We were slowly discovering that the cabbies were right: some of the best food in the world IS in Singapore. But you don't have to pay a fortune to enjoy the cuisine! "Hawker stalls" are a big thing in Southeast Asia, and the quality ranges from bright booths in a food court to open air carts pushed in from God-knows-where (with questionable health standards).

On Sunday, while the rest of the group went to visit the Botanical Gardens, Mari declared it was time to have pratha for breakfast. Although you can have your pick of hawker areas in Singapore, the YMCA desk clerk claimed that the best pratha was at Newton. He neglected to tell us that most of the stalls would be closed on Sunday morning, so we had to get over it and go to plan B....which was delicious.

Nasi Goreng is a spicy fried rice with diced char siu and egg, a typical breakfast dish here. I washed it down with some longan juice, and something wonderful happened in my mouth! The sweetness of the longan (like lychee) reminded me of a reisling or gewurtztraminer (sp?) and it just took the salty & spicy of the food to another level! I wonder if this place allows BYOB?

Anyway, we also tried grilled stingray, which is spicy and bony. It's good to try once, but I'm not sure if I would do it again. People also rave about the oyster omelette, but I thought it was just OK. It's better to have this dish at a more high-end restaurant for better oysters and tastier prep.

Tip for hawker stalls: Bring your own napkins! Many stalls do not provide napkins (although that may be changing).

Tip for drinks: If you take a drink with you to go, drink it all before you get into a cab. The cups are flimsy. My ice coffee cup collapsed and spilled all over me and the cab on the way home.