SINGAPORE - What goes on behind the scenes of an overseas ministerial visit? Plenty of hard work and planning that begin way before the trip is even made.

The Singapore Embassy in Berlin, in a Facebook post on Sunday (July 16), shared snippets of the effort and preparation that went into Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong's working trip to Germany earlier this month.

Work began three weeks before PM Lee's visit, with officers from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Berlin embassy involved in the planning.

Civil servants accompanying PM Lee, who attended the G-20 summit in Hamburg, also clocked long hours preparing his programme for the following day.

From updating PM Lee on his schedule to playing tour guide, they worked tirelessly to ensure everything ran smoothly.

The post also revealed that PM Lee makes it a point to have an informal meal with younger members of his delegation during overseas visits.