HK-Singapore Travel Bubble Postponed

Diehard travelers will have to wait another two weeks

 

Hong Kong recorded 43 new coronavirus cases today, 36 of which were local, seven imported, on the eve of the inaugural travel bubble between the city and Singapore.

While the threshold was not met, it was alarming enough to postpone the travel bubble for two weeks.

Travel bubble was to start tomorrow

Yesterday the trip was still going to go ahead, but with Hong Kong passengers being tested after they landed in Changi Airport. But then the high number of cases today made the start of the travel bubble untenable.

Those 200 people who had booked and paid for the flights had to jump through a lot of bureaucratic hoops, applying for a permit from Singapore, getting tested for the virus and recording the negative result.

Now that's all made null and void and they will have to do it all over again two weeks from now.

Is it all worth it? To Singapore?

Many Hongkongers don't care to go to the Lion City; they would rather go to Taiwan, Japan or even hop over to Macau for the weekend.

But for some reason the travel bubble is with Singapore first, and for those dying to travel somewhere, they're going to have to wait another two weeks longer.

Singaporeans are keen to go to Hong Kong

In the meantime Hong Kong needs to seriously clamp down on infections as quickly as possible, as there are already 60 preliminary positive cases for tomorrow, signalling the city is probably well into its fourth wave.

Many of the clusters seem to stem from dance clubs and party rooms.... did the government not know these kinds of places exist? It's quite shocking to see the numbers spike so quickly. Anyone who visited any of the 14 dance studios and clubs since November 1 will be forced to go for a mandatory test... but will people actually admit they went there and comply?

Infectious disease experts had been predicting the fourth wave, and last week with the number of cases quite low, it was hard to fathom the possibility, especially with practically everyone wearing masks.  

But alas Hong Kong is suddenly seeing large numbers of positive cases. What is going on?

Singapore's Newest Attraction is a Gem

Looking up at the 40-metre tall waterfall, the world's largest one indoors

Apart from the marvelous shopping and eating options (the pandan chiffon cake at Bengawan Solo) at Singapore's Changi Airport, there's another new attraction called Jewel.

There's lots of greenery and water inside the giant dome

It opens on Wednesday and locals got a a sneak peak the other day. What was previously an open air car park has been transformed into a massive 10-storey complex with the focal point being the world's tallest indoor waterfall at 40 metres high. Oh and there are 300 shops and dining outlets in there too.

The complex, encased in a dome-shaped glass structure, was designed by Israeli-Canadian architect Moshe Safdie, who also was the creative brains behind Marina Bay Sands.

So if you only have a few hours to kill, and not enough time to venture out in the city, perhaps Jewel will be the solution to hang out. There's even a Shake Shack for those hankering for a New York burger fix, A&W Root Beer, and Pokemon Centre, where fans of the video game can buy all the merchandise they want.

It's not hard to see why the complex is called Jewel

Changi Airport is the seventh busiest in the world, hosting more than 65 million travelers in 2018.