Location: Gardens by the Bay, Singapore (1° 16′ 56.89″ N, 103° 51′ 42.6″ E)
Date: 10 September 2012; 1.05 pm
Camera: Canon 500D with Sigma 17-70/f2.8-4.5
Singapore is continuously re-inventing itself for economic reasons. The country do not have any natural resources and its main niche is its physical location, being in the middle of important marine passageway. It has capitalized on that and branch out to promote itself successfully as the bridge or gateway between the East and West as well as first-mover in moving up the value chain in manufacturing. With other Asian countries catching up, it is tough for Singapore to stay on top, from a manufacturing perspective. As such the country has diversified itself into being a premium service provider as well as a premium destination. this despite its absolute lack of natural beauty- it creates landmarks and attractions.
One of the latest is the Gardens by the Bay, which sits on reclaimed land in the central of Singapore. The Gardens fit into the government’s attempt to differentiate itself as a “Garden City”, which it has been very successful in promoting- many tourists were absolutely impressed with the trees and gardens on the way from the airport to the city. Gardens by the Bay consists of a few conservatories- enclosed gardens within a huge glasshouse-like structure and a few Supertrees- tree-like structures that dominates the Gardens’ landscape. These supertrees ranges in height from 25m to 50m and are both vertical gardens as well as dining venues. The supertrees had very quickly became the latest Singapore icons.