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        <title>Been there | Tips</title>
        
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            Welcome to Been there. Your tips on the places you know - that you love,
            live in or have just visited - are what make this guide.
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                <title>There's so much more to Singapore than shopping</title>
                
                <link>http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/19876</link>
                
                <description><![CDATA[Go to Sentosa Island and climb to the top of the 361-foot tall Carlsberg Sky Tower for a breathtaking view of Singapore. Or visit the Botanic Gardens for a great escape from the city and a charming education in tropical flora and orchids, with black swans and enormous fan palms. Or try the inspiring Night Safari, which you can take by tram. And if you like religious architecture, take a trip to the Sri Srinivasa Perumal Temple or the Sultan Mosque or the Thian Hock Keng Temple. <br><br>Or you could take a simple walk. Start from Collyer Quay and Clifford Pier (where most European colonists and Asian immigrants first set foot on the island); meander past the General Post Office (now the Fullerton); walk along Cavenagh Bridge onto North Boat Quay; take in the Empress Place Building and Raffles’ statue; admire Old Parliament House then take a breather at the Singapore Cricket Club. Walk on to Raffles City and while there, grab some lunch. Perfect.]]></description>
                
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                <title>The Heart of local Singapore...</title>
                
                <link>http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/19873</link>
                
                <description><![CDATA[An icon for Singapore is the ultra-hygienic eating stalls. Nowhere else in the world do they have such hawker food stalls with freshly cooked foods of all kinds - for example, chilli crabs, shark's fin soup, mee goreng, fish head curry and many more. You can even get a fantastically cooked steak to your liking, or oysters with eggs all cooked in front of you within minutes. All ingredients are fresh and very hygienic - carefully and strictly monitored by the Singapore government.<br><br>The best place for lunch or dinner with an exotic feel is Newton Place Hawker Centre, where it's easy to park and even easier to get a cab. It is only a stone's throw from Orchard Road (Singapore's famous shopping street). If you are feeling a bit peckish at 1am Newton is the place to go for some Taiwan porridge which is served from 9pm till 3am at their Coffee Lounge. The Goodwood Park hotel is one of the oldest on the islandand is considered a national monument to the British colonisation of Singapore dating back to 1900. It is splendid for business and families alike. If you would like something to do, go to East Coast beach where you will see a number of seafood restaurants on the beach - about eight of them side by side to choose from.<br><br>If you are feeling more adventurous go on a boat ride to the Indonesian Island of Batan for the day from the Pier - right in the financial district. You can obtain the timetable of departure times from the tourist board - it is pretty reasonable. Serangoon (Singapore's little India), where you can find lots of Indian cafes and restaurants, has excellent Indian food where you can also find the famous 'teh tarik' (literal meaning is 'tea pulled'). It is sweet milky tea that is cooled down by pouring tea from one glass to another from about two or three feet apart depending on the skills of each waiter.<br><br>Whilst at Serangoon go to MUSTAFA's shopping centre. It is the Indian version of Debenhams but you will find almost everything exotic there and pretty reasonably priced. Whilst there also visit Tekka Market. It is the first wet market in Singapore where you will find more hawkers' stalls, shopping and local restaurants. It really is fascinating.<br><br>It is very very safe as crime is low and the people are very sophisticated and highly educated. You can find almost anything in Singapore. It is a multicultural country and more and more westerners are opting to live and work there, and they are well catered for.<br><br>If you fancy a bit of waterskiing go to Ponggol (along the coast) and hire out a boat - they will offer an instructor/driver with the hire of the boat with the gear (at a fee of course). You certainly do not have to worry about the weather. Fancy some original Malay satay - then the Esplanade is the place to go to. Depending on the time of the year you may even be lucky enough to get some Malay entertainment along the way. Want to hit the nightclubs but don't know which ones? There are about 20 nightclubs from samba to R&amp;B, disco, blues, jazz, Chinese etc. all side by side at the World Trade Centre (or rather right next to it). They are open seven nights a week and some close at 5am. If you fancy a blues night out then try The Crazy Elephant at Clarke Quay, where you can sample a lychee martini. How exotic is that! I could go on - just do a bit of research or ask around at your hotel concierge and they will tell you. I am sure you will be spoilt...<br><br>Please be aware that no chewing of gum is allowed in Singapore and travellers are not allowed to bring in more than a cigarette packet of 20s into Singapore or there is a hefty fine.]]></description>
                
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                <title>Free stopover in Singapore</title>
                
                <link>http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/19864</link>
                
                <description><![CDATA[If you fly on Singapore Airlines to Asia or Sydney, then you will probably be eligible for a free Singapore stopover. You can also make use of a number of benefits offered by Singapore Airlines, such as discounted accommodation, special offers on shopping and food as well as a free shuttle bus up and down Singapore's famous Orchard road.]]></description>
                
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                <title>Singapore for shopping</title>
                
                <link>http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/11669</link>
                
                <description><![CDATA[What an amazing place - don't worry about getting lost, just stand with your map in hand and the friendly locals with gather around to help and guide you to your destination. Do use the underground - it is easy and a cheap way of exploring. DO wear sports shoes when out, the wet pavements are LETHAL.]]></description>
                
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                <title>Bugis Village</title>
                
                <link>http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/9271</link>
                
                <description><![CDATA[A very Singaporean shopping experience in the local markets. Have a Tiger and some noodles from the local eateries while you're there - very worhwhile.<br><br>Don't forget to visit Raffles for a Singapore Sling; I know it's very touristy but you'll regret it if you don't do it. The food is excellent as well.]]></description>
                
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                <title>Arab Street</title>
                
                <link>http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/9263</link>
                
                <description><![CDATA[This is the old Arab traders quarter but is now occupied by Indian/Pakistani cloth merchants and tailors in simple old fashioned shops, no sky-scrapers or huge department stores. Prices are marked up-front and reasonable. Best are the colourful Indonesian batiques which have the advantages of being easily folded and light in weight. Also a colourful mosque, coffee houses and Islamic bookshop. A pleasant neighbourhood in which to wander and mingle.]]></description>
                
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                <title>Orchard Road</title>
                
                <link>http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/9253</link>
                
                <description><![CDATA[Lovely shopping road during day but really comes to life at nightime. I arrived at one in morning but couldn't resist taking a stroll and was just mesmerised. Street stall atmosphere just out of this world - on my own and very safe even at that time.]]></description>
                
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                <title>Little Dhaka, Rangoon/Yangon, Bangkok, Manilla...</title>
                
                <link>http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/9240</link>
                
                <description><![CDATA[Singaporeans are proud of their gleaming city - but don't often mention that the hard labour is done by an army of migrant workers imported from around the region. On their (rare) days off, each nationality gravitates to a different part of the city, where you can find great food, cheap CDs and other products from their homelands, and some crazy karaoke-disco bars.<br><br>For Burmese stuff, head for Peninsular Plaza; for Thai, hit Golden Mile Complex. The Phillipino maids have made Lucky Plaza their own, while the Bangladeshi construction workers descend on Little India in their thousands on Sundays to chat and shop and eat.]]></description>
                
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                <title>Real Singapore</title>
                
                <link>http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/3489</link>
                
                <description><![CDATA[Singapore may be a modern business hub, but elements of its original melting-pot culture remain if you take time to search them out. When bored of the malls of Orchard Road, head to the free museum in Raffles Hotel (third floor) to see photographs and memrobilia of a bygone age: Charlie Chaplain, Elizabeth Taylor, Lord Mountabtten and more including images of streets with rickshaw drivers, coolies and colonials. Chinatown has some charm, but has sadly been made "more Chinese" over the last decade. The nearby Telok Ayer area (where you will find Singapore's oldest Taoist temple next to a tiny park) has some good cafes and restaurants including the budget Lotus Cafe. Porta Porta Restaurant on Stanley Street and Aoili on Boon Tat Street offer inventive and authentic Italian and French food (the set lunches are modestly priced at around S$20 to $30). If you want organic vegetarian food, two doors from Aioli is Yogi Hub.More authentic than Chinatown is Little India, but ignore the infamous Komala Villas Restaurant (now serving poor quality Indian vegetarian food in a bad atmosphere) and head for Sri Saktivillas Restaurant on Cuff Road for fantastic food at cheap prices. On the next street - Upper Dickson Road - is Kulfi Bar where you will find some of the creamiest Indian ice-cream in an amazing variety of flavours (the colours and tastes of the beetroot and pistachio are unforgettable.)Fort Canning Park (not far from Orchard Road) and the Botanical Gardens offer green and pleasant distractions. See the Spice Garden at Fort Canning and the Orchid Gardens at the Botanical Gardens.On Hill Street is the charming Armenian Church of St Gregory the Illuminator. It has a circular design, a marvellous atmosphere and is a national treasure. And for a taste of a more authentic Singapore life, head to the heartlands of Toa Payoh, Tampines or Clementi. Among the Housing Development Boad apartment blocks you will find shops, food centres and coffee shops with economy prices and a genuine local flavour.]]></description>
                
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                <title>Takashimaya Department Store</title>
                
                <link>http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/1740</link>
                
                <description><![CDATA[If you need a quick bite when you are shopping on Orchard Road, you can't do better than head for the basement of Takashimaya. Dishes from all over Southeast and East Asia, and elsewhere, at street hawker prices.  It can get busy but it all adds to the atmosphere.]]></description>
                
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                <title>JUICE mag</title>
                
                <link>http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/9316</link>
                
                <description><![CDATA[If you're a traveller between 18-28, pick up a copy of JUICE magazine. It's a free guide to the coolest places on the island state for streetwear, sneakers, clubs and bars.]]></description>
                
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