A Singapore story: this equatorial island nation offers an exotic change of pace in sightseeing, hotels, and food that is enchanting.

Summary

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Includes related articles on eating in Singapore, on the Jurong BirdPark, on the Shangri-La Hotel, and on Singapore Airlines flight attendants

Singapore presents a captivating mixture of the modern and the traditional in multicultural surroundings. The island, which had links with both Malaysia and the UK, declared its independence in 1965. Highlights and tourist impressions of modern Singapore are presented.

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A Singapore story: this equatorial island nation offers an exotic change of pace in sightseeing, hotels, and food that is enchanting.

MY LOVE AFFAIR began on a hotel balcony overlooking sprawling Singapore. I was captivated by the metropolis--towering, sleek, clean, efficient modernity of today with park-like boulevards, as well as remarkable renovations of the structures of yesteryear, and the compatible multi-ethnicity and friendliness of its 2,800,000 people.

Located at the tip of the Malaysian peninsula, one degree north of the equator, the island of Singapore was originally a quiet fishing village. In 1819, Sir Stamford Raffles, lieutenant-governor of a British trading post, saw the strategic importance of this area. With Malaysia to the north and Indonesia to the south, Singapore was a link between Europe and Asia. Shrewdly, he negotiated for this settlement and signed a treaty with Malaysian leaders. Later, Singapore emerged as a British crown colony.

In February, 1942, the Japanese bombed and overran the approximately 250-square-mile island. The people suffered greatly, but by 1945, Supreme Commander Lord Louis Mountbatten returned with British and Allied forces to liberate the oppressed land.

The postwar years recorded different alliances of Singapore with neighboring Southeastern Asian nations. Finally, on Aug. 9, 1965, Singapore severed its last ties with Malaysia and, on Dec. 22, 1965, declared itself an independent, democratic republic.

If Sir Stamford Raffles could see modem Singapore, he would be overjoyed at how his earlier efforts paid off. Indeed, the ethnic districts which he established for the Chinese, Malaysian, and Indian populations still flourish. While Malay is the national language, English is widely spoken, as are Mandarin (Chinese) and Tamil (Indian).

As I walked past multi-storied buildings, I noticed laundry drying on horizontal poles extended from apartment windows. Below in the streets, a rickshaw peddled by a thin, hardworking driver transported two passengers.

On Serangoon Road in Little India, I was awestruck by the ornate tower of the Sri Veeramakaliamman temple, built in 1881 by Bengalese workers. Indian songs blared from stores across the street. Here and there in a shop window, a solitary mannequin, dressed in an elegant sari, was mechanically animated. Shops displayed clothing, radiant silks, and sparkling gold jewelry. Women wearing long tunics over pants or vibrant colored saris were purchasing rice, dried beans, spices, or sweet desserts. The fragrance of floral garlands blended with the aromas of foods cooking over portable stoves tended by sidewalk vendors.

I stopped to watch an elderly Indian fortune-teller, awaiting customers in an arcaded a...

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