It was around the time of Sunday’s sunrise under the red lightening sky that a long train snaked its way out of Tanjong Pagar Railway Station, a little more than a year and a half after the last train left the station. Sunday’s train wasn’t one that was pulled along by a locomotive of course – most of the railway tracks along the rail corridor have since been removed, but a human train of runners pulled along by a Kenyan who led from start to finish in what is the inaugural Green Corridor Run which is thought to have attracted as many as 6,000 runners. The race took runners along the rail corridor on a 10.5 km route from Tanjong Pagar to the former Bukit Railway Station – a distance which the trains would cover in about fifteen minutes. The race winner, Samson Tenai, 32, need just a little more than double that – he covered the distance in a time of 34 minutes 11 seconds.
7.09 am : Colours of sunrise.
7.14 am : A plane is seen over the container cranes against the sunrise coloured sky.
The entire rail corridor which stretches some 26 km from Tanjong Pagar to Woodlands has been the subject of much interest since the agreement to handover the land on which the Malaysian Government owned railway, Keretapi Tanah Melayu (KTM), operated a railway line, was announced in May 2010.
7.20 am : The first runners are seen already building up a lead over the chasing pack. Seen in the lead is Kenyan Samson Tenai, the eventual winner of the race who completed the 10.5 km course in about 34 minutes.
Relatively untouched by urban development for some 79 years of the rail’s operation through much of it, the corridor features large tracts of greenery. Interest groups and individuals have called for the preservation of the corridor for its heritage and potential for community use such as a running course, and as a unbroken bicycle path that takes one from the north of the island to an area close to the city with possible links to the park connector network. The Minister for National Development, Mr Khaw Boon Wan, announced plans to preserve the rail corridor in July 2011. Since then, a Rail Corridor Partnership has been formed with stakeholders from both Government Agencies, interest groups and members of the public involved. Plans are currently being formulated for future use of the rail corridor.
7.20 am : The rush of runners. Some 6000 runners are thought to have participated in the run.
7.22 am : The chasing pack makes it way past the former signal hut at Tanjong Pagar.
More information on the former Railway and the Rail Corridor:
For anyone interested in visiting Tanjong Pagar Railway Station, you will be glad to know that it will be opened for a motoring heritage exhibition this weekend (8 / 9 September 2012). Beside the vintage car display that will be put up by the Malaysia Singapore Vintage Car Register (MSVCR), there will also be a chance to take rides on vintage mini-buses and scooters as well as revisit one of the main reasons why many visited the station before its closure – food. As part of the event, there will be an exhibition along the wider theme of transportation heritage for which the National Heritage Board (NHB) which has organised this event has invited me to help put together an exhibition of photographs from the community on the railway and the station. For this, I have got a group of various people that have an interest in the railway and the station to reflect on the journeys made and the last goodbyes that were said in a small exhibition ‘First Journeys, Last Goodbyes’. The exhibition will be opened from 10 am to 5 pm on both days and there will be free shuttle buses at half hour intervals from Tanjong Pagar MRT Station through the day. For those interested in learning more about the station’s history and architecture, guided tours of the station will also be conducted on both days.
A last goodbye on 30 June 2011.
About First Journeys, Last Goodbyes
For close to five decades after Singapore’s independence, the Malaysian railway continued to operate through Singapore on a piece of Malaysia that cut a path into the heart of Singapore. It was perhaps one of the last physical reminders of the common history that the two countries shared.
The southern terminal at Tanjong Pagar Railway Station completed in 1932, was modelled after Helsinki’s Central Station to give it a grand appearance for its intended role. That role, the grand southern terminal of a pan-Asian railway and a gateway to the Pacific and Indian Oceans, was one it never got to play, serving instead as a focal point of any rail journey into or out of Singapore.
The station best remembered for the high vaulted ceiling with huge panels of batik styled mosaic murals of its main hall was one that saw many visitors over the years. That, the experience of the station, as well as the many personal journeys taken through the station would have left a deep impression.
First Journeys, Last Goodbyes brings a few travellers each with a personal story to share of their journeys, journeys on railway or through the station … journeys that will take a long time to be forgotten …
Contributors to the community photo exhibition are Zinkie Aw, Francis Siew, Loke Man Kai, Tan Geng Hui and myself.
Information received on 7 Sep 2012 on the weekend public tours of the station:
The tours will be conducted by PMB’s Volunteer Guides. No sign-ups are required for the tours. Public tours will be:
• Sat, 8 Sep: 2pm, 3pm and 4pm.
• Sun, 9 Sep: 2pm and 3pm
Standing silently and somewhat forgotten is a building that, only a year ago, attracted many people’s attention in Singapore. This building, the former Tanjong Pagar Railway Station, a magnificent architectural achievement once described as having a “palatial appearance”, recently joined Singapore’s list of National Monuments. Completed in 1932, the station was built as a centrepiece to underline Singapore’s growing importance as an economic centre in the British Far East, serving as a gateway for the southernmost point in continental Asia to the Pacific and Indian Oceans.
Located opposite the docks at Tanjong Pagar, the station was one that had been well-considered. The then Governor of Singapore, Sir Cecil Clementi, in his address at the station’s opening on 2 May 1932, had made the observation that it was “a natural junction between land-borne and sea-borne traffic” and mentioned that it was “where every facility will be afforded for interchange between railway and ocean shipping”. The promise was, however, not fulfilled – Sir Cecil could not have predicted that the railway’s importance as a means of transportation in the Malayan peninsula would diminish.
The station’s opening that day was marked by the 5.15 pm arrival, from Bukit Panjang Station, of its first train. This train carried several dignitaries, including the Governor, the Sultan of Perak and Mr J Strachan, the General Manager of the Federated Malay States Railway. Several months prior to the opening (on 2 January 1932), the station had already made its public debut – by playing host to a Manufacturers’ Exhibition – an indication perhaps of its eventual destiny.
The station’s façade with the four large triumphal figures.
My first encounters with the station took place at the end of the 1960s and early 1970s. My parents often drove past, drawn by the hawker stalls which operated in the evenings in a car-park facing the station’s entrance. It was while sitting at the tables in the car-park that I would gaze across to the station’s façade and stare at the four large, triumphal figures that flanked the portico’s arches. The figures were the work of Angelo Vannetti of the Raoul Bigazzi Studios Florence and represented the pillars of the Malayan economy. These triumphal figures are evidence of the Art Deco style chosen by its architects, Swan and MacLaren. Thought to have been inspired by Helsinki’s Central Station, it is believed the station also shares some of Washington DC’s Union Station’s design features. In fact Tanjong Pagar Station’s architectural elements reveal both western and eastern influences; the green-tiled roof structures were inspired by the roofs of Chinese Temples.
The main hall of the station. Part of the vaulted ceiling and batik-style mosaic panels can be seen.
On the rare occasions when I found myself in the main hall, the high vaulted ceiling that rises some 22 metres above the ground caught my attention, as did the six sets of mosaic panels that resemble giant batik paintings. The mosaic panels, which contain a total of 9,000 tiles, looked very much like the batik prints hanging in my home. The panels depict scenes that represent the economies of the then Federated Malay States. At that time, the station had also housed a hotel on the upper floors, around the main hall. A huge sign in the north-east corner of the hall made sure this did not go unnoticed.
It was in the 1990s that I first took a train out of the station. Seemingly in defiance of its location, a huge blue “Welcome to Malaysia” sign stood above the station’s entrance. A Points of Agreement (POA) had been signed in 1990 between the Malaysian Government and their Singapore counterparts. This was to pave the way for the eventual moving of the station from Tanjong Pagar and would involve its handover along with the land the railway ran through (whose ownership was transferred to the railway administration through a 1918 ordinance – effectively making it part of Malaysia).
Two decades of protracted negotiations followed the 1990 POA before the differences in its interpretation resulted in a renegotiation of land swap arrangements between the two governments. The moving of the station from Tanjong Pagar and the handover of land was agreed on only in May 2010.
It was perhaps at the beginning of 2011 that interest in the station and in train journeys from Tanjong Pagar started to build. The realisation that the station was soon to close drew crowds not previously seen at the station. Many turned up for a final look, to make a last departure or to have a last meal at the station, joined by a frenzy of photographers and members of both the local and overseas media, who seemed intent on recording the station’s last days.
A few former food stall operators having a last breakfast on 30 June 2011.
The final day of operations at the station, 30 June 2011, came all too soon. It was an especially poignant day for the station’s railway staff and also for the food-stall operators – some were seen having a last breakfast in the almost empty room that only days before had been filled with food-stalls and tables filled with diners. Well before the first train was to depart, a crowd had already gathered in the main hall. Many had come to witness the final moments. Some had come to start a journey that would end with a final homecoming to the station on the very last train that evening.
The crowds grew as the day passed. As night fell, many more gathered to witness the historic departure of the last train out, to be driven by the Sultan of Johor. I had come on the very last in-bound train and was prepared for the reception at the station by the scenes I had seen along the way. Huge crowds had gathered at Bukit Timah Station and at each of the five level crossings, to bid goodbye. After the train finally pulled in following a long delay at Bukit Timah, I lingered a while before stepping out onto the platform. I turned back for a final glance at the platform, realising that would be the last of my many homecomings into Tanjong Pagar.
The crowd at Tanjong Pagar late on 30 June 2011 to witness the departure of the last train.
As I stepped through the barrier, a crowd of would-be passengers heading towards the same train that had pulled in (now the last train out) almost swept me along with them. I managed to squeeze my way out while a frenzy was developing in the public areas. Through the crowd I spotted the Sultan, dressed in a checked shirt and speaking to reporters with tears in his eyes. At the final hour a huge cheer could be heard as the train pulled out, driven by the Sultan. In a daze I stared after it as the train faded into the darkness. It was then that I heard the silence that was there despite the noise coming from the crowd. It was one that filled the air – a silence that after some 79 years would never again be broken by the once-familiar sounds, a silence that spoke of the promise that we now know would never be fulfilled.
This article was written to coincide with the first anniversary of the closure of Tanjong Pagar Railway Station and has been published as “Tanjong Pagar Railway Station” in the July / August issue of Passage, a bi-monthly magazine produced by the Friends of the Museums (FOM).
Further information on Tanjong Pagar Railway Station and on the anniversary of the handover:
Photographs of Tanjong Pagar Railway Station on the anniversary of its handover can be found at my post Tanjong Pagar One Year On.
A complete series of posts related to my encounters with Tanjong Pagar Railway Station, the railway and the journeys I have made through the station can be found at my “Journeys Through Tanjong Pagar” page.
Article (in Chinese) that may be of interest published in the Chinese daily Lianhe Zaobao on the 1st of July in which some my views connected with the Rail Corridor were sought can be found at this link.
This post features a selection of photographs intended to capture part of what had made the much loved Tanjong Pagar Railway Station what it was just prior to its closure, one to celebrate the many faces that provided the station with its heart and soul. The faces are ones that would be familiar, and are not just of the people who were part of the fabric the station, but also of the many that came and went and of the sights and sounds that gave the station its unique flavour, a flavour that, despite the conservation of the building as a National Monument, will fade as memories fade. The photographs are the same ones which were presented during a sharing session at the Tanjong Pagar Railway Station open house held on the afternoon of 1st July 2012 – the first anniversary of the handover of the station and the railway land to the Singapore government. The open house was held as part of the Rail Corridor Open Day and also included guided walks around Bukit Timah Railway Station.
While the building, now gazetted as a National Monument still stands, it is the memory of what had made the station what it was – the familiar sights, the people that came and went, and most of all the people who were very much a part of the fabric of the station that will with time fade.
Tanjong Pagar Railway Station as it was is a place that always will be dear to me. I have many fond memories of the station from my previous encounters, encounters that go back to the earliest days of my life. Then, it was the food stalls that magically appeared in the evenings at a car park the lights of which dimly illuminate the station’s grand façade and its four triumphal figures. That was in the late 1960s and early 1970s. It was after the latter half of the 1970s that the station would become a feature in my Chinese New Year reunion dinners – my aunt who hosted the dinners moved to a flat in Spottiswoode Park just by the station and reunion dinners would not be the same without the accompaniment of the sounds of whistles and of the noisy diesel locomotives from the station. The 1990s brought me my many encounters with the station through which I made numerous trips up to the Malaysian capital Kuala Lumpur and back – journeys that would forever be etched in my memory. These encounters with the station, and the memorable journeys I made through it, I have attempted to capture through a series of blog posts which many of you might have already read. However if they are of interest, the posts can be found through the page “Journeys through Tanjong Pagar“.
Once familiar sights
A car belonging to the Malayan Railway, KTM, parked in front of the building.
The main hall as it looked at eye level in its latter days – a Tourism Malaysia hut was placed right in the middle of the hall.
The ticket counter in quieter days – well before the madness of the last two months descended on the station.
Waiting to buy a ticket often required some patience.
Especially when the ticketing system is down – that in my experience often happened.
Another sign one might encounter ….
We were always reminded that we had to pay not the equivalent in the local currency for the price of a ticket but one unit of the local currency for every unit of the weaker Ringgit.
And when you did finally get your hands on the ticket, you could find a seat in the main hall to pass your time away …
… which provides many opportunities for people watching …
… or as I often do, have a cup of teh tarik at the platform – a popular spot for watching the coming and going of not just the trains and the locomotives.
Access to the departure platform was through a gate that would only be opened about half an hour prior to the scheduled departure of the trains to facilitate immigration clearance. On the commuter services on which seating is not assigned, passengers would often crowd at the gate prior to departure, ready to make a dash first for the Immigration counters. After clearing Immigration and Customs, the same thing would happen at a barrier which when opened will see a mad rush of passengers to the train carriages.
Tickets would be checked and punched at the departure gate.
From which one would proceed to the immigration counters.
With the shift of Singapore’s CIQ to Woodlands in mid 1998 and the Malaysian authorities maintaining their Immigration and Customs counters at the station, passengers would effectively enter Malaysia before leaving Singapore.
Passengers boarding the last luxury E&O train to depart from Tanjong Pagar posing next to Malaysian Immigration booths.
The last E&O train to depart at the platform.
Returning home, one of the first things that would greet you (post mid 1998) as you walked to the end of the platform was the barrier before you got into the public area. Prior to the move of the SIngapore CIQ, you would first have to pass through Singapore Immigration, Customs and a narrow passage through a fenced area where K9 unit dogs would sniff passengers for smuggled narcotics.
The next thing one would encounter would be the canteen / coffee shop at which one could stop to have a meal or a drink prior to leaving. I often picked up my breakfast from the canteen after coming in on the overnight train from KL.
The canteen would also be a great place to wait for returning members of the family and friends.
It was also a wonderful place to catch up with friends over a cup of tea ….
.. or to have dinner with the family.
It would be common to see passengers with large pieces of luggage leaving the station.
The station had a hotel which closed in the 1980s. Towards the end of its life, it hosted a hostel with dormitory type double bunk bed accommodation which offered a cheap place to spend the night or even take a short rest – this closed in late 2010.
Trying to get a taxi home was always a challenge as many taxi drivers did not like to wait at the station as trains arrival times were unpredictable.
Once familiar faces
One of the first faces one would encounter driving to the station’s car park.
And if one needed to use the rest room.
One that you might have seen at the Habib Railway Book Store and Money Changer, Mr Syed Ahmad.
Mr Syed’s nephew – ‘Nazir’ would probably have been seen more frequently.
The hardworking last Station Master at Tanjong Pagar – En. Ayub.
A very helpful ticketing clerk, En. Azmi, who was posted to the station on 1st July 1990. He completed a full 21 years at the station when it ceased operations on 30th June 2011.
A few more of the familiar faces (and less familiar ones) …
Mr Mahmoodul Hasan who ran the two canteens in the station before its closure.
Some of those who assisted him at the drinks counter and the popular Ramly Burger stand.
One of the ladies from the food stall at the corner of M Hasan 2.
One of the stall assistants at the platform.
The chapati man at M Hasan 2.
One who is always ready with a smile – the Satay stall’s assistant at M Hasan 2.
And last of all one that should not be forgotten – one of the many cats the station was home to.
I stepped into the eerie silence of a world that a little over a year ago, had been one that had seen the frenzy that accompanied the last moments of the old Malayan Railway’s operations through Singapore. The now silent world, Tanjong Pagar Railway Station, is now but an empty shell, abandoned by the trains that regularly punctured the air with the deafening roar of their diesel locomotives as well as by the people who made the station what it was – the hardworking staff of the railway, those who saw to providing it with essential services, and those who came and went with the comings and goings of the trains.
Tanjong Pagar Railway Station 1 year on.
The station was able to momentarily break out of its solitude due to a kind offer by the Singapore Land Authority (SLA) to the Nature Society Singapore (NSS) and the Friends of the Rail Corridor to open up both Tanjong Pagar Railway Station to the public on the first anniversary of the handover of the station and the Rail Corridor to the Government of Singapore. As a result of this, a Rail Corridor Open Day was very quickly put together. This included a guided walk in the morning held at Bukit Timah Station which was followed by an open house at Tanjong Pagar Railway Station in the afternoon. The handful of people that did turn up at Tanjong Pagar, probably numbering about a hundred during the course of the afternoon comprising rail enthusiasts, familiar faces that I met during last year’s frenzy, the curious and some who hail from distant shores, got an opportunity to participate in a guided tour conducted by Dr Lai Chee Kien and learn more about the station and its and the railway’s history.
The main hall during the guided tour – now clear of the Tourism Malaysia hut that had got in the way of achieving a nice perspective in photographs that were taken before the handover.
The open house also allowed some to share some of what they have put together on the station. This included a poignant and very interesting documentary made in 2008, Project 1932, by Zinkie Aw that touches on some of the people who were part of the station’s history. I also had to opportunity to share a series of photographs that I had captured to help me reconnect with the station as it once had been. The series which I named ‘Faces from a forgotten place’ includes once common scenes and once familiar faces, ones that we see now only in the memories we have of a little over a year ago. It is these very memories that I tried to find as I took the opportunity that was presented to explore what I could of the silence. In its emptiness and abandonment, it was not the memories that I was able to find, but ironically, the beauty of the station that I would otherwise not have known – spaces previously occupied and closed to us that even in the state of the two decades of neglect during which time its status had been in limbo is still obvious.
The station in its solitude was able to reveal some of its otherwise hidden beauty.
This beauty that we can still see takes us back to a time when the world had been a different place, to a time when it was thought the station would take its place as the grand southern terminal of the Malayan Railway and the gateway to the Pacific and Indian oceans – a promise that a little over 79 years after it was opened has proven to be one that was never to be fulfilled. What will become of the former station we do not know, its possible second life will be explored in a Design Competition that aims to develop concepts for the future use of the station which has been gazetted as a National Monument, Bukit Timah Railway Station (which has conservation status), and the 26 kilometres of the former Rail Corridor. What I do hope to see would be a use that will not just preserve the memory of the role it was meant to assume and the memories we have of the railway, but also one that with minimum intervention will see it retain not just the beauty that we have seen but also the beauty that has until now been one that has been hidden.
Tanjong Pagar Railway Station in its solitude
The emptiness that now fills the station offers another perspective of its beauty.
Once hidden spaces that in the station’s abandonment can now be seen, reveal a side of the station that has until now has not been seen by many.
A view out of the window at the white iron fence that lines the station’s boundary with Keppel Road.
The writing on the wall … a memory in an otherwise hidden space of what the station once was …
Recent writings on the wall … collection of wishes for the station written by visitors to the open house.
View through what was a freight forwarder’s office.
A storage area that was used by the canteen operator.
Windows to a forgotten world.
The silence of a once busy space.
More silence ….
Signs of a forgotten time.
The silence of departure (photo taken with Sony Xperia S).
Last act of the day – security personnel trying to close a platform gate that just refused to be closed …
Do visit my series of posts on my previous encounters with the station, the railway and the journeys I have made through the station which can be found at the “Journeys Through Tanjong Pagar” page on this site.
An article of that may be of interest in the Chinese newspaper Zaobao published on the 1st of July in which some my views on the preservation of memories connected with the Rail Corridor were sought: http://www.zaobao.com.sg/sp/sp120701_020_2.shtml … I’ll try to get that translated and posted here for the benefit of those that don’t read Chinese.
The ‘Re-imagining the Rail Corridor’ exhibition, put together by the Friends of the Rail Corridor, in association with the Nature Society of Singapore, and supported by URA, opened this morning at the URA Centre. Visiting the exhibition was Minister of State (National Development) Mr Tan Chuan-Jin. Organised as part of a series of events to help increase awareness on the ongoing engagement on the use of the former railway land and also with the aim to explore, encourage and develop creative ideas for incorporation into the future of the Rail Corridor, the exhibition showcases some initial ideas from architecture and landscape students and design professionals on the future use of the Rail Corridor around six key themes: Ecology, Heritage, Recreation, Transport, Education and Community Gardening.
Mr Tan Chuan-Jin speaking to Regina Koo, now of the URA, at the exhibition. Her final year thesis relating to the Velo-Park proposal on the railway land was mentioned by the Prime Minister in his National Day Rally Speech in August of this year.
Mr Tan Chuan-Jin looking at an architectural model of the rail corridor.
The ideas being presented involve suggestions for the entire length of the former rail corridor, including one by NUS Architecture student Ng Pei Yun whose idea involves the conversion of the former Tanjong Pagar Railway Station into a transportation museum. Other interesting ideas include the construction of housing that resemble train carriages over parts of the corridor and one that involves renaming the corridor as The Singapore Trail, installing a giant see-saw on one of the truss bridges and extending the use of the corridor as a continuous bicycle track. The exhibition is being held at The URA Centre Atrium, 45 Maxwell Road Singapore 069118 from 3 to 28 October 2011 (Mondays to Fridays, 8.30am to 7pm / Saturdays: 8.30am to 5pm / Closed on Sundays and Public Holidays). Admission is free.
The exhibition will be held at The URA Centre Atrium, 45 Maxwell Road Singapore 069118 from 3 to 28 October 2011 (Mondays to Fridays, 8.30am to 7pm / Saturdays: 8.30am to 5pm / Closed on Sundays and Public Holidays). Admission is free.
The initial ideas include those for the use of the former Tanjong Pagar Railway Station - this proposal by Ng Pei Yun of NUS involves usage as a transportation museum.
Singapore Polytechnic Architecture students speaking to Mr Tan on their ideas - one which includes building housing over the corridor that resemble train carriages.
Another idea is to rename the corridor as The Singapore Trail.
At the exhibition, Mr Tan Chuan-Jin also made an announcement that the ‘Rail Corridor’ (铁道走廊) will be the final project name for development plans for the former railway land. The name which was used by the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) as the working name when the former railway land was returned to Singapore on 1 July 2011, was chosen from a total of 158 suggestions received by the URA and was one of the top three suggested project names. The other two project names were ‘Rail Trail’ and ‘Green Corridor’. The suggested project names were discussed and deliberated at the Rail Corridor Consultation Group (RCCG) meeting where the members came to a consensus on the final project name being ‘Rail Corridor’.
An idea for a super see-saw on one of the truss bridges.
A model of the entire rail corridor.
A proposal with the fast growing cycling community in mind.
Feedback sought by URA:
The URA continues to welcome feedback and ideas from the community in shaping the future development plans for the railway lands. The members of the public are invited to visit and provide their ideas at http://www.ura.gov.sg/railcorridor.
URA Press Release
3 October 2011
‘Rail Corridor’ endorsed by consultation group to be final project name
Minister of State (MOS) for National Development Mr Tan Chuan-Jin announced today during a visit to the Re-imagining the Rail Corridor exhibition that the ‘Rail Corridor’ (铁道走廊) will be the final project name for development plans for the former railway land.
The Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) had used ‘Rail Corridor’ as the working name for this project when the former railway land was returned to Singapore on 1 July 2011. A website was launched on the same day to gather feedback and ideas from the public in shaping the future development plans for the former railway land, including suggestions for a name for the project.
A total of 158 suggestions on the project name were received on the website as at the closing date on 31 July 2011. “Rail Corridor’ was one of the top three most suggested project names received. The other two project names were ‘Rail Trail’ and ‘Green Corridor’.
Final project name – ‘Rail Corridor’
The suggested project names were discussed and deliberated at the Rail Corridor Consultation Group (RCCG) meeting where the members came to a consensus on the final project name being ‘Rail Corridor’.
Mr Jerome Lim, a RCCG member and blogger is in fact amongst those who proposed to have ‘Rail Corridor’ as the project name, as it “reflects the history and heritage of the corridor”.
Another RCCG member, Mr Ho Weng Hin, member of Singapore Heritage Society agreed and noted that the ‘Rail Corridor’ is apt as “it encapsulates the history, heritage and social memories, and also connotes the conceptual and spatial continuity of the former railway land”.
Mr Leong Kwok Peng, Vice President of Nature Society (Singapore) had preferred to keep the name as Green Corridor which was the name given by NSS for its proposals for the former KTM land. However, he is supportive of ‘Rail Corridor’ as the project name, adding that “I am interested to see how the future development plans for the rail corridor pan out eventually, especially in areas where development can co-exist with greenery”.
MOS Tan who chairs the RCCG, reiterates the collaborative nature of the group: “We are all part of this effort and the selected project name is endorsed by the RCCG members. I am glad that our engagement with the members has been very good so far, and everyone has contributed useful inputs and ideas during our regular meetings.”
Re-imagining the Rail Corridor exhibition
The Re-imagining the Rail Corridor exhibition was put together by the Friends of the Rail Corridor, in association with the Nature Society of Singapore, and supported by URA.
The exhibition is envisioned as part of a series of events dedicated to increasing public awareness and deepening understanding of the tract of KTM railway land recently returned to Singapore. It intends to explore, encourage and develop creative ideas for incorporation into the future of the Rail Corridor. Revolving around six key themes: Ecology, Heritage, Recreation, Transport, Education and Community Gardening, the exhibition aims to shape the public’s understanding of and give insight to a rare piece of Singapore’s cultural and natural heritage amidst the urban landscape, and to spark interest in the protection and preservation of this heritage as an extension of our national identity.
The exhibition will showcase some early ideas from architecture and landscape students as well as design professionals on what the future of the Rail Corridor could become. Through these initial ideas, the organisers hope to inspire more Singaporeans to recognise their stake in their surroundings and to engage the public in jointly envisioning the development of spaces around us.
The exhibition will be held at The URA Centre Atrium, 45 Maxwell Road Singapore 069118 from 3 to 28 October 2011 (Mondays to Fridays, 8.30am to 7pm / Saturdays: 8.30am to 5pm / Closed on Sundays and Public Holidays). Admission is free.
Future plans for rail corridor
The URA continues to welcome feedback and ideas from the community in shaping the future development plans for the railway lands. The members of the public are invited to visit and provide their ideas at www.ura.gov.sg/railcorridor.
A press briefing was held at the Ministry of National Development (MND) yesterday during which thoughts on the way ahead for the use of the former railway corridor were shared by the Minister of State (National Development) BG Tan Chuan-Jin. BG Tan spoke of the conviction that the MND and Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) had in engaging stakeholders, interest groups and members of the public in setting up channels to allow public consultation and feedback. At the briefing, BG Tan also introduced some members of a Rail Corridor Consultation Group which has been formed with members from NGOs, interest groups and individuals representing the various aspects of the rail corridor including the environment, flora and fauna, and areas such as history and heritage. The group would be consulted on ideas, feedback and proposals submitted to the URA and will be expanded to include other interest groups and parties along the way.
A Rail Corridor Consultation Group has been formed to take into consideration feedback from the public and various groups on development plans for the former rail corridor.
BG Tan also mentioned that the public engagement would include various channels for engagement including exhibitions (one of which is being planned by the Nature Society (Singapore) or NSS), and will include a design competition to allow architects and planners to submit proposals, leading up to the development of a concept masterplan in 2013. Some of the stakeholders that would be engaged in an active public engagement phase will also include the 1.2 million residents who populate the areas adjoining the corridor, and also some 98 schools and institutions along the corridor. The MND is also looking at the use of various social media platforms and channels to obtain feedback from the public and make it more interactive to allow online discussions and also provide feedback to the public.
The former rail corridor would be a subject of in concept masterplan to be unveiled in 2013.
BG Tan spoke also of the desire to maintain the corridor as a continuous stretch and the MND is looking at how this can be integrated with the development of the areas around corridor, at the same time reiterating that there was also the need to also serve the needs of land scarce Singapore. The case for a continuous stretch is a key component of the NSS’s proposal which the NSS hopes would serve as a channel for the movement of flora and fauna through the island, for example from the Central Catchment Nature Reserve to the Southern Ridges.
The idea for a continuous corridor to allow movement of flora and fauna across Singapore is something that the NSS would like to see.
On the Jurong extension built in the mid 1960s and has been disused since the 1990s, BG Tan mentioned that this would not be part of the rail corridor development plans. As such areas of the Jurong line for which development plans are already in place, will be developed accordingly. BG Tan spoke also of concerns raised on the fate of the truss bridge and the girder bridges over the Sungei Ulu Pandan and Sungei Pandan respectively. These would not be demolished and have been hoarded up for public safety reasons as the structures are currently in a state of disrepair.
The truss bridge on the Jurong Line over Sungei Ulu Pandan.
On concerns raised over the removal of the tracks, BG Tan reiterated that the tracks would be returned to Malaysia under the terms of the agreement and that the SLA is under intense pressure to meet the deadline set for the removal of the 26 km of tracks and return them by 31 December 2011 as per the agreement. While the most of the tracks would be returned, the good news for heritage groups and railway enthusiasts is that parts would be retained in way of the platforms at Tanjong Pagar and Bukit Timah Stations, and also on the bridges that are being retained which include the two iconic truss bridges along the Bukit Timah stretch of the corridor.
The tracks will be removed as part of the agreement and returned by 31 December 2011. Short stretches will be retained at the station platforms and the rail bridges being retained.
Responding to a question on public access to the corridor, BG Tan replied that parts of the corridor would be opened up as tracks are removed. He also mentioned that with the exception of specific areas which will be hoarded up to facilitate work, a large part of the corridor would be accessible and should members of the public wish to walk in the areas, they should be exercise caution as removal work is being carried out in some areas. On the question of Tanjong Pagar, BG Tan mentioned that there are no immediate plans to open it up, stating that the building needs to be refurbished first. Members of the Singapore Heritage Society have suggested that intermediate uses be found for the building before plans are drawn up for the National Monument’s eventual use.
Stretches of the corridor will opened for public access once removal works are completed.
Public feedback sought:
The URA welcomes feedback and ideas from the community in shaping the future development plans for the railway lands. The members of the public are invited to visit and provide their ideas at www.ura.gov.sg/railcorridor/.
Posts on the Railway through Singapore and on the proposal on the Green Corridor:
I have also put together a collection of experiences and memories of the railway in Singapore and of my journeys through the grand old station which can be found through this page: “Journeys through Tanjong Pagar“.
Do also take a look at the proposal by the Nature Society (Singapore) to retain the green areas that have been preserved by the existence of the railway through Singapore and maintain it as a Green Corridor, at the Green Corridor’s website and show your support by liking the Green Corridor’s Facebook page. My own series of posts on the Green Corridor are at: “Support the Green Corridor“.
Those who frequented Tanjong Pagar Railway Station would probably remember the many faces that were associated with the station in one way or another. The people behind the once familiar faces are the ones who brought life and activity to the old station and with the station’s closure, may soon be forgotten. This is my attempt to capture some of the faces in the days that led up to the 30th of June 2011 just to help with the memory of what made Tanjong Pagar Railway Station a station that will forever be in our hearts.
Posts on the Railway through Singapore and on the Green Corridor:
I have also put together a collection of experiences and memories of the railway in Singapore and of my journeys through the grand old station which can be found through this page: “Journeys through Tanjong Pagar“.
Do also take a look at the proposal by the Nature Society (Singapore) to retain the green areas that have been preserved by the existence of the railway through Singapore and maintain it as a Green Corridor, at the Green Corridor’s website and show your support by liking the Green Corridor’s Facebook page. My own series of posts on the Green Corridor are at: “Support the Green Corridor“.
In the days that led up to the closure of Tanjong Pagar Railway Station, I was able to meet many people who were in some way connected to the station and to the Malayan Railway or what is KTM in its current incarnation. That allowed me to not just hear the wonderful stories some had to share, but also to be brought around places that would have otherwise been hidden to me. One of the places I did get to see was the train yard at Tanjong Pagar, sandwiched in between what was the KTM flats at Spooner Road in Kampong Bahru and the Malaysian Customs yard, and the lead up to the station itself.
A walk around the yard took me back to a time we have forgotten. The highlight was the turntable which was installed in 1932.
The end of the line ... the yard closed together with the station on the 30th of June 2011.
The yard is a wonderful place to discover, one on which I had heard many stories about from friends who went to school in the area at a time when perhaps access to the area was much less controlled. One of those that I met in and around the neighbourhood who was actually a son of a signalman with the Malayan Railway and lived in Spooner Road in the 1960s spoke of how the children growing-up in and around the area would see the yard as a huge playground, one which provided a host of hiding places when playing hide-and-seek. Many were oblivious to the danger playing in the yard posed, and there were several occasions during which unfortunate incidents involving a moving locomotive and a child did occur.
The yard was a playground for many who grew -up in and around it.
A general view around the train yard.
The yard is also where the most wonderful of railway implements could be found, one that was used to turn a locomotive of more than a hundred tonnes around with only the strength exerted by a single person. The truntable which according to a caption on a wonderful aerial photograph of it published in The Straits Times 2nd July 2011′s edition (a scan of which can be found at this link), was built in 1892, and installed in the yard when the station was built in 1932.
The locomotive turntable which was installed in 1932.
A view of one of the girders and wheels of the turntable which supports weights of well over 100 tonnes.
The lever (in a vertical locked position) which can be lowered to turn a locomotive on the table through the effort of just one person.
As with much of the former railway land around Singapore, stepping into the yard seems like a step back in time … one which takes one back to the softer and gentler Singapore that we have somehow lost in trying to catch up with the developed world, not just in the setting one finds oneself in, but in the many people that one meets. It is in meeting the wonderful folks who kept things running behind the scenes at Tanjong Pagar that I have come to understand the attachment many have for the places these folks have not just worked in, but which has become very much a part of their lives – some having worked and lived around the yard for over a quarter of a century. Some expressed a sense of loss. Loss for a life that they would soon leave behind as they prepared to make that big move out of Tanjong Pagar.
Spanners in the works ....
Scenes that we have lost in the modernisation of our island nation.
Familiar scenes for many who lived and work around the yard which is now lost with the big move out. Many workers at the yard have worked there for many years.
A reflection we will no longer see ...
Even as the move out wasn’t quite complete, there were signs that some of the structures in the area were already being dismantled. Walking past the carriage washing and maintenance sheds and the locomotive shops and sheds, and turning around the corner, I could see that the maintenance shed for the luxury E&O Trains, the last of which departed from Tanjong Pagar on that very wet Sunday in June when the flood waters rose, was already being taken down.
The locomotive shop and shed.
The loco shop.
The loco workshop.
A locomotive in the shop.
Coming to a halt.
The E&O maintenance shed being dismantled.
Continuing on past the yard on the approach to the station – a route that is taken by the staff at the station on a daily basis, there is a cluster of buildings, some which were meant to house senior officers at the station, and one that served as the Railway Sports and Recreation clubhouse. Further along, we come to the final stretch that leads to Tanjong Pagar … one that goes past the section of tracks to and from the station’s platforms, and past the new and old signalling houses, which for many who would have seen it everyday on the way into the station, would be on a road that will never again be taken.
The railway sports and recreation club house.
The railway inspector's shed.
A daily walk down a road that as of the 1st of July for many who worked at the station, will never again be taken.
A last glance down the road.
Posts on the Railway through Singapore and on the proposal on the Green Corridor:
I have also put together a collection of experiences and memories of the railway in Singapore and of my journeys through the grand old station which can be found through this page: “Journeys through Tanjong Pagar“.
Do also take a look at the proposal by the Nature Society (Singapore) to retain the green areas that have been preserved by the existence of the railway through Singapore and maintain it as a Green Corridor, at the Green Corridor’s website and show your support by liking the Green Corridor’s Facebook page. My own series of posts on the Green Corridor are at: “Support the Green Corridor“.
From where I left off on the previous post, the 0800 Ekspres Rakyat left Tanjong Pagar late at 0838. The train then continued its passage to the north, a passage that I would be able to take in for the very last time from the vantage point of a train – the final homecoming on The Last Train into Tanjong Pagar coming in the dark of night. The passage has been one that I have especially been fond of, taking a passenger on the train past sights of a charming and green Singapore that is hidden from most, sights which in entirety can only taken in from the train. This last passage in the dim light of the rainy morning was one that was especially poignant for me, knowing that it would be one that I would take accompanied by the groan of the straining diesel locomotive, the rumbling of the carriages over the tracks, and the occasional toot of the whistle.
The morning train offered passengers a last glance at the passage through the rail corridor in Singapore.
The short passage takes all but half an hour, taking the train from the greyer built-up south of the island around where Tanjong Pagar Station is, to the greener north of the island. The passage takes the train first out from the platform and through an expansive area where the view of the familiar train yard is mixed with the familiar sights of the Spottiswoode Park flats, the old and new signal houses, and the Spooner Road flats, before it goes under the Kampong Bahru Bridge towards the corridor proper. The initial 10 minutes of the passage is one that brings the train past Kampong Bahru, along the AYE for a distance, before coming to the first bit of greenery as it swings past Alexandra Hospital and up the Wessex Estate area towards the flats to the right at the Commonwealth Drive / Tanglin Halt areas – an area I am acquainted with from spending the first three and the half years of my life in. It is just after this, close to where the actual train stop which gave its name to Tanglin Halt first encounters a newer and more desired railway line, passing under the East-West MRT lines at Buona Vista.
The Spooner Road KTM flats on the left and the Spottiswoode Park flats in the background as well as the expansive train yard provided the backdrop for many a journey out of Tanjong Pagar.
It is soon after that the anticipation builds as the train passes by the Ghim Moh flats towards Henry Park. Just north of this is the area with arguably the prettiest bit of greenery along the entire stretch of the green corridor. We come to that the train passes under the concrete road bridge at Holland Road. The sight of the bridge also means that the train is just a minute or so away from what used to be the branch-off for the Jurong Line which served the huge industrial estate, and then what is perhaps the jewel in the crown along the corridor, the quaint old station at Bukit Timah. At Bukit Timah Station the old fashioned practice of changing the key token to hand back and over authority for the two sections of the single track through Singapore is undertaken, a practice replaced by technology along the rest of the Malayan Railway line. Beyond Bukit Timah is the rather scenic passage to the north through whichtwo truss bridges, four girder bridges and five level crossings are crossed before reaching the cold and unfriendly train checkpoint at Woodlands. That offered the passenger the last fifteen minutes to savour the passage through Singapore and some of the sights that will not be seen again. The level crossing are one of those sights – something that is always special with the sight of cars waiting behind the barriers or gates, yielding to the passing train – a rare sight that I for one have always been fond of seeing. All too soon it had to end … the rain washed morning provided an appropriate setting for what now seems like a distant dream, one of a forgotten time and certainly one of a forgotten place.
The 30th of June saw the last time the exchange of key tokens being carried out along the KTM line. Bukit Timah Station was the last place where the old fashioned practice of handing authority to the trains using a single track was carried out on the Malayan Railway.
II
the last passage to the north
0839: A last glance at Tanjong Pagar Station as the Ekspres Rakyat pulls out.
0839: A quick glance the other way at teh old signalling house ...
0839: The train pulls past the cluster of houses before the train yard comes into sight.
0839: The new signalling house comes into sight.
0840: The train passes a locomotive being moved from the train yard.
0840: A ast glance at where the Spooner Road flats which housed the railway staff and their families.
0843: A passenger Gen smiles in the passageway of the train carriage. Gen was the last to decide to join the group, deciding only to do so the previous day.
0848: The train passes under the new railway, the MRT line at Buona Vista. Hoardings around seem to indicate that the area would soon be redeveloped.
0848: The Ghim Moh flats come into view.
0851: Through the greenest area of the Green Corridor - the Ulu Pandan area close to where the Jurong Line branched off.
0853: Bukit Timah Station comes into view ...
0853: Key tokens are exchanged as a small crowd looks on ... the train slows down but doesn't stop.
0853: The train crosses the first of two truss bridges over the Bukit Timah Road ...
0854: A look back towards the bridge and Dunearn Road ....
0854: The train speeds past Rifle Range Road and the strip of land next to what was the Yeo Hiap Seng factory .... this is one area that I well remember on my first train journey in 1991 when the narrow strip of land hosted the small wooden shacks of many squatters who occupied this stretch of railway land.
0854: A glance at to the right at Rifle Range Road
0854: Passing over the danger spot close to where the short cut many take to Jalan Anak Bukit is.
0854: The train passes under the road bridges at Anak Bukit ...
0855: The bridges at Anak Bukit are left behind ...
0855: Over the girder bridge at Hindhede Drive
0856: The very green corridor near Hindhede Quarry ...
0856: Into the mist at the foot of Bukit Timah Hill towards the second truss bridge.
0857: A passenger Angie, sticks her head out to have a better look at the amazing greenery.
0858: The train continues on its way after crossing the second truss bridge.
0858: Through the Hillview pass.
0859: A lone man greets the train with an umbrella near the Dairy Farm Road area.
0859: The greenery greets the train around the Bukit Gombak area.
0859: The closed gate and waiting cars at the first of five level crossings at Gombak Drive.
0900: Towards the second and widest level crossing at Choa Chu Kang Road ... Ten Mile Junction comes into view.
0900: A small group of people gathered at the Choa Chu Kang Road level crossing to greet the passing train. The signal hut marks the location of what was Bukit Panjang Railway Station from where the first train to pull into Tanjong Pagar Station departed on 2nd May 1932 at 4.30 pm.
0901: Across the Bukit Panjang (or Choa Chu Kang Road) level crossing and under another new railway line - the Bukit Panjang LRT.
0902: Past an area I became acquainted with through my days in National Service ... the Stagmont Hill area.
0903: Across the third level crossing at Stagmont Ring Road.
0904: The fourth level crossing the Mandai crossing at Sungei Kadut Avenue.
0904: Past the KTM houses at Sungei Kadut Avenue and onward towards Kranji.
0907: Across the last (and narrowest) of the level crossings at Kranji Road and on towards Woodlands Train Checkpoint.
0907: Looking back at the Kranji level crossing and at the last of the rail corridor through Singapore ... time to get left to disembark the train for immigration clearance out for the very last time.
0908: Arrival at Woodlands Train Checkpoint - no photo taking allowed.
Posts on the Railway through Singapore and on the Green Corridor:
I have also put together a collection of experiences and memories of the railway in Singapore and of my journeys through the grand old station which can be found through this page: “Journeys through Tanjong Pagar“.
Do also take a look at the proposal by the Nature Society (Singapore) to retain the green areas that have been preserved by the existence of the railway through Singapore and maintain it as a Green Corridor, at the Green Corridor’s website and show your support by liking the Green Corridor’s Facebook page. My own series of posts on the Green Corridor are at: “Support the Green Corridor“.
Camouflaged in vegetation close to the former railway station at Tanjong Pagar, is a forgotten structure that perhaps reminds us of why the southern terminal station of the Federated Malay States Railway (FMSR) was relocated to Tanjong Pagar in 1932. The station was as many know, built to serve an important function as Asia’s and possibly Europe’s gateway to the Pacific and Indian oceans that lay beyond our shores. While the railway that was to link Asia with the extensive European railway network didn’t quite materialise, the Malayan Railway’s southern terminal still served as an important link for goods from the peninsula to be exported though the nearby docks at Tanjong Pagar, right up until the 1960s.
A turnbuckle for the tension wires supporting the gate.
A stop sign on the gate stands out in the vegetation.
Speaking to an elderly gentleman whom I met at the station and who was kind enough to show me to the gate to the docks, I was to learn that the last the gate was used was back in 1965, some 46 years ago. He remembers that there was a crossing across what was a narrow Keppel Road then, on which the train crossed close to where Tanjong Pagar Railway Station is right into the gate to the docks. With the closure of the station, which has been gazetted as a National Monument as of the 1st of July, I hope that the gate would also be kept – to remind us of why the station had been placed at where it was at Tanjong Pagar.
A post for the gate to the docks seen through the vegetation.
A view of the gate that reminds us of the purpose for which the railway station was sited at Tanjong Pagar.
Singapore residents were out in force to wave goodbye to the Malayan Railway that has been very much a part of the island’s landscape for over a century during the final weekend of its operations. It wasn’t just at Tanjong Pagar Railway Station which possibly because of the last day of operations of its food stalls today, has seen a large increase in visitors over the last week, but many other places along the line. At the We Support the Green Corridor’s walk in the morning, the largest crowd seen in the series of walks conducted over several months to raise awareness of the proposal by the Nature Society (Singapore) or NSS to retain the soon to be vacated railway corridor as a continuous green corridor through Singapore, of more than 120 that included local model and TV host Denise Keller gathered at the Rail Mall at 8 am to take a 3 km walk north not only to acquaint themselves with glimpses of the green corridor, but also to an area that was of historical significance to the first days of Tanjong Pagar Railway Station, being the area where the first train that pulled in to Tanjong Pagar, had departed with its load of passengers that included Sir Cecil Clementi, the then Governor of Singapore, who opened Tanjong Pagar Railway Station on the 2nd of May 1932.
Among the more than 120 participants in the We Support the Green Corridor Walk was local TV personality and model Denise Keller.
The starting point of the We Support the Green Corridor walk was in the shadow of one of one of two truss bridges that give the Bukit Timah area its character, which was referred to in a comment left on the Facebook Page of the We Support the Green Corridor by the Minister of State for National Development Tan Chuan Jin, which seemed to indicate it, along with the bridge at Bukit Timah Road near Bukit Timah Station and the bridge at Hindhede (at the entrance to Bulit Timah Hill Nature Reserve) would be retained. The news of this was certainly greeted by many with relief and even expressions of joy. The ending point of the walk was at the Bukit Panjang level crossing, what is the widest level crossing in Singapore close to where that first train to Tanjong Pagar had departed from at a station that no longer exists, Bukit Panjang. Through much of the walk, signs of the massive construction efforts to get what is ironically a new railway in the form of the Downtown MRT Line that takes a course for much of its way along what was the original Singapore to Kranji Line that was deviated to turn the line towards Tanjong Pagar. It is also ironic that the new railway would in all probability hasten the greying of a corridor that the old railway has for so many years kept green for us.
Participants on a We Support the Green Corridor walk caught a glimpse of a southbound train on the black truss bridge over Upper Bukit Timah Road. Many on the walk expressed relief when they learnt that this bridge was not part of the structures that would be removed in tender awarded to Indeco to dismantle the tracks and ancilliary structures scheduled to be carried out from July to November 2011.
Through much of the accessible parts of the green corridor and at Bukit Timah Station, there were indeed many who were seen to greet the passing trains, a last chance for many to see the passing of trains through Singapore and to bid farewell to a railway that will leave many who have taken a ride on it through the archways of the magnificent station at Tanjong Pagar with a sense of sadness and loss and to a group of people who through their dedication has provided Singapore with a wonderful association with the railway going back to 1903 when the Singapore to Kranji Line was completed. The outpouring of feeling is perhaps driven by the sense of loss not just for a railway that has served us for so long, but also for a landscape that could change drastically once the railway stops operating through Singapore. It is this landscape that many hope will be preserved, there is of course a balance between development and conservation that has to be found in all this, and while the railway land does free up development opportunities in many parts of Singapore, the benefits of maintaining a continuous green corridor as a shared recreational space which can also be used as an uninterrupted path from the north to the south of the island with which the use of bicycles as a means of transport becomes viable, cannot be understated. It is therefore encouraging that the Mr Tan Chuan Jin has in his comments stated that the authorities “remain committed to working closely with NSS and others who love this stretch of land so that we can develop this sensibly together”.
Many gathered at many places along the line to wave at the drivers of passing trains.
Many others were seen walking down the tracks for one last time ...
With that, there certainly is hope for a solution that would, as we wave our goodbyes and extend our gratitude to a railway and the men of the railway that we will soon lose, perhaps see some of the wonderful places and spaces that the railway has left behind be retained as it is for not just us but also for our future generations – that may at least preserve that fond memory of an old railway line that once ran right through the heart of Singapore.
The crowd at Bukit Timah Station.
... a passage to the north which on the 30th of June will no longer be used ...
Posts on the Railway through Singapore and on the Green Corridor:
Information related to the station and its architecture can be found on a previous post: “A final look at Tanjong Pagar Station“. In addition to that, I have also put together a collection of experiences and memories of the railway in Singapore and of my journeys through the grand old station which can be found through this page: “Journeys through Tanjong Pagar“.
Do also take a look at the proposal by the Nature Society (Singapore) to retain the green areas that have been preserved by the existence of the railway through Singapore and maintain it as a Green Corridor, at the Green Corridor’s website and show your support by liking the Green Corridor’s Facebook page. My own series of posts on the Green Corridor are at: “Support the Green Corridor“.
Comments made by Minister of State for National Development Mr Tan Chuan Jin on the We Support the Green Corridor’s Facebook Page:
These 3 bridges are part of the agreement that will go back to Malaysia (Sg Mandai, Junction 10 and over Hill View Road). It has been a long negotiation process over many many things. We have retained what we can, including stretches of railway in areas near the stations. I am sure you know that these 3 are not the same as the iconic steel girder (believe he meant “truss”) bridges across Upper Bt Timah and Bt Timah Rds. The one at Hinhede will also remain. The other one close to Sunset Way that spans across Ulu Pandan Canal already belongs to us and will remain so.
We remain committed to working closely with NSS and others who love this stretch of land so that we can develop this sensibly together.
Our friends at URA and NParks care for the environment and heritage as much as many of you do but they also have to grapple with the dilemmas of ensuring living space for the many young Singaporeans who will be coming of age in the years ahead. As I have pointed out in my note, we are actively greening and blueing where we can and to work with the environment as much as possible.
The 24th of June saw the last day at Tanjong Pagar Railway Station of the ever popular Ali Nacha Briyani stall. At 11 am on the day a queue of at least 30 people could be seen snaking around the confined space of the M. Hasan Railway food Food Station by the main hall of the station. Some in the queue were seen to be ordering as much as 20 packets of briyani which resulted in the queue reaching lengths never seen before. By 12.45 pm, a green sign was put up to tell customers that the briyani was sold out, bringing an end to the chapter for the outlet at Tanjong Pagar Railway Station. Fans of the railway briyani may like to know that Ali Nacha would be starting a new chapter at Block 5, Tanjong Pagar Plaza, #02-04.
The media was all over the Ali Nacha Briyani stall, as the queue snaked around to the side of the station building.
The scene at 11.45 am ...
By 12.45 pm, the Briyani had been sold out, brining to an end a chapter for Ali Nacha at the Tanjong Pagar Railway Station.
On a train I took from Tanjong Pagar recently, I had the good fortune to bump into a certain Encik Ayub, who joined Keretapi Tanah Melayu (KTM) some 30 years ago as a ticket clerk, serving in stations around that included that of his hometown, Segamat, for some 14 years. He has been in KTM’s Tanjong Pagar Railway Station for some six year as the Station Master, and will, at 10 pm on the 30th of June this year, wave the special last train driven by the Sultan of Johor, as the last Station Master of the grand old Tanjong Pagar Station. As of the 1st of July, En. Ayub will be transferred to Kluang Station.
Encik Ayub on his way back home to Segamat.
Information that may be of interest:
Information related to the station and its architecture can be found on a previous post: “A final look at Tanjong Pagar Station“. In addition to that, I have also put together a collection of experiences and memories of the railway in Singapore and of my journeys through the grand old station which can be found through this page: “Journeys through Tanjong Pagar“.
Do also take a look at the proposal by the Nature Society (Singapore) to retain the green areas that have been preserved by the existence of the railway through Singapore and maintain it as a Green Corridor, at the Green Corridor’s website and show your support by liking the Green Corridor’s Facebook page. My own series of posts on the Green Corridor are at: “Support the Green Corridor“.
Arriving at Tanjong Pagar Railway Station and walking into the main hall, one of the first things a passenger would encounter is that of what is an institution at the station, the Habib Railway Book Store and Money Changer, of which I have an earlier post on. The so-called book store and money changer is owned by Mr Syed Ahmad, who started his business at the station in 1958, taking over his father’s which started in 1936 at the same station. The book store and money changer is certainly one that many, as passengers, would have patronised, buying a bottle of water, picking a book or magazine up, or getting one’s currency changed for that trip up north, something which I did on my very first encounter with the trains as a passenger back in the 1990s.
Mr Nazir, nephew of the store's owner, Mr Syed Ahmad, is perhaps one of the more recognisable faces at Tanjong Pagar Railway Station.
Manning the book store and money changer are many of Mr Syed Ahmad’s relatives, including a young man Mr Nazir who is a nephew of Mr Syed Ahmad and is perhaps one of the more recognisable faces of the station to a regular passenger. The book store and money changer will sadly see its last day of operation, bringing to a close a 75 year association with the grand old station on the 26th of June. As for that familiar face and Mr Syed Ahmad, life does go on … and for what is most certainly an institution at Tanjong Pagar, life may go on … in a colder and less friendly setting that is the new terminal station (I don’t know if one can actually call it a station) at Woodlands Train Checkpoint.
Information that may be of interest:
Information related to the station and its architecture can be found on a previous post: “A final look at Tanjong Pagar Station“. In addition to that, I have also put together a collection of experiences and memories of the railway in Singapore and of my journeys through the grand old station which can be found through this page: “Journeys through Tanjong Pagar“.
Do also take a look at the proposal by the Nature Society (Singapore) to retain the green areas that have been preserved by the existence of the railway through Singapore and maintain it as a Green Corridor, at the Green Corridor’s website and show your support by liking the Green Corridor’s Facebook page. My own series of posts on the Green Corridor are at: “Support the Green Corridor“.
Passing through Tanjong Pagar Railway Station, there is no doubt that some may have bought a ticket at the counter of the station from a patient gentleman manning the counter by the name of Encik Azmi, who manages to keep his composure and wear his smile dealing with the enquiries of the sometimes continuous stream of would be passengers at the counter. Encik Azmi who on the 30th of June, would have completed 21 years at the station (he has been based here since the 1st of July 1990), will move to Johor Bahru when KTM stops operations at Tanjong Pagar on 1st July 2011.
Encik Azmi at the Ticket Counter.
Information that may be of interest:
Information related to the station and its architecture can be found on a previous post: “A final look at Tanjong Pagar Station“. In addition to that, I have also put together a collection of experiences and memories of the railway in Singapore and of my journeys through the grand old station which can be found through this page: “Journeys through Tanjong Pagar“.
Do also take a look at the proposal by the Nature Society (Singapore) to retain the green areas that have been preserved by the existence of the railway through Singapore and maintain it as a Green Corridor, at the Green Corridor’s website and show your support by liking the Green Corridor’s Facebook page. My own series of posts on the Green Corridor are at: “Support the Green Corridor“.
Sunday the 5th of June 2011 will probably be remembered for what has been described as the worst flooding in 25 years in Singapore, triggered by two bouts of intense rainfall, one at mid morning which had some 65 mm of rain fall in a half an hour period. It was a morning that I found myself up at the break of day, greeted not by the bright Sunday I had hoped for, but by the greyness of the rain washed morning. The intensity of the early morning downpour and the resulting rising waters of the Bukit Timah Canal, wasn’t of course what this post is all about, but an event that, I would certainly have remembered the 5th of June 2011 for – the final departure of the luxury Eastern and Oriental Express train service from Tanjong Pagar Railway Station.
The 5th of June marked the last departure of the E&O Express Trains from Tanjong Pagar, bringing an end to the era of Romance in railway travel from Singapore.
The last E&O Express to depart from Tanjong Pagar sits at the platform.
The significance of that to me is one that perhaps outweighs that of what would be the departure of the last train on the evening of the 30th of June, and brings to an end, the end of Romance in rail travel to and from Singapore that had come with the opening of a station that along with the stations along the Malayan Railway at Kuala Lumpur and Ipoh, possibly best represents the age when the Romance of rail travel was at its peak. The Eastern and Oriental Express, doesn’t of course, go as far back to those days having been introduced to Tanjong Pagar in 1993, but it does take one back to those days in attempting to recreate the luxury and romance that is associated with the glory days of the railway.
The E&O Express route from Singapore to Bangkok was introduced in 1993.
A farewell to Tanjong Pagar and a farewell to Romance.
The last E&O Express Train to depart sits in the rain that brought rising waters in many parts of Singapore.
A window to the luxury and romance of the E&O Express.
A final walk down the platform ...
A steward looks forlornly at the rain washed platform at Tanjong Pagar for one last goodbye.
Carriages seen at the platform.
A farewell ... to tears from the heavens.
With the departure of the train at approximately 11.30 am from Tanjong Pagar and its subsequent 15 minute passage to Bukit Timah Station and another 15 minute passage to Woodlands, northbound E&O Express passengers would have for the last time, be given the treat of a passage through a Singapore that is representative of the Singapore when Tanjong Pagar Railway station was built in 1932, a softer and gentler Singapore that after the 1st of July, may disappear as the northbound E&O Express did on that stormy morning. Perhaps it was fitting that it was not to the smile of the sunshine that I had hoped for, but to the tears from the Heavens that the E&O train made this final push up north … tears perhaps for an end to of the Romance of the railway through Singapore.
The last E&O service to depart Tanjong Pagar reaches the halfway point in a final northbound journey through the railway corridor in Singapore, Bukit Timah Station.
Handing back the authority for the south section of the Singapore track to the Station Master, Encik Atan for one last time.
The E&O Express slows to a halt at Bukit Timah at approximately 11.45am, as it waits for a southbound train to pass.
Looking north at Bukit Timah one last time.
The carriages of the E&O sits in the rain, as waters rise in the Bukit Timah Canal just 250 metres away.
The rain washed platform at Bukit Timah.
Handing the authority for one last time for the 15 minute northern passage through Singapore.
Off we go for one last northbound look at the Bukit Timah corridor.
Shunting back one last time onto the main track.
And through the truss bridge for that last northern passage through Singapore.
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Strangers on a Train:
Strangers on a Train is an attempt to celebrate the passing of an era by a gathering on what is scheduled to be the last train that pulls into Tanjong Pagar Railway Station on 30th June 2011. If you are interested to join us, we are on Train 15 Ekspres Sinaran Timur (most of are in Coach 2 and are getting on that at Segamat). Do note that tickets for the Express services, which can be purchased up to 30 days in advance, to and from Singapore this June are fast selling, with trains for most weekends already quite full, and can be obtained at the station (advance bookings open from 8.30 am daily) or online at the KTMB website. If you would like to join us and have you tickets, you may drop an email to Notabilia or me with the subject line “Strangers on a Train”.
Further information of interest:
Information related to the station and its architecture can be found on a previous post: “A final look at Tanjong Pagar Station“. In addition to that, I have also put together a collection of experiences and memories of the railway in Singapore and of my journeys through the grand old station which can be found through this page: “Journeys through Tanjong Pagar“.
Do also take a look at the proposal by the Nature Society (Singapore) to retain the green areas that have been preserved by the existence of the railway through Singapore and maintain it as a Green Corridor, at the Green Corridor’s website and show your support by liking the Green Corridor’s Facebook page. My own series of posts on the Green Corridor are at: “Support the Green Corridor“.
While the teh-tarik at the Tanjong Pagar Railway Station isn’t by a long way the best in town, particularly the one from the coffee shop just by the arrival platform, there is nothing like sipping a hot cup of tea, wasting the hours away, watching trains and passengers pull in and out of the old station. There are but 27 days to do that … do it while you still can …
There is nothing like having a cup of teh-tarik on the arrival platform of Tanjong Pagar Railway Station ... and there is only 27 days left to do that.
Follow us as we attempt to catch the last train into Singapore:
A few of us are planning a party on the last train into Tanjong Pagar on the 30th of June, Train 15, Ekspres Sinaran Timur. We would be seated in Coach 2 and will be getting on that at Segamat. If you would like to join us and have you tickets, kindly drop an email to Notabilia or me with the subject line “Strangers on a Train”.
Tanjong Pagar Railway Station for many of us, has come to be that sleepy, somewhat laid-back and old world escape from the crowded ultra-modern Singapore that now surrounds us. But, if you have been there of late, the station, you would have noticed that the crowds which the glorious work of architecture that the station’s building is deserves, missing for several decades, have returned. It is perhaps ironic that they have in what is now the last month of the building’s use the southern terminal of the Malayan Railway, that we see crowds that perhaps are reminiscent of those in the earlier days when the appeal of rail travel went far beyond the romance of taking the train.
A party is happening at the station this last month with many hoping to get a last ride on the trains which have passed through Singapore for 108 years.
Interest in rail travel from Singapore to Malaysia has indeed waned over the years as other modes of travel have become not just affordable, but a lot more convenient. Where it might have been a norm for Singaporean families to take a trip our of Tanjong Pagar Railway Station back in the 1960s and 1970s, the construction of the North South Highway has made road travel for one, a lot quicker than the trains, which for most part, run on a single track, and rail became somewhat of a forgotten and less used means of travel (although it is still popular with Malaysian residents along the line working in Singapore as a means to travel back home during the weekends).
A party from years gone by: crowds queuing up for tickets in the lead up to the Lunar New Year in the 1970s (photo source: http://picas.nhb.gov.sg)
The impending shift of the southern terminal station of the Malayan Railway has certainly increased interest in rail travel over the last few months, with many who had not taken the train out of Tanjong Pagar doing so for the first time as well as many like me, who are doing it out of pure nostalgia. The trains will of course still be around with us as a means of transport come the 1st of July when they will pull out of and into Woodlands Checkpoint instead, but there is nothing that compares to embarking on a train journey from and returning to a station of the stature of Tanjong Pagar, which was to have been the southern terminal of a grand rail transport network that was to have spanned the continents of Europe and Asia, that never was completed.
The party will end when Tanjong Pagar Railway Station sees its last train pull in and leave on the night of the 30th of June.
The terminal, which opened on 2nd May 1932, and after a 79 years and a month of operations, is now into its last month of its life as a railway station. That also means that after some 108 years since the railway started making its way through the railway corridors of Singapore, first in 1903 through much of Bukit Timah (part on which Dunearn Road now runs) to Tank Road and then in 1932 when a deviation at Bukit Timah turned it towards the docks at Tanjong Pagar, we would soon see no more of the trains chug along the various visible parts of the line (a friend related how he had learnt to count by counting trains passing by the window of his flat in Tanglin Halt), across the two black truss bridges over Bukit Timah Road, the various simple girder bridges, the prominent ones being the ones across Hindhede Road and Hillview Road, the five remaining level crossings. What I guess many of us will miss more is sitting on a train as it weaves its way on that half an hour journey that brings us into another world – the hidden parts of Singapore that we might have only seen from window of the train … In a little less than a month, it would not be the old world Tanjong Pagar that greets the train passenger coming back into Singapore, but, a stone cold platform surrounded by high wire fences and manned by blue uniformed personnel, and with that, the wonderful experience of passing over the old railway tracks and bridges and through some very charming parts of Singapore that would otherwise be hidden, will be a thing of the past. That, is reason in itself, to join the crowds that have descended on the usually sleepy Tanjong Pagar Railway Station, for what must surely its farewell party, and hop on a train out or back into the station before the opportunity to have that wonderful experience passes by.
29 days before the final farewell ....
The Malayan Railway (now KTM) which has provided a rail service to Singapore since 1903 and maintained the grand station at Tanjong Pagar since May 1932, will after the 1st of July, terminate at Woodlands, the entry point from the Causeway into Singapore.
Ticketing information:
Tickets for the Express services, which can be purchased up to 30 days in advance, to and from Singapore this June are fast selling, with trains for most weekends already quite full. Tickets can be obtained at the station (advance bookings open from 8.30 am daily) or online at the KTMB website. If you are interested to join a party on the last train into Singapore on the 30th of June, there are several of us who would be having one on Train 15 Ekspres Sinaran Timur. Most of us are in Coach 2 and will be getting on that at Segamat. If you have you tickets, you may drop an email to Notabilia or me with the subject line “Strangers on a Train”.
Further information of interest:
Information related to the station and its architecture can be found on a previous post: “A final look at Tanjong Pagar Station“. In addition to that, I have also put together a collection of experiences and memories of the railway in Singapore and of my journeys through the grand old station which can be found through this page: “Journeys through Tanjong Pagar“.
Do also take a look at the proposal by the Nature Society (Singapore) to retain the green areas that have been preserved by the existence of the railway through Singapore and maintain it as a Green Corridor, at the Green Corridor’s website and show your support by liking the Green Corridor’s Facebook page. My own series of posts on the Green Corridor are at: “Support the Green Corridor“.
Tanjong Pagar Railway Station started its life in the fourth decade of the 20th Century as what was to have been the southern point of an ambitious vision to link the Europe’s vast rail network with a network that would span the continent of Asia, and eventually connect with the rest of the Far East by rail, with the network extending potentially to the Indian and Pacific Oceans via sea routes, with Singapore serving as the gateway. The station’s main building was mostly completed at the end of 1931, its first act seeing not a rush of passengers through its main hall, but visitors to a Manufacturers’ Exhibition which opened on 2nd January 1932 – the very first to be held in Singapore. Coming as the world was suffering from the effects of the Great Depression, the exhibition served to bring to light Singapore’s hitherto unheard of manufacturing potential, providing local manufacturers with a platform to showcase their products and capabilities and at the same time to promote Singapore’s growing importance as a economic centre in the British Far East with the newly built grand station as its centrepiece. The aim of the exhibition as stated in the official guide was “to present as many aspects as possible of actual and potential manufacture in Singapore” and included amongst the exhibitors, some companies that were to become household names in Singapore such as Robinsons, John Littles, Malaya Publishing House which was to later become known as MPH, Diethelm and the Straits Trading Company. Opened by the then Governor of Singapore, Sir Cecil Clementi, the exhibition also provided many members of the public with their first view of the internals of the main building of the brand new station.
The main building of the station was first used as a venue for the first Singapore Manufacturers' Exhibition which opened on 2nd January 1932 (image source: Willis' Singapore Guide, 1936).
The actual opening of the station wasn’t until some months later on the 2nd of May 1932. To commemorate the opening, a passenger train, the first that was to pull into Tanjong Pagar, which, as reported by the Straits Times on 3rd May 1932, “comprised of an engine and three saloons to travel over the new deviation”, left Bukit Panjang Station at 4.30 pm with a load of guest that included the Governor, the Sultan of Perak and Mr J Strachan, the General Manager of the FMSR, and arrived “punctually at 5.15″. In his speech at the opening, Sir Clementi provided an insight into the vision which provided the motivation for building of a station of the stature of Tanjong Pagar, saying: “we stand here at the southernmost tip of the continent of Asia; and, since the Johore Strait is now spanned by a causeway which was opened for traffic on June 28, 1924, we may even say that we stand at the southernmost top of the mainland of Asia. This point is, therefore, a real terminus as well as a natural junction between land-borne and sea-borne traffic; and it is very right that the terminal station of the Malayan railway system should be built at Singapore, the gateway between the Pacific and Indian Oceans and immediately opposite the Tanjong Pagar docks, where every facility will be afforded for interchange between railway and ocean shipping”. The Governor also added that he had “not the slightest doubt that, for centuries, this Singapore terminal station will stand here as one of the most nodal points in the whole world’s scheme of communications.” While this, eight decades later has not quite come true for the station (we are also still talking about a Trans-Asian rail network, it probably has come true of Singapore as a wider communications node – the Governor could not have envisaged the phenomenal growth of air transportation at that time.
The location of the station, across from the docks at Tanjong Pagar, was deliberately selected so that the southern terminal of the what would have been an intercontinental overland railway network could be integrated with ocean shipping and extend the reach over the Pacific and Indian Oceans (image source: Willis' Singapore Guide, 1936).
The station, the work of Swan and McLaren, even in its current state having had much better days, is a wonderful work of architecture to marvel at. Described by an article in the 7th May 1932 edition of the Malayan Saturday Post on the occasion of the opening of the station as having a “palatial appearance”, the station is now overshadowed by the towering blocks that have come up at its vicinity, as well as by the elevated road, buildings and containers stacked high that obscures most of it from the the docks it was meant to feed. What must be the features of the grand building that stand out most are the entrance arches flanked by the triumphal figures, the work of sculptor Angelo Vannetti from the Raoul Bigazzi Studios Florence, that seem to stand guard over all that passes under the arches into the grand vaulted hallway described as “lofty and cool” in the same article. The main hall of the station extends three storeys (some 21.6 metres) above the visitor to provide for a sufficient pocket of air to allow the hall to be kept cool in the oppressive tropical heat. It is this lobby that impresses the most, with not just the vaulted ceiling, but also the six sets of mosaic panels that resemble batik paintings that immediately catch the attention of the visitor. It is the timeless beauty of the main hall, that, in any future developments being planned for what is Singapore’s newest National monument, should be made accessible to the public as it is today, and not as many other public buildings that have been conserved over the years, accessible to an exclusive few.
The main vaulted hall of the station in its early days. An impressive integration of architecture and public art. The lamps and the clock seen in this picture - has long since disappeared, but the hall remains, even in the state the station building is in today, a particularly impressive piece of architectural work. Caption reads 'Booking Hall, Singapore Station' (image source: Willis' Singapore Guide, 1936).
There is a lot more clutter in the hall today ... the lamps and the clock we see in the hall in the station's early days are also missing.
The Willis’ Singapore Guide (1936), provides an insight into Tanjong Pagar and the operation of the FMS Railway around the time of the station’s opening. It describes the FMSR as running from Singapore for 580 miles to Padang Besar where it meets the Royal State Railways of Siam and incorporates 121¼ miles of the Johore State Railway which was leased by the FMSR. As is the case today, the East Coast Line branched off at Gemas to the port of Tumpat some 465 miles from Singapore, where a short branch line connects with the Siamese Railways at Sungei Golok. We are also told that a branch line connects with what was then Port Swettenham (now Port Klang), with branches also serving other ports at Malacca, Port Dickson, Teluk Anson and Port Weld. A total of 1321 miles of metre gauge tracks were laid providing some 1067 miles of track mileage. A daily service of trains from Singapore to Penang was maintained with a day and night express service daily which took some 22 hours to reach Penang and some 9 hours (doesn’t seem much different from the journey these days) to reach Kuala Lumpur from Singapore.
The journey in the 1930s to Kuala Lumpur took some 9 hours.
The express train services in 1936 (source: Willis' Singapore Guide, 1936)
On the evidence of the guide, which I suppose would be referring to service in first class, the service provided does seem a lot more comfortable than what we’ve become accustomed to these days, as described by the guide, with Restaurant Cars which served “an excellent breakfast, luncheon or dinner”, “at a reasonable price”. Sleeping Saloons with two berth cabins were provided on the night trains (as they are now) and a “commodious Buffet Parlour Car is attached to the night express trains between Singapore and Kuala Lumpur”. Breakfast, tiffin and tea baskets were also available at the principal stations which could be ordered en route with the “Guard of the trains or any Station Master” able to “telegraph free of charge”.
Once the last train pulls out of Tanjong Pagar Station, it would bring to an end a little over 79 years of operation of a station that was to see centuries as one of the 'most nodal points in the whole world's scheme of communications'.
The information above has been put together from various newspaper articles and as well as the Willis’ Singapore Guide 1936, to provide a glimpse into the early days of Tanjong Pagar Railway Station. More information on the station and its architecture can be found on a previous post: “A final look at Tanjong Pagar Station“. I also have a collection of experiences and memories of the railway in Singapore and of my journeys through the grand old station and if you care to read about them, do drop by my page “Journeys through Tanjong Pagar“. Also, if you are keen to find out and support the Nature Society’s (Singapore) proposal to retain the green areas that have been preserved by the existence of the railway through Singapore and maintain it as a Green Corridor, do drop by the Green Corridor’s website and show your support by liking the Green Corridor’s Facebook page … I do also have a series of posts on the Green Corridor if that is of interest – please visit them at “Support the Green Corridor“.
A finalist in the Singapore Blog Awards (SBA) for three years, The Long and Winding Road has been named as the best photography blog in the SBA for two years running in 2011 and 2012.
My Macau Experience 2012
To also read about my (and 9 other bloggers') wonderful experiences in Macau courtesy of the Macau Government Tourist Office and Tiger Airways, click on the graphic below:
At least nine Dragon (or Snake) Kilns were once found along the 13th to 18th Milestones of Jurong Road, attracted by the availability of Jurong White Clay - ideal material for clay latex cups. The cups were fired by the kilns to feed a huge demand from the rubber estates in the area. Over the years, most of the kiln closed due to the vanishing demand as the estates gave way to urban development. Only two, both of which have stopped operating commercially, have survived. The area the two, the Jalan Bahar and Thow Kwang kilns, are in is slated for development as a CleanTech Park, and the future for these kilns now looks bleak.
Trailer for BUKIT BROWN VOICES. The a short independently-made documentary tells the story of Singapore's oldest Chinese cemetery on the cusp of major change. Filmed during what is the last Qing Ming (grave sweeping) festival for some families whose ancestors are buried there, we hear their thoughts and memories about what the place and the customs they practise mean to them (a Film by Su-Mae Khoo & Brian McDairmant of Two Chiefs).
The out-of-this-world 54 ha. Bay South Garden of the massive Gardens by the Bay was officially opened by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong on 28 Jun 2012. It opening its doors to the public the following day attracted huge crowds on opening weekend. The series of posts here are from several media previews, opportunities to photograph the gardens before it was opened to the public, and of the official opening during which I had a better view of the completed Cloud Forest - one of two cooled conservatories at the garden. Two photographs that I took prior to the opening were among 20 that were selected for a roving exhibition.
Share your personal memories on the Singapore Memory Portal - an initiative by the National Library Board (NLB) as part of the Singapore Memory Project (SMP). The SMP is a national initiative started in 2011 to collect, preserve and provide access to Singapore’s knowledge materials, so as to tell the Singapore Story and aims to collect 5 million personal memories by 2015.
20 Conserved School Buildings (URA)
i Light Marina Bay 2012
i Light Marina Bay 2012, the 2nd edition of Asia’s 1st and only sustainable light art festival, was held from 9 March to 1 April 2012. Themed “Light Meets Asia”, i Light Marina Bay 2012 featured environmentally sustainable light art installations by 31 artists.
Divas Anita Sarawak and Ning Baizura and a host of stars at the Malam Anugerah Seri Temasek 2011
Artistes from the Golden Era of Malay Film and the filmmakers of today from both sides of the Causeway gathered for a Gala Night on 5 Feb 2011 in Singapore, and were entertained by Divas Anita Sarawak and Ning Baizura, as well as Fredo of Flybaits, Sarah Aqilah, Didi Cazli, Rudy Djoharnean, Syamsul Yusof, R. Ismail and Rozita Rohaizad.
Highlights of a heritage tour of Sembawang, with a focus on the Sembawang that I was familiar with in the 1970s. The two and a half hour tour included a visit to the last kampung mosque in Singapore, as well as to several other points of interest in Sembawang. Information relating to the walk and some of what we saw or were transported to can be found in the post “Sembawang beyond the Slumber”.
One Hundred Steps to Heaven (Central - 26 Feb 2011)
I took participants on a walk with the NLB up a hundred steps to the heavenly world of Mount Sophia that was home to the fairy-tale like mansions such as Eu Villa (demolished in 1981). We also explored the neighbouring Mount Emily, the site of Singapore’s first public swimming pool and along with that, some of the areas that were once part of a Jewish and then Japanese quarter. Information relating to the walk and some of what we saw or were transported to can be found in the post “One Hundred Steps to Heaven”.
A Journey through Time (ToaPayoh - 20 Nov 2010)
I took an enjoyable walk back in time with several participants in a heritage trail at the Toa Payoh Library, to a Toa Payoh that was taking its first steps as the first planned satellite town. Details of some of the places we visited can be found in the post “A journey through time: a heritage trail through Toa Payoh”.
Courtesy of the Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB), I had the opportunity to have a 4 day adventure in Hong Kong with 9 other bloggers. To read our collective Hong Kong Travel Blog entries, please click on the icon below:
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