We caught the bus into the city armed with our DK travel guide, to have a look at the city by day.
The buses and trains are very efficient and regular, and most importantly air-conditioned. We learnt very quickly that it wasn’t possible to walk very far, as the heat and humidity made it very uncomfortable. There is a superb transport network
enabling the visitor to get to all the major venues either by bus or train or a combination of the two.Our first stop was Raffles Hotel.
This is a very grand place, with men waiting out on the pavements to transport you in their rickshaw. 
These men must be so fit to be able to pedal in such high temperatures. The entrance had a footman dressed in uniform, complete with turban.
We had a walk around, in the cool, white marbled, colonial lobby. 
In colonial times it served as a self-contained island of tranquillity for the Europeans amidst the heat and bustle of Southeast Asia. We expected to see Stephanie Cole sipping a cool drink around every corner!
There were a number of cool, calm refuges,
in the form of courtyards 
and gardens and covered walkways keeping you out of the sun. It really was an oasis in the city. We had a Singapore Sling, 
the fruit based drink for the ladies, in the Long bar, where it was invented. They were expensive, but luckily Della had some birthday money to spend, and we had come to Raffles Hotel, it would have been rude not to!The Raffles Hotel museum was very interesting, there was a real sense of history and atmosphere, shown via personal mementos, artefacts and archival documents, donated from previous guests.
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