haPpY HaPpY: Let's Cross the Border for the Weekend.

Day 1 - Let's Drive to Singapore

After a smooth drive from Kuala Lumpur we managed to reach Siean Sin's place safely except a little hiccup when clearing the immigration point and buying auto pass for the car. My bicycle was about to run loose in the Lion City.

While the ladies visited Gardens by the Bay at Marina Bay, I decided to pay a visit to Punggol and check out if there is any changes in its development of PCN (Park Connector Network).

I tried to recall and used back the same route that we rode back in 2015 starting from Gerald Drive marked as PCN North East Riverine. My previous ride in 2015 can be viewed from this link.

The PCN map and information that could be useful if you are lost or need to know your orientation with regard to the place that you are going to.

Punggol Point Jetty - where I learnt that on 28 February 1942, some 400 Chinese were killed by the Japanese on this northeastern shore. The Punggol Beach was one of the three main sites in Singapore where the Sook Ching Massacre took place.

At Punggol Settlement where I remembered we had white beehoon at the White restaurant during the last ride.

After 9km I found Coney Island also known as Pulau Serangoon. The island is linked to the main island with 2 bridges one at the west and the other one at the east. I started cutting through the island from the West entrance.

The island was once owned by the Haw Par family then sold to an Indian businessman, Ghulam Mahmood, in 1950. Now it is the property of the Government of Singapore. Based on my route the island is about 3km long.

Then came the familiar red bridge known as Lorong Halus Bridge but this time it was infested with lot of monkeys.

I stopped at Punggol Park for a look see before I took Buangkok Drive followed by Buangkok Green to get back to Seletar Hill.

A taste of Singapore kopi "O" kosong at a kopi tiam at Seletar Hill.

It was a lovely loop re-discovering the vicinity and covering a distance of nearly 23km.

Siean Sin & family treated us a hot pot dinner at Beauty in The Pot, Kinex Tanjong Katong Road. A restaurant that is well received, crowded and opens til 3.00am.

Thank you for the sumptuous dinner we were over fed and enjoyed the dinner very much.

Day 2 - Ronda Ronda Singapore

The same stair Jo used it way back in 2015 to start the ride from Gerald Drive.

It was a Sunday quite crowded with people doing their exercises in the parks and on the lanes.

Before reaching Punggol Point Jetty there were a few people patiently angling at the shore as the sun slowly rises.

We stopped by the beach and took a walk to have a closer view of the sea.

One for the record for 2019 at Punggol Beach overlooking Pasir Gudang on the mainland.

The same tortoise pond we visited during the last ride where we halted for a toilet break at Punggol Settlement.

Getting to know more about Coney Island with the information board near the entrance.

Jo was enjoying the serene ride occasionally seeing beautiful birds, hearing chirping and surrounded by green thick canopied trees.

A guide at work and ensuring the flow was smooth and enjoyable.

There are a lot of detours like to the beach, camp sites and spots for birds.

Bye bye tranquility and we hope to return next time.

The second bridge coming out from the East entrance of Coney Island with a huge water gate by the side.

Yesterday these monkeys were at Lorong Halus Bridge but this time around they were seen before the bridge. I wonder why there are so many of them, either their homes have been disturbed or they were out looking for food.

The Lorong Halus Bridge without the monkey except human beings conducting their exercises.

A stop at Punggol Park just before we moved on into the road pavements for our route back to Seletar Hill.

Waiting for the green man to come out before we cross the road even there is no car coming...... we have to forget about our habit back home.

Patronising the same kopi shop for our breakfast, the Wan Tan Mee was really below par, porridge and nasi lemak were quite alright. We really have spoilt taste buds when it comes to food.

The second day route was almost the similar like the previous day it was for Jo to ride on. Thank goodness the weather was good.

Later in the day we went downtown to meet up Shou Yi and Wei Loong at Hong Lim Complex for lunch. They were in Singapore by themselves for Manchester United football matches.

After lunch they went hunting for salted egg fish skin. I think these are all over rated.

Everyone has dispersed with their own plans, the sisters went for the Jewel Changi Airport while I continued to loiter around in the city center.

First I went to Funan Mall to look for a spare part for my bicycle. Every where was crowded in the city centre on a Sunday, Funan Mall is friendly with bicycles, you can even cycle into the mall at certain hours.

The Brompton Junction is now in Singapore which was opened sometime in June 2019. This is the 16th store around the globe.

The house of the best folding bicycle ever made, the only thing I like about is its portability. I go see places with it and I have enjoyed it very much.

The staff informed me that I could not buy a complete set of the sprocket as there is only one available and had to be kept for emergency request by new Brompton purchaser. Nevertheless the staff was kind enough to resolve the issue and offered to sell in loose pieces. These two pieces were the most important parts that I require, the rest of it can be re-used from my existing parts. Thanks again Brompton Junction.

Singapore's National Day will be coming soon in about 3 weeks time and they are already busy preparing for the big day. Guess everything has to right on that day and requires a longer time to rehearse and prepare.

Observing the atmosphere how a Sunday is like in Marina Bay, with lots of people mostly foreigner workers taking their weekend break.

I love spending time here but was not able to cover all the spots as I had to be back for a dinner appointment.

Anyway I will come back next time and explore more of this modern city.

I embarked a train from Nicol Highway MRT Station to get a connection to Punggol MRT Station. It took me a while to get orientated as I came out of the station to find my way back to PCN path which is familiar to me. Glad that I made in time for dinner appointment.

We drove to Bukit Batok for dinner with Liang & his family. Thank you so much for the dinner and beer. I forget to top up my fuel tank when we entered into Singapore. What a silly mistake I have made. First petrol is expensive in this island and two be careful when you pump your petrol, yellow nozzle does not mean Ron 95 but Yellow Nozzle is for diesel in Singapore. I nearly pump diesel into the tank, thank goodness I did not, if not it was going to be a long long night before we can get back to Seletar Hill.

It's a regular Tiger Beer but with a localised branding, there are all together 20 different designs for the various neighbourhood in Singapore. Isn't it cool.

Day 3 - Let's Go Back to KL