Shame you missed out on the restaurants.
ReplyDeleteThanks for joining in #wednesdaywanderlust
Guess you've just given me yet another reason to go back to Singapore!
ReplyDeleteI had no idea about Pulau Ubin, so thanks for enlightening me. That family of wild boar sounds a bit scary! :-)
ReplyDeleteWhat an exciting encounter with that boar. Pulau Ubin reminds me a lot of Penang where I lived for 3 years. The school once had a baseball game interrupted by a wild boar, but there was luckily an abundance of baseball bats if one needed a weapon to fend it off. We never went to Pulau Ubin when we visited Singapore, probably because it reminded us so much of home. However, if you weren't accustomed to that type of scenery, it would definitely be a fascinating counterpoint to the modern city.
ReplyDeleteI love the look and virtual feel of Pulau Ubin. We've had several stop-overs in Singapore and next time I hope we get to visit Palau Ubin. Thanks for bringing it to our attention.
ReplyDeleteGreat to know places like this exist so close to a modern place. It would be great to visit and disconnect from the rest of the world.
ReplyDeleteI visited Palau Ubin recently too and found it fascinating! It's apparently what Singapore looked like before its modernization. I don't know if I'm allowed to add a link here, but this is my post about it: http://rachelheller.org/pulau-ubin-singapore/. I didn't see any wild animals, though!
ReplyDeleteI'd never heard of a bumboat before. Love to see the old juxtaposed against to the new.
ReplyDeleteWonder how many visitors take the trip. Thanks for showing up this Singapore, Lydia!
While in Singapore we never visited Palau Ubin, but we went to the Turtle Sanctuary on Kusu Island.
ReplyDeleteThat definitely is another part of Singapore, and one you don't think of. I love it!
ReplyDeleteAmazing - definitely not what you'd expect from Singapore and totally different to the side I saw during my (flying) visit years ago. But this looks like somewhere I'd love, fantastic that it still exists. Thanks for linking up with #citytripping
ReplyDeleteBorn and bred Singaporean here ;) thanks for this post! It's been many years since I made the short trip to Pulau Ubin. It's actually embarrassing. Good to know things haven't changed that much :) In a city of rapid and continuous change like Singapore, we need more of that.
ReplyDeleteSomehow I am not surprised Lydia. I have never been to Singapore, but this is how I actually imagine it: like a jungle. The clean, shiny modern city may be there too, but the jungle was there long before it and it's not going to disappear. Thank you for joining #TheWeeklyPostcard.
ReplyDeleteI've been to Singapore multiple times, Lydia, but I confess this is a place that I have not visited. It's on the list for the next visit!
ReplyDeleteThank you for taking part in the "Travel Tuesday Meme".
This looks like a great place to explore. My husband and I were married in Singapore and we are hoping to go back for a visit next year if travel restrictions allow. I will have to remember to check out this island :) #CulturedKids
ReplyDeleteI love the masonry on that brick oven. 👍👍
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