Deepavali at Istana (Part I) 。。。

It had been some years that Ruby & I wanted to visit Istana... finally, we had an opportunity today. Today is Deepavali & the Istana is Singapore's Presidential Place, which usually conduct Open House on major Public Holidays.

There were two queues, 1 for Singaporeans & PRs, the other for foreigners (need to pay an admission of S$1). After clearing the security checks, we strolled along a pathway lined nicely wif trees. On one side, there's a pond wif two swans swimming gladily.  We didn't walk over as the ground was muddy after a downpour.

As we walked thru' the gates, we saw tentage set up by Jurong Bird Park, wif some macaws entertaining visitors. I felt that the lush green field here makes a nice backdrop for portraits! As we walked on, we saw a student band playing & it turned out to be juniors from my alma mater! When the police requested by-standers to clear the pathway...we speculated that the President will be arriving soon!

While waiting, we noticed many nice old trees in the compound & decided to take photos wif this huge old tree. Soon, a couple of tourists saw us using the old tree as backdrop & followed suit! However, these tourists were not very much civic-minded as the women sat on the branch of the old tree!

Then, I spotted the newly minted President arriving in a golf buggy & quickly went to position myself for a clear shot! Suddenly, the media & visitors were all crowding around the tentage hoping to get a clear photo of the President, haha!

Next, we walked past an ice-cream stall & decided to buy an ice-cream cone each to cool ourselves. We walked to the main Istana building & wander around the area taking photos of the beautiful flowers. At the end of 2hours, we left Istana & made our way to Little India to meet Julie...