For the second time, we arrived in Singapore on June 17th. Ongoing global geopolitical tensions have made marine fuel both scarce and costly. To support our continued journey, Villa Vie secured millions of dollars' worth of marine-grade fuel in advance, ensuring both stable pricing and reliable supply. Singapore serves as one of the key locations where this fuel is available, which is the main reason for our return. The Odyssey is scheduled to visit Singapore twice more between now and November, after which we'll set our course toward India.

Travel Log for June 17th to June 24th, 2026

During our first visit to Singapore, I spent time exploring and getting a feel for places I'd want to return to. This time around, I had five clear goals in mind:

1. Restock my snack supply
2. Visit Chinatown
3. Purchase a snorkeling flotation vest
4. Visit the airport
5. Return to Lau Pa Sat hawker market

We were in Singapore for four days on this visit, giving me plenty of time to check everything off my list. On our arrival day, I headed straight into the large mall at HarbourFront, where we were docked—the same spot as our previous visit.

In Asia, large supermarkets are often called "hypermarkets," and HarbourFront is home to the FairPrice Xtra hypermarket. I had missed it during my first visit and only learned about it afterward—so I made sure not to overlook it this time. It turned out to be exactly what I needed: a massive grocery and department store spread over multiple levels.

Goal number one was quickly accomplished—I was able to fully restock my snack stash. They even had bags of American-made pretzels, which felt like a small taste of home.

While having dinner with one of the residents onboard, she casually asked if I'd like to go to a magic show in town. What a surprise! I had been an amateur magician myself up until the early 2000s, so of course I said yes.

I met Gail‑Margaret about a month ago when she first boarded the Odyssey. Not long after arriving, her computer died and she was in desperate need of a replacement. You might remember I had a similar issue back in February and ended up buying a couple of new computers. Connie took one, and I refurbished my old one back to factory settings and sold it to Gail. As it turns out, she had once worked in a magic shop, performing demonstrations when she was younger.

Through her connections, she found a local professional magician named Ming Da, who runs a venue called the Magic Attic in Singapore. Ming Da, also known as The Charming Conjurer, is an award‑winning magician. The Magic Attic isn't a typical shop or museum, but rather a hidden, intimate theater space located on the fourth floor of his home.

Gail arranged reservations for the three of us: herself, her friend Helga from Germany, and me. We took a Grab car into town and arrived at this unique venue, where only 14 audience members were seated for a close-up, interactive performance. The experience felt far more personal than a traditional stage show.

In addition to Ming Da, two other magicians performed that evening, one of them a younger apprentice, but all three were fantastic. It turned into a delightful night of being thoroughly amazed and completely bewildered.

On our third day in Singapore (June 19th), I set out on a whirlwind trip to check off goals #2 through #5. I absolutely love Singapore's MRT (Mass Rapid Transit) system, the light rail and buses are easy to navigate, efficient, and entirely in English.

My first stop was Chinatown. I spent some time wandering through the main market streets and visiting the Heritage Center. The whole area was lively, colorful, and full of energy. While at the Heritage Center, I happened upon a Buddhist chanting ceremony. The rhythmic sound of the sutra chanting was mesmerizing.

Goal #2 accomplished.

My next main goal was to visit a dive shop in town. After snorkeling in the Philippines, I knew I'd be doing it again several times, and the last piece of gear I wanted was a flotation vest. It's an inflatable vest you wear while snorkeling to help you stay effortlessly afloat, similar to a life vest, but adjustable so you can inflate or deflate it as needed. It's perfect for travel since it folds up small. I had tried to find one in Manila without success, so this was high on my list.

Thanks to Google Maps (which I've come to rely on constantly), I was able to figure out the right bus route to get within walking distance of the dive shop. I could have taken a Grab car directly there, but I wanted to experience Singapore's bus system and do a bit of exploring on foot. In hindsight, that may not have been the best idea, the heat and humidity were intense. I made a quick stop for a soda along the way before continuing on.

Finding the shop turned into a bit of an adventure. It wasn't a typical storefront but tucked away in an industrial area, and I ended up circling around for nearly an hour before finally locating it. Thankfully, the effort paid off, they had exactly what I was looking for, and I managed to purchase the last one in stock. Goal #3 accomplished.

After that, I made the mile-long walk back to the bus stop, this time heading toward the airport. I could have taken a more direct route with multiple transfers, but I stuck with the route I already knew, even if it meant a longer journey.

You might be wondering why I was heading to the airport at all. Many people had told me that Singapore's airport is a destination in itself, and I wanted to see if that was true. The 90-minute bus ride turned out to be a comfortable, air-conditioned tour of the city. And they were absolutely right; the airport is incredible. It feels more like a massive shopping and entertainment complex than a transit hub. The highlight was the world's tallest indoor waterfall set inside a huge atrium, along with several attractions for kids and families.

By this point, it was around 4:00 p.m., and I hadn't eaten since breakfast. Between the walking and the heat, I was definitely ready for a meal. Even though I had planned to have dinner back in town, I decided to eat at the airport instead, and with so many dining options available, it was an easy choice.

By this point, I was pretty tired from the day's adventures and briefly considered heading back to the ship. But I figured it wouldn't take much extra effort to catch a bus into downtown Singapore and visit Lau Pa Sat again.

I had first gone there during our initial stop in Singapore. Lau Pa Sat is a well-known hawker market with dozens of stalls offering all kinds of street food, especially satay. Satay is a popular Southeast Asian dish of grilled meat served on skewers, and many of the vendors prepare it right in front of you over open flames. The whole place really comes alive at night.

I arrived around 7:00 p.m., and it was in full swing, busy, energetic, and filled with the smoky aroma of grilling meat. I was tempted to grab some satay, but I had eaten just a couple of hours earlier and only wanted a few skewers. After checking several stalls, I realized the minimum order was about ten skewers with rice.

So, I decided I'd save it for next time. We'll be back in Singapore again soon, and I'd rather enjoy it properly with Connie when she's with me.

All goals accomplished.

As I mentioned earlier, it was extremely hot and humid. With all the walking I did in the heat, my legs developed a dark red rash. After looking it up, it appears to be something called "golfer's rash." It felt like a mild sunburn at first, but it subsided within a day and completely faded after about four days.

For our final day in Singapore, I decided to stay onboard the ship and relax. After departing Singapore, we spent a day at sea before arriving at our next port in Indonesia.

We arrived at the small town of Tarempa in the Anambas Islands of Indonesia on June 22nd. Since there's no large port or dock, the ship anchored offshore in the bay. When that happens, a couple of the lifeboats are used as "tenders" to shuttle residents back and forth between the ship and shore. While necessary, it's not my favorite part of the experience. They tend to be crowded, hot, and short on ventilation. I always try to grab a seat near the open doorway so I can catch some fresh air. I'm prone to seasickness, but luckily I haven't had any issues since we started cruising full-time.

The town of Tarempa gave us a warm and heartfelt welcome. A local performance group even came out to the ship to put on a welcoming show. We were told we were the first cruise ship to visit since COVID shut things down in 2020, and the excitement from the community was clear. They were truly happy to have us there.

On our first day, I took the tender into town and spent some time walking around. Tarempa is quite small, so it didn't take long to see most of it. The people there were incredibly friendly. We clearly stood out as visitors from the ship and seemed to be something of an attraction.

Everyone smiled, waved, and many wanted to take photos with us. It's a bit unusual having strangers ask to pose with you, but their warmth and enthusiasm made it a memorable experience.

The next evening, the town was celebrating the 18th anniversary of becoming its own regency. Along with many other residents from the ship, I headed into town to take in the festivities. At one point, I started down a dark alley toward the festival when a policeman pulled up on a scooter and asked where I was going. Before I knew it, he offered me a ride and took me straight there. I'm sure he was just looking out for my safety, but it turned into a bit of a VIP moment, complete with a police escort!

The entire town seemed to turn out for the celebration. There were plenty of food vendors, and I tried a kentang spiral—a whole potato cut into a long spiral on a skewer and deep‑fried until crispy. Mine was topped with sweet corn seasoning and tasted a lot like a potato chip. Best of all, it only cost about 15,000 rupiah (around 90 cents). The festival organizers even set up a special seating area for our ship and offered us a variety of local snacks. Once again, many of the locals, especially the kids, wanted to take photos with us.

On another day, I joined a snorkeling trip with a group of fellow residents to a nearby island. We traveled by pompong, a traditional wooden motorboat. Once we left the sheltered bay, the waves got quite rough. Unlike the boats in the Philippines, these didn't have outriggers, and the ride became pretty bouncy. I'll admit, I got a little uneasy—especially after noticing there were no life jackets on board—as the boat slammed against the waves.

Thankfully, we arrived safely at a beautiful white-sand beach. We geared up for snorkeling and slipped into the clear, warm water. This was only my second time snorkeling, but I felt completely comfortable. There were plenty of small fish, some brightly colored, but the coral reef itself wasn't particularly impressive. Snorkeling in Coron had been much more vibrant, though unfortunately my camera hadn't worked during that trip.

Our guides had brought along a homemade lunch, which turned out to be delicious satay with rice. After about an hour of enjoying our private beach, we climbed back into the boat for another long, bumpy ride back to town.

The above photos of Tarempa, Indonesia are courtesy of Reid Kincaid 

Travel Log for June 25th to July 1st, 2026

I stayed on the ship and took it easy for our final day in Tarempa on June 25th. After that, we had two days at sea, plenty of time to rest and prepare for our next stop: Tanjung Pinang on Bintan Island, also part of Indonesia's Riau Islands.

When we arrived, we were once again welcomed warmly by the locals. This was another small port that hadn't seen a cruise ship in years. Like Tarempa, there was no large dock, so we anchored in the bay and used tenders to shuttle back and forth between the ship and shore. These rides usually take about 20 to 30 minutes.

However, one of my return trips didn't go quite as planned. The propeller became tangled in a fishing net, and we had to slowly limp our way back to the Odyssey. What is normally a quick ride turned into a long, drawn-out journey of over an hour. Fortunately, we made it back safely

At this port, we were greeted right at the dock by a group of dancers, creating a festive welcome. There were also booths set up where we could exchange money into Indonesian rupiah, browse a small gift shop, and arrange a wide variety of tours. While the welcome felt genuine, it was clear that the entire setup was sponsored by the local resorts.

I initially set out to walk into town, but security stopped me from leaving the port area. I later learned that the town was actually about an hour away by car. With that in mind, I headed back to the ship to figure out my plans for this stop.

That evening, I had dinner with a couple of residents, Holly and Jim. During the meal, they invited me to join them the following day. They had arranged a private car and driver to explore some of the local sights, and since it was just the two of them, they had room for one more. It sounded like a perfect opportunity, so I gladly accepted.

After a short tender ride to the port, we met our driver, Ali. Thankfully, he spoke good English, and his car had wonderfully cold air conditioning. Holly did a great job asking him lots of questions about his life, the local culture, and what it's like living in Indonesia. I found the conversation fascinating and really enjoyed learning from him.

After a drive of about an hour to an hour and a half, we reached our first stop: the Avalokitesvara Graha Temple, also known as a Guan Yin Temple. This Buddhist temple is dedicated to Guan Yin, the Goddess of Mercy and compassion, and is considered one of the largest Buddhist temples in Southeast Asia.

Our next stop for the day was the 500 Lohan Temple. Lohans are enlightened disciples of Buddha, representing wisdom, discipline, and spiritual achievement. The temple features more than 500 life-sized stone statues, each completely unique with its own face, posture, and expression, all intricately detailed. The grounds were peaceful, and wandering among the statues was both fascinating and reflective. This turned out to be one of the highlights of our day trip.

Each statue had a plaque underneath that explained the history and significance of that Lohan. The top part of this plaque reads:

Shakyamuni Buddha (the historical Buddha) traveled widely, teaching and spreading the Dharma (Buddhist teachings) in many places.

During the Han Dynasty in China, it is said that envoys were sent westward, and from India came Buddhist monks. A temple called the White Horse Temple was established.

The translation of scriptures such as the "Forty-Two Chapter Sutra" marked the beginning of the spread of Buddhism into China.

From there, we took a small boat out to Penyengat Island, a compact but historically rich destination. The island was once the royal seat of the Riau‑Lingga Sultanate, a powerful Malay kingdom that played an important role in the region's political, religious, and cultural history.

The boat ride was short, and once we arrived, we noticed the only vehicles on the island were motorbike trikes. Our first stop was the Penyengat Island Mosque, after which we hopped on a trike to tour the island. We visited the site of a sultan's tomb along with several royal burial grounds of Malay rulers and scholars.

Along the way, we were offered samples of freshly made deram‑deram, a traditional sweet snack. These small fried cakes resemble donuts and are made from rice flour and palm sugar. They were delicious, so I bought a freshly made pack for about 60 cents.

At one point during the day, we stopped at a supermarket. The ship had recently added a couple of microwave ovens for residents to use, so we went in search of microwave popcorn. No luck. I don't think the store staff quite understood what we were asking for.

Our final stop of the day was a place called "Blue Lake." Unfortunately, it turned out to be a bit of a tourist trap. The site was an old limestone quarry that had filled with water, and they offered boat rides, horse rides, ATV rentals, and various photo opportunities. While the entrance fee was only about $3 USD, it didn't feel worth the visit, not even for photos.

After such a long day, I was exhausted and more than ready to get back to the ship for dinner. For the final two days in port, I stayed onboard to rest and recharge. The heat and humidity had really taken a toll on me. Besides, it was time to start writing this blog.

Next, we have two days at sea before arriving at our next destination, Tioman Island in Malaysia. I'm not sure what I'll do there yet, but I'm certain it will be another interesting stop.