Locked Up Abroad

Saturday, Greg and I took a trip to Pulau Ubin.  Its a tiny island only accessible by boat from Changi Village.  To start the day off, we took a cab to the Changi ferry station, or what we though was the Changi ferry station.  As we entered the gates, there were no cars in the parking lot and the ferry terminal was chained up.  When the cab driver insisted this was the right spot, Greg thought he would get out and check things out.  Until he saw this sign.....

We figured out very quickly this was not where white people tourists should be. 

We finally found the place and got in line for the bumboats.  The boats are very small and only take 12 people at a time.  

Bumboats to the island.

On the way....

Tiny houses on the water.

We got to the island after a nice 10 minute boat ride.  We were greeted by lots of wild dogs.  

We rented two bikes and set off to explore the island.  If you have ever seen Lost, it feels a lot like that.  Not a lot of people, very quiet and very rustic.  There are a few food stands on the island when you get off the boat, but other than that you are on your own.  

We rode around the island, saw some monkeys,  lizards, birds, and butterflies.  We rode to what we thought was the entrance to Chek Jawa, which is where the mangroves and coastal boardwalk are located.  I had read online that you were not allowed to bring bikes into that area, so being the responsible tourists that we are, we left the bikes and started up the trail.  Only, we were no where near the entrance.  After walking for about 40 minutes, people started passing us on bikes.  Greg was getting annoyed and thought I lied to him.  Apparently the entrance to Chek Jawa was about a 50 minute hike away and had a bike rack with locks.  So.....we could have saved ourselves a lot of time but then we wouldn't have had the quality time walking in the forest together.  

Hike on the way up.  See I am still happy.  

Once we finally got there, we walked around the boardwalks, saw the mangroves, and climbed up a seven story viewing tower.

viewing tower

one of the views from the top

Mangroves

Boardwalk

After our adventures, we set out to find our bikes and get some lunch.  We noticed a van dropping people off at the entrance, turns out it was  cab. SCORE!! We don't have to hike back to the bikes.  So.....just to remember if ever in Paulou Ubin.....They don't speak English.  After riding around for about  half and hour with this guy looking for bikes, trying to show him on the map where we left them, we ended up at the entrance to the island where the boats are.  Just then the sky got really dark and we were hearing thunder in the distance.  We jumped on the boat as fast as we could and abandoned the bikes somewhere in the jungle.  I know I know, its bad but we had no idea where they were and no way to get to them with non English speaking van drivers.  Plus, we were sooo tired, soooo hot, sooo hungry, and wanted something cold to drink.  We made it back to the mainland where we enjoyed a refreshing cold beverages and some delicious steamed buns.  

Greg, clearly exhausted, not feeling guilty about the bikes. 

So, if you here on the news of two tourist missing in Palau Ubin, they found their bikes at the base of the trail but no bodies yet, don't be alarmed.   We are nice and comfy in our air conditioned serviced apartment.  Although, once they figure it all out we really could be locked up abroad!