There are indeed so many things to do in Singapore! We found out recently that one of the exciting things to do in Singapore is actually to catch a match of the Singapore Slingers at the National Indoor Stadium!
We reached the National Stadium early and caught a glimpse of the cheer leading team practicing their dance moves. Besides performing to the tunes of Jay Chou, they also did a rendition of Gangnam Style.
Cheer Leaders of the Slingers practicing before the match
Cheer Leaders of the Slingers practicing before the match
This time, we caught the match between the Singapore Slingers and the Saigon Heat. The ticket prices range from 8 to 18 dollars but there are various discounts for students, SAFRA cards and so on.
Players of the Saigon Heat arrived earlier and hit the courts to get some warm up.
Saigon Heat players warming up
Saigon Heat players warming up
Speaking of warm ups, take a look at this video that shows the teams warming up just before the match.
As it was the first time that we watched a basketball match “live”, Kate and I were pleasantly surprised to see that they do introduce the players one by one just like the NBA!
Introducing players of Singapore Slingers before the start of the match
Introducing players of Singapore Slingers before the start of the match
Jeffers and Dulay caught our eyes. Well, mainly because one is the tallest and the other the shortest. We were wondering why Dulay is in the team, since he is really short in comparison to the rest of the team. Then we realised that he’s REALLY FAST and he was in the starting 5!
The match started with the Slingers off the blocks first. However, Saigon quickly closed the gap.
Singapore Slingers in Red (Dark Pink) in the Cancer Awareness Game in support of World Cancer Day 2013
Singapore Slingers in Red (Dark Pink) in the Cancer Awareness Game in support of World Cancer Day 2013
Slingers actually pulled as far as 20 points ahead in the 3rd Quarter. However, Saigon pulled back to 4 points with 2.5 minutes to go! We were quite shocked that such a big lead could be decimated in such a short time! However, the Slingers composed themselves and finally won the game 80 to 69! Congrats Slingers!
Singapore Slingers strategising with Head Coach
Singapore Slingers strategising with Head Coach
There are a few interesting observations from the Singapore Slingers match
1. Unlike NBA, where the commercials come in when the teams calls for “time out”, the ASEAN basketball league games goes for “media time-outs” when the TV goes for commercial breaks!
2. Wei Long, a great game you’ve played! This Singaporean netted 5 out of 8 three-pointers and made the crowd go wild!
3. The commentator not only has to comment on the match, he actually changes the music for the game as well! There are 2 different music for the Slingers when they attack and when they defend much akin to NBA matches
Hear the background music of this clip showing the last 15 seconds of the first half!
4. The drinks and snacks are REALLY EXPENSIVE! $10 for a can of Carlsberg beer and $4 for a packet of potato chips!
5. Although the stadium was not full, the atmosphere was still really great! Quite shiok to see spectators shouting at the referees from the sidelines :p
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Halloween Horror Nights @ Universal Studios Singapore (Resorts World Sentosa) has got to be the best Halloween-themed event we’ve been to!
The tickets not only allow visitors to be frightened at 5 different scare zones, there are also 2 haunted houses and 4 attractions rides (including battlestar galactica Cylon/Human) to keep visitors entertained from 8pm till 12 midnight.
The prices of the tickets costs $60 each and if you pay an additional $20 dollars, you would be able to enjoy the express pass to all 4 attractions (Battlestar Galactica Cylon/Human, Accelerator and Revenge of the Mummy). If you had recently applied for Maybank credit cards, you would have also received a pair of free passes to the event.
So, the plan was, to head directly to the attractions and take a few rides before the crowd overwhelms these attractions (by the time we left, the waiting time for battlestar galactica was 90minutes). However, the catch was , you would have to be the first few to navigate through the first 3 scare zones….
Event guide to Halloween Horror Nights Universal Studios Singapore
Map of Halloween Horror Nights Universal Studios Singapore
Looking at the map, you would notice that in order to reach Battlestar Galactica, you would have to navigate through the first 3 zones – CarnEvil, Post-Apocalyptic Rage as well as the Void…
CarnEvil
Since we were very focused, Kate and I were among the first to make a beeline to Battlestar Galactica. It was scary…
Entrance to CarnEvil
Since we were the first ones to enter, the scareactors have no one but YOU to scare, they would all turn their focus on YOU! So, there are basically 2 ways to navigate pass CarnEvil
1. Act like you’re on the phone. This was taught to us by an American kid who was here the previous week. When you seem uninterested or pre-occupied with something else, the scareactors will normally let you off.
2. Stick to the sidewalks. For CarnEvil, the sidewalks are still pretty much the merchandise shops or restaurants, so they are still very safe from the actors.
So that was what we did, stuck to the sidewalks and move on. We managed to take a video of the CarnEvil Ring Master who was game enough to strike a pose for us…
The Director
Having passed CarnEvil, you would be greeted by the Director. Yes, he is the one who is on the cover of the advertisements and brochures of Halloween Horror Nights. Scary dude…
The Director @ Halloween Horror Nights Universal Studios Singapore
Kate managed to catch a picture of him looking at our camera! Spine-chilling eh? He is also constantly on the lookout for other ‘victims’ as they pass by…
Post Apocalyptic Rage
This zone is easily the scariest of all zones at Halloween Horror Nights. The scareactors are really on. Not only that, when we finally navigated past CarnEvil with a few others, everyone (about 10 of us) were too scared to enter because the fog restricted our view and we really do not know what was ahead…
But in order to enjoy Battlestar Galactica , we had to brave this zone….though we really should have let others go ahead first…take a look at how one victim was scared by an ‘undead’ scareactor…
Imagine 10 of such actors ‘attacking’ Kate and I as we navigated past them! They were all closing in on us just like in the movies! So, we literally ran! (P.s. there were no side walks here). The fog also hindered our flight and we ran into more ‘undead’ as we tried to exit this zone!
The Void
The Void is a zone where a mad scientist has created ‘freaks’ such as frankensteins with brains exposed. The 2 zones (The Void and Post-Apocalyptic Rage) were almost joined, so barely after we exited one, we entered another…and still, we were the first ones and all the scareactors came after us! Ahh!!! So we had to “ask direction” from one of the staff (they are wearing their normal black Polo-Ts) so as to seek refuge from the scareactors!
Yup, we continued running! Close to the end of the zone, we saw the mad scientist performing an experiment on his next victim…
Battlestar Galactica Cylon/Human
Finally, after fleeing and fighting monsters for 3 zones, we got to Battlestar Galactica! Yay! We were the first ones there and therefore enjoyed front seats of both rides (Human and Cylon) before the crowd came.
Battlestar Galactica is actually a roller coaster ride that launches side by side, of course one of them represents Cylon (overhanging roller coaster) and the other Human (seated rollercoaster).
Battlestar Galactica
Entrance to Cylon
Cylon. First we visited Cylon, the overhanging ride. We were able to get the front row seat as we’re the first to arrive! The ride first propels you (not climb slowly) up to the top of the first peak as you drop down free-falling down the highest point of the ride. The rest of the ride makes you feel as though your dangling legs are going to hit the structures. Another highlight of the ride were the twists and overhanging portions where you navigate several seconds of the ride inverted. The last highlight of the ride has got to be one where the ride brings you at full force towards a white platform and as you think you’re not going to hit the platform, you’re wrong! You go straight into it! The ‘white platform’ is actually a water mist section, so as you emerge, you would heave a sigh of relieve…phew…didnt crash land there…
Human. We’ve got to say that both rides are enjoyable. But the ride that has a more thrilling effect on the first and highest peak has got to be Human. This is because it’s a seated roller coaster, and as you drop, the roller coaster “drops with you” , making you feel as though your heart’s dropping as well. Unlike Cylon, the overhanging ride pulls you up as you descend so you feel a little ‘safer’. Also because you can grab hold of the overhanging safety secure that covers your chest but you cant do that for Human as it secures you from bottom up, essentially leaving you without “cover” from chest up. The other highlight has got to be a almost 90 degrees turn that made us feel the G effect as we negotiated the bend.
Conclusion: Both rides are cool! May the best species survive…
The Edge of Darkness
After leaving Battlestar Galactica, there were still few people around (must have got stuck at the first few scare zones) so we decided to go for “Revenge of the Mummy”. Guess what, we had to navigate past the scareactors at the entrance of The Edge of Darkness. There was an “undead”, werewolf lookalike and a skeletal wizard. Of course they scared us as we were the first ones there…
Entrance to Revenge of the Mummy
As we entered the ride, we had to go through a long maze for about a minute before we reached the ride. While walking, we didnt see no one and it was getting kind of scary. (Tip for USS : if there was a scareactor along the queue, it would have upped the scare effect) We were the only ones on our ride again! The ride was especially scary when there’s no one else. The ups and downs of the roller coaster was done in pitch darkness so that was somewhat enjoyable as well (not knowing what turns or drop to expect next).
Leaving the ride, we entered the last zone which was the disco arena, 44Sins.
44Sins
The entrance was guarded by scareactors and we were really deciding whether to enter. But there was a lady who offered us a promotion to have free flow of Tiger Beer (on draft) for $30 which she said would grant us the courage for the night ahead. So we took the offer which by the way came with a shot of orange vodka.
Free Flow of Beer in Halloween Horror Nights Mug that blinks!
As we entered, the skeletal guy and muscular Eyptian man scared us but really, as you enter 44Sins, it is the ‘safe zone’, the scareactors here are really dancers and it’s quite funny when you see skeletal guy and ‘undead’ rocking the dance floor. Even the DJs were in masks…
We were also in time to see a dance performance put up by the scareactors…
We missed the 2 haunted houses (Vengeance of the Matriarch and The Pestilence) because we had enough frights for the night navigating through the scarezones as the only visitors. So we chilled and danced the night away at 44Sins…
On the way out, we had huge slice of Hawaiian pizza at Louie’s. It was $9 bucks but totally worth it as the crust was fluffy, something unique from normal pizzas. Do give it a try…
All in all, Halloween Horror Nights @ Universal Studios Singapore has been an excellent event and must be one of the most happening place for the Halloween theme.
Kudos to the USS producers , choreographers and scareactors!
