River Safari Adventure

Media Invite

The prehistoric head of an adult traversed past us. Then a pair of eyes reflected in my flashlight. My travel companion whispered, "What is that?", squinted her eyes and tried to peer into the dark Amazon rainforest. Suddenly, I spied a scaly torso with its marble-like eyes glowering back at me in the moonlight. It was a mammoth crocodile and it was heading straight for my companion! I hollered at her to make a run for it while I made a lunge towards the crocodile. With its protruding sharpened canines staring in my face, I blindly threw a fist with all my might. That punch proved enough to floor the beast and I hovered over its lifeless body triumphantly.

Yes, one can dream right?

But if you want to experience all the wonders of river wildlife in a less life-threatening manner, all you have to do is to head down to River Safari, Asia's first and only River-Themed Wildlife Park.

The 12-ha River Safari is the newest neighbour to the Singapore Zoo and Night Safari and showcases animals from freshwater habitats inspired by eight of the world’s iconic rivers including the Mississippi, Nile, Mekong, Yangtze and Amazon rivers. The family and I were invited down for a Bloggers' Day Out at the River Safari  2 weekends ago and boy, were the monkies terribly excited!

The River Safari consists of 3 main parts - River Adventures of the World, Giant Panda Forest and Wild Amazonia. The Amazon River Quest, which is part of the Wild Amazonia boat ride experience is not ready and will only open to public towards the end of this year.

Unlike the Zoo and Night Safari, there are no trams to hop on or alight at the River Safari. Everything has to be seen on foot, which isn't a bad thing actually as we got to view most of the freshwater animals at our own leisurely pace.

There were tons of animals to spot during our whirlwind journey through some of the world's most fascinating rivers, ranging from beavers, paddlefishes, Mekong catfish, alligators, barramundi to even a peculiar-looking softshell turtle.

If you want to maximise your entrance fee, be sure to time your entrance at either 9.30am or 2.30pm where it is Feeding Time for the animals! As an added bonus, a River Safari guide will be present too to present a running commentary of the river habitats' and their dwellers' characteristics. Definitely a much more informative experience.

The boys took along their digital cameras and even they didn't expect to have taken photos of so many freshwater animals at the River exhibits!

And what's a wildlife park experience without an animal show? Happening at 11am and 4pm daily at Amazon Square (Wild Amazonia), the animal show offers the audience a chance to get really close to some of the River Safari's permanent residents.

Compared to the animal shows at the Zoo or Bird Park, this show might feel a tad underwhelming as there are no outlandish animal tricks or performances. Rather, think of it as a cosy and personal show experience where kids and adults are encouraged to walk up to the trainers to know more about the animals on show.

Of course, no visit to the River Safari is complete without paying the Giant Panda Forest a visit. And this was also what the monkies were looking forward to the most.

Billed as the largest panda exhibit in Southeast Asia, the Giant Panda Forest houses arguably the most adorable envoys from China -  Kai Kai and Jia Jia.

That's Kai Kai in the above photo, who was feeling a bit drowsy after a hearty meal of bamboo. As for Jia Jia, she was feeling shy and preferred to stay hidden in her den.

Besides panda-spotting, the exhibit area was laced with tons of interesting bits of information about pandas and the one which particularly piqued the interest of the monkies (and me) was the diet of Kia Kia and Jia Jia.

Now I know why they are forever sleeping.

Personally though, I preferred the Red Pandas who share the same biodome as the the Pandas. Also known as the firefox due to its bright rust-coloured furry coat and fox-like face, the red panda or lesser panda is said to be the original panda, having been discovered about 50 years before its giant counterpart.

Such a cute face, no? But my fave bear of the lot as got to be the one below.

An even cuter face, no? Heh.

If the sight of the pandas' huge appetite has made you hungry - it has definitely made our tummies rumble - then you will be glad to know that you can pick up delectable Szechuan cuisine and panda-themed bites at the Mama Panda Kitchen, right by the Giant Panda Forest.

Be sure to try the Panda Pau when you are there, where only 200 of these cuties are made each day.

The pau had tau sar, or red bean paste, filling and it looked so adorable that we the monkies didn't even bear to chomp at it in the beginning!

Another dining option would be the River Safari Tea House at the Entrance Plaza which serves a full menu of savoury Chinese fare.

After our lunch, we proceeded to Wild Amazonia where we got to explore the rich biodiversity of the Amazon Rainforest. The Squirrel Monkey Forest is one such example as we got to stroll through an amazing tropical aviary with free-ranging squirrel monkeys jumping, scurrying and bouncing all around us.

Feeding times are at 10.30am and 3.30pm daily so if you want to see the squirrel monkys at their most energetic and mischievous selves, I reckon those times are perfect for visiting.

For me though, my personal fave exhibit of the River Safari is the Amazon Flooded Forest.

The Amazon Flooded Forest is an immersive re-creation of the Amazonian rainforest, which gets submerged in up to 15 metres of water every year during the rainy season for a period of 6 months! So the water overflows, flooding the land and creating a whole new water wonderland for the aquatic animals in the Amazon to swim and live in.

The star attraction of the Amazon Flooded Forest has got to be the world's largest freshwater aquarium exhibit where we got to see for ourselves the underbelly of the submerged Amazon rainforest. Viewing the arapaima, giant river otters and manatees swimming in front of us was truly a remarkable eye-opener for me.

For Ash and Ayd though, they were fascinated with the piranhas exhibit. Eerily enough, for the entire moment that we stood in front of the tank, they were too motionless and gawking straight back at us. As if to say that they are hatching a devious plot to make us their next meal.

Before I visited the River Safari, I never thought there would such a diverse spectrum of species found in the freshwater rivers around the world. So yes, we thoroughly enjoyed our time at the River Safari. Do expect to spend slightly more than half a day there to soak in the feeding sessions, animal show and other attractions.

And since the Amazon River Quest boat ride and animal exhibits along this ride will not be available until later this year, the River Safari admission tickets are sold at a discounted price until then (details are at the end of this post).

A huge thanks to River Safari for hosting us. I am just glad that no real crocodiles were harmed during our visit.

Useful Details:

River Safari

80 Mandai Lake Road, Singapore 729826 

Tel: (65) 6269 3411

Opening Hours: 9am to 6pm daily (Last ticket sale at 5.00pm)

Admission Fees: Adults $25 (U.P. $35) | Child (3-12) $16 (U.P.$23) | Senior Citizens (60 & above) $12.50 (U.P.$17.50) | Free for Kids below 3 years old
Website: www.riversafari.com.sg

Ale's first Show-and-Tell

(Daddy blogs)

If you have been following our Cheekiemonkies Facebook page, you would have seen Ale's first ever show-and-tell monologue last week. And it seems that her 2 older brothers are the ones who can't get enough of her breakthrough performance.

They have been requesting to view the video over and over again, and each time they are still wowed by it. And frankly, neither can the wifey and I. Especially since it was self-scripted.

We didn't even know that she was supposed to do a show-and-tell routine in her N1 class. All we knew was that she was supposed to bring in something brown for that particular day and that was it. It wasn't until the next day when my sister casually asked her what did she do with the bear in school that she re-enacted her show-and-tell.

In case you can't make out what she is saying, here is the official transcript:

"Good afternoon teachers and friends. 

I want to show you my brown bear. 

Thank you teacher and friends."

Needless to say, all of us were dumbstruck. And all we can deduce is that she must have been eavesdropping (a lot) when both Ash and Ayd were rehearsing their own show-and-tell for primary school. So... multiplication tables next I reckon?

Bouncy Fun in a Restaurant

 Media Invite

(Daddy chomps)

If I had my way, Sundays will be designated as 'I-still-wanna-snuggle-in-my-bed' days. Unfortunately, my 3 monkies do not share the same affinity with the bed like I do... and so come every Sunday mornings, they are always up bright and early, and dragging me out of bed as well. Wail.

But if there is any consolation, it will have to be a hearty breakfast with the entire family on a lazy Sunday morning. Or make that brunch by the time all of us wash up, get dressed and scoot out of the house. And as luck would have it, we were invited to a brunch session at District 10 at UE Square.

Serving modern European cuisine, quality food and affordable drinks, District 10 serves up a mean Weekend Brunch menu every Saturday and Sunday between 11am to 3pm. But if you ask me, Sundays would probably be the best time to descend onto this eatery. Why so? Simply because of this.

A Bouncy Castle specially inflated for the kids every Sunday! Any wonder that the monkies fell in the love with the place immediately?

The bouncy castle is strategically placed right beside the outdoor dining area, so parents are able to sneak a peek at what their young-lings are up to via a see-through netting at the side of the bouncy castle.

In fact, the monkies were busy having so much fun that the wifey and I were only too happy to let them continue while we spend some quiet (and sane) moments together. Oh, and enjoy the yummy food too.

We were served the Hoegaarden Battered Fish & Chips ($22), Eggs Florentine ($15) and and Pandan-Coconut Pancakes with Gula Melaka Syrup ($8). Everything tasted decent enough - nothing too out of this world but delicious enough to warrant second helpings, especially when we were able to savour our food while the madhouse was contained in the bouncy castle few metres away.

Of course, if your child gets tired of the tumble-and-rumble sort of fun, there are always colouring activities to keep them stay seated in their chairs as well.

But I'm guessing they would rather remain in the bouncy castle if it were up to them. Just like my 3 monkies.

Do check out my list of kids-friendly restaurants should you be in search for more eateries where kids can have their own while you eat in peace. Thanks once again to District 10 for hosting us!

District 10
81 Clemenceau Avenue #01-15/16/17
UE Square Shopping Mall
Singapore 239917
Tel: (65) 6738 4788
Email: contact@district10.com.sg

Weekend Brunch Hours: 11am to 3pm

*Bouncy Castle on Sundays only.

Our first Dragon Boat Race

Media Invite

Di-di and I didn't manage to catch the exhilarating dragonboat races at the Marina Bay waterfront during the previous weekend so when the long weekend came along, we made sure we dragged Daddy, Mummy and mei-mei down for some splashing fun by the Bay!

This was the weekend where the DBS Marina Regatta 2013 served up its promise of bringing people to the bay and the bay to the people. Held over 2 days, the DBS Marina Regatta - Bay Festival was one where members of the public had the opportunity to experience for themselves the fun of dragonboating, kayaking and sailing free of charge.

And when di-di and I heard that we had the chance to try out dragonboating for ourselves, we naturally pounced on it.

Taken with LG Optimus G

It was our first time going onto a dragonboat and erm, Daddy's too! So we really didn't know exactly what to expect. Except maybe that we should row in unison or risk getting stranded.

Taken with LG Optimus G

Luckily, there were experienced jie-jie and kor-kor dragonboaters onboard who gave us pointers on the various ways to row and stop the dragon boat. Oh, and to stabilise the boat too... 'cos Daddy ain't exactly the lightest you know. Heh.

So thankfully enough, we didn't capsize. And we even managed to take part in a friendly dragonboat race too, where we emerged third our of four teams. Not too shabby we reckon.

Taken with LG Optimus G

Our dragonboating experience was all over too soon and both di-di & loved it! Though I have to admit that I felt a bit woozy after all the to and fro swaying on the boat.

And the fun extended onshore too, with lots of other interesting free activities ranging from archery, art & crafts to roving circus acts and game stations for everyone in the family. One of the activities that caught our eye was the Archery station.

It was out first time shooting arrows with a bow as well and all I can say is at least we hit the board. Yes, notice I said board and not target.

We shifted our attention to the circus show try-outs next, where we got to spin some plates on a long stick. Or at least we attempted to.

It was tough work and we failed miserably. So it was left to Mummy to restore some honour in our family.

All in all, great fun by Marina Bay for all of us and we will be sure to keep a lookout for next year's edition of Marina Regatta. It will definitely be bigger and better!

Thanks also, to DBS for the kind invite! :)

Children's Season 2013: Art Garden 2013 @Singapore Art Museum

(Daddy explores)

Once again, the ever-popular Children’s Season returns with exhibitions and programmes happening in 19 museums island-wide. And what is even more special this year is that all Singaporeans and Permanent Residents will enjoy free admission to National Heritage Board museums and heritage institutions. Which means free Children’s Season adventures for all of us! Woot!

And we sure didn't wait long to put our privilege to good use - the Art Garden at the Singapore Art Museum (SAM) had the honour of being our first museum visit of 2013.

If you are thinking of heading down, do note that the Art Garden exhibition is not housed in the main SAM building but at the SAM at 8Q, a separate building beside Hotel Royal @Queens which is across the street from the main building.

Needless to say, the monkies could not wait to start exploring the moment we stepped into the building. And the first installation that attracted their attention was The Enchanted Garden City.

This whimsical garden city by Sandra Lee is one awesome piece of work! The entire place was just so colourful and enchanting that both the wifey and I were inevitably drawn into its world, particularly this rainbow bridge.

But the part which captured my imagination the most was the beautiful illustrations that filled the entire walls of the room. The illustrations carried the theme of familiar fairy tales that we have known since young, but with an intriguing Asian twist!

That's Goldilocks and the three (Panda) Bears in the above photo. Can you identify the following fairy tales, with its localized icons?

Satay by the Bay?

The monkies definitely had a field day trying to spot the various fairy tale characters and erm, goofing around as well.

And once most of their energy had been expended, they proceeded to draw their own version of an enchanted garden city.

Once they were done, their drawings could then be projected onto one of the walls. Which obviously was the biggest kick of all I reckon.

We then headed to the second floor where Vicente Delgado's Around the Day in Eighty Worlds, a kaleidoscope of all things fascinating and quirky awaited.

The premise of this installation is simple enough - some things may look familiar at first, but a closer look may reveal something different about them.

All the things may look messy and unrelated on its own but take a step back, we can sometimes see things in a totally different light. Or in this case, look out for the 2 sets of footprints at each ends of the room. Stand on it and see that the black box in the middle of the room actually forms a cat’s nose and whiskers with the two lamps as its eyes!

Photo courtesy of Singapore Art Museum

As for the monkies, they were kept busy with the numerous interactive exhibits... which was a good thing as it gave me my own time and freedom to view them in detail.

Ayd broke a chair! LOL.

Using a string to come out with different faces.

Throwing hoops game.

There was an Art Station here too, where kids where use coloured paper to make a collage picture.

It was quite crowded so we proceeded to the next installation on the second floor and this was the one that totally blew my mind!

Stellar Cave II by Julien Salaud is simply put, astounding. This stunning piece of work was made entirely of screws and thread and inspired by the prehistoric paintings in France's Lascaux Caves.

I could only stand there jaw-dropped and marvel at the patience that the artist possesses to have the artwork so painstakingly created. Definitely my fave exhibit of Art Garden 2013, without a doubt.

Kids could also test their own patience in the next room where they could try to make images out of screws and threads on their own. Not an easy task even for me. So I was even more in awe of the artist after that!

Beyond that room lie The Incredibly Magical Expanding Room by Mojoko and Shang Liang, where kids can whisper or shout into a microphone and watch the room transform as all four walls respond to their voice.

Did I say shout? Naturally the monkies needed no invitation to do so.

The final installation we visited was the Les rêves engloutis, or Glossy Dreams in Depths by Stéphane Blanquet on the third floor where we entered a room filled with peculiar objects, 3D drawings and holograms.

Donning our 3D glasses, this work served to expose us to unfamiliar situations and we were supposed to let our imagination take over as we view the drawings. And the moral of the installation? Do not be afraid of what lies ahead. Instead, overcome your fears and bravely face whatever lies ahead.

Hmmm, deep stuff. So it was perhaps more fitting for the monkies that they got to create their own masks at the craft section.

Ale though, preferred rocking on a horse while her 2 older brothers were putting finishing touches on their masks.

The fourth level showcased the art exhibit of LOVE . REVOLVE THE WORLD by Sun Yu-li but that didn't interest the monkies too much.

And so, that marked the end of our visit to Art Garden 2013. All in all, I would say it was time well-spent and the exhibits were really interesting. If there is a place in Singapore to fire up a child's imagination, Art Garden 2013 will be it.

Useful Information

Art Garden 2013 at Singapore Art Museum
Venue: SAM at 8Q; 8 Queen Street, Singapore 188535
Dates: 17 May – 1 Sept 2013
Opening Hours: 10am to 7pm daily (9pm on Fri)
Admission: Singapore Citizens &PRs - Free | Adults - $10 | Children below 6 – Free | Foreign Students & senior citizens aged 60 and above - $5
* All visitors enjoy complimentary entry on Friday evenings from 6pm - 9pm.
Website: www.singaporeartmuseum.sg
Additional Note: Strollers will have to be left on the first floor as there is no lift in the 4-storey building.