Singapore's secret jungle escape
A middle aged man in a battered straw hat and dirt-stained shirt emerges from the jungle. He's holding a large, blunt bladed knife in one hand and wears a broad grin on his face. In the other hand he holds a stinking durian fruit.
He loads the fruit into the basket of his bicycle before setting off in search of another delicacy.
In the midst of this steaming dense jungle it's hard to believe we are actually in Singapore. There's no high rise, no mains electricity and very few cars.
Palau Ubin is one of the last remaining pockets of what Singapore used to be before progress and money came to town. It feels like a lost and secret world.
Locals, like the man we met, come here for the prized but putrid durian fruit, fresh rambutan or mud crab. Others come for a family bike ride through the jungle.
Palau Ubin is a short and cheap - $A2 - boat ride from the main island of Singapore on a brightly coloured "bum boat" with worn car tyres attached to the sides.
Exiting the wharf leads us to a street full of bicycles. Some are rusted. Some are new. There are big bicycles and small bicycles. Bicycles with kids' seats, training wheels and baskets galore. Hiring one will set you back just $A4 a day.
We pick two with kids' seats and set off along the road to the mangroves with the children aged four and six squealing with delight behind us. In the heat of the tropics we suck down bottles of water (a good reason to pick a bike with a basket) as we pass piles of stinking durian smashed open on the side of the road.
At the Chek Jawa wetlands we're stopped by a family of wild boars. Once these pigs were wild but years of feeding by tourists have made them brazen.
As I squat to take a photo one larger boar comes up close to my nose sniffing hungrily and licking his chops. Not today little pig.
The only way into the wetlands is on foot, so we park our bikes near the pigs and begin the gentle climb down towards the shoreline. Soon we see what Singapore used to be like - rocky shore lines, twisted muddy mangroves and the calls of hundreds of birds.
The children stare and point as a mudskipper slides through the grey sloppy mud and crabs scuttle sideways between their homes.
Near the end of the trail a tall observation tower grants a view above the canopy.
It's a long climb up - but absolutely worth the view.
From the top we watch ships carrying sand track their way through the straits.
On one side of the water the city of Singapore hustles and bustles with activity. But here we sit quietly and listen to the birds call.
Busy Singapore can wait, at least until after lunch.
GETTING THERE
Singapore is an eight-hour flight from Sydney and Melbourne. Qantas flies from all Australian capital cities to Singapore. Fares start from $A649 return, including taxes and charges, from Sydney to Singapore. Go to qantas.com.au. Palau Ubin is located off the coast of Changi Village in Singapore. Bum boats to the island leave daily as soon as there are 12 passengers ready to ride. Bicycle hire starts from $A4 per day.
