It was a lovely day, so Piggycess Spunktitude put on her tiara and went out to play…
Look of the Day – Royal Minty Icy mint green happens to be Spring/Summer’s hottest hue – nice huh? Eyelet top and skirt – H&M Lace socks – Forever 21 Wings Platforms – Vivienne Westwood Sunnies: From Hong Kong (I think even the ‘dog’ in the window on the left was so taken by Piggycess Spunktitude, it’s staring in awe with mouth wide-open. Or I just look like a delicious piece of bacon to it. heh.)
Look of the Day – Royal Minty Don’t you just love the floral tiles on this shophouse? Palace-worthy.
Look of the Day – Royal Minty Tiara – Inherited (that’s the only way right?)…Cos’ no one dared to wear it after the company D&D. Haha. Frog Earrings: Topshop (wonder if it will turn into a Prince if I kiss it..) Choker and Bracelet: From Hong Kong Rings – Bulgari
This must be one of the MOST beautiful shots I have taken in my entire life. Kudos to the photographer who managed to make a beauty outta a piggycess!
And that’s for you D my Prince Cham-ming (dialet meaning ‘Poor Thing”, cos’ he’s always ‘abused’ by me) for the day. Thanks for taking these lovely collection of photos, you’re the best!
Look of the Day – Human Garden! I blended pretty well into the flower wall, LOL. The other visitors were rather amused when I took this shot. Heh.
I attended the official opening of the highly-anticipated official opening of Gardens by the Bay – Bay South on 28 June 2012. As I have been keeping track of the construction progress of this beautiful place, I was really excited to finally see the finished product, especially the Cloud Forest which features a 35-metre high man-made mountain with a waterfall.
Gardens by the Bay At 54 hectares, Bay South Garden is the largest of the three gardens which form Gardens by the Bay. When completed, the Gardens by the Bay will occupy a total of 101 hectares of land by the water around Marina Bay and the 32 hectare Bay East Garden will be linked to the Bay South Garden by Bay Central which will feature a 3 km promenade that offers stunning views of the city. It is masterplanned by UK-based landscape architecture firm Grant Associates. It is viewed as a bold step in enhancing the liveability/quality of life in the city as well as Singapore’s international appeal. To me, nature and greenery is always welcome to induce a sense of tranquility to the crazy corporate world most of us face daily, and the Gardens definitely softens the ‘hard’ concrete landscape that has been building up at Marina Bay. Best of all – 80% of the Gardens are free admission – so yay! to another place where I can spend a lazy evening with my friends for free under the stars.
Bay South Gardens consists of several signature parts such as the Flower Dome and Cloud Forest cooled conservatories, Supertrees vertical gardens, OCBC Skywalk, Heritage Gardens; The World of Plants and the Dragonfly and Kingfisher Lakes. As each part is unique in its own way, I will be separating them into individual blog posts to preserve its own character. And also because the Gardens is so damn big – you will need more than an entire day to capture all the areas! Furthermore, it looks so different during the day and night, I would recommend coming here more than once to experience its full allure.
Official opening of Gardens by the Bay by the Guest of Honour, Prime Minister Mr Lee Hsien Loong.
Cloud Forest Be greeted by rush of cool air as you step inside the 0.8 hectre Cloud Forest and take in the sight of a 35-metre tall Cloud Mountain covered in lush vegetation from Tropical Montane regions which usually grows between 1,000 to 3,500 metres above sea level. There is a recommended visit route here: Ascend to the mountaintop where you can find the Lost World via the lift and descend through the Cloud Walk and Treetop Walk.
The highlight: a 7-storey high Cloud Mountain with a spectacular waterfall. It can get pretty wet though as water splashed onto the pavement. I enjoyed getting sprayed at, but was worried for my camera..so shutterbugs do take note – you may need some protection. LEFT: Cloud Mountain fully completed. RIGHT: The ‘botak'(bare) Mountain in April 2012.
Cloud Forest at night – A totally different feel. The Cloud Mountain reminds me of Sun Wukong‘s Water Curtain Cave (水帘洞); if only we could have some monkeys in here…and how about a few deers and singing birds? Then maybe I can do a Snow White. Heehee.
Experience and learn about unique biodiversity and geology of cloud forests, and the environmental threats that they face within the nine unique zones in this cool-moist Conservatory.
Looking up from the ground. Did they get that sculpture from the Survivor TV set? keke
Start your adventure from the top at The Lost World. The signage caught my eye cos’ “Lost World” and the directional “Way Out” seems such an oxymoron. If only we had a “Way Out” too when we get lost in life.
Gardens by the Bay Cloud Forest
The Lost World The highest point of the mountain features cloud forest vegetation at around 2,000m above sea level. You can also enjoy spectacular views of the Marina Bay through its glass surface.
Temperature in the Cloud Forest is maintained at 23°C to 25°C – and I couldn’t resist doing a facial mist…afterall, the canned bottles of facial mist I use are from there too! Temperature can drop as low as 15 degrees in the evening, so do come with a light jacket or a loved one whom you can hug. No hanky panky encouraged though *wink*
Look out for carnivorous plants such as pitcher plants and the Venus Fly-catcher, against a carpet of delicate ferns and moss. This particular pitcher plant looks like it has feelers, cute. The Cloud Forest looks pretty clean of insects to me though, it made me wonder what these pitcher plants feed on. Maybe they are vegetarian. Ha.
Awesome view of the surroundings from top, you can see Marina Bay Sands in the background in this shot
After you are done getting lost in The Lost World, make your way down via the 122-metre long Cloud Walk, which takes you outside the mountain for a closed-up view of the of epiphytes plant species that clad the side of the mountain.
Waterfall View A viewing deck where you can appreciate the beauty of the greenery embracing the Cloud Mountain. Learn how cloud forests capture water droplets from mist and fog by means of their epiphyte-laden branches.
Being on the Cloud Walk was quite a refreshing (literally!) experience. You get the feeling of walking on clouds, and I imagined I was a flower fairy overlooking earthlings from my viewing deck…now where are the cute guys….
Beautiful bloom spotted along the way
These look so sweet I was tempted to add them onto my hair
If you ever wondered how the glass exterior of the cooled conservatories are cleaned, here’s our Spideys who keep the glass spanking clean.
Crystal Mountain Caves are a common occurrence inside mountains. Step into the Crystal Mountain Cave where you will be surrounded by real stalactites and stalagmites. Learn about geology, how the continents formed, the age of earth, and the importance of fossils in understanding our planet’s past.
Tree Top Walk As you approach the bottom of the mountain, the Tree Top Walk will take you close to the forest canopy for a spectacular bird’s eye view of the treetops. TOP: Night View of the Walk; BOTTOM: the Walk back in April 2012
The Cloud Walk above and Treetop Walk below
Earth Check After your walk around the mountain, do drop in on this special lab where you will find facts, figures and amazing statistics for a unique view of the state of the earth today and the problems we are likely to face due to climate change and habitat loss.
+5 Degrees Experience the effect of temperature increase around the planet. This arresting interactive voyage allows you to see the world from a different perspective, unlocking a new dimension of visual experience.
Secret Garden End your journey at the Secret Garden located at the foot of the mountain. You’ll see plants such as the Wollemi Pine from Australia, gingers and heliconias,ferns and other moisture-loving plants.
Look of the Day Flower Necklace & Ring: Forever 21 Charm Bracelet: Juicy Couture Watch: Hermes Flats: Miu Miu Dress: Dolce & Gabbana
Couldn’t stop getting into some mischief at the Gardens with this alligator wooden bench…No animals or humans were hurt in the process. Well, except for a friend whose eyeballs may hurt from rolling them back too often from my crap.
Verdict: I had an amazing good time! The Cloud Forest is definitely a unique experience in summer-only Singapore, and great place to spend hot afternoons and with a hot date at night. I’ll definitely be back, just to experience walking in the clouds and feeling like a fairy again…hahaha Photo: Aram Pan
Garden Admission
Access to the outdoor gardens in Bay South is free. The admission charges to the Cooled Conservatories and the OCBC Skyway are found here.
• Outdoor Gardens
Rates: Free Admission
Hours: Daily; 05:00 AM – 02:00 AM
• Conservatories
Rates: From $8 – $28
Hours: Daily; 09:00 AM – 09:00 PM
Last ticket sale at 08:00 PM; Last admission at 08:30 PM
• OCBC Skyway
Rates: From $3 – $5
Hours: Monday – Friday; 09:00 AM – 09:00 PM
Last ticket sale at 08:00 PM; Last admission at 08:30 PM
Weekends & PH
09:00 AM – 09:00 PM
Last ticket sale at 07:00 PM; Last admission at 07:30 PM
Spotted these fruit hairbands, and couldn’t resist playing with them – a definite head-turner! Hmmmm..I wonder what other fruits I should wear next – durian, pineapple or rambutan? Or maybe I should start a food series – hotdog, pizza, chicken leg, sushi, what else? LOL
Attended Singapore Blog Awards 2012 at Singapore Food Trail with chum Darren over the weekend… The event theme was “Superheros”, and we were encouraged to come as one. I was tempted to wear a red and blue star bikini with a gold tiara and go as Wonder Woman to complement D’s Superman persona, but didn’t want to cause a mass-puking at the event, so decided to go as Kungfu Panda instead.
Superman & Kungfu Panda – Characters for The Avengers 2? Superman can do karate chops, and Kungfu Panda can do…pork chops LOL
Superman looking real suave and super-heroic (damn, should have styled D’s hair with the signature ‘S’ fringe), and me clowning around
Look of the Day – Kungfu Panda Panda top & matching shoes: Jeremy Scott for Adidas Black & White stockings: From Hong Kong White wings watch:Jeremy Scott for Adidas Bag: Hyoma
Panda shoes looking right at home in their habitat
A dragon bracelet to complement the panda. From Tresor Paris
Extra Eyes to watch over the enemies! From Taipei
After a day of saving the world, Kungfu Panda gets hungry and starts feasting – Yumz!
Retro Panda
This Kungfu Panda’s superpower: sewing up enemies’ blabbermouths
Oh so ‘BOOMZ’! LOL. Me and D had fun catching up with some of the bloggers, and dressing up! Afterall, it’s not everday we can declare ourselves a superhero. Haha.
My chum D recently called me a ‘bad influence’ of all things luminous, so this is my response to him. This is for you D, …try beating this ‘walking highlight’ look *GRIN*
Look of the Day – Colour me Flourescent 2! Neon Yellow Top & Bright Turquoise skirt: Pleats Please by Issey Miyake Neon Orange Inner Piece: From Osaka
This is absolutely hilarious – the exact colour scheme as chum D, and it wasn’t intentional! We should go out together wearing these – we will literally brighten the streets! LOL
spunktitud3 