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As the sun set, we strolled over to Raffles to walk off our meal. Named after Sir Thomas Stamford, Raffles is a five-star colonial hotel built in the late 1800's. It was the meeting place for Singapore's elite and is now a must do for anyone visiting the city. The old landmark is still striking in its grandiose glory even if somewhat misplaced in the middle of the booming orderly Asian metropolis. We meandered through landscaped gardens with thousands of tropical flowers and fronds. Huge windows and elegant white columns lined our approach to the Long Bar. We relaxed in the sumptuous ratan couches, shucked peanuts, and gazed around at history. As we sipped our mass-produced Singapore Sling, Will puffed on a cigar and in a heavy British accent recounted fanciful adventures in the jungle.

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After all this veggie fare, Will needed some real meat. His favorite place was a Hawker Center located near our hotel. In our four days in Singapore, we ate lunch there three times. Hawker Centers, found throughout the city, are open-air covered areas where numerous food vendors serve lunch to the ravenous workers pouring out of Singapore's office blocks. They look like converted parking lots, but instead of cars they are chock full of tables, people and food stalls. Always a family affair, dad makes the food, mom takes the order and the money, grandma serves the rice, and grandpa clears the table. You sit on circular stools bolted around cement circular tables. Seats are a hot commodity, you sit next to complete strangers at any table with free space.

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In our Hawker Center of choice, no less than 40 vendors offered up specialties: fried noodles, freshly pureed fruit juices, Malay nasi goreng (fried rice), Indian kebabs, Muslim dishes, Indonesian sate, grass jelly drinks, pig organ soup. You name it, it was available. The 'Economical Rice' stands were my favorites. The corny name does not do the smorgasbord justice. About twenty homestyle Chinese dishes were crammed together on a single food stall. As I stepped up I would scan the offerings looking for the best non-meat dishes available. The server would grab a plate of rice and I would quickly point at three dishes: fried tofu and bean sprouts, eggplant and chilies, and mixed vegetables. He would heap bountiful servings over my rice. Typically the price was the equivalent of 2 US dollars. Another tasty stall sold Kway Teau. Thick rice noodles were stir fried with egg, ginger, spinach, scallions and a spicy chili soy sauce.

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Will, on the other hand, went straight for the nasi ayam, or chicken rice. This dish, as simple as its name, is a staple of Malay cuisine and of Chinese Hokkien decent. It is comprised of rice cooked in chicken broth, served with a large portion of steamed or roasted chicken. A soy-based sauce is drizzled over the meat, served with a piquant homemade chili sauce, and garnished with julienned cucumber.

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A bowl of a light chicken broth accompanies the meal. It is simple but delicious. Over the course of several visits to his favorite stall, Will tried a couple of variations: steamed with a light soy-based sauce, and roasted with garlic.

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For desert we would choose one of the juice concoctions served by the fruit vendors. One day it was pineapple, banana and papaya. Another day I slurped up a grassy fresh and sweet star fruit juice. Served in giant soda fountain glasses it was like sipping a fresh fruity paradise.

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On Orchard Road, Singapore's main shopping thoroughfare, Gucci, Tiffanys and Chanel vie for space with Hard Rock, McDonalds, Starbucks, and thousands of other retailers. The Singaporean Kopitiam is a new chain whose foodcourts try to replicate the hawker fare. Though much brighter and cleaner, the result is a bland attempt. The hustle and bustle is missing; the food is more expensive and less tasty. Even the juices, smaller, stale and watery, are sorry attempts.

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Although Singapore, on the surface, is like any other developed city around the globe - with its marginalized chain restaurants and big-name merchants, at its heart it is something much more alive. The historical forces that brought all the disparate ethnic groups together on this one, relatively tiny island, create a peaceful cultural melange. Almost like an amusement park, or Las Vegas, where you can visit several countries in one day, Singapore lays the history and cultures of Asia out for the keen eye to see. If experiencing the food, as Will asserts, is the best way of sampling the culture of a place, then Singapore is truly the melting pot of South East Asia.