And so it begins...

So, my journey to New Zealand began only as can be expected from me - on the edge of catastrophe. Some of my good friends in Cardiff were delighted to see my tremendous display unwellness that I thought might result in me having to cancel my trip across the globe. Fortunately I actually managed to depart from Cardiff, get to my hostel and not die a couple of days ago.

Of course, for the key part of the journey - that is waking up on time for my  flight to Singapore, I very nearly failed miserably. Not only that, but I had not been privy to the fact that a transit visa needs to be obtained before having a layover in Australia. So that was an interesting morning.

After what was the longest (14 hours) and most pleasant flight I have ever taken I arrived in Singapore airport, which is literally heaven on earth. Seriously, if you ever get a chance to fly with Singapore airlines - even if it's to somewhere crap - do it. It's a joy.

That's a mer-lion....

I have never before seen an airport which has a butterfly garden (with a waterfall), gives you free money just for flying on their national airline and offers a tour of the city (again, free of charge).
After taking a whistle-stop tour of the city, I ventured back into the downtown area to see what I could see. Starved and sleep-deprived, I of course found a place that would sell me food for cheap and plentifully. I am unsure exactly how to convey the enormity and variety of food that this exquisite culinary institution offered, so here's a brief video of the 24/7 food market/palace of wonder.

Katsa?

So anyway, despite my digestive system already being on strike, I decided to order some random Singapore food that may have been called a katsa (someone please confirm) which was served up to me in about 30 seconds flat. It contained seafood, noodles and the fires of Hades. I learned several things in this endeavour,

1. I can't eat anything with chopsticks
2. I can't eat noodles without looking like the cookie monster
3. I'm a mess
4. I need an adult

 So my adventure has been off to a raucous start, which is the only way I'd have it. The next leg to Sidney may be calmer. I'll fly on a bigger plane for a shorter time to another primarily english-speaking country, but for now I'm going to hunt for a Singapore sling.