CNY Day 2: A visit to Istana

Having spent most of my CNY days slacking and watching endless "Ghost Adventures" episodes during previous years, there's a special twist to my CNY this year!

Yes - That's the visit to Istana,  the official residence and office of the President of Singapore.

I never thought that I would have the opportunity to tour the area, so it was a rare one!
(Come on, it's not an everyday thing that one gets to enter the Istana!)

Of course, many of the areas in the Istana are still kept at bay.

Here's one of the photos I posted on Facebook - somehow a summary of my trip:
(I even wore a "I LOVE SG" shirt - actually a couple tee- to Istana. So patriotic and so me! LOL)

Some of my friends have mistaken that it requires money for the admission. NO, no and NO - Admission to Istana is FREE. The $2 ticket shown in my photo above was just the admission to one of the buildings in the Istana, which was optional. (It was stated publicly that the money from ticket sales would be donated to charity though)

The building would entitle one to have a rare glimpse of some of the few precious gifts given by other countries to the President of Singapore, which includes golden vases, silver high-class looking figurines, etc.

Unfortunately, photo-taking was a big no-no in the building and I was not able to capture any despite my hands itching to do so!!! GRRR.

Security guards were stationed at every corner so we could only retain the memories in our brains.

Oh well.

I did not want to leave the Istana empty-handed, and ended up with the purchase of 2 Istana mugs (Lucky us, those were the LAST 2- so we bought them off as couple mugs. Lol)

Blurry pic, but that'll do.

For those of you who are interested in visiting the Istana, do take note of the few Open House dates!

The Istana grounds is open to the public in celebration of Chinese New Year; Deepavali; Hari Raya Puasa; Labour Day; and National Day. The Istana Open House is scheduled to be held on the following dates in 2015:

1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

Chinese New Year (2nd Day) Labour Day (Actual Day) Hari Raya Puasa (Actual Day) National Day (Sunday before) Deepavali (Actual Day)

-          20 February 2015 (Friday) -          1 May 2015 (Friday) -          17 July 2015 (Friday) -          2 August 2015 (Sunday) -          10 November 2015 (Tuesday) [TBC]

 For more information, you may visit their official website at (If you are a Singaporean, admission is entirely FREE!):
http://www.istana.gov.sg/the-istana/open-house

Honestly, there is nothing fanciful but will be a great experience for all. :)