Changi’s Jewel

Leaving Semarang

I needed to sleep in today to adjust to Athens time in preparation.  But the pre-dawn prayers around 0400 woke  me up.  Strange I didn’t hear them yesterday.  I managed to sleep in till around 0800 with the curtains tightly drawn.

I had a light breakfast of fruit and muesli, and did plenty of admin which had been long overdue.

Checking out just before midday, a Grab car took me to the airport arriving there just over 4h prior to my flight to Singapore.  With no luggage to drop off, I was able to go airside immediately, since bag-drop opens 3h prior normally.

The Concordia lounge was beautiful but the food was simple.  I ate lightly and caught up on my travel blogs before going through a second set of security to board my Indonesia AirAsia flight to Singapore.  SilkAir leaves at about the same time and charged 6x the fare I paid, but they were delayed slightly.

Actually, because I was self-connecting to Athens after midnight, I had been worried about any delays out of Semarang.  I had monitored the incoming aircraft’s movements for the day, which was Kuala Lumpur – Jakarta – Singapore – Semarang before jetting me to Singapore.

Arriving in Singapore

We left a few minutes late and arrived a little late into Singapore as well.  No big deal as I had 7h+ to make the connection.  But we had been assigned the furthest gate in T4 which had been cordoned off for security screening.  They do this for arriving flights sometimes at Changi.  As it wasn’t a Customs but an aviation security check on only hand luggage, my only guess is that they’re trying to pick flaws in screening at the departure points.  I’ve only encountered this for flights from smaller airports in neighbouring countries.

Immigration queues were short but slow moving but I made it out and hopped on the bus from T4 to T2 immediately where a long walkway took me to Jewel.

Jewel at Changi Airport

I got to Jewel around 0815, about an hour after landing.  The money spent on just the overhead link from T2 to the Jewel wouldn’t be justifiable in New Zealand but I guess they’re rolling in dough in Singapore.

What is the Jewel?  I’d call it a ginormous glass dome, housing a stunning mall with endless choices for dining and shopping. Its centrepiece is a stunning vortex waterfall surrounded by full-sized trees.

I started my exploration at the top deck full of restaurants and a walking bridge across the centrepiece.  However, it wasn’t entirely successful as one can’t do a full circuit on this level or the one below.  There are ticket-only places and a hotel blocking the way.

Making my way to the lower levels where more conventional shops and restaurants were located, I did my rounds.  With my 7kg luggage at its limit and a full tummy already, all the shops and restaurants were wasted on me. It was still a great place to be wow’ed for 30 mins.

Even though the retailers are probably paying megabucks for their leases, I’m probably funding some of this through my departure taxes The SGD50 departure tax is now starting to sting me (adds up when travelling frequently).

I’d rather have less bling-bling and a departure tax that’s 60% less like that of neighbouring airports. But then Sydney’s departure tax of about AUD100 is about double of Singapore’s and you don’t get any glitz with it.

Leaving Singapore

I killed a further 30 mins or so before taking the walk back to T2.  I had been reviewing the seating on my flight to Athens through the day.  At 2200, it looked like it was chocka and there was no point trying to re-seat myself to an area with a spare seat next to me.  So I printed my boarding pass and headed airside to the lounge for a shower and a light feed.