A Trip Down Universal Studios Singapore

Movies bring us to another world where imagination reigns, where the impossible becomes possible, where dreams come true. So does a trip down Universal Studios Singapore. It is a transporter which will immerse us in not one but seven uniquely themed-zone surrounding a lagoon.

On 13 Feb 2011, our family of four headed down to Universal Studio Singapore. As it was the Lunar New Year period, the park's opening hour was extended from 10am to 9.30pm instead of the usual 10am to 7pm. We were also treated to the special fireworks at 9pm.

Best Time of the Day to Visit the Park

Taking stock of the sweltering Singapore weather, morning is a good time to enjoy the park. Unfortunately, as the park is only open from 10 am, one only has about 2 hours of soft sun rays before the blazing heat makes any outdoor activities uncomfortable. Hence, the best time to explore the land of movie magic is from 3 pm onwards. Our outdoor experience tells us that that is the time when the sun is setting. While it may be hot in the beginning, the temperature will cool down as the clock ticks.

Universal Studios Singapore is big by Singapore standard - 20 hectares (49 acres) in size, occupying the easternmost part of the 49-hectare (120-acre) Resorts World Sentosa. Yet, it is compact and one could have a fair idea of the park in 4 hours flat complete with a good dose of rides but you would have to skip taking pictures with mascots along the way. That said, to me with two young primary school boys monkeying around, this is a small price to pay as my family will be able to complete or at least most of the park in our best mood in the best time of the day, with minimal stress by the time the park closes at 7 pm.

If you feel that you need a little more time, you may want to consider checking out from 10 am to around 12 pm and coming back again later in the afternoon. Afterall, the park allows you to re-enter with your handstamp and park ticket.

Map of the Park

In this blog, I will be sharing with you the key attractions to look out for based on my own experience visiting the 7 zones in Universal Studios Singapore. I will be detailing the activities at each zone from "Hollywood" zone clockwise back to "New York".



Hollywood and Madagascar

When you enter the park, you will first be greeted by a broadway-style theatre with a variety of flagship shops. Welcome to Hollywood! This zone is a replica of the famous Hollywood Boulevard and is flanked by dynamic architecture and palm trees.

Walk a little further north, you will be in Madagascar, where as in the movie of the same name, penguins can also be found there. There was supposed to be a waterboat ride but it was not ready yet.

Far Far Away


You will know that you are in the land Far Far Away with the 40-metre tall Far Far Away Castle - the world's first - staring right in your eyes.


The star attraction is the Shrek 4-D Adventure. It is a fascinating adventure as you will see, hear and feel the action right from the motion seat as you join Princess Fiona and Shrek in a fairytale adventure. There are other attractions such as Donkey Live an interactive "live" show, enchanted airways - a junior roller coaster and magic potion spin which our family decided to give it a miss as my boys were raring to go to the next zone, The Lost World.

The Lost World

By far, the hot favorite of my 2 boisterious boys, especially the Jurassic Park. As in the movie, Jurassic Park by Steven Spielberg and novel by Michael Crichton, one enters the park in a water ride, Jurassic Park Rapids which leads to an adrenaline-rush as hell breaks loose and one becomes the hunted by the fiery dinosaurs. Beware though, one can be drenched. If one prefers to stay dry, bring or buy a poncho (at $2) available at the ride. Do also try the Canopy ride which offers a bird-eye's view of this zone.

Another area withing The Lost World is the Waterworld, based on the film starring Kevin Costner. Sit back and enjoy a live show as a seaplane swoops towards you, skidding across the water. Feel the heat as giant fireballs explode in the air.

Ancient Egypt

After The Lost World, one will be teleported to a few hundred years later, still in the past in Ancient Egypt. Though my younger boy just met the 122 cm mark to gain entrance to the ride "Revenge of the Mummy", my elder boy protested vehemently against it. The memory of the topsy-turphy dark roller-coaster ride in Hong Kong Disneyland was still vivid in his head.

Sci-Fi City

After ancient Egypt, one would be quickly thrusted into tomorrow's land - Sci-Fi City. As such high-speed whirling twisting adventure is not for the weak stomach of the Lim family, we just sit and hear the screams from those brave-hearted ones who are taking the Battlestar Galactica Cylon (blue track) or Battlestar Galactica Human (Red track).

New York

This is my favorite zone, New York, based on the original New York City, during the era of post-modernization. Perhaps it reminds me of the scenes in the city - the trademark city skyline, neon lights, facades, sidewalks as well as the romantic atmosphere of the Big Apple. After dinner, I sit in one of the many benches in the zone and for a short moment feel that I am in the famous New York City.

Do visit "Lights, Camera, Action!" hosted by none other than Steven Spielberg. It is an eye opener as to how filmmakers are able to create spectacular special effects such as a major hurricane hitting New York City.

Outcome = Event + Response

This equation is by Jack Canfield (co-author of Chicken Soup for the Soul).

Outcome = Event + Response

Many people believe that it is the events around us that shape our outcomes. But it is not the things that happen to us, rather how we choose to respond to happenings that ultimately shape our outcomes. This is the fact:

“We cannot control every single thing that happens to us, but we can control how we choose to respond to it.”

There are many stories of people who were born with all kinds of handicaps and despite all the odds stacked against them, they managed to create a life most others can only dream about. When we look at things from one perspective, it may seem totally bad. However, when we change the way we look at the same thing, i.e. from a different context, the meaning completely changes. In other words, there is no meaning in life except the meaning we choose to give it.

People who succeed and live fulfilling and enriching lives don’t experience better events, they just re-present things and respond in a much more powerful way.

We can all choose to live the life we want to but we need to take responsibility for our life.

Brain teaser

Suppose you have 4 cards - each will have one side with an alphabet and another with a number.

The side of the 4 cards shown to you are:

A; C; 3; and 6

There is a rule. If a card has a vowel on one end, then it has an even number on the other side.

Question : Which card(s) must you open to prove the above rule is true? I need to limit it to the minimum number of cards to open.

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The same question can be re-framed as follows:

Suppose there are 4 persons sitting in a bar.

One is drinking beer; Another Pepsi; the 3rd fella is aged 16; and the 4th is aged 25

There is a rule. Only those aged 25 and above can drink beer.

Question: Who should you check to prove the above rule is true? Similarly, to limit to the minimum number of persons.

Answer: This should be easy - The one drinking beer (A) and the 3rd fella who is aged 16 (3).


What is the morale of the story? This game is designed to prove that our human brain is more sophisticated when it comes to people and less so with abstract concepts such as numbers and letters.

So next time when you are stuck. You just need to re-frame the question. Using analogy and story will help.

Happy Rabbit Year

Dear readers,

As many of my friends would have known by now that recently, I have been extremely busy. So much so that I have had very little time for my toastmasters' activities and also blogging.

But hey, a new year has come. There is no reason for us to wish that this year will be better than the last. After all, Singapore economy roared in the Year of Tiger despite what the doomsayers predicted.

Remember, you are what you believe in.

Happy Rabbit Year:



From the house of AC.

Chicken Soup for the Soul

What does success mean to you? Does success bring happiness? I believe it does. For that simple reason, many people crave for, dream of, aspire to be a very successful person.

Yet many people fail to go back to basics and ask themselves what is the definition of success? Is success to you a glittering report card of your achievements to-date? When I was young, I was taught that success was measured by the number of academic awards in school. After graduation, it is to be replaced by the fastest sprint to reach the top of the corporate ladder.

The vagaries of life have taught me that this is too simplistic and one-dimensional. Each of us will be faced with his or her own predicament. To me, the victor is one with the resilience to withstand the cruel storms of life. But not alone, we all need friends who will pull us through the hard times. And I believe friends are abound in this world, it's just that we have yet to meet them. But we will need to have the persistence to never stop trying and the ability to attract these living angels. And I hope you can be my angels :)

Data and Simple Fix

Apart from Think and Grow Rich, Freakonomics and Super Freakonomics blew my mind away. Below is written from memory based on what I can remember. Enjoy!

From Super Freakonomics

In the past, childbirth was a dangerous affair. 1 out of 10 deliveries would see to either the death of the mother or infant or both.

The story was in Venice during the 1840s. It was found that women who gave birth in the top-notched hospitals, were more likely to die from child delivery. In particular, those who were delivered by doctors were twice as likely to die from complications (8%) than those by midwives (4%). Such complications were termed as puerperal disease.

Many possible explanations were spun:
1. Misconduct by the mothers during the first trimester (e.g. wearing tight corset)
2. Foul air in the delivery room
3. Trauma from the outrage of modesty by doctors - most if not all were male during the 1840s.
4. And etc.

Note that these reasons had not apparent solution. Most were figments of someone's imagination, with no solid grounding. It was not until one man by the name of Semmelweis that later came to analyse the statistics, that the reason was found.

Semmelweis first ruled out the explanations one by one by using logic. He found that women who gave birth at home and subsequently arrived at the hospitals did not have such high death rates. So it would be strange that only women who delivered in the hospital "misbehaved" during the first trimester. As for reason number 2, the air in the delivery room was the same for those delivered by midwives. In the case of reason number 3, it did not explain why the occurrance was only for delivery when we also had women who suffered from other ailments but did not exhibit such "trauma".

It was through an accident that Semmelweis found out the real reason -- from the death of a friend who died from a cut while carrying out autopsy. His friend died from the cadaverous materials from the cut.

What happened was during the 1840s, in the top-notched hospitals, the doctors were all busy with conducing autopsies on dead people to understand the cause of the death. Most rushed to the delivery ward with a only cursory clean of their hands at most. As a result, women in labor and being attended to by the doctors had a higher chance to die due to cadaverous materials. The explanation was further buttressed by the fact that women in longer labor had a higher death rate. It was because the longer the labor, the higher the number of proddings by the doctor to check the uterus which increased the risk.

Once the cause was identified. The fix was simple and easy. Doctors who performed autopsy had to wash their hands with a sprinkling of chorine with lime. The rest as they say is history. The death rate from deliveries performed by doctors fell to the level similar to those by midwives.

Ria Bintan - Real Beauty

Bliss is soaking in nature's beauty. My hubby and I did just that in Bintan last December over a short weekend getaway. We made our way to Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal on a Friday afternoon.



As I rushed there after work in the morning, my mind was still mulling over some unfinished work matters on the ferry. With my mind filled to the brim with work details, my head soon felt heavy. Fortunately, the ferry trip was a shortone hour journey, the sparadic spasms in head were calmed as my feet felt the stability of land.

We put up at Bintan Lagoon - a resort which faced the ocean. It was a seaside paradise. As there was still daylight, we strolled along the beach and were greeted by the wide expanse of pristine sand the the greyish sea line in the horizon as far as the eye could see. We found a little bench and sat together relishing the postcard-perfect sight.

Before the break of dawn the next day, we proceeded to Ria Bintan for a 18-hole game of golf at the Ocean course. The view was magnificent as we hit our golf ball as the waves came crushing at the beach. At the same time, the sea breeze rushed into land and played with our hair. We were also intoxicated by the whiff of nature's bounty. There was a quiet serenity about the surrounding beauty. For the both of us who were more used to a concrete jungle, the ocean, the greenery and the breeze offered a refreshing respite.

After our 18-hole game, my sprighty hubby suggested to go for another game of 18-hole. It sounded like a great idea at the time when we were mesmerised by nature's beauty. Alas, it was no walk in the park. The next 18-hole game was punishing. I became reacquainted with muscles screaming for attention from the abuse I suddenly subjected them to. My hubby was not one who would allow me to give up once I had agreed to do something. Suddenly, I realised that I owed my discipline to him. Discipline has always been hard to me. Afterall, I am not built for discipline but for novelty and excitement. Boy, I am glad that he is around to give me the much-needed nudge.

Yes, we managed to complete the 36-hole. Though in the final few holes, I swung my golf club byut mostly did not manage a good hit. But you know, sports is not about winning but about completing. To soothe our aching bodies, we indulged in a 60 minutes massage. The skilled hands of the massage therapist rubbed away the muscle aches from overexertion like magic.

On our way back to Singapore, I gazed at my tired hubby as he shifted his head to dodge the draughty air on the ferry. I smiled, leaned my head on his shoulder and closed my eyes for forty winks.