As someone who has spent her entire life cooped up in an urban jungle, I’ve never been a huge fan of observation towers. Whether it’s the N Seoul Tower in South Korea or the iconic Tokyo Tower in Japan, the idea of paying to take an elevator all the way up just to gaze down on an overcrowded city dwelling hardly appeals to me.

Having scored free unlimited rounds on the Singapore Flyer with my F1 pass a few weeks ago, though, I decided to check it out to see what the hype was all about!

After a brief walk through one of those typical exhibitions showcasing Singapore’s post-independence achievements, we were ushered along a futuristic version of a boarding gate. As the Flyer is constantly in motion, we had to literally hop into the cabins, which thankfully, were air-conditioned with some classy music to boot.

As our cabin started making its ascent, everyone stood up at the same time and, in an almost mechanical fashion, stood as close as they could to the glass windows. It’s almost like a reflex action found commonly in tourists and over-enthusiastic, self-proclaimed “food photographers”. 😛

As our cabin climbed slowly upward, the world beneath us shrank; towering condos became little more than toy blocks, and the winding rivers, coupled by an abundance of greenery, made the view seem absolutely picturesque.

With little more than a piece of glass separating us from what can only be described as a very nasty fall back down to earth, there was a strange, floaty sensation that accompanied me when I ventured closer to the glass door. Although I wouldn’t be surprised that that’s one of the things you pay for in your admission ticket.

After about 30 minutes of floating around, we were back to where we started: hopping off the cabin and walking along the corridor – right into the open doors of the gift shop. If you’re a tourist visiting Singapore, I would say that the Singapore Flyer is worth going on once, just to see the awesome urban layout that defines our city. 😉 For us locals, well… let’s just say we could probably get the same kick from looking out the window of a high rise apartment. But hey, that might just be my biased, non-observation-tower- inclined-self speaking. 😛

Address: 30 Raffles Avenue

Website/ Facebook: http://www.singaporeflyer.com/

Contact: 6333 3311

Opening Hours: Daily 8.30am – 10.30pm

chueonit.