Doing what we like to do best... Taking family photos whilst waiting for Choo Choo to pick us up.
Our attempt at taking a family photo by ourselves. It was very hot and so we all decided to gear up with jungle hats.
My darlings who bring me lots of joy.
My little chubby one whom I adore to bits!
When we arrived at the Naval Base, we saw that it was really packed with people. It was unbelievably hot and there were just throngs of people everywhere and lots of open umbrellas.
Grace carrying Sophia, looking very enthusiastic when we first arrived.
The heat hadn't hit her yet.
Choo Choo who was Caleb's babysitter for the whole afternoon.
I think Caleb really zapped out all his energies at the end of the outing.
The Navy had prepared lots of programs to entertain us and the one that we started out for was this showcase of the Navy's capabilities in the event of a terrorist attack.
The building with "Ocean Tug One" had 2 or 3 guys up there. It was an enactment of a fight between a terrorist holding on to a hostage and a soldier. We were blocked by lots of people and umbrellas so that's the best that we could see.
This was followed by a scene of navy guys on speedboats confronting the terrorists in the sea and opening fire at them.
Needless to say, it ended with the Navy guys subduing the terrorists.
The huge crowd fighting with us for a place to watch this.
Caleb had to sit on Choo Choo's shoulders to catch a glimpse of it all.
The heat was too unbearable for me and the girls and we just hid under the shade.
See how hot and unhappy Sarah looks even when we're under the shade!
After the "show", we headed for our first battleship tour. It was very crowded and there were long queues everywhere. See the string of people with umbrellas open? That's the queue to get onto the ship tour.
On average, we had to queue for 30-45min.
Caleb posing in front of one of the battleships.
Finally, it was our turn to tour the ship.
ChooChoo posing with the kids just before entering the start of our tour.
We did 2 ship tours and they had about 6-9 decks (I think...). Generally the ships look about the same (at least they did to me!) From what I remember of it, we had to climb lots of very steep narrow stairs. They actually station a couple of navy personnel there to make sure we don't trip and fall. The one below is one of the stairs that's easier to climb. The other stairs within the ship are slightly more challenging.
There's also lots of narrow passageways on board the ship, like the photo below. I guarantee you, if you suffer from claustrophobia, you will NOT be able to survive on a ship like that! According to Choo Choo, sometimes they have to sail for months in these ships.
The kids posing in front of the torpedoes on board the ship
Posing with a mockup of a soldier in a fire fighting suit
One of our favourite places of the ship - the place where the captain sits!
Because, that's where they've got aircon! Caleb and Sarah are seating on the captain's chair.
Caleb's pretending to look very serious and stern coz that's how he thinks the captain of the ship should look like.
The many complicated controls and screens used to control and maneuver the ship.
There were Navy personnel stationed all over the ship and some of them were quite friendly and tried to talk to Caleb and Sarah, but my girl was very shy. The officer below was the lucky one whom my kids were willing to take a photo with.
The place where they have R&R
Choo Choo's "clinic" on board the ship
Another attempt at a family photo when Sophia woke up from her nap.
By the time we were done with our tours, it was evening and the place was closing soon.
The Navy officers looking relaxed and preparing to call it a day.
Here's the other exhibits that we managed to catch before leaving.
They had paddle boats for kids but unfortunately we found it too late so the kids didn't get a chance to try this out.
This is the Navy's version of the Duck Tour. This boat is the same type of warcraft used by the Duck Tour and this got to be the hottest attraction at the openhouse. Average waiting time - one and a half hours. We didn't have that much time so we gave this a miss.
Caleb did get to try out maneuvering a remote control boat. There was a model of the Spore map with miniature landmarks and the kids' job was to try to get their boats to go round the island.
The mini Spore Flyer
Caleb trying his hand at the remote control boats with his babysitter of the day.
And he got to pose beside this armed Navy officer
All in all, the experience was not too bad. There were a lot of things for the family to do and see, and we had fun. If we have special excess to drive right in again, I think we'll bring the kids next year. But if we have got to squeeze with the crowd and queue for hours to get onto the chartered buses, I think we might wait a few more years before we consider bringing the kids again.
