“Asian Review 022” ― Singapore part 8
The Marina Bay Sands and the F1 Grand-prix
“Marina Bay Sands” has become synonymous with Singapore. It is the well-known five-star hotel with three towers which has a huge ship-shaped rooftop.
As many are aware, on the top of this 200m, 57 storey ship-shaped roof there is a huge swimming pool designed as the “infinity pool”. This pool is designed to have the water flow over its edge to produce a breathtaking visual effect of boundless water. It offers a magnificent ocean view over the Garden by the Bay, which is a scenery I like. The city view on the opposite side of the building is also worth looking at. The authentic casino operated by the Las Vegas-based Sands Inc. is attracting travelers from all over the world. Singapore also has a casino in Sentosa Island, and it seems that the prevention of gambling addiction was considered before its opening. This is quite similar to the situation in Japan. As a result, the locals need to pay an admission fee of approximately 8,000-yen, while foreigners can enter for free.
Speaking about Singapore, we cannot go on without covering the Grand Prix. The Grand Prix is a spectacular night race which is the first round of the F1 GP Asian series that is held in September. The race is run on the closed public streets of Marina Bay at night. In 2014, I had a chance to enjoy the brilliant course between the picturesque urban scenery and waterscape. This event which had begun in 2008 is famous for being a race that never rained.
Basically, Singapore belongs to the tropical monsoon climate with hot and humid weather throughout the year. Its rainy season is between October and March.They usually have squall during the day time, and it is said to not rain as much at night. The race is held in September during the dry season, so it is unlikely to be in wet condition.
However, I was surprised to hear that for 50 years, Singapore has never experienced rain on the National Day since the foundation. There are also rumors that during country events such as the F1 or the National Day, they shoot rain clogging rockets to scatter the rain clouds.
However, in 2017, the F1 GP was held on a rainy night. I suppose the rain clouds were too thick that it could not be erased by the rockets.
