By Marjorie Gorospe

IF you’re in a hurry to see the whole of Singapore, then perhaps you can take a ride on the Singapore Flyer.

Located in Marina Centre, the Singapore Flyer is an observation wheel with a diameter of 492 feet. It was built over a three-storey terminal building, giving it a total height of 541 feet.

The Singapore Flyer has exceeded the London Eye (443 feet) and Star of Nanchang (525 feet), making it the world’s largest observation wheel.

It takes approximately 30 minutes to complete the ride. The Singapore Flyer has 28 air-conditioned capsules and each can handle 28 passengers.

The Singapore Flyer gives passengers a chance to observe the city center and even beyond. You can see some parts of Malaysia and the islands of Indonesia.

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Lawrence Casiraya
INQUIRER.net

SINGAPORE — Honestly, I didn’t even know it was a fountain, considering I’ve been noticing it each time I go to Singapore. Arriving from the airport, when the cab makes a left towards Suntec City and I see this particular structure, I know I’m almost near whichever hotel in Marina Bay I am staying.

But one day, while walking back to my hotel, I decided to cross the street and check out this circular mass of steel that looks like it can hold a giant crystal ball. Turns out, it’s the world’s largest fountain — since 1998, actually, according to the Guinness Book of World Records.

In Singapore, almost every landmark you see denotes wealth and progress, from high-rise buildings to the art center that is the Esplanade to sprawling the recently built ferris-wheel-cum-viewdeck they call the Singapore Flyer.

But the Fountain of Wealth is no ordinary fountain put there for aesthetic purposes alone. It is designed according to feng shui, or the Chinese art of, well, putting things in their proper places.

According to people I’ve talked to, the fountain does spew water but during the afternoon, it pauses to allow people to go to the center and make a wish. But unlike other fountains, you need not scratch your pockets for coins. You make a wish, touch the water while walking around in circles three times.

But you need not be Chinese to believe that, of course. Like other tourists, I made my wish and walked around it. But by and large, it just felt great to dip my hands into the water in the middle of the usual hot, humid day in Singapore.

By Erwin Oliva
INQUIRER.net

SINGAPORE–No, it’s not your regular Ferris wheel ride. You won’t be able to feel the wind blowing at your face. Instead of gondolas suspended from the rim, it comes with capsules that could carry more people. It says one capsule could carry as much as 28 people.

The Singapore Flyer is currently the world’s highest observation wheel. It is 165 meters high from the ground — about 30 meters higher than the London Eye, with a diameter of 150 meters.

The first time I saw the Singapore Flyer, it looked much like the London Eye from afar. I almost had my chance to ride the London Eye several years ago.

After an afternoon session with a key executive here, Oracle Corp. decided to take the visiting Southeast Asian journalists for a ride — a unique one. Most of us were first-timers. So everyone brought their digital still or video camera to document this 30-minute ride.

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By Erwin Oliva
INQUIRER.net

BANGALORE, India–It rained hard.

Just a few hours before my scheduled flight to Singapore, on our way to Bangalore, a freaky rain shower kept planes scheduled to land in Ninoy Aquino International Airport hovering over Manila. Our plane got delayed by almost two hours. By the time we took off, I was tense. I was constantly looking at my watch to find out if we still had time to catch our connecting flight to Bangalore, India’s version of Silicon Valley.

But just a quick rewind. It was unusual for Singapore Airlines to be late. But our plane was just that — very, very late. Some passengers started crowding the table near our gate, asking if they could still make it on time for their connecting flights. The airline announced the flight had been redirected to Clark airport (huh?) so it was expected to arrive an hour late. I made a quick calculation. Since we had a three-hour window to catch our connecting flight, I didn’t panic.

I was wrong.

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