The food in Singapore is simply fantastic… (there is now a break of 12 hours in this post – the guy sitting next to me was an industrial designer from Bury St. Edmunds – we had several beers talked the designer talk, and it turns out he is on his way to Oz to evaluate interactive TV in Asia for the BBC. Fascinating! Just shows who you bump into, eh).

Anyway, yes the food is amazing here. There are places called ‘Hawker’ markets that are similar to night markets in Taiwan, but they are slightly better organised. There are dozens of stalls, you pick your food and drink from each of them and then sit in communal areas to dine. I have had, without exception, amazing food at every opportunity.

At lunch time, after booking my bus up to Malaysia, I wandered along to Little India and had a world-class curry in a really busy local eatery. The colours on display were amazing, the fruit stalls screaming for attention alongside the spice stalls and incense filling the air with exotic aromas. The Bryani was packed with wonderfully dry, mature spiciness that gradually heated up from your belly as you ate it. I jad to turn around to see how to eat the thing, and was met with laughter from some local ladies who signalled I should turn out the pot onto the dish – though only after did I realise that everyone was eating with their hands! The knife and fork were wheeled out for the unsuspecting visiting Brit.

Last night I was lucky enough to sit down next to two local women – it was immediately apparent that we had all ordered far too much food for ourselves, so we arranged to share. I was initially test driving my Chinese and of course they helped my battle through, but of course they spoke perfect English and thought it amazing and hilarious that I was learning. I was fortunate to get talking to them because they had ordered exactly the food I had been wanting to check outm, but that was rather too much for one person. The Barbecued Sting Ray was scintillating, the Black Pepper Crab (a crab cooked in a rich peppery sauce – messy but devine) was mouth watering, the La La clams fresh as sea daisies and this was backed up by the Dim Sum and some very special Chicken Satay. I went to bed very satisfied.

Right now (12:50pm) I am off to get some Arab flavours. Again, I was woken at dawn by the dawn prayer in the Mosque at the end of my street. And again I felt really lucky to be in Singapore. This place is really growing on me. A real meeting point of Malay, Indian, Chinese and European worlds, resulting in a well-fed belly!

A 24 hour Arabian restaurant … downgraded to 21