Where Have U-Bin? ft. Gregory

Hi All!

I might be starting a new series on Wan's Ubin Journal called "Where Have U-Bin?" where I feature some of our foreign (and maybe local) friends who have stepped foot on Pulau Ubin and were also amazed as to what our island had to offer. For our first post in the series, let me introduce you to Gregory!

Say hi to Gregory! Photo courtesy of Gregory @travelingeevee

I have had the wonderful pleasure of crossing paths with Gregory (@travelingeevee) when I was scrolling through Instagram and even featured his posts on Wan's Ubin Journal's "Ubin Also Instagrammable" series. You may take a look at his awesome photos right here!

We have recently kept in touch since the feature and I even found out that not only did he post his pictures of Ubin on his Instagram, he also created a vlog of that very trip as well! He was more than willing and happy to share the link of his vlog with me and I was more than thrilled to watch it.

In the vlog, he shares his adventure and experience while travelling around Pulau Ubin in one of his more recent trips overseas in Singapore. He shares his thoughts on the beauty of the island; highlighting the nature, residents and the kampong spirit. I hope you would enjoy his 11-minute stunning video as much as I did!

Source: TravelingEevee's YouTube

I thought to myself how cool it must have been for Gregory, having to spend his vacation taking a trip down to Pulau Ubin instead of the other bustling and typical tourist attractions around Singapore like Marina Bay or Sentosa. Yet again, I found it to be completely spectacular that Pulau Ubin was not only frequented by people like Gregory, but also documented as well for all to see!

After watching the video, I asked if he was fine if I did a quick interview with him and he was totally cool with it. Below are Gregory's Ubin reflections!

1. What's your name, age and nationality?

" My name is Gregory (@travellingeevee on social media) and I am 15 years old. I have dual French and British nationality, however I have recently moved to Spain, so I'm currently living in Alicante City."

2. What drew you to come to Singapore and was this your first time here?

"I had already been to Asia twice previously before my trip to Singapore (Japan and Korea) which I really loved! However, my mum had never been anywhere in Asia, so I guess I just really wanted to show her this part of the world. My mum can't really do too adventurous travel, so I was looking for a city trip option which was when I eventually thought of Singapore and after showing my mum some pictures, she insisted on going.

It was both our first times in Singapore and I was personally quite drawn by the multicultural nature of the place."

3. How did you know about Pulau Ubin?

"I'm pretty sure I found out about Ubin while googling for day trips from Singapore city, since I wanted to get out of the bustling city for a bit to experience something more "authentic". I wanted to experience as many sides of Southeast Asia as possible in the little time I was there for."

4. Why did you come to Pulau Ubin instead of the bustling city?

"The truth is that I had already spent quite a while in the bustling city of Singapore which was really cool, however I wanted to get away and see something different for a bit. Although Singapore city is really cool, I find that cities are cities wherever you go in the world, however, it's when you're in a more rural area that you can really see what differentiates a place from other places and what makes it so special or unique.

I also find that going somewhere off the beaten track can lead to a more friendly experience and you can see a side to Singapore that not as many tourists have which is simply quite cool."

5. What did you love most about Pulau Ubin?

"There are so many cool things as about Ubin to be honest. It is beautiful and natural; it feels almost like a world of itself. Unlike other natural zones of Singapore that I've seen, it doesn't feel like it's man controlling the nature at all, but more like man is simply living according to this nature, which is quite rare in this modern world.

Also there seems to be such a nice sense of community on Pulau Ubin, but also openness, quite a few people came up to me to chat and simply be friendly while I was on Ubin which was simply really nice. It does feel like it's a door to Singapore's past to some extent, but more than that it feels like a door into a part of Singapore that isn't found as obviously in Singapore city, despite still existing now.

The interesting thing for me was that while imagining that the main island of Singapore at some point was full of kampongs and this kind of lifestyle, I feel like it's helped me get some parts of Singapore in general today. When I first got to Singapore city, my very first thought was everyone was so friendly and people seemed so open to me; this could be a leftover of Singapore's precious way of life in the modern world as well as Singapore's multicultural nature too."

6. What would you take away from your visit to Pulau Ubin?

"The main thing that I take away from having explored Ubin is that Singapore is really diverse; it's not just a big city like everyone thinks. It is quite cool that there is so much in such a small area. It also taught me how interesting Singapore is in general and got me more curious about the place as well as making me appreciate nature more and the natural diversity of the world since I'd never been to place so exotic so it kind of like "wow plants and greenery like these actually exists! Nature is cool!" haha"

7. Do you have any words for those seeking to travel to Singapore?

"Just come, you will like it! Whatever you're looking for, you'll find something in Singapore. I'm sure you'll have a good time. If you're like me and you have an interest in foreign cultures and ways of life, I would really recommend going off the beaten track though since Singapore has come fascinating gems (such as Pulau Ubin, but also simply more local temples and markets on the main island."

8. Would you come back to Ubin for your next trip here if any?

"I definitely would love to if I had the time! There are still some things that I haven't seen on the island and it's a great way to spend the day, however if I were in Singapore for a more limited time I might want to look for more secret gems to this place as I'm sure there are many."

Thank you so much Gregory for spending your time here in Singapore, even more so by going away from the typical tourist attractions of the bustling city and right here into the natural wonder that is Pulau Ubin! I wish you the best and hope that you would tell your friends over in Europe and even around the world to spend their next vacation right here in our island!

Be sure to follow Gregory on social media as he captures amazing photos and documents his trips around the world!

Instagram: @travelingeevee

YouTube: TravelingEevee

Who says there's nothing Instagrammable on Ubin? Take a look at what these awesome people took when they headed down to the island over in my "Ubin Also Instagrammable" series!