one degree above Written and photographed by Juliet Highet
More than 3mn people visited Singapore last year and most of them stayed only three nights. Why? Could it be that the developers have blasted the heart out of the island with that sophisticated skyline of skyscrapers, including Southeast Asia’s tallest hotel, the 73-floor Swissôtel The Stamford? What’s left of the funky ethnic districts and the cultural heritage of the immigrant peoples – the Chinese, Indians and Malays? Has Singapore been over-sanitised, gone squeaky-clean? Even the transvestite entertainers have been moved on from their haunts on Bugis Street – it’s a far cry from Bangkok’s notorious night life.
The answer is that the island has long been viewed as a convenient jumping-off point for exploration of other Pacific Rim destinations such as Malaysia, Indonesia and Hong Kong, and very convenient it is too, with its excellent airline connections, from one of the world’s best airports. But Singapore has a lot more to offer than just top-class, reasonably priced hotels and bargain shopping opportunities. Give the island at least a week of your time, if not more, and you will discover that Singapore is a place of subtle and vivid ethnic realities. Though miraculously
managing to live in harmony with each other, the multinational population has preserved the traditions, architecture, religion – and food – of each nation. Accordingly, there are many more things to do and see than meets the eye.
Elegant Changi Airport wins awards with almost monotonous regularity. The first impression visitors receive is how organised
(and clean) the island is. Whizzing into the city over the freeways through immaculate streets and past those towering skyscrapers, Singapore surpasses even the most ambitious dreams of Sir Stamford Raffles (of Raffles Hotel fame). In 1819, recognising the island’s strategic commercial possibilities he established not only a British maritime base and trading post, but laid the principles for
the city’s development as a free port, which today is the giant international marketplace of Southeast Asia.
Yet everywhere lush greenery intersects cold concrete and bridges are draped with pink bougainvillea; the whole city is a
garden. While most countries have parks in their cities, Singapore is a city in a park – it is really most attractive. Brilliant tropical flowers perfume the gardens of almost all of even the most modern luxury hotels; while at the colonial-style grand old hotels like Raffles and Goodwood Park, Travellers Palms and orchids sway in whatever breeze is available.
Take your cotton safari gear to Singapore, for the island is just one degree above the equator and it is always hot and humid. Business calls necessitate a long-sleeved shirt and tie or something a trifle more covered than the sundress or shorts in which you can disport yourself the rest of the time. Have no fear of causing offence with skimpy resort wear, unless you plan to visit one of the impressive mosques, such as the Sultan, or possibly one of the more ornately decorated Indian temples. Singapore’s night life is sophisticated and the locals enjoy dressing up.
Suitably kitted out for a morning’s steamy sightseeing, we headed straight for Chinatown. What is really special about Singapore is its older districts – developers have hardly touched the slightly seedy (by Singaporean standards) but absolutely fascinating areas of Chinatown, Little India and Arab Street.
Singapore’s 2.5mn population is composed of 77 per cent Chinese, 15 per cent Malay, 6 per cent Indian and 2 per cent Eurasian or European, and each community has preserved its
idiosyncratic buildings, customs and culture. None of the architecture in Singapore is particularly ancient, but the ethnic areas have a period charm nevertheless, with many photogenic architectural details. Wandering past the ‘shop-houses’ in Chinatown, painted
in pretty pastel tones, we saw street calligraphers at work, gilding strips of lucky red paper, craftsmen bending over theatrical masks, and old men playing Mahjong. We called at a traditional Chinese pharmacist, who selected powders used down the centuries from dozens of tiny inscribed drawers, while his partner drew in the
punters off the street by dancing round draped with a snake and sporting rhino horns.
Offsetting the rampant commercialism of shops, stalls and
markets are Chinese temples, some of them large and ornately
decorated, others little more than one incense-filled room opening directly off the street. The oldest Hokkien temple is called Thian Hock Keng, or the Temple of Heavenly Happiness, and was built by grateful immigrants in 1841 to thank the Goddess of the Sea for
a safe voyage from Amoy in China. The elaborate statue of the
goddess is just part of the temple’s treasury of craftsmanship, while she represents but one of the religious persuasions at work in Chinatown – Buddhism, Taoism and Confucianism.
Echoing the note of religious tolerance, an effusively elaborate Indian temple looms up off the street next door to the vibrant Chinese Wet Market, in the heart of Chinatown. The entire roof
complex of the Sri Mariamman temple is covered with colourfully painted statues of the Hindu pantheon. Almost anything and everything Indian can be found in and around Serangoon Road, in the area known as Little India. Tamil love songs float poignantly on the air, along with the perfume of flower garlands, which vie with the aroma from red and yellow spices piled up in traders’ shops open to the street.
Little India is a paeon of praise to the senses, with its fabulous fabric shops, stacked high with silk saris, columns of glass bracelets glinting in the sun, and goldsmiths’ shops glittering with elaborate bridal jewellery. Mounds of saffron rice and steaming curries in huge aluminium pots recall the gastronomic reputation of this small island: in Singapore, over 30 culinary traditions come together, so that every meal is a feast for the visitor and a national pastime for the locals.
With every cuisine imaginable from every variation on the eastern theme – the Chinese, Malaysian, Indonesian, Indian, Korean and Japanese; through Creole at the Holiday Inn and the best of British fare at the Elizabethan Grill at Raffles Hotel – Singapore is
still full of surprises. It has its own Nonya cooking, a distinctive and delicious blend that you can find at Peranakan Place, the centre for the unique Peranakan or Baba culture. Straits-born Chinese adopted many Malay customs; a charming style of architecture was one result; Nonya cuisine the other.
Local food centres or ‘hawkers’ markets’ are where the Singaporeans descend to sample an incredible variety of food, passing verdict on the authenticity and irresistibility of this genuine local fare. Foodies can stuff themselves for less than RO2.5 at large noisy alfresco centres like Newton Circus or Rasa Singapura, which are particularly picturesque at night with their bobbing lanterns and electric atmosphere.
Nowadays the food centres are strictly inspected, whereas not so long ago the hawkers used to sell their wares from barrows. Having cleaned up their city so effectively at all levels, the tourist authorities are realising that while it may now be less roguish and more
sanitised, it’s a lot less exuberant than before. They are listening to the feedback from the increasing numbers of European and Middle Eastern visitors who want original history and unadulterated culture. In the past, the vast majority of tourists were Japanese and American, whose predilection for theme parks and reconstructions are not to everyone’s taste.
Sentosa Island has been expensively developed as a leisure complex, with a varied range of recreational facilities, some of which recall World War II, memories of which are scattered tangibly throughout Singapore. We preferred the natural aspects of this little island to the weird Surrender Chamber. Just a ferry or cable car’s journey from Singapore island is the rustling, steaming, flowering jungle walk called the Nature Walk, worlds apart from the theme-park mentality.
However, not only is Singapore a garden city, but when one moves out from the city centre, there are enchanting ‘natural’ attractions like the Orchid Garden and the Chinese and Japanese Gardens. Though the willow-pattern fantasy holds up pretty well at the Chinese Garden, the pagodas and up-turned roofs are in fact a recent reconstruction of the classical Sung Dynasty. It is an attempt to re-create the Peking Summer Palace, and is a popular location for wedding photographs with brides clad in white Christian-style dresses. Many Singaporean couples must end up with the same curved bridge and elaborate archway as the background for their albums.
The middle class of Singapore was out in force with their children at the Jurong Bird Park on Sunday morning, where we had breakfast beneath gilded cages of brilliant, twittering birds. Flamingos sailed serenely across an artificial lake and penguins waddled about on an air-conditioned ‘beach’.
Most of Singapore’s attractions have obviously had a lot of money thrown at them, but apart from the really fascinating and genuine ethnic areas, there were two other spots which had a natural feel. Nothing but orchids grow over a hillside at the Mandai Orchid Farm, near the Zoo, and even the luxuriant Water Garden has been left alone to grow fabulous tropical plants.
Another naturally beautiful experience was a sunset cruise in a ‘bumboat’ out of Singapore’s harbour, watching the ocean change colour and silhouettes of oil refineries cut out against the darkening sky. We also took a trip out to the Ming Village, a centre of china craftsmanship, where masterpieces from Ming and Quing Dynasties are faithfully reproduced.
Naturally there’s a shop at the Ming Village selling the handpainted replicas, and the Chinese crafts on the island are by far
the most attractive and best value of the shopping opportunities. Singapore’s reputation as a centre for bargains is legendary, and
the impressive atrium-style shopping centres are crammed with electronic, hi-fi and photographic goods, designer fashion, watches, jewellery and so on. But unless you are prepared to bargain vigorously – and only a few shopping plazas, such as People’s Park, are prepared to let you do so – we did not find the prices noticeably cheaper than discount shops elsewhere.
The true bargains are down there on Arab Street, in Little India and, of course, Chinatown, or gathered together at the Singapore Handicraft Centre. A touch of the past and a taste of genuine culture comes alive at their Pasar Malam, a night market of craft stalls where you can not only bargain for your batik shirt, painted paper umbrella or painting on silk, but see it being made, too.
In the middle of all the haggling, and to add to the noise level of the bazaar, there’s usually a live performance of folk music going on, resplendent with dragon masks and fabulous costumes. The real Singapore is still there – the culture of the real people, and the product of their rich heritage.
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