Sentosa Island is a spectacular place by all accounts. Today, it is a major tourist attraction, serving the people of Singapore, and guests from all over the world, drawn by its golf courses, fabulous water parks, Universal Studios, and the incredible luxury hotels on Sentosa Island . It’s been a big tourist attraction since 1970, but before that, it has a very colorful history. Its position was perfect for protecting Singapore, and it was therefore used as a military outpost during the Second World War.

The fighting forces from India and Nepal known as the Gurkhas have a particularly vivid reputation in the world, and any boy interested in soldiers has certainly come across their name. The reputation does precede them, and their courage and skill is rather famous. Their history is even more remarkable. Their participation in aiding the causes of the British crown goes back two centuries, but there’s something about their status that suggests a value system that goes back much further.

Some of the stories of their service suggest an obligation to the crown, and at times speaks to a history of colonial strategies of domination. However, with the Gurkhas, it seems that the impetus to protect and to serve their allies was absolute, speaking to a code of honor that dates back much further than British rule, and comes directly from a spirit of the Nepalese that still exists today. So much so that, in 1940, when the cause seemed all but lost, they committed their forces in acts of extreme generosity of spirit.

Their legendary status is immortalized in a cigar brand , which had been re-invented in recent years to commemorate a time when, over a century ago, the fighting forces would make their own cigars that they shared with the British troops. The fact that these forces were active here, in Sentosa Island, gives the island even more depth and complexity, and makes it well worth the visit.

When the new Johnny Depp version of Alice came out, there was a strange phenomenon in many parts of the world. Shopping malls, fast food joints, and especially movie theaters were plastered with images and covered with sculpture. This was all backwashed with the colors from the film, and it was hard not to get the sense that one was walking in Alice’s world. Or perhaps, a nearby version of the world, separated only by the looking glass preventing people from deciding to just jump in, and forget about the usual worries. What makes a hotel in Singapore so appealing, then, is that the city-state often feels like that anyway.

And all the time, too. It’s a fabulous city, where the confluence of cultures in earlier times has produced a very interesting place to call home away from home. And the confluence of cultures that come through in contemporary time don’t leave untouched, and don’t leave without making an impression on Singapore. True enough, there are still places referencing the Burton film , but there are also references here that have been around forever. Perhaps some even preceded the idea of Lewis Carroll.

Whatever the genealogy of daydreams might illuminate, it’s refreshing to see the more overt references. The Mad Hatter’s Tea Party was a great source of fun for those who follow them, and we’re still kind of wondering what happens next.

It’s an interesting saga, too, making up the band, causing even more reverberations with the wonderland idea. The couple met across the ocean, and began making music together. It’s the beginning of a very exciting adventure, and that it happens in Singapore, no less, means that there are many directions to go from here. In a port city, it’s hard to not look elsewhere, although looking inward also has its rewards.

Pattaya, Thailand is renowned throughout the world not only for it’s pristine oceans, breathtaking coastline, exotic, palm-tree lined beaches, but for its fabulous diving waters. For anyone who has taken a dive beneath the waters and waves, Pattaya’s coastal waters are teeming with aquatic life, and some of the best corals and intriguing shipwrecks.

The ‘Far Islands’ , is Pattaya’s main scuba diving areas, which are located 20 to 30 KMs from Pattaya’s coastline. The Royal Thai Navy (RTN) controls the islands, by keeping boat traffic to a minimum and making sure there are no permanent structures are being built there. ‘Far Islands’ consist of 5 islands, Koh Man Wichai, Koh Rin, Koh Hu Chang, Koh Keung Badaan and Koh Phi. Any of the Pattaya hotels you’ll be staying at will provide you with a list of diving companies who have permission to dive around the ‘Far Islands’.

While on your diving tour, you’ll get to experience many types of hard and soft corals, swim through large schools of Jacks, Tuna and even swim by Barracuda. You’ll get to see the Porcupine Pufferfish, the Moray Eels, the Blue Spotted Stingrays in their natural habitats and they are virtually every where you’ll dive.

As for shipwrecks, the HTMS Khram is located south of Koh Phi island, sits 30 meters underwater and is considered the best shipwreck for serious divers. The HTMS Khram was decommissioned by the RTN to mark His Royal Highness Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn’s 50th birthday. The sheer amount of marine life that has established themselves in this wreck will astound even the most seasoned divers. Go a little bit further to the Samae San/Sattahip area and you’ll be able to dive around the wreck of the Petchburi Bremen, which is an old freighter that is 21 meters underwater and the Hardeep, which is a cargo ship sunk down in 28 meters of water during World War II, but what’s even more amazing, is this wreck is intact and can be navigated from stern to bow completely inside.