3K 764 MNL SIN 1740 2120 320 8DE

This took off from gate 8, which we walked right past
(there is a big Royal Orchid sign that obtrudes in front of
the tiny gate 8 sign); not a big deal as row 8 is in the
last boarding group. There was still plenty of overhead
space. The flight was manned by staff who did their job in
a somewhat impersonal way, not a big problem. lili had
another hit of that Koo Coo stuff; I passed. Some guy across
the way, apparently an elite of some kind, JetStar or maybe
Qantas, had preordered chicken rice, which although it
smelled like chicken and green peppers, seemed okay, and he
ate it in a jiffy (and bought another). Me, nah, the steamed
buns had been enough.

Again, my bag came out expeditiously - not so amazingly fast
as in Manila; I imagine it had a bigger system to negotiate.

I'd picked the Capri by Fraser because it advertises a
shuttle, but repeated e-mail inquiry met with no response,
so we had to wing it. It so happens that the service leaves
from the bus depot in the bowels of the terminal (B2 I
think); the stop is marked by a sign that reads, in very
un-Singaporean fashion (I paraphrase)
G
Grand Mercure r Grand Mercure Grand Mercure
Grand Mercare Grand Mercure
Grand Mercure n Grand Mercure
Grand Mercure d Capri Grand Mercure
Grand Mercure Gr nd Mercure Grand Mercure
M
It turns out we'd just missed the shuttle by a couple
minutes, so we called to find that the next wasn't coming
for another hour.

Some guy nearby was helping a discommoded family and also
took us under his wing; it turned out he managed ground
handling for Emirates. Thank you, whoever you are - a
fine ambassador for Singapore and for Emirates. We got a
taxi driven by a Hainanese Singaporean guy who drove us
around a bit, purporting to get a little lost (as in
getting near but across two lanes of traffic or a
construction site from the place, and so on) - the fare
was $12. Whatever, we were just happy to find a place to
sleep. We walked in to a bright snazzy lobby and a huge
waft of aromatic lavender/evergreen aromas, a bit jarring.
Check-in was polite and easy, but I asked for a shuttle for
0400. Turns out the shuttle doesn't start until 6; as I had
an 0700 flight, this seemed to be cutting it a little close.
So I arranged for a cab.

The room was quite large, well appointed, brand spanking new
- not bad at all. I characterized this as like an Aloft or
Element (which I am not totally hostile to despite my horrid
experience at the Aloft at Dulles, which was never quite
satisfactorily resolved); lili added "on steroids." I
recommend this (if you can get the shuttle) as an alternate
to the Ambassador Transit Hotel, whose rates it is said are
expected to increase dramatically in the coming year.

The cab came right on time at 0500 - same guy. Same price.
He must have this down to a science.