In the morning, I woke up late. I had planned to get up early so that I could wash my judo uniform and other clothes. Since I had stayed up late the night before, I ended up getting up at about 9:30 AM. I did not feel any effects from the alcohol at all because I had only had one beer.
I went downstairs to do my laundry. However, for some reason, the washing machines were not working. Technically, the payment device connected to the washing machines was not working. Since there were multiple laundry locations inside the institution, I tried another one, but it did not work either. Although I was very frustrated, I quickly gave up and decided to wash everything in Vietnam instead.
I went back to my room and left for the National Museum, which I had been determined to visit. I arrived there at about 10:30 AM. The ticket cost 20 SGD ($15 USD). There were not many people there, but there seemed to be quite a few children because there was an area where kids could play.
As I entered, one of the female staff members told me that a free English tour would start at 11 AM. She gave me a circular sticker for the tour, which I placed over my regular ticket sticker. I spent some time looking around the first floor until it was time for the tour, then headed down to the basement to join it.
There were only four participants in the tour, including me: an Australian couple who looked to be in their 40s or 50s, an elderly American man who looked to be in his 70s, and me. The tour guide was a woman who appeared to be in her 40s. I was grateful that she spoke English with only a slight accent.
During the tour, we learned about how Singapore had developed since its independence, which was incredible. I thoroughly enjoyed both the tour and Singapore’s history, although I could not understand everything she said because of my limited English ability. After seeing both the United States and Singapore, where people of many different backgrounds live together, I felt that diversity is almost inevitable for a country to develop and thrive.
I stayed at the museum until about noon, when I realized that my mobile data service had expired. Since I was leaving Singapore that day, I did not want to buy any additional data. I had lunch—chicken rice—at a nearby food court and figured out how to get back to the boarding school by bus using Wi-Fi. I arrived there at about 1:30 PM.
Sensei and I had agreed to leave the institution at 2:15 PM, so I relaxed in my room for a bit before leaving with all of my belongings. As I was about to head outside, Sensei was talking with a school staff member whom I had seen during judo training. They had been waiting for me, even though I made sure to arrive 5–10 minutes before our meeting time.
I returned my key card to the staff member at the gate and said goodbye to everyone. Sensei and I then headed to the airport (Changi Airport). I ended up taking a short nap in the car and woke up just before we arrived.
Sensei stayed with me until I finished checking in and passed through the departure gate. I thanked him sincerely and said goodbye. Even after I passed through security, he remained there to make sure I got through without any problems. Since arriving in Singapore, I had come to respect how kind, humble, and humorous he was. I waved and bowed to him from the other side of the gate.
My experience in Singapore was amazing, thanks to Sensei and all the people I met through judo. I would love to see them again soon.
After feeling the loneliness that I always experience when saying goodbye to people during my travels, I completed all the remaining airport procedures. I encountered a problem with the shampoo and body wash I had bought in Singapore because of the liquid size restrictions. I had to buy some smaller empty bottles and transfer the liquids into them.
Everything at the airport was different from what I had experienced elsewhere. First, check-in could only be done through a machine. Second, immigration was handled by automated gates rather than officers. Third, luggage was checked right before boarding. Everything felt extremely efficient and smooth.
The convenience of Singapore honestly made me reluctant to return to Vietnam. I certainly did not miss all the mosquito bites, though.
The service provided by Singapore Airlines was the best I had ever experienced. The way they treated customers was noticeably different from other airlines I had used. I was grateful that Jing Fang had booked this flight for me. After arriving at Tan Son Nhat International Airport, I searched online and discovered that Singapore Airlines has an excellent reputation worldwide.
I headed to immigration and saw an enormous crowd of people waiting in line. I had never seen so many people except in Bangkok, Thailand. I could not even tell where one line ended and another began. I simply joined the crowd and waited.
Since I had previously needed to fill out an arrival card before immigration in Thailand, I searched online to see whether it was also required in Ho Chi Minh City. I noticed that some people were turning back after reaching immigration, which made me wonder. I assumed it was unnecessary because I had not needed one in Hanoi. However, I found out that it was actually required, so I filled it out. I was glad that I checked beforehand.
It took more than 90 minutes to complete immigration. By then, I already missed Singapore.
From the airport, I took a taxi to a hotel I had booked near the airport. A kind staff member at the front desk handed me the key to my room.
I needed to do laundry and have dinner, even though I had enjoyed a fantastic meal on the plane. Luckily, I found a laundry shop near the hotel. A young person whose gender I could not identify because of their hairstyle—which did not matter to me—came out to assist me. Since they did not speak English, communication was limited. I asked about the laundry service, and they indicated that it would be finished the next day.
However, I did not want my judo uniforms to be out of my possession overnight, so I asked if it would be possible to finish them sooner. They told me they could have everything ready by 10 PM that same day. I thanked them, paid, and went out for dinner.
I found a nice local coffee shop with a dining area on the second floor and decided to eat there. The meal, Pad Thai, was decent, although 79,000 VND (about $3 USD) felt a bit expensive considering the portion size.
I spent time at the coffee shop, drinking an iced coffee that cost 22,000 VND (about $0.80 USD), while waiting until 10 PM.
When I returned to the laundry shop at 10 PM, there was a woman who appeared to be in her 40s. I assumed she was the young person’s mother. My clothes were still in the dryer, so they took them out and started folding them for me.
The older woman noticed the kanji on my judo uniform and asked whether I was Chinese. I told her that I was Japanese. I think it is difficult for many foreigners to distinguish between Chinese and Japanese kanji.
After that, I returned to the hotel, took a shower, and went to bed.
