Waiting for Bus 927 in Choa Chu Kang
From Marsiling MTR station, we
took a bus ride via bus 927 from Choa Chu Kang bus interchange. I
must say, I was really encouraged to use my 2 legs in Singapore. It was a
Friday, commuting was a breeze during rush hour while on our way to Night
Safari.
Parkhopper promos, Night Safari, Singapore
We availed the 3-in-1 parkhopper package that includes entrance to Night Safari, River Safari, and Bird Park for $69. By the time Mr. DQ and I arrived, the first run of the animal show was canceled due to rainfall. The internal tour tram already left too. Our next option was to have dinner at one of those safari-themed restaurants inside Night Safari while we wait for the next one.
Note: Try to choose a day when rainfall
is least likely to happen to maximize your visit at Night Safari.
Ulu Ulu Restaurant, Night Safari, Singapore
Ulu Ulu Restaurant Review:
It was about time for us to try some
Singaporean staples, we tried out Ulu Ulu Restaurant over other
restaurants. “Ulu Ulu” sounded Asian and of Malay descent. According to this source, “ulu” means remote in Malay. The
restaurant have several cuisine stands that cater Chinese, Halal, Indian food
etc. I guess, they were trying to market Asian or remotely available cuisines,
relative to where other tourists came from. Even if I come from a local Chinatown,
I really am a fan of good old comforting Chinese food, though I find other
cuisines interesting to try out. We needed comfort and tummy-filling food for
sustenance. Lighting was dim and warm as if all of it were coming from fire
torches hung in wooden posts. You might wanna take precaution if you have
someone in your tour group who has poor eyesight. Ulu Ulu was packed, we
separated and looked for a table. It was also drizzling a bit, not many people
dined outdoors like we did.
PRAAAAAWWWWNs and veggies, Ulu Ulu, Night Safari, Singapore
We ordered sweet and sour prawns,
with vegetables and white rice, and additional crab rice. Pretty
pricey stuff. Upon payment, I hoped that the food shall deliver, thinking there
might be some reason why the place is packed because unlike other restaurants.
The order taker asked where to deliver the food, but we both realized
that it was hard to point at something from the crowd. He asked me to walk back
to my table and was told that he would follow me with his eyesight and see
where I sat. That went well.
Crabrice, Ulu Ulu, Night Safari, Singapore
You know that feeling of constantly
shuffling the fried rice bowl to loot in some meat? I did not have to do that
because the crab meat in the crab rice were evenly incorporated. It can be
eaten on its own; nevertheless, the crab rice also complemented the sweet and
sour prawns and veggie sidings. The prawns were puffy, sweet and tender. I
think I ate about 4-5 giant ones, sorry I lost count. Disregarding the fried
batter casing, the prawns were really large and each bite gave me an umami kind
of crunch that you get from properly cooked fresh seafood. The prawn set meal
was in an upscaled price, but the size and quality of the prawns were one of
the best that I had in my life. Someday, I might come back for these prawns.
Beef Mutton Satay, Ulu Ulu, Night Safari, Singapore
Mr. DQ enjoyed the veggie and went
crazy over satay. We ordered not less than 4 orders of satays. Nearby was a
satay stand, that served mutton and beef satays, with a
small piece of rice cake and onion-cucumber salad. The rice cake reminded me of
the Filipino suman after getting a hint of coconut milk and Chinese
sweet rice cake (di ke in Hokien dialiect). It had a more jelly-like
texture, but less sweet than the Filipino Suman. We went crazy for the satay
and peanut sauce! The mutton meat was tender and savory, the beef slid off the
stick so easily. Eating rice with satay's peanut sauce is already good enough
by itself – I swear I would gulp down the whole cup of peanut sauce if I
weren't still aware of my personal public decorum. I give 5 stars for the satay
and peanut sauce.
Night Safari, Singapore photo op area
(Look out for the featured animal that you can take pictures with, I was too early for the owl)
Review of Night Safari Tour:
It's not every day that you get to
visit a zoo at night time. Come to think of it, visiting the night safari at
night means less exposure to sunlight and heat. I wonder who got the idea first,
night safari or night museum? Thanks to the drizzling rain, they canceled the
initial run and we were able to grab a bite before the show. They resumed the
show after the rain stopped. Be careful with the downward steps towards the
sunken open amphitheater. (Spoiler alert) Do not sit near the front stage if
you cannot handle surprises from our little furry or rather slippery friends. I
also refrained from taking pictures since I needed flash to take proper
pictures, and flashes may harm our animal friends.
I am usually not a big fan of animal shows because I believe in leaving the animals in their natural surroundings. This one is nice though. A mix of foreign tourists and locals populated the theater. The humor of the emcee was priceless and timely. Everyone in the audience who was English literate laughed at one point during the show. If not, the story line or the gestures and story plot will be enough to entertain the viewers.
After the animal show, we hopped into a
tram ride that circled the whole night safari grounds. Just before the tram
tour, some young ushers came over to take our pictures. The albums were
available right after the tour. I never went for these type of souvenirs
before, but we purchased one for SGD 30 since we did not have any clear photos
of us to relive the great time that we had. The photo frame was encased in a
thick cardboard frame with flap cover, pretty nice.
The trail visited the Fishing Cat
Trail, Leopard Trail, East Lodge Trail, and the new Wallaby
Trail. See Trail map here.We took the first seat on the second coaster, right next to the
first tram where the driver and tour guide were. Even though we did not have
people's head blocking the view, the glass panel is somewhat a nuisance. Both
sides of the tram are open and the visitors could hop out of the tram if they
desire to observe more. I suggest that you finish the quick tour first and then
choose where else you want to visit. Next time, I will try to sit in the middle
or at the back of the tram coaster, so that we could have larger actual viewing
space. The tour guide knew what to say and how to handle the whole tram ride
experience, speakers were placed in each tram coaster. The mellowness of her
voice, dim lighting of the safari, and the cool wind was lulling me into
slumber, but I refused to surrender. I was having as much fun as the local kid
behind us, who couldn't help reacting to what he was seeing. He kept on asking
his parents the 5 W's, they tried to answer but they also reminded for him to
keep quiet to avoid disturbing the animals and other tram riders. Nice to have
children with so much enthusiasm onboard, the aura is viral. They did not have
question and answer with the guide, I bet the kid might have asked all the
questions no one onboard could have thought of on the spot.
Seeing the animals without fences was a unique experience. Night Safari's open fence zoo set up solicited a natural rapport between us and the animals: Respect. Some dangerous animals like leopards have safety enclosures for obvious reasons, while other less threatening did not. At one time, the tram was turning right through a curb, one family of deer was just sitting there and just busy being themselves. I've never seen a deer this close! Likewise, a large bird that was standing beyond their living space and was standing at the rear left side of the trail. It was staring at us from my left as the tram drove forward. Nothing unusual for these birds, but it was really exciting for me. Please see the Night Safari trail here. I personally love the Wallaby trail, where wallabies roamed and hopped freely. Their so cute! Bennett's wallaby and Parma wallaby are also found here. Parma wallaby was thought to be extinct, so it was quite a treat to see them.
Price:
69 SGD, All for Night Safari + River Safari + Bird Park
Likes:
The whole idea of visiting the zoo at night
Ambience, I felt like a survivor contestant
Parkhopper promo
Clean and odor-free zoo
Calm voice of the tram tourguide
Ulu Ulu restaurant Chinese food is FTW
Funny animal show host
My heart beat skipped a couple of times while walking around the zoo at night on foot, with the thought of something might just be lingering behind you haha
Dislikes:
The possibility of animal show cancellation when it rains
Link to Singapore Day 1
Keywords: Ulu Ulu, Night Safari, Singapore, Suman, mutton, satay, beef, Fishing Cat Trail, Leopard Trail, East Lodge Trail,Wallaby trail, Bennett's wallaby, Parma wallaby, animal
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