On the world tallest Ferris wheel- the Singapore Flyer

Went to the Singapore Flyer not because we have nowhere better to spend that S$29.50, but because we have a free tickets from the New Paper Big Walk 2010. =) And that's the original intention of participating in that Big Walk.
Standing at 165m, it is currently the world tallest Ferris wheel, for now. It will soon be surpased by the 208m Beijing Great Wheel scheduled for opening in 2010.

To take a ride in the Singapore Flyer is like taking a flight. The whole architecture (though badly designed) mimics the experience of taking a flight from the airport. From the signs hanging from the ceiling, to the Jet-bridge like walkway to the wheel.
Not too sure if it is because it is a weekday, the number of visitors is not as many as I thought for a tourist spot, though presentable by Singapore standard. Thou shalt not compare thee to the London Eye.

Anyway, for a first-timer it was a pleasant experience.
I have not been to the Eye on Malaysia, and No, I have not ridden the London Eye. The snaking queue in the day and even at night fight off my desire to ride the London Eye.
The queue for the Singapore Flyer was just nice. Not too short, such that I can take time to snap a few pictures of its exterior n surroundings, and not too long til the boredom dominates over the excitement of taking the Flyer.
They have nice 'steward' and 'stewardess' n a nice bluish lit 'cabin' in the gondola.
And from the moment we got on, our cameras didn't stop snapping.
Over the 30-min flight, we have the Marina Barrage, the Marina Bay, and Downtown Suntec and Bugis area as the backdrop for our group photos.

The view of the Marina Bay is always blocked by the gondola in front.
Until... Our gondola reaches its peak at the turn of the wheel.
And that's what all of us have been waiting for... the whole bird's eye view of the skyline of Singapore's CBD and the Marina Bay Sands.
After taking the Singapore Flyer, I seriously think the landscape of the surroundings can be better designed.. like have a few places where people can take picture using the Flyer as the background. and maybe have a few more shops or stalls that can engage the visitors after their rides... Now the Flyer is just a standalone Ferris wheel, there is nothing else to enhance the experience...

If you ask me if I would recommend it to my friends, I would say 'Nar... your S$29.50 can be better spend else where.."

and I just know that, like the Internet, the Ferris wheel should be written with a big letter 'F'. The original Ferris Wheel was designed and constructed by George Washington Gale Ferris, Jr. as a landmark for the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago. And later the term Ferris wheel came to be used generically for all such structures.

A comparison of the tallest Ferris Wheels in the world.