Singapore's Haw Par Villa

ABBEY: Haw Par Villa is a park themed with Chinese beliefs and tradition. As you have guessed, nearest MRT Station is Haw Par Villa (Circle Line). 

Its name translated also in Chinese can be seen in a stone structure at the entrance of the park. Pagodas, kois, and large statues of Chinese zodiac were among the displays in it. Large obelisk were also erected as a memory for the Chinese brothers, Aw Boon Haw and Aw Boon Par (makers of Tiger Balm).

The most prominent feature of the park is the Gates of Hell. It depicts the travel of the dead; how their acts were judged and sentenced with punishment and until their way to the world again thru reincarnation. The museum is good as it has English translation; helpful for the visitors that came from foreign land. 

WILL: It was Sunday afternoon when Abbey exerted all his effort to wake up after a 4-hour sleep. 5pm we entered the villa and directly went to the Courts of Hell before it closes its doors. 

10 Courts of Hell is a hair-raiser. They magnificently illustrates the punishments for every doings they have sinned. It also shows the purification and reincarnation. Inside is hot, I do not know if they intentionally done it for you to feel the hell. Haha!

Then we went out to see the park. Of course we will see a statue of the tiger balm. 

There's a lot of statue and my favorite are the happiness, prosperity, and longevity. It reminds me of the figurine that people giving to my mom. Hey, if you have a week knee, get ready for a long walk uphill. When we reached the top, Abbey and I sat on one of the benches while my nephew happily playing with the pigeons.

This is a great free park. Please visit. It just few steps from HawPar Villa MRT yellow line.

NEWater Visitor Centre

ABBEY: Singapore is having scarcity in water. As it has a small land mass, catchment of water is difficult. They have built canals to efficiently trap the rainwater, imported water from Malaysia and even undergo desalination. To make use of the precious water, they also treat the used water to reuse it again. This is where the NEWater comes in. 

Sewerage canals were interconnected and goes to NEWater plants. It was then treated by passing thru a series of  pipes with microfilters to separate bacteria and germs and last stage is the putting the water under ultraviolet light for disinfection. Some of the water are being used in industrial sites for cleaning. 

The guided tour also gave us ample time to have fun on their games teaching how to conserve water. In the end, they gave us free samples of treated water to drink. Yes, it is potable. No need to fear for your health.

WILL: Do u know that most of the water pouring out from your faucet was imported from Malaysia?

Singapore receives a huge amount of rainfall every year but it didn't suffice the demand of water. SG put a lot of effort for a solution on this. And that is why Singapore intensify the research on NEWater. 

NEWater is a process of cleaning the used water from our own drainages. I am quite interested how they do that and so I booked tour in one of their site in Bedok.

Unlike Marina Barrage that have a regular bus route, NEWater don't have, so from Tanah Merah it will only cost you around $5 in taking a cab. Hmmm, unless you are okay for a very long walk. Haha!

We was greeted by a very warm welcome by their staffs and immediately started the tour by letting us watch a video. Then we went to the stages of how they recycle water we drink. 

Its very enjoyable and it will makes you more conscious to save water. After the tour we were given a free bottled water. A pure recycled water. Taste like the any other water. No stench, after taste what so ever.

You can book a free tour here.

LEGOLAND® (Malaysia) Water Park

ABBEY: After a fun-filled half-day at Legoland Theme Park, we were drenched with sweat. The water is calling us at the adjacent water park. After filling up our hunger, we headed to the pools. First stop is the Buil-a-Raft River. This is their version of lazy river. Since we got tired on the park, we grabbed floaters, laid back and let the current drive us. Lego bricks were scattered along the river stretch and you can build your own raft.

Then we tried their slides : Brick Blaster, Splash N Swirl, and Tidal Tube.

We got most fun in the LEGO Slide racer. Each of us went to a different tunnel aiming to be the first. Both instances, I won. I'm the heaviest and I built the most momentum. 

The wave pool is boring as the waves are not that high but it is the best location to take snaps along with the Legoland sign. 

We definitely had a great time on Joker Soaker pool. We were waiting for the giant pail to fill up and soak us with cold water. Even the lifeguards participated on the fun. 

We really enjoyed the water park. Recommended for a family getaway.

WILL: Two birds one stone. We are already there so why waste time not to visit the Legoland Water Park.

My target is to finish the Legoland Theme Park by noon, hmmm, some of the rides was really fantastic that we gotta go for twice. In short we are an hour late for water splashing. Haha. After our lunch at KFC, we changed for our swimwear and excitedly went to Build-A-Raft River, this is for us to rest our tired feet and full tummy. After 2 rounds, we headed to Joker Soaker. 

This a dream come true! We thought that only kids were allowed to climb and slide but hey even Abbey was permitted to enjoy this. Joker Soaker's lifeguards singing very delightful songs. We always wait for the bell to ring as that would be the sign of 300 gallon bucket was about to spill. Excuse me kill joy people, if you don't want to bombared by water here by strangers this is not for you. Haha!

Lego Wave Pool. Ahmm, forget about it. Nyahaha!

Slides! It seems everything is just normal like  other water parks but I am shocked that Sam was allowed to Lego Slide Racers. We are so unsure for Samuel's safety but we asked him to swear that he shouldn't take off his hands on the mat. He swore and we have two rounds for this. Abbey is the fastest, followed by April, Sam and I were always the last. Hello gravity!

After all the slides was experienced, its time for photos. I took the snaps and while they are enjoying another rounds of water activities.

3hours of enjoyment then we rinsed off ourselves. 100points for cleanliness of the washroom and shower area.

You can save time and money by buying two tickets at the Legoland website and 20% discount if you booked your visit a week
before. 

Thanks Legoland Malaysia. We enjoyed the visit.

Legoland Malaysia Theme Park

ABBEY: We went to Legoland last April 7 as part of our "payment" to our Ate Sol for helping us in paperworks of our "cashcows". We were there at 9AM when the park opens at 10. Why? To have our pictures taken without any obstruction just like we had on our visit to Hong Kong Disneyland. We got our jumpshots, wacky and Facebook-profile poses. We also had some snaps at the hotel. We even had our breakfast before the gates open. 

When it is about time, we queued up on the gate and the Red Lego brick is welcoming the guests. The staff shouted "Are you ready?" and the crowed roared with a deafening "Yes". The gates opened and we headed on the left side of the park where Project X is located. It was not yet open as testing is still on-going for a couple of minutes. We then decided to try AQUAZONE Wave Racers. This water ride is good. Turn right and you'll be on the outside track and you'll get wet. Turn left if you just want to get dizzy. Then we boarded Project X; a roller coaster with a 4-man car that will take you maybe 10-storeys high and put a ton of butterflies on your stomach as you go down very fast.

You will be fascinated by the lego structures of the famous landmarks like Petronas Towers, Singapore Flyer, Taj Mahal, and Angkor Wat. They also have their 4D theater but Universal Studios Singapore's is better. We also tried their 2 dragon roller coasters (The Dragon and Dragon's Apprentice). We enjoyed The Dragon so much that we requested for a second round. Dino Island is a water ride and make sure all electronics are not there with you on the ride as they might get wet.

We all got dizzy first in Technic Twister and on Merlin's Challenge; they will just want to lose your orientation :)

Sam had the ride of his life when he entered Legoland's driving school. He even got his driving license just for a day. Last stop is the Legoland Express. I'm expecting to see some sceneries of the park but all I saw is the back of their park rides (maintenance rooms).

We got to try Beetle Bounce (a tower ride that will bounce you up and down) and Observation Tower (a 360-degree view of the theme park). 

Already hungry and thirsty by the heat of the sun, we headed to a fast food chain and to prepare for Legoland Waterpark.

WILL: I heard a lot of "not-so-good" reviews from people went to Legoland in Johor Bahru Malaysia. It so hot because there is not enough roof/tree to cover the people; the rides are so childish; construction is still on going. Those were the rants I've heard from colleagues, friends and even relatives. So Abbey and I decided not to go until my nephew came here in Singapore for a 10-day vacation. I know he can't enjoy the Universal Studios, as there are age and height restrictions at the rides. And that's time for us to go to Legoland Malaysia.

As usual we were early, this is for us to take picture of the themed park logo "alone", haha! Friends told us that it seems we rent out Legoland for the whole day. We hate long queues so we went there on  Monday. When mascots arrived at the entrance hall, there's a burst of enjoyment and excitement is high. When the gate opened, we rushed to the middle of park and turned left for us to take the every ride that we can have.

Firstly and so early we got wet, not just once but twice! Haha! The Wave Racers was so exciting we had it with a second round. Samuel is naughty that he intentionally put the car in front of the splashing waters. 

Abbey is afraid of roller coasters but he have the guts to get this on. Hey, no loops ahead! 

We went at a 4D theatre  I hope that the management will look on the sanitation of the area. The stench is unbearable. 

Waste of time in the train. Nothing to see. Maybe if you are tired walking and you still want to be on the move, train ride is an option.  

My nephew enjoyed a lot the driving school. They were taught how to drive and how to follow the traffic lights. 

Overall, this is a great place to go not only for children but for young-at-heart.