Location c/o Orchard Hotel Singapore | Photos by Warren Tey and Martin Hong
People underestimate the positive effect a well timed staycation can have on you. There was a particularly painful week last month with mid terms and deadlines all crammed together (read: university cram week) and we decided to do our final year’s hell week in style: upgrading from overnighting in Starbucks to overnighting in a hotel room.
Orchard Hotel was where I had my very first prom back in 2008, so returning felt kind of nostalgic, like I was reliving a bit of the harried glamor from that night. OHS very generously offered us a premium room with club lounge access for all our studying caffeinated needs, and boy oh boy it was a long night – but arguably one of the most comfortable cram sessions I’ve ever had.
Cookies and gummies from the club lounge delivered to our room
The thing about OHS is, they’re located right on the fringe of town and a short walk from the train station (nearest MRT station: Orchard Road), but not so smack in the center of Orchard that everything becomes inflated price wise. Right across the hotel there’s a 24 hour macdonalds, and in the vicinity there’s a Starbucks and Coffee Bean, if you’re thinking of popping out for a shot. And while the hotel itself has fantastic dining options, if you’re up late and want to explore a little, there’s the famous Jane Thai down at Orchard Towers open till 4am, which some have ventured to call the best thai eatery in Singapore. Our initial plan was to cram till 2/3am then grab some Thai takeout, but it never happened because we were so full from the insane dinner buffet at the Orchard Cafe:
The sashimi in particular was mouthwatering, something I didn’t expect from a non-japanese specific buffet spread. And even though we realized that it was due to our being invited down, we were impressively well taken care of. From the moment we walked in to take a seat to the time we finished our meal, the restaurant manager and chefs came up to us to greet us and describe the menu to us – we felt like very undeserving VIPS, given how we were basically there to cram.
Post dinner happy hour in the club lounge, where they serve cocktails from 6-8pm and screen soccer all evening.
Imagine this: intermittently napping while revising for midterms, then waking up in the laziest way possible – in a flurry of white down quilts and pillows with gentle sunlight streaming in. It was glorious.
The burning question is: how effective is studying in a hotel room, really?
I was up most of the night revising and practicing for my BTT – yes, i know, late to the party – and I passed a day after check out, so I’d say the cram session fulfilled its purpose for me. But more than that – it was a supremely well timed break in a period where stress levels are normally flying high. And there’s just something about waking up in a hotel room that puts you in a good mood for the rest of the week, no?
Thank you for having us, Orchard Hotel!
x
♥jem