SINGAPORE Sling ASIA’S SMALLEST CITY-STATE MARKS a MAJOR ANNIVERSARY THIS YEAR
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BG on Location 1 Singapore has a growing skyline and an expanding economy. 2 A suite in the Fullerton Bay Hotel. 3 Raffles, the unofficial center of the island’s colonial core. 1 2 SINGAPORE Sling ASIA’S SMALLEST CITY-STATE MARKS A MAJOR ANNIVERSARY THIS YEAR. Julia Buckley EXPLORES THE BOOMING LOCATION’S UNSUNG CHARMS. ingapore achieved independence hotel opened in 1887, and its iconic white fullertonbayhotel.com; Capella Singapore: in 1965. Fifty years on, there’s facade remains the unofficial center of 1 The Knolls, +65 6377 8888, much to celebrate. A bewitching the island’s colonial core. The place to capellahotels.com) S gumbo of world cultures—Chinese, stay for more than a century, Raffles Malay, Indian, Arab and European has drawn everyone from Somerset Do communities have all left their mark— Maugham to Bill Clinton to its high- There’s no better way to appreciate this diamond-shaped island dangling off ceilinged, antique-filled suites. Singapore’s multicultural mix than by the tip of the Malay Peninsula may be walking through its traditionally ethnic Asia’s smallest city-state, but it packs a 3 areas: the brightly colored shophouses fiery punch. History is everywhere— of Chinatown, Little India’s bustling in the neoclassical colonial buildings sari shops, and Kampong Glam, the and colorful shophouses dwarfed by historically Muslim area that’s swiftly mushrooming skyscrapers; in the diverse, filling up with bars and boutiques for harmonious racial and religious commu- a hip, younger crowd. Next, take to the nities; and in the legendary food. But water, either by chartering a “bumboat,” Singapore looks forward, not back, with one of the traditional barges that ply the ever-new additions to its skyline and a Singapore River, or in a sailboat. DBS growing footprint, thanks to reclaimed MARINA BAY SAILING offers yachting land and a booming economy. Contemporary Singapore doesn’t get lessons right below the skyscrapers of the In fact, its modern outlook and mega- better than the FULLERTON BAY HOTEL. Central Business District. Finally, reward malls have long dented its reputation, Its superb modern rooms have floor-to- yourself with an afternoon at TANJONG but with new nightlife options, a renewed ceiling windows opening onto balconies BEACH CLUB, a mid-century-style focus on local designers and even a with spectacular views of the shoreline. restaurant on a pristine Sentosa beach National Gallery of modern art due to Over on Sentosa island, CAPELLA SINGA- with a pool, bar and DJs on the weekend. open in October, Singapore’s finally find- PORE provides respite from the city, with (Singapore River Cruise: Various jetties, ing its feet. Time to join the festivities. extensive grounds and terraced pools +65 6336 6111, rivercruise.com.sg; DBS leading down to the beach. Marina Bay Sailing: Customs House Stay (Raffles: 1 Beach Road, +65 6337 1886, Pontoon, +65 6444 4555, marinabaysailing. To many, Singapore is synonymous with raffles.com/singapore; The Fullerton Bay sg; Tanjong Beach Club: 120 Tanjong Beach just one place: RAFFLES. The all-suite Hotel: 80 Collyer Quay, +65 6333 8388, Walk, +65 9750 5323, tanjongbeachclub.com) SKYLINE: COURTESY OF THE SINGAPORE TOURISM BUREAU. FULLERTON BAY HOTEL: COURTESY HOTEL: COURTESY BAY FULLERTON BUREAU. TOURISM OF THE SINGAPORE SKYLINE: COURTESY OF RAFFLES. HOTEL. RAFFLES: COURTESY BAY OF FULLERTON 26 BG on Location 1 Shop for custom perfumes at Sifr Aromatics. 2 Jaan sits on the seventieth Shop floor of the Swissôtel. 3 Sweets get a Despite its reputation for mega-malls, modern backdrop at 2am:dessertbar. Singapore has a thriving independent shopping scene. At SIFR AROMATICS, third-generation parfumier Johari Kazura blends small- 2 1 batch scents and custom perfumes as modern as his stylish Eat store. CARRIE K.’s Nowhere is the city-state’s melting pot extraordinary jewelry culture on show better than in its food. with an edge is made Peranakan cuisine—a uniquely Singapor- and sold in her atelier ean hybrid with Malay, Chinese and near Little India—pick Indonesian roots—doesn’t get better 3 up something from the than at TRUE BLUE, whose traditional Ready-to-Wear setting whisks diners back in time. Try collection or let her design a bespoke the Buah Keluak—chicken curry with craft cocktails behind the facade of a piece. And KEEPERS, in a pop-up shop candlenut. JAAN pairs molecular gastron- Chinatown tailor. Entry is by password, through January 2016 on mall-heavy omy with to-die-for views from the listed weekly on the bar’s Facebook page. Orchard Road, gathers together the best seventieth floor of the Swissôtel, while OPERATION DAGGER may be on rowdy Ann of local designers, from fashion and at SCOTTS 27, chef Julien Bompard Siang Hill, but it’s a different world from accessories to bathroom amenities, gives French food an Asian twist in a its neighbors: a subterranean bar, marked stationery and even food. 100-year-old plantation house. Book well only by a symbol scrawled beside an open (Sifr Aromatics: 42 Arab Street, in advance, as space is limited—every door. Although they’ll make anything to +65 6392 1966, sifr.sg; Carrie K.: table sits within its own private dining order—hundreds of homemade bitters, 136 Bukit Timah Road, +65 6735 4036, room. To finish, head to 2AM:DESSERT- liquors and even fruit-infused spirits line carriekrocks.com; Keepers: Orchard Green BAR, a chic, industrial restaurant with the shelves—the menu is deliberately [Orchard Road at Cairnhill Road], a menu focused entirely around desserts. limited to cocktails for which presenta- +65 8299 7109, keepers.com.sg) (True Blue: 49 Armenian Street, +65 6440 tion is key. Don’t be surprised if yours 0449, truebluecuisine.com; Jaan: 2 Stamford is blasted with a blowtorch and served Road, +65 6837 3322, jaan.com.sg; Scotts in a hay-lined fishbowl. 27: 27 Scotts Road, +65 6737 0895, scotts27. (Ku Dé Ta: 1 Bayfront Avenue, +65 6688 com; 2am:dessertbar: 21A Lor Liput, +65 7688, kudeta.com/singapore; Maison Ikkoku: 6291 9727, 2amdessertbar.com) 20 Kandahar Street, +65 6294 0078, maison-ikkoku.net; The Library: 47 Keong Drink Saik Road, +65 6221 8338, facebook.com/ Standout bars in Singapore have tradi- thestudy49; Operation Dagger: 7 Ann Siang tionally been all about the views, and Hill, no phone, operationdagger.com) there’s no better lookout point than KU DÉ TA, perched atop the fifty-seven- Day Trip story Marina Bay Sands. To the west, the Hit the water with a private yacht charter Singapore River snakes through the from ONE15 LUXURY YACHTING, part of the BG DISPATCHES cityscape; eastward, cargo ships line up ONE°15 Marina Club on Sentosa. Take THE BERGDORF GOODMAN CREATIVE in rows in the Singapore Strait. it easy with a day cruise of Singaporean TEAM TRAVELED TO SINGAPORE TO SHOOT THE STORIES THAT BEGIN ON These days, though, the scene is all waters, mooring in the Southern Islands PAGES 56 AND 110. about bespoke cocktails and secret bars. for some water sports, or go farther GO BEHIND THE SCENES OF THE Although there is a menu at MAISON afield—Indonesia, Malaysia and even SHOOT AND EXPERIENCE THE HIGH- IKKOKU, on the second floor of a Thailand are all possible with your LIGHTS OF A TRIP TO THIS DIVERSE, Kampong Glam shophouse, just tell onboard skipper, especially if you extend FORWARD-THINKING CITY-STATE IN A VIDEO ON the bartender your favorite flavors, and the trip overnight. he’ll shake up a drink especially for (ONE15 Luxury Yachting: 11 Cove Drive, BG.COM/DISPATCH you. THE LIBRARY is a speakeasy serving +65 6305 9676, one15luxuryyachting.com) SIFR AROMATICS: COURTESY OF SIFR AROMATICS. JAAN: COURTESY OF JAAN. 2AM: 2AM: OF JAAN. COURTESY JAAN: OF SIFR AROMATICS. COURTESY SIFR AROMATICS: MAX IMRIE. DISPATCHES: OF 2AM:DESSERTBAR. COURTESY DESSERTBAR: 28 .