If you are an American- or if you come from pretty much any country but about 8 in the world, you can fly directly to Indonesia and enter with no problem. However, if you are an Israeli with only an Israeli passport, there is a significant amount of paperwork that must be done in advance. In addition, one cannot just arrive in Indonesia. One must fly to at least one intermediate spot and have your passport processed and the visa affixed at the local Indonesian embassy, and then you can enter Indonesia. Although for our fellow travelers who had only Israeli passports it was a bit of a hassle, for us, it meant that we would be spending two days in Singapore- a place we had visited before and really enjoyed.
Singapore is clean, beautiful, and well run. People are happy, polite, and helpful. We visited a few wonderful sites there- although we had been before to the orchid garden, it is such a magical place that returning there was a real treat.
We also loved visiting the Jurong Bird Park where we saw magnificent birds from all over the world- most flying free in huge cages that went on for tens of meters or more.
We went to Marina Bay where we saw the famous “Merlion,” symbol of Singapore.
and the architecturally fascinating Marina Bay Sands Hotel/Casino/Convention Center, designed by Moshe Safdie (the same man who designed our city, Modiin.)
We ate at the Chabad restaurant and saw the beautiful synagogue center. And we visited Gardens By the Bay- an enormous park containing two huge glass buildings filled with trees and plants and flowers from all over the world. It’s mind boggling!!
But after two magnificent days, it was time to take off for Indonesia and really begin our adventure.
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