Singapore haze conditions rose to a whopping 400 PSI, an all-time high, just a day before my birthday. Fortunately, we were booked at Mandarin Orchard the same day and were relieved from the harshest air crisis Singapore has ever faced. As you know, local apartments (where we are staying) were designed for passive air-cooling so even if we shut all doors and windows, smoke from neighboring Indonesian forest fires still seep in through small gaps in the openings. That is unlikely to happen to a city hotel along Orchard Road which has its windows completely sealed, so not a hint of smog can be smelled and inhaled in our hotel room.
Unlike its sister hotel in the Marina Area, we had a favorable stay at the Mandarin Orchard. The room was spic-and-span, the bathroom fixtures are spotless and the service was great! They even gave me a surprise birthday cake. Ashrie did not have the chance to play in the pool because of the haze. However she made a request to just dip her finger in the pool before we left the next day. The buffet breakfast was fine but the restaurant’s layout is a bit of a maze. Food was stationed in several corridors and not in a central area where guest would just circle around to get meals. There’s bacon and other pork dishes unlike its halal counterpart in Marina Mandarin. Pinoys love pork, what can I do?
In spite of the haze, we still went out that night for a short shopping but had our dinner at the hotel. When we were having dinner, we wondered if we can extend our stay for another night, but the hotel was fully-booked. Hence, we need to leave the next day. Fortunately, the sky is starting to clear up on the day of my birthday. People are starting to remove their masks and there is a big relief not only in breathing but also in seeing back the skyline. We headed to nearby Takashimaya to buy Nespresso capsules and then to one of Ashrie’s favorite malls, Paragon. She did her routine at the play area and visited Gingersnaps to stock-up on clothes. Mom also insisted to buy a set of pram, high chair and rocker which is actually a playset for Ashrie’s dolls. Which made me think? Is it my birthday or Ashrie’s? But as a parent, that’s the way it is.
I hope the problem with haze will be over soon. How can we take decent photos when we look like we're robbing a bank or something rather than vacationing?
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