Taobao is popularly known for cheap stuff purchased direct from China. On a regular boring day on the internet, I headed over to Taobao to see what’s available to waste my money on. Searching around, I bought some strangely familiar train and bus models at an almost 85% discount as compared to buying it directly from a certain state of fun.
Sentosa Development Corporation Volvo B7RLE Bus Model
Orange Bubbles Volvo B7RLE Bus Model
I purchased an orange bus in a white box from Taobao which is reminiscent of a certain internal shuttle bus on a sunny island set in the sea.
The orange Volvo B7RLE comes with white bubbles reminiscent of a previous livery of sorts.
The front part of the bus was a bit disappointing though, with smudged black paint as if the bus had a hard time turning at tight curves
Unlike the real deal at S$19.90, the bus windows are clear of any stickers, offering the tiny passengers a good view when travelling around the sunny island.
Sentosa Express Hitachi Small-Type Monorail Train Model (Blue)
Guangzhou – Shenzhen Monorail (Guangshen Monorail) Train Model
广深单轨铁路
Also available online is a strangely familiar Hitachi Small-Type Monorail train model in a blue livery. On closer look, of course it was the Guangzhou – Shenzhen Monorail, how could I have not known?
My Guangzhou – Shenzhen Monorail in front of some other train heading towards Beach Station.
The Guangzhou – Shenzhen Monorail comes with outlines of the destination city’s attractions, including Shenzhen’s Shun Hing Square (Diwang Building) and Shenzhen Stadium, and Guangzhou’s Canton Tower and CITIC Plaza.
Sentosa Express Hitachi Small-Type Monorail Train Model (Orange)
Beijing – Shanghai Monorail (Jinghu Monorail) Train Model
京沪单轨铁路
From the same seller, I bought another orange monorail which is more of Sentosa’s corporate colours, but of course, how could I have not known that it was the Beijing – Shanghai Monorail (Jinghu Monorail) instead.
The Beijing – Shanghai Monorail comes with outlines of the destination city’s attractions, including Beijing’s Tiananmen Square, Great Wall of China, and Beijing National Stadium, and Shanghai’s Oriental Pearl Tower, Shanghai Stadium, and Shanghai World Financial Center.
Buying Knockoff Sentosa Monorail And Bus Models From Taobao
My Sentosa Orange Bubbles Volvo B8RLE Bus Model costs just CNY21.90 (~S$4.38) before shipping, as compared with S$19.90 from Singapore Cable Car Gift Shops and FUN Shops on Sentosa Island – almost a 75-80% discount. Cheap, but the irregularities and quality of the bus model also was really cheap.
On the other hand, the Sentosa Express Guangshen Monorail and Jinghu Monorail costs CNY23.00 (~S$4.60) before shipping, and the quality of the prints on the die-cast model was of pretty high standard and graphics were off good quality, almost as if it was really a thing. However, at an average speed of 40km/h on such a resort monorail, I don’t think I want to spend 35 hours to travel from Beijing to Shanghai on the Jinghu Monorail.
Interested in getting some knockoff Sentosa souvenirs for yourself? Here are the Taobao links where I bought my monorail and bus models from:
- Buy Orange Bubbles Volvo B8RLE Bus Model here!
- Buy Guangzhou – Shenzhen Monorail (Guangshen Monorail) Train Model here!
- Buy Beijing – Shanghai Monorail (Jinghu Monorail) Train Model here!