Singapore postcard

Here are a few more highlights from our weekend stopover in Singapore. With a little planning we we got to visit most of Singapore’s top attractions, many of which didn’t exist when Garry and I last visited the island nation.

We ultimately got to explore its impressive metallic Supertree structures at Gardens By The Bay, wander the giant glass-enclosed Flower Dome and Cloud Forest Conservatories also at Gardens By The Bay, get up close with sharks at Singapore's enormous aquarium, and enjoy a sumptuous seafood buffet at the Casino.

The Gardens by the Bay is a nature park and botanical garden spanning 101 hectares on the coast of Singapore. It was created as part of the nation's plans to further enhance its burgeoning “Garden City" reputation. Since opening in 2012, its become the city's premier urban outdoor recreation space and a national icon.  

The parklands' iconic attractions include a series of Supertree scaffold towers and two enormous climate-controlled conservatories. The largest of these is the Flower Dome. At 1.2 hectares (3.0 acres), it’s recognized by the Guinness Book of World Records as the largest greenhouse in the world.

The neighbouring Cloud Forest is a higher, but slightly smaller, conservatory at 0.8 hectares (2.0 acres). It replicates the cool moist conditions found in tropical mountain regions between 1,000 metres and 3,000 metres above sea level. The interior is dominated by a bridal veil waterfall cascading from a 42-metre-high "Cloud Mountain". A clever irrigation system regularly envelopes the entire structure in a hazy shroud of artificial mist.

The Supertrees are an equally fascinating attraction. They're part sculpture, part observatory tower and part vertical garden. The Supertree "grove" contains 18 tree-like structures that dominate the surrounding landscape with heights ranging from 25 metres to 50 metres.  The largest of these also houses a rooftop observatory offering unrivalled views of the Singapore skyline.

We spent a full afternoon exploring Gardens by the Bay, as well as experiencing the Supertree grove at night as part of the city's Chinese New Year festivities. I hope you enjoy this feast of Singaporean visual delights.