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Went cycling @ Pulau Ubin two Saturdays ago.

It was Pedal Ubin, a free guided cycling tour on Ubin, on every first saturday of the month. I’d never been to Ubin before, and I had no idea what it was like. Plus, waking up at 6am on a Saturday was just unthinkable.

I didn’t regret it.

Changi Village Jetty

The boat ride

Ubin is so cute and quaint! It’s kinda commercialized, with the renovated jetty and all the mountain bikes for rent. But unlike overly sanitized and nauseatingly artificial Sentosa, Ubin still retains a big part of its rustic charm and original infrastructure (or lack thereof). The moment I stepped on the island, I was in a different world. I thought I’d flown off to Thailand or Vietnam.

It’s the ultimate overseas travel on a tiny shoestring. $4 for the boat rides there and back, $6 for a bike rental, and a whole morning of exercise and ubin sightseeing.

On Pulau Ubin

The guides were very chatty and interesting. They brought us around the east of Ubin, introduced us to lots of plants, folklore, and animal calls. We went near Chek Jawa, tackling some rather steep slopes, but we got to see the quarry and smell the strongly scented tembusu flowers.

Scented Garden

The Beach

Sungei Ubin

Quarry

Me — Exhausted

It was an eventful trip. One of the girls fell down and scraped her knee. She was a real good sport about it too. There were 2 bike breakdowns, and half the group kinda got lost in the final leg of the journey. The guide was new to the east part of the island so she lead them the wrong way. Wasn’t for long though.

Felt a real sense of accomplishment after completing the entire trail. To top it all off, I got my very own coconut drink. Cool and refreshing.

I Survived

I want to go again! Any takers?