Orchard Road Shopping Belt Getting A Facelift

If you have been to Orchard and thinks that it is getting boring, it certainly is getting the facelift it deserves. Orchard Road has always been the country's popular shopping belt for tourists and locals for its exhaustive and large shopping malls that lines all the way from Tanglin to Orchard/Scotts Road towards the end of Orchard Road and Bras Basah Road. The Singapore Tourism Board had given the shopping district a multi million-dollar makeover that had started in April 2008 at US$26.7 million.

The makeover will be completed by February 2009. Some of the refurbishing done are the changing of tiles of some old shopping malls and adding Green resting rooms for tourists and shoppers.

Although the economic outlook is a little gloomy now, perhaps we can see a revive by next year. Visitor arrivals have dipped 7 per cent since June and the country may even fall short of its 10.8 million travellers target this year.

Refurnish Your Home

Whenever a festive occasion is near, Singaporeans will not fail to dress up their homes or refurnish their homes with new furniture. Services to remove bulky furnitures around each town is usually at a peak. I know my neighbour had made some arrangements to have her old sofa and bedroom set cleared to make way for her new Italian Furniture. When I saw the pictures of her new sofa set, I felt inclined to source for a new set of Modern Furniture online myself. The current living room set I have are already worn out, with the kids grubby hands and abuse for the past 4 years.

I was amazed when I discovered EroomService which is a website selling trendy looking furniture. Many of their designs are very clean and simple yet refined. I loved their modern looking Designer Furniture sets such as the Victoria and Albert Sofa by Moroso a great deal. The colours are so bright and cheerful and the sofa has a very modern, unique feel. It is also not confined to traditional looks or how sofas are meant to be like. I really love the simple lines and sexy curves in it.

Thus, in future when you are looking for modern or Contemporary Furniture, don't hesitate to check out EroomService for their unique selections.

Vending Machine is so Convenient

In Singapore, many things are available for convenience. Of course the transportation is the most convenient and efficient as well. You can find malls in every estate you live and shops are usually not very far away. How about food? Food can be found in many towns, in the forms of hawker centres, food shops, restaurants and fast food outlets too.

Here is what the food centre looks like in Singapore. There is no short of food shops of course.

Besides the convenience of food, I found this cute little vending machine in a mall. There are vending machines that sell snacks, drinks, or even popcorn and ice cream. But this one is different. It sells umbrella.


So no worries if you didn't bring an umbrella and the weather isn't looking too good, grab one from the vending machine!

Exterior Lighting

Lightings in Singapore are very common in malls, festive occasions and celebrations. I was driving to a large mall in the west for some evening shopping when I saw how beautiful the building looked with the lighting on the walls. This one is in Singapore's IMM and it had been revamped in the past years to make the place more attractive to shoppers after a flop in business in the 90s. It used to be a place to shop for furniture, wedding photo studios and accessories and at the ground level there was the IMM supermarket for traders and members. In the mid 90s, the place was like a ghost town because most Singaporean did not fancy the idea of having to own an IMM member card before patronizing it's stores.

In late 90s and early 2000, Giant was among the main tenant and this hypermart was able to pull crowds in for it's cheaper products compared with other supermarkets. Then in 2000, Capital Land revamped it by adding more outlets, stores and made it so successful that on any weekend now, you have to drive around just to look for parking space. Parking here is among the cheapest in Singapore, with the first 3 hours FREE.

Look at this beautiful exterior lighting that is occupied by Esprit Singapore.

Bazaars

I like to walk to neighbourhood area that sells bazaar stuff or those similar to flea markets. It can get a bit noisy at times but it is all good fun. After breakfast one morning, I walked to find the 'noise' where someone had used a loud speaker to sell some cheap towels. It was very loud and kept on shouting like Buy Buy Buy, only $2.00!!! Oh it was so loud. Some kids covered their ears as they walk past. But it certainly brought lots of people over. Towels were selling at $2 only. Cheap. But these aren't the luxury towels, these are slightly thinner. But they were body sized. I like these towels better because it dries faster. The thick ones are good but dries slower. In Singapore, where majority lives in flats, it doesn't make sense to use thick ones. Heavy to hang up and takes longer to dry.

I buy my towels about 2 - 3 times a year. I just love new towels. The old ones I usually recycle them into rags or floor rags. I'd bleach it till it become super white too...hahahah

Shopping Shopping Shopping

Singapore is never short of Shopping Malls, Flea Marts, Neighbourhood shops and Food Outlets. As Singapore is just a little Red Dot in the world, it is solely a small island by itself. There are no states whatsoever but lots of townships. The townships are like Woodlands (the nearest to Malaysia), Toa Payoh, Ang Mo Kio, Yishun, Clementi, Sembawang, Balestier, Bedok and more. It is divided in the North, South, East and West Zone, and Orchard being Central.

In the 70s and 80s, most of the shopping malls were concentrated in Orchard area and surroundings. In the 90s, many malls were being built in the residence townships, mostly near to the mrt (train) and the bus interchange. If you travel the route following the mrt stops it is likely that when you alight, you can find a shopping mall at the stop. Some of the malls that are located next to these mrts are like Woodlands MRT - Causeway Point Yishun MRT - Northpoint Choa Chu Kang MRT - Lot 1, Bishan MRT - Junction 8, Harbour Front MRT - Vivocity, Tampines MRT - Tampines Mall and more. If you are visiting Singapore, get the MRT map and you can shop from one train station to another without getting lost either. If you would like to go to where the masses of shopping mall and shopping street is, then head to Orchard, Somerset, Dhoby Ghaut and City Hall. These MRT stations are also joined in a stretch of malls by the famous Orchard Road the heaven for shoppers.

Shopping in Singapore

Singapore is a shopping paradise. Designer boutiques, local brands, speciality shops, and bargains complete a shopper's fantasy in every nook and corner. One great shopping area is Orchard Road (starting from the fringe of Tanglin Road all the way to Marina Bay).

Besides city shopping, you can also pick up great bargains going out to the surburban shopping malls, and the quaint little townships of heartlanders. See and shop in the eyes of the local Singaporeans and the opportunity to catch the real world of tucking into Singaporean food at the local style coffee shops and food centres.


Singapore has many sights and sounds. Look at the occasional street peddler which you can find in the heartland townships and also near the Bencoolen Street, among buildings like OG, Fu Lo Shou, Albert Complex and all the way to Bugis area.

There are many things to see and look in Singapore. The townships where the majority of residents live has a town centre with many shops and it's own malls for convenience. You can find a mall in almost most of the heartlands where the main transport or MRT stops. Some of the malls located in the heartlands are Ang Mo Kio Hub, Northpoint, Causeway Point, Tampiness Mall, Tiong Bahru Plaza, Lot One and more. You wont be short of shopping experience or small shops when you are in Singapore.

Sim Lim Square

Singapore is a good place to purchase your electronic items or products. Many tourists from Indonesia, Malaysia, India, Europe, and even Japan cannot resist the competivie price of electronic products that are sold in Singapore. These items can be much cheaper than the nearby countries and the best time to shop in Singapore is during the GREAT SINGAPORE SALE which is in middle of May through to about end of June. This is also the time Singapore holds its Arts Festival and sees many tourists surge.



Sim Lim Square. A place popular in Singapore where you can buy all things Electronics. It is known as Singapore's largest electronics and computer centre. This building has six story full of products like cameras, LCD television screens, High-end sound systems, computer systems, office equipments, games, softwares, and more!

Browze around as many shops as you like to be sure of the best bargains, or check them at shops that are authorized dealers for the particular brands for more accurate product information. Also look out for shops that have participated in the STARetailer Programme (which is administered by the Sim Lim Square Traders' Association). This is the Assurance of Trust of Service, Trust and Confidence. Supported by Singapore Tourism Board.











The STARetailer Pledge is:
>> Not to sell products above RRP
>> To be honest
>> To issue official clear and concise receipts
>> To refrain from abusive language or conduct
>> To remain courteous and polite at all times
>> To provide good after sales service
>> To train and employ well trained or knowledgeable staff