I flew from Jakarta to Singapore because Ash were playing a special concert celebrating 30 years of 1977, and Jakarta wasn't on the tour schedule. So, naturally, I booked a flight, found somewhere to sleep, and built a four-day Singapore trip around one concert.
The concert was on Monday, 21 September 2026. I arrived on Saturday, which gave me two days to pretend I was on a normal holiday before the real reason for the trip arrived.
I stayed at Hive@Bugis, a capsule hotel in Bugis. The host was friendly and kind, and we often ended up having lively conversations. It was also a good base for getting around. Singapore has that slightly ridiculous quality where everything seems close, and the public transport is so reliable that getting from one part of the city to another rarely feels like a project.
So, Ash first. Singapore second. Sort of.
Day 1: Chinatown, Fort Canning, and Too Many Lights
I landed at Changi at 12:00 PM on Saturday, 19 September.
After getting settled, I headed to Chinatown. I had a delicious bowl of noodles at a hawker centre, looked at the murals, and wandered between the interesting old buildings.
I wasn't trying to pack every possible attraction into the first afternoon, but Singapore makes it dangerously easy to keep adding things to the list.
Fort Canning Park was one stop away on the Downtown Line, so I went there next. It's a quiet hilltop in the middle of the city, with the Tree Tunnel, old gravestones, and the former seat of 14th-century Malay kings.
Also, it's free, which is always a nice feature in a place.
While I was there, I saw an announcement for an Eko Nugroho exhibition at STPI. I made a mental note. That note would come in handy later.
Later, I made my way to Marina Bay around sunset. Merlion, Helix Bridge, Marina Bay Sands. The standard Singapore lineup, basically.
Then came the Mid-Autumn Festival at Gardens by the Bay. It ran from 12 to 27 September, 6 to 10pm, with lantern installations, lit-up Supertrees, and food stalls at the Supertree Grove marketplace. Entry was free.
I'd been in Singapore for less than a day and had already done quite a lot.
The concert was still two days away.
Day 2: Gardens, Otters, and Kampong Glam
Sunday started early.
I went to the Singapore Botanic Gardens in the morning. It's UNESCO-listed, free to enter, and opens at 5am, which is basically an invitation for people who enjoy being awake earlier than they need to be.
Inside the gardens, I visited the National Orchid Garden, which is ticketed.
After that, I took the Circle Line straight to Bishan–Ang Mo Kio Park. The plan was simple: look for the famous Bishan otter family.
The important word here is look.
Wild otter sightings are never guaranteed, and I wasn't going to pretend I'd had a wildlife encounter if I hadn't.
And yep, I hadn't.
In the evening, I headed to Kampong Glam. I walked around Sultan Mosque and its golden dome, then along Arab Street with its textile shops. There were murals all over the area, and Haji Lane had its narrow street, independent boutiques, and small cafés.
I had a few beers in the neighbourhood. Surprisingly, it reminded me a lot of the Wirobrajan area in Yogyakarta.
It was another fairly full day, but I had a very good reason to keep Monday light.
Ash were playing the next night.
Day 3: The Day I Actually Came For
Monday, 21 September. Concert day.
I deliberately kept the day light. There was no point exhausting myself before the thing I'd travelled to Singapore for.
The original plan was a morning in Little India. Instead, I remembered the announcement I'd seen at Fort Canning and went to Eko Nugroho's exhibition at STPI.
Then I went back to the hotel to rest.
By around 5pm, though, I was already heading to the venue: Foochow Building, at 21 Tyrwhitt Road in Kallang. It's a short trip from Bugis, or a 7–10 minute walk from Farrer Park, Jalan Besar, or Lavender MRT.
I went early because, well, I was there for Ash. Why sit around at the hotel when I could be at the venue?
And then something completely unexpected happened.
I met Ash in person!
I was just hanging around the building, looking for a toilet and wondering why so many people were smoking outside. Wasn't that forbidden here? I don't know. While my mind was wandering, Ash suddenly walked out of the building. They'd just finished their soundcheck. Of course I stopped them for a photo and a quick chat!
After flying from Jakarta because they weren't playing Jakarta, after building an entire four-day trip around this concert, I somehow ended up meeting the band before the show.
That was probably the moment the whole trip stopped feeling like a slightly ridiculous plan and started feeling very real.
And then, finally, it was time for the show.
The concert was as good as it could possibly be. They played the whole of 1977, plus some of their later hits. I was completely immersed. I didn't take my phone out to record a single second.
I went there as a fan, not as a travel writer ticking off another attraction. The rest of the trip was built around this night.
And somehow, I got to meet the band too.
Day 4: One Last Stop Before Changi
Tuesday, 22 September was checkout day.
I checked out at 11:00 AM, but my flight wasn't until later. I had to be at Changi by 9:00 PM, which left plenty of time for one final stop.
So I went to Changi early. Sort of.
Jewel Changi was the last stop of the trip. I went to see the HSBC Rain Vortex, the world's tallest indoor waterfall at about 40 metres, and the Forest Valley around it.
It's a slightly funny way to end a trip. After days of walking around Chinatown, Fort Canning, the Botanic Gardens, STPI, and Kampong Glam, I finished at the airport, staring at a giant indoor waterfall.
By then, the trip had become a mix of two things: seeing Ash, and finding out how much of Singapore I could squeeze into the spaces around the concert.
Four days. Three nights. One concert.
And a flight, because Jakarta wasn't on the tour schedule.
Honestly, I'll take that excuse.
N.B. Oh, I used Claude to plan this itinerary. Haha. A pretty good use of AI, isn't it? Here's the itinerary: https://claude.ai/public/artifacts/a68de73d-8c3f-459d-9cc2-0cdd892b33f9