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The ruins on Sentosa and a rare chance to visit
Sentosa, or the island of peace and tranquility and now also of posh homes, fancy boats and overpriced hotels, was once the rather sinister sounding Pulau Blakang Mati – the island of death at the...
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The last days of Empire
On the afternoon of Chinese New Year’s day, 75 years ago in 1942, Singapore fell to the Japan. It was to bring three and a half years of hardship on Singaporeans and a shift in power that would bring...
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11 July 2017, the day the Thieves of Sungei Road will be executed
The once bustling flea market, known to me as “Robinson Petang” – Afternoon Robinson’s or simply as Sungei Road in my younger days, will soon be more of a distant memory. Come the 11th of July this...
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1972, when the Concorde first flew over Singapore
Singapore had a brief love affair with the Concorde. Arguably the only supersonic passenger aircraft to be successfully deployed, a London to Singapore was operated by its National airline, Singapore...
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Moving images of the Syonan Jinja at MacRitchie Reservoir
A rare clip with scenes taken at a ceremony at the Syonan Jinja (from 1:23 to 3:30 in the clip), a shrine built during the Japanese Occupation with POW labour. The shrine was to have been a most...
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Say goodbye to Caldecott Broadcast Centre
A rare (and final) opportunity to visit the Caldecott Broadcast Centre (CBC) presents itself during this year’s edition of the Singapore Heritage Festival. The centre, home to radio and television for...
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Tanah Merah, 1965
Old photographs, of much cherished places that are no longer with us in Singapore, are a godsend. They help me to hold on to my sanity in a country that due to the relentless pace of change, feels much...
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Parting Glances: Pasir Panjang Power Station Quarters
Thanks to the Singapore Land Authority (SLA) and Mr Morhan Karup, representing the families of the former Pasir Panjang Power Station (PPPS) quarters, I found myself at a huge gathering of the PPPS...
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Making the cut (rubber and the forgotten art of rubber tapping)
The cultivation of rubber, once the mainstay of the Malayan economy, has left a mark not just on our northern neignbours, Malaysia, but also here in Singapore. Clusters of aging rubber trees or even...
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The Italian captain who bought Pulau Bukom …
Except perhaps for sculptor Cavaliere Rodolfo Nolli, whose magnificent work adorns the old Supreme Court, little is known of Singapore’s many connections with the Italian community – except perhaps of...
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Beautiful in its abandonment: the red-brick power station at Pasir Panjang
There is a certain charm about the utilitarian, red-brick faced ‘A’ power station at Pasir Panjang. Comparable in appearance to the much-loved and now lost National Library at Stamford Road, the former...
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A postcard from the past: Fitzpatrick’s on Orchard Road
I miss the old Orchard Road. Laid back, when compared to the madness that now consumes the street, little remains of it except for a few memories and some precious photographs, which when they crop up...
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A postcard from the past: a view over the Killiney Road area in the 1970s
Another postcard from the past: a view over the Killiney Road and River Valley area in the early 1970s. What can quite clearly be made out is Killiney Road, Dublin Road, Lloyd Road, Tiverton Lane and...
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A postcard from the past: Shaw House and Lido
Another landmark of the Orchard Road that I loved was the old Shaw House. That, stood at the corner of Orchard and Scotts Road through the 1960s to the 1980s. What made the building special was the...
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The Coney Dog makes a return?
So, there is will no longer be a need to make a trip across the Causeway (or the Second Link) to satisfy one’s craving for root beer and Coney Dogs come 2018 if this report on Yahoo Lifestyle Singapore...
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That Singapore that has been taken away from us
Several screen-grabs from a wonderful video montage put up by the Huntley Film Archives of that Singapore that has been taken away from us – a Singapore I called home. The video montage can also be...
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Ten 100 year old places in Singapore and the little stories they hide
Surprising as it may seem, places that go back more than a hundred years are not uncommon in the midst of urban Singapore’s gleaming modernity. Not unexpectedly, many of these places hide a story or...
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Discovering Singapore’s Best Kept Secrets: Visit a former power station
Registration for the event has closed as of 1800 hours, 14 July 2017, as all slots have been taken up. Do look out for the next visit in the series, which will be to a gem of a former boarding house...
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Discovering Singapore’s Best Kept Secrets: Visit Kinloss House
Update 28 July 2017 6.10 pm Registration for the event has closed as of 1810 hours, 28 July 2017, as all slots for the two tours have been taken up. Do look out for the next visit in the series, which...
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Discovering Singapore’s Best Kept Secrets: Visit Old Kallang Airport
Update 11 August 2017 9.15 am Registration for the event has closed as of 0906 hours, 11 August 2017, as all slots have been taken up. Do look out for the next visit in the series, which will be to a...
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