So, despite I didn't really have any plan to travel anywhere except for my ‘big' trip later this year, I suddenly bought a return ticket to Singapore next month.
This time, not only that I bought a flight ticket, but also another ticket that has become pretty much the highlight of this year for me: a ticket for a pre-season match between Arsenal vs Atletico Madrid! For those who probably don't know, watching Arsenal live in the stadium is one of the things to do on my 30-before-30 list.
Singapore is probably one of the countries that I have visited the most outside my home country Indonesia. Honestly, I have no idea how many times I visited this city-state, either for work or holiday if not transit.
Since this trip is somewhat impromptu, as I usually plan my trip ahead long before the D-day and this time I only had around a month to prepare things up. So little time with so little money if I gotta be honest.
What I Usually Do Whenever I Travel to Singapore
You see, I'm not really a backpacker, but I'm definitely far from the definition of luxurious traveler either. I am the kind of person who would always go to a hotel/guest house/hostel with the lowest rate, as long as I could get a private room with a bathroom attached.
And since I often go there for work, I usually don't travel in the budget.
No matter how many times I told you that Singapore makes me feel singlepoor, more often than not, I usually go to some fancy restaurant with my boss. Or even hang out with them in some fancy bar after office hours.
So, there are some ways that I will do differently this time. To begin with, if I usually could manage myself as the best trip planner to arrange a trip a few months in advance, this time I actually prepared everything in just one month prior to the date of departure.
What else are the differences? Here we go!
4 Things How I Will Travel Differently in Singapore
This time, I will enjoy some kind of frugal travel as it is. Because while I would love to travel the same way as usual, I really have to tighten my budget this time since I am also saving up for my next trip later this year.
Well, since I am already familiar with the MRT system there, I suppose I will rely on MRT to get around the city-state.
1. The Main Reason Why I Go to Singapore This Time.
Yup, if normally I go to Singapore for work or holiday if not transit, the only reason why I have booked the flight ticket to Singapore is that I want to watch Arsenal live in the stadium.
It all started when I saw the official post from Arsenal's page on my Facebook timeline.
After I saw it, at first I actually tried to forget about it and remind myself that I've got a big trip coming up later this year. But jeez, I just couldn't stop thinking about it. Even worse, when I remember that it's only 8 months to go until my 30th birthday. And if anything, there's no sign of me getting any chance to go to London soon.
I've figured, it's like… Now or never. So I did. I did purchase the ticket for their match against Atletico Madrid. It's the one with the cheapest ticket, but hey, who the heck cares? One could hope to match with Bellerin on Tinder right? 😛
Me and Arsenal
In case you have no idea what's with me and Arsenal, just know that I couldn't stop crying for a couple of times when I heard that Arsene Wenger would end his career in Arsenal after 20++ years.
I have been supporting Arsenal since the first time I started loving football as a game. It was the golden era of Arsenal with players like Tony Adams and Thierry Henry in the squad. It was sublime!
I know that sooner or later, Arsene would end his career at Arsenal and in the past few years, things got quite bad for the team and I'm one of those who thought that maybe yes, it's time for him to quit anyway.
When I saw the post about Arsenal playing their pre-season games in Singapore, I couldn't stop thinking about it because (1) I was a bit sad that I never had any chance to watch Arsenal live in stadium under the legend's managerial and (2) I just have to be there since it marks the beginning of new era for Arsenal.
Only this time, with Unai Emery as our new boss.
2. It Is Going to Be 2D1N Travel Only.
The less time I have in Singapore, the cheaper it will be. That's like a mantra for me. And I just noticed that I always had more than 3 days staying in Singapore whenever I pay for a visit to the city-state.
So, 2 days and 1 night and I will probably try to explore what Shi Hui suggested to get in Singapore for $10. Besides watching Arsenal in the stadium, I also have one place to get checked from my bucket list: Kranji War Cemetery.
As my friend told me that Kranji is closer to Malaysia, I'm thinking that maybe I could just go there first on the matchday in the afternoon before going to the stadium.
So, I think that's what I'm going to do. Also, because I personally have this kind of goal to visit a cemetery in each country that I am yet to visit. And despite the fact that I've been to Singapore plenty of times, I've never been to any cemetery in there.
If you ask me why I want to visit a cemetery, it is actually just a sentimental value of me while traveling. I want to go to a cemetery to reflect and remind myself not to take life for granted.
3. I Will Travel Without Checked-In Baggage.
This is a huge difference for someone who is not capable to travel light like me.
But I've figured since I will only be there for 2 days and 1 night, there is nothing much to carry except for some clothes and amenities that I need while I'm there. So I think I'll only rely on hand-carry this time.
It's maybe not a big of a deal for you, but it is for me since I never really traveled with no checked-in baggage before. So this is gonna be a challenge for me, but we'll see later if I can make it to Singapore without checking a bag in for the flight. 😉
4. This Time, Hostel is the Only Option that I've Got for the Accommodation!
Yes, in case you don't know, the accommodation in Singapore is far from cheap.
For me personally, I think I've never been to any country with accommodation rates higher than Singapore. Even when I visited Hongkong, where people said is as expensive. I could find rather cheap accommodation in Hongkong, but not in Singapore.
As you probably know, I'm not really a big fan of staying at a hostel. But I think this time, I've got no choice since there's no hotel that I could afford in Singapore for 2 convenient nights to stay in. Hostel, it is!
Also, in case you don't know, AirBnB is illegal in the city-state and they actually take it seriously with fines and all that. I don't wanna take a risk, because I barely have money to stay in a fancy way there. Let alone to pay the fines in thousands of dollar!
Always Try New Different Things. Stay Foolish, Stay Curious.
And that's what I'm doing.
If I normally get so organized with the trip, this time I make it a little loose with such a tight budget. Maybe it's no biggie for you, but for me? That's one heck of a challenge.
Thank God, I also got some Klook Coupons so that I used it to buy a traveler's sim car that I can redeem by the time I arrive in Changi.
So, will I make it to travel differently in Singapore next month?! I'll give you the update next month, cheerio! 😀