CaitlinAway: Singapore Botanic Gardens

On my way to run some errands a few days ago, I noticed the gate for the Singapore Botanic Gardens right off my bus route. I made a mental note to check it out on some nice day, and, needing a good wander, this morning decided that today would be a nice day indeed. A quick trip on the bus, and I found myself at the gate...and in desperate need of coffee (a fairly usual state of being for me!). A short walk away, I saw a Starbucks (yes, yes...American hegemony, but I was in need of caffeine) and headed over...to see lots and lots of bikes, and lots and lots of people in spandex. After ordering and receiving my coffee, I screwed up my courage and asked one of the spandex-attired women if it was a cycling club or group, and she said that there are a few cycling groups in the city that get together for rides every Sunday morning and end at the Starbucks. A happy accident for me to find them, as the friendly and not-at-all dismayed-to-find-herself-collared-by-an-American Aussie gave me the names of a few cycle shops, and told me where to look for the different cycling groups. Coffee and bikes - a good way to start the morning!

Post-coffee, I headed back to the gardens.

Oh. My.

Lovely. Lovelylovelylovely. A beautiful place for a wander, and even some time where I felt more alone than I have since I came (a rare and delightful feeling in such a dense place). It's quite large, and has a wide variety of walks, gardens, water features, and other amenities. The pictures below don't do it full justice, but believe me when I say it's a place to which I will return.