Singapore is known for its heavy fines for any number of minor offenses, and for its high residents-to-shopping-destinations ratio, and for its endless variety of foods. It all seemed to be true on my four-day visit this past weekend, especially the food part. I ate so much and so well in Singapore, and I think almost every single thing was something I’d never eaten before.

My culinary guides in this adventure were native Singaporeans I’d hosted separately through Couchsurfing back in Chicago. They were eager to explain how things were made, and the different combinations you can make in different dishes, and which dishes are their favorites. This is the way to see Singapore!

Here are some pictures of What I Ate, and my best guess on remembering what they’re called:

Tea with milk; kaya spread on bread; soft-boiled egg carefully cracked over saucer containing some of the hot water from making the tea, with soy sauce and pepper

Slurping my egg as instructed–although then my friend ate hers with a spoon!

Delicious potato cake, not quite like a samosa, a different kind of dense

Egg tart, especially popular at the Chinese New Year

Duck and brown rice, soup, braised peanuts, and eggs

Beef noodle soup with cilantro

Delightful drinks: soursop, sugarcane, and water chestnut

Eating all the Chinese New Year snacks like a good guest–prawn crackers, bak kwa (pork jerky, so good), pineapple tarts, and much more

Soup, noodles, preserved sausage, meatballs and mince, fish balls, veggies

Sea cucumber, two kinds of chicken, broccoli

Not pictured: the durian cream puff I ate (tasted kind of like onions), the Singapore Sling I drank (yum), and various other tasty things