Packing regrets…
The weather has taken a sharp turn… today will be the day when I think… if only I packed. Nevermind, it will be fun as I’m in Japan.
Reflection on the day..
Well today didn’t turn out exactly as planned – but we still managed to have some great experiences and food.
Originally we had planned to cycle around the Shimokitazawa area – which is known for second hand variety of shops. We caught the train to Shinjuku and… after getting out of the station (if you’ve been there you understand)… we discovered Kym’s bike had a flat rear tyre. After 25+ minutes of grunt work, disconnecting the gears, changing the tube… we managed to set off again back to our route. Given the stress of this exercise there is no photos. Additionally at this point Kym’s phone didn’t have any internet connection – thankfully mine did.
Cycling the back streets is always a joy in Tokyo – they are quiet, minimal traffic and you see life differently. As we were going… we saw a short queue of people and a sign indicating ‘Gris Bagel’. If it’s good font it’s a sign… so we joined it. As it was only take away we put them in our bag and headed towards Yoyogi Park and sat beneath the autumn leaves. Beautiful.
The lake within the park is being fixed, so we did the cycling route and headed out for a coffee – Little nap stand. When you having an amazing coffee – it’s magic… the textured milk.. the taste of the coffee – bliss.
By this stage we were feeling confident – and continued our route to Main Mono in Shibuya near Yoyogi-Uehara station. The bakery is the work of a Japanese pastry chef – who trained and worked in Paris. Walking inside you can just smell the butter… ah. they have a variety of bread products on sale… so course we decided to buy three and eat them inside with a pot of tea. The croissant was delicious.. as was the persimon danish and the keema curry roll.
Back on the bikes we headed over to Shimokitazawa… however we did about about 1km and Kym said something was wrong with his pedal. As you can imagine 5-10 minutes diagnosing a problem with your bike is not fun – especially when you are not at home and don’t have a wrench. At this point we decided to head to the nearest Brompton bike experts…. At LIFE with a BICYCLE in Daikanyama. Checking the bike they determined the pedal was broken.. and a new crank and new pedals (of which they had the parts) were needed – and it would take an hour. Faith restored in bicycle shops in Japan we decided to go shopping…
An hour later when we picked the bike up everything had been replaced and it was ready to go. Fast, and efficient- recommend! As we were cycling Kym also noticed they had pumped up his tyres… and fixed the gears – ah 😉
While we never made it to Shimokitazawa it did teach us the following :
- When bringing a bike to Japan – always build in a day or two to ensure everything is working
- Know where reliable bike shops are located, just in case you have to go
- … where there is a queue good food is always found
Here’s to a great day tomorrow on the bike – fingers crossed..!
Waiting for coffee
… after an interesting morning I’m now waiting for coffee
Ah…..
Two hours after landing, having got to the hotel, dumped bags… given the warm evening we decided to walk 2km to Hitachino Brewing lab in Kanda next to Akiharbara… and now enjoying sitting outside people and train watching ahh… Japan
Found it….
Good morning Sydney
Catching up on route..
As we are leaving via SYD, from the international airport we caught the train to central met Peter – and went to the restaurant called Petermen.
The fastest way was via train to Central and metro (new driverless) train out to Crowsnest. The stations really do remind me of Tokyo train stations… long escalators… high ceilings… impressive public infrastructure. Given SYD is a major capital city it certainly is a worthy investment for the long term. Thankfully the speed of these trains ensured we honour booking on time.
The restaurant does predominantly fish – but recognises people who like fish have friends who may not like/be allergic to fish. Everything about this restaurant did not disappoint, food was divine, wine recommendations (it was perfect)… service and chairs were comfortable (it’s important – trust me).
A very enjoyable evening… looking forward to seeing you some time around the Christmas/New Year period Peter.
Lounge waiting…
After spending the last three weeks jetting around the country for work, today I am again waiting for a plane – at least this time I’m here because it’s holiday time..🥳 and you know what that means.. Japan 🇯🇵
First up is SYD and dinner with an old friend…
A jaunt to Labrador Jetty
We were back on our bikes for our final day in Singapore. Vida had suggested that a ride to Labrador Jetty and then along the foreshore would be nice.
This route was a little under 20km, and included a ‘tricky’ shortcut back to the hotel on Singapore’s excellent MRT. The route is available on Strava.
From Tiong Bahru we joined the Alexandra Canal Park Connector and then the Alexandra Park Connector to Labrador Park. The first unexpected, but delightful, stop was the “tree top walk” in Southern Ridges park. Perhaps, if we had examined the map, we would have noticed that on the other side of the road was a bigger garden with a range of interesting features. So if you do this ride, you can report back to us on what we missed out on at Hort Park.
A little further down the road, if you are feeling arty, are the Gillman Barracks. They are described as a contemporary arts cluster in Singapore that is home to international art galleries, restaurants and the NTU Centre for Contemporary Art Singapore, which are all housed in conserved colonial barracks. Unfortunately, late rising artists are incompatible with early morning bike rides – not too much was going on when we made a diversion.
We continued on to Labrador Jetty (which apparently is not accessible at the moment) to take in some local fishing culture and the immense nature of the port operations in Singapore.
After Labrador Jetty we continued along the foreshore. If you ride it, you will need to make your own judgement about some of the advice about where you are not meant to ride! We ended up at Vivo City for breakfast a local chain restaaurant – Toast Box. Unfortunately, there was some confusion between the orderer and orderee – which meant we waited too long – we still got fed and that did defeat the hangry feelings.
Twenty four years ago was the last time I visited Singapore. At that time Sentosa Island was the big thing in town. We took the free tour bus from the airport and went there. I’ve had a look at our old photos – back in the days of film – and I am not sure I took any photos at the time (says something about the cost of film and developing).
Sentosa is still there and its features, such as Universal Studios, are still popular. It is a bit like me – showing its age just a little bit.
What I can guarantee is that it won’t take 24 years to get back to Singapore. In fact, I’ll be arriving there tomorrow (this time not for a bike ride) to transit on the way to England.
After we bid farewell to Sentosa we returned to the hotel to pack our bikes into their bags and prepared for check out.
After checkout, we had a delightful lunch at House of Perankan Petit. It describes itself as a modern and intimate 30-seater restaurant located within a former Peranakan enclave along Eng Hoon Street in Tiong Bahru. Helmed by chef and owner, Bob Seah, the restaurant serves traditional Nonya cuisine from Bob’s treasure trove of secret home recipes as well as a few new Peranakan-inspired creations.
It was yum! I would recommend a visit if you are in the area.
We needed a lovely drink to follow this lovely meal. So, we made our way into the Long Bar at the Raffles Hotel and had a Singapore Sling and a Sakura Sling (only one each!) and then chased that a craft beer from the fantastic LeVel33 the worlds highest urban microbrewery. This is where I’ll be tomorrow afternoon.
I don’t know about you, but on my final hours in Singapore I shopped for homewares. For some reason I felt the need to look for a Japanese cast iron griddle. Ultimately, I left it behind because it wouldn’t fit within my carryon baggage limit!!
If you’re at loose end and in need of homeware or furniture during your next layover visit Tan Boon Liat building. It is best described as a vertical homeware centre.
Rest Day and Q&A
On the fifth day of our tour, we decided to take it a little easier and have a rest from our bikes. So for this post, I’ll share some pictures from that day in Singapore and do Q&A about travelling with my Brompton.
I woke up and decided to have breakfast at my new local coffee roaster, Glass Roasters.
Question: How did you travel to Singapore?
Answer: I travelled direct from Adelaide to Singapore on Singapore Airlines. I purchased a standard Economy ticket. Flight time was pretty fast at around 6 and half hours, we arrived about one hour earlier than scheduled.
We visited the National University of Singapore Baba House in the morning. We got there by walking through the very large Hospital District! NUS Baba House is a three-storey townhouse located in Singapore’s historic district of Blair Plain. Managed by NUS Museum, Baba House facilitates research into architectural conservation, urban and social history, and cultural hybridity.
I would highly recommend visiting – we have no photos to show as they want you to experience this house in real life and to share in its stories. So I’ll show you some photos from the adjacent area.
Question: How much luggage did you take?
Answer: I checked-in an XXF Brompton Bag for the bike and carried-on my essential clothes and other items in my Brompton Bag (the large one that fits on the front of the bike).
After NUS Baba House we visited an air conditioned museum – the Asian Civilisations Museum. That is also well worth a visit. We walked to lunch past the namesake pub of a friend of mine. But, we didn’t eat there as we were in search of Japanese inspired dumplings near the Singapore river. Surprise! The place was called Dumpling Darlings.
Question: Did you have to pay extra to transport your bike?
Answer: No. I didn’t pay any extra. In fact the bike and bag weighed about 18kg and its size was well within limits set by Singapore Airlines. I just checked it through the usual self service luggage drop gates as if it were like any other bag. Flying from Australia to Singapore meant that the weight concept was applied – my ticket allowed me 25kgs of weight. There are no specific size restrictions other than it must not exceed 200cm (length) x 75cm (width) x 80cm (height). Also, the Singapore Airlines website has some further information. Key points are (1) The bicycle is packed in a hardside bicycle case, a cardboard, or a padded protective case that is designed for transportation and (2) The tyres must be deflated.
After lunch, I did a bit of shopping at the Funan Shopping Centre. I wasn’t planning it but this rather hip shopping centre (we were later told that it wasn’t always that cool) was home to Brompton Junction and some urban bouldering. I followed up this shopping with some uber cool (both in a style and temperature sense) coffee from Kurasu Coffee (originally from Kyoto).
Question: Do you have any tips about what to pack?
Answer: Singapore is quite warm. While I prepared for it with a wardrobe similar to what I took to Jakarta the year before (lightweight long sleeve shirts and pants), I quickly decided that riding demand less modest clothes so I opted for a new pair of shorts and t-shirts. In relation to the bikes, you need to make sure you at least take spare tubes, a toolkit (checked baggage – you don’t want that confiscated at security) and battery driven mini pump (the Brompton pump is ok for emergencies but a mini compressor that functions as a spare battery is much better).
In the evening Mary and I caught up with some of Mary’s friends at Great World City for dinner. The night was pleasant and the conversation witty, which might explain why I didn’t take many photos. You will notice that I had two desserts. The first at Great World City a traditional ricey dessert and then some yummy gelato at Tiong Bahru.
