Cultural Heritage and Peripheral Spaces in Singapore

TAI WEI LIM CULTURAL HERITAGE AND PERIPHERAL SPACES IN SINGAPORE Cultural Heritage and Peripheral Spaces in Singapore Tai Wei Lim Cultural Heritage and Peripheral Spaces in Singapore Tai Wei Lim SIM University Singapore, Singapore

Research Team Members: Tai Wei Lim Dr Adrian Kwek Ms Soh Hui Shi (Research Assistant) Ms Clara Tay En Ting (Research Assistant)

ISBN 978-981-10-4746-6 ISBN 978-981-10-4747-3 (eBook) DOI 10.1007/978-981-10-4747-3

Library of Congress Control Number: 2017940206

© The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s) 2017 This work is subject to copyright. All rights are solely and exclusively licensed by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifcally the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microflms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed. The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specifc statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use. The publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the publisher nor the authors or the editors give a warranty, express or implied, with respect to the material contained herein or for any errors or omissions that may have been made. The publisher remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affliations.

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This Palgrave Macmillan imprint is published by Springer Nature The registered company is Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. The registered company address is: 152 Beach Road, #21-01/04 Gateway East, Singapore 189721, Singapore Contents

1 Introduction: A Personal Trekking History 1

2 Southern Singapore: The Constituency of Tanjong Pagar and the Surrounding Areas of Marina, Bayfront and Raffes Place in Southern Singapore 35

3 A Passion for Heritage and Nature: A Case Study of the Mature Tiong Bahru Estate and Surrounding Areas 61

4 The Pedagogical Contributions of the Peripheral Spaces of Walks: Fort Canning and Tiong Bahru 97 Adrian Kwek

5 Peripheral Land No More? Fetishisms of Space and Case Studies of the Green Rail Corridor and Clementi Forest 139

6 Singapore’s Green Lungs: The Central Catchment Area and Its Peripheral Areas 173

7 Terminal End of Singapore’s North–South Hike: Fetishisms of Nostalgia and Rusticity in Northern Singapore 199 v vi Contents

8 Journey to the West: Hiking Along the Peripheral Spaces of the Southern Ridges 227

9 Hiking the East Coast of Singapore 255

10 Conclusion 283

Index 297 List of Figures

Fig. 2.1 A mother hen leading three chicks through Fort Canning. These are wild junglefowl. The rooster rummages through the bushes while keeping watch over his family nearby 45 Fig. 2.2 The author’s camera captures the lone fgure of an Indian Muslim wearing muslin textiles sitting on a stool at the back of a shophouse taking a break from work, gazing far into the corridors of Arab Street where the watchtower of the Sultan Mosque stands. He is an example of the hardworking people in this area who make the daily commercial activities in Arab Street possible 56 Fig. 3.1 A beautiful wild stray cat with blue eyes in the Tiong Bahru area 73 Fig. 3.2 Mysteriously, a wild red junglefowl, the ancestor of the farmed chicken, has made Tiong Bahru Park its home. It is often seen hunting for worms near a drainage canal 74 Fig. 3.3 A plantain squirrel at the Tiong Bahru park. Plantain squirrels inhabit the areas between Alexander canal, through Tiong Bahru Park and into the trees growing along Redhill. They survive well in an urban environment. The author has seen some wandering into the nearby housing estates. On 4 September 2016, the author spotted a plantain squirrel searching for fcus tree nuts. These squirrels are not threatened and are quite common, and can even be found near housing estates. This particular squirrel was versatile and hung upside down while searching for its food 76

vii viii List of Figures

Fig. 3.4 Tiong Bahru was the frst consolidated public housing estate in Singapore. This photo features the Singapore Improvement Trust buildings from the 1930s 77 Fig. 4.1 The pair of informational signboards at the beginning of the fourteenth century Walk 108 Fig. 4.2 The break at H6: The archaeological dig 115 Fig. 4.3 The break after H11 116 Fig. 4.4 The break at H13 117 Fig. 4.5 The exhibition passageway 118 Fig. 4.6 Botanical signage intermingled with walk signage 120 Fig. 4.7 Chang Wei’s “A Portrait” 121 Fig. 4.8 The trail map reproduced on the top right-hand corner of every piece of site marker signage 123 Fig. 4.9 Signage 06 and surrounding Streamline Moderne architecture 127 Fig. 4.10 Signage 10 and surrounding international style architecture 128 Fig. 4.11 Example of site marker signage with road name information 132 Fig. 4.12 The informative signboard about Tan Chay Yan 133 Fig. 4.13 The informative signboard about Tan Kim Cheng 134 Fig. 5.1 The lush green canopy of the Clementi Forest. Flocks of birds fy over this area in the late afternoon and evening. The Clementi Forest has witnessed thunderstorms and a variety of man-made events, including the smoke particles that were blown into Singapore from forest fres in the region 145 Fig. 5.2 A changeable lizard hides in waiting at the Kampong Bahru end of the Green Rail Corridor 161 Fig. 5.3 One of the author’s most important visual sightings was that of a black spitting cobra! It hurriedly avoided the Green Rail path and slithered away in muddy water when it spotted hikers. When threatened, the black spitting cobra opens up its hood and can spit venom accurately at the eyes of a predator up to 2 meters away. This particular snake is estimated to be around 1.7–2.0 meters long 167 Fig. 6.1 The rising sun and still waters at MacRitchie Reservoir on 5 March 2016 180 List of Figures ix

Fig. 6.2 An alpha male monkey sits at the entrance to the tree top walk together with its two female companions guarding the entrance fercely. Eventually, it leapt at one of the author’s hiking mates and attempted to chase them off. This was probably one of the most hostile long-tailed monkeys encountered during the hikes for this volume. Most long-tailed macaques are inquisitive, playful, shy and quiet 182 Fig. 6.3 In the Bukit Panjang area, the author encountered a slightly venomous banded mangrove snake sleeping curled up in a tree. A nocturnal creature, it becomes active at night look for small prey 183 Fig. 6.4 On 29 October 2016, the author spotted a green crested lizard (bronchocela cristatella) on the Bukit Panjang/Zhenghua Park trek 190 Fig. 7.1 The highly toxic pong pong fruit. Its white sap contains toxins that may affect the heart 210 Fig. 7.2 A monitor lizard lazes on a wooden deck sunning itself 211 Fig. 7.3 A monitor lizard sticks its forked tongue out to taste the water 212 Fig. 7.4 The crocodile captures visitors’ imagination. The author spotted a submerged estuary crocodile hiding in the water with only its eyes above the surface of the water 213 Fig. 7.5 Arrival at the northern-most point of Singapore. This was the point beyond which the research team could go no further without a passport. In the future, Jurong East will be the new site for a train terminal for the high speed rail system to Malaysia 220 Fig. 7.6 The tawny coster butterfy found on Coney Island 223 Fig. 7.7 The majestic brahminy kite soars over Coney Island 223 Fig. 8.1 Amazingly, the giant red ants form a bridge using their own bodies so that their compatriots can cross between a signboard and a leaf, connecting an urban infrastructure with a natural green leaf 230 Fig. 8.2 Bright orange fungus growing on rotting wooden logs along the Henderson Waves trail. The same bright orange fungus could also be found growing on rotting wood along the sloped pathways of Mount Faber 232 x List of Figures

Fig. 8.3 A picture of the treetop walk starting from the entrance opposite Hort Park. Visitors walk along the steel pedestrian bridge of the treetop walk and enjoy a spectacular bird’s eye view from a vantage point near the peak 233 Fig. 9.1 The majestic Sultan Mosque with its golden onion dome, spires and a brown/beige color scheme. When this photo was taken, the Mosque had just gone through a round of renovation 262 Fig. 9.2 The former palace grounds of Kampong Glam, which used to be the residence of the former ruler/Sultan of Singapore 266 Fig. 9.3 Probably a tripod fsh that is not usually valued by anglers caught on the east coast of Singapore. The organic and laissez faire gatherings of the community of anglers have their own evaluation system of prized catches and “trash fsh”. Anglers who catch fsh such as the tripod fsh throw them back into the sea, sometimes without harming them by removing the hooks from their mouth. Another fsh that is usually thrown back into the sea is the pufferfsh, commonly found in the east coast marine areas. Pufferfsh contain highly toxic neurotoxins and have a nasty bite that can chew off chunks of human fesh 269 Fig. 9.4 Anglers at an east coast jetty string up fsh to dry them in the sun. Traditional ways of preserving food are carried out on the east coast jetties, creating small communities of food harvesters and preservers in the peripheral spaces along the coast. These anglers also help each other out by assisting newbies with the removal of fsh stings in certain species of catch, such as the catfsh. It also provides a subjective feel of nostalgia in terms of communal activities and spirit when communities used to live in the kampongs and mangrove areas along the east coast. Sometimes, local parlance labels such bonding between individuals amorphously as the “kampong spirit” 270 Fig. 9.5 When the author was at the East Coast Park on 16 April 2016, the anglers there were excited about a school of mirror fsh swimming near the shorelines and many of them caught this prized fsh, which is active in the waters between Australia and Southeast Asia 271 Fig. 9.6 The striated heron hunting for fsh in the storm drains of Bedok Reservoir Park. The striated heron is equally adept in inhabiting urban and suburban areas. The ecologically friendly areas of Bedok Reservoir Park provide an environment for these birds to thrive 272 List of Figures xi

Fig. 9.7 An egret hunting for fsh in a storm drain in Bedok Reservoir Park. Peripheral spaces such as storm drains are rich in ecological diversity and species, attracting a variety of birds, fsh and shellfsh. During the author’s walks, he spotted snakes and monitor lizards thriving in these environments 273 Fig. 9.8 Spotted at the Kallang basin, this sea poison plant has toxins that fshermen used to extract to immobilise fsh 274 List of Tables

Table 4.1 Possible conceptual relations between items that are in sequence on the walk 109 Table 4.2 Points of interest marked on the trail map 124 Table 4.3 Various heritage sites along the trail 131 Table 10.1 Stages in the gentrifcation of heritage spaces 291 Table 10.2 Examples of fetishism for natural spaces 292

xiii CHAPTER 1

Introduction: A Personal Trekking History

Introduction The author was frst drawn to hiking and trekking in Hong Kong, where it is a popular past-time, when he was stationed there for more than four years. Hong Kong has a variety mountains, hills and peaks that are suitable for hiking and areas of coastline that afford trekking routes. In September 2014, the author returned to Singapore, taking his passion for walking, hiking and trekking with him. This writing project started in March 2015 when the author began documenting his walks throughout Singapore. During his walks, he noticed a vast amount of space that had either been left in its natural state, or had been abandoned or crafted into a usable green space, such as park corridors. In the two years spent working on this project, he also observed how the use of certain public spaces was discussed with all public stakeholders. The authorities took into consideration a wide array of stakeholders using those spaces. The Green Rail Corridor, Chestnut Drive Park and the Kranji Marshlands are some examples of these spaces. In encountering the changing use of natural environmental spaces, the author archived spatial changes in Singapore selectively, including spaces that had been gentrifed,

I would like to thank the anonymous reviewers who have offered useful suggestions which have been incorporated in this volume.

© The Author(s) 2017 1 T.W. Lim, Cultural Heritage and Peripheral Spaces in Singapore, DOI 10.1007/978-981-10-4747-3_1 2 T.W. Lim improved or upgraded and were either under the purview of urban planning agencies, or had been conserved by the authorities. During the author’s hiking activities, he met various groups of hikers; some walks took place in the southern ridges and MacRitchie area, and others tackled tougher terrain in the Seletar Forests. The author also joined other urban trekkers along Ulu Pandan, the East–West Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) line, the Marina Bay area and the Civic District. In addition to trekkers, the author also joined heritage site walkers and enthusiasts to explore cultural and historical heritage found in several old districts such as Tiong Bahru, Little India, Arab Street, Chinatown, Beach Road, Joo Chiat, Fort Canning and other historical community districts. Finally, there were other trekkers who were interested in nighttime urban treks and cycling enthusiasts keen to explore the East Coast stretch of coastlines. The author’s outings were diverse and intriguing, so he decided to put pen to paper and publish these experiences. As a historian, the author was interested, frst and foremost, in the histories of all the communities and locations that had been trekked, hiked or walked through. There were three areas of history that he was interested to examine and analyze: green spaces; local community histories of the areas he visited, particularly the ethnically prominent cultural districts; and, lastly, an integrated history of Singapore as an island unit. The green corridors, parks and urban infrastructure that connected the various areas that the author visited gave him the opportunity to investigate the dynamic island-state from a macro island-wide point of view. When these goals are conceptualized together, they constitute a spatial mapping of Singapore’s historical, cultural and natural sites. The directions of the treks were sometimes based on memory and terrain recognition and sometimes the markers that other trekkers left behind. Sometimes, the trekkers with whom the author was acquainted shared stories of the ultra-marathoners or trail-runners, portraying them as the frst among equals in the trekking community. They were able to run through diffcult terrains and were highly organized in sending out advance parties to scout and mark the tracks through the forests before the runners moved in. While the author’s trekking informants were not so organized or prepared to engage in extreme sports, they still “marked” out their territories by relating the different sections of the forests through milestone experiences or remembered landmarks. Sometimes, hikers affectionately named landmarks in the hiking trail using personal nicknames. 1 INTRODUCTION: A PERSONAL TREKKING HISTORY 3

Trekking with a diversity of people also added to the richness of narratives that the author encountered. Besides people of different generations, the author also trekked with foreign and local individuals. Foreigners add interesting perspectives to the narratives related to trekking experiences. Friends from the Northern hemisphere remarked how the treks were positively challenging for them, despite the fact that the distances were much shorter than they were used to. This was due to the hot and humid weather, which made them more tired than when trekking in their home countries. Foreign friends who are used to high elevations in their home countries remarked how fat the terrain was in Singapore and this made Singapore’s green spaces accessible and comfortable for their walking and trekking activities (particularly in terms of pressure on the knees for the elderly). Singapore’s tallest elevation is Bukit Timah Hill, which is considered a comparatively small hill by the mountainous benchmarks found in their home countries. Some of them also remarked how tropical forests have much larger leaves (e.g. wild yam leaves) than they were used to in their own forests. Most of all, they were pleasantly surprised at how a pristine secondary forest environment co-existed within a highly urbanized metropolitan city and the large diversity of tropical species that lived in them. They were also delighted that the green spaces offered them an alternative source of leisure and entertainment in addition to constructed tourist places and shopping malls. Regardless of their nationalities, local or foreign, the vast majority of trekkers and bikers were cordial, courteous and respectful of each other. When bikers sped down a ramp or slope, they made their presence known and the trekkers would shout to alert them to oncoming traffc. Bikers and trekkers also greeted each other respectfully as a mark of respect between different users of Singapore’s green trails. Having briefy discussed the background and origins of this volume, the chapter will proceed to highlight the author’s objectives and the methodology used in this writing.

Objectives and Methodology The thesis statement for the project writing argues that the stakeholders (walkers, trekkers, etc.) in Singaporean heritage historical and green spaces interpret the use of these spaces subjectively—in the process, engaging in a dynamic process of creating personal narratives about local history. These individual interpretations and narratives 4 T.W. Lim based on nostalgia, emotive and cognitive experiences eventually form an imagined community of users and historical interpreters of different sectors of Singapore’s economic development. The project aims to chronicle and discuss the concept of nostalgia and the process of interpreting uses of peripheral, heritage and green spaces. It does this through a combination of informal observations and interactions with users combined with research into history and heritage; it observes, as well as archives and curates, the changing uses of selected green areas. In collecting and analyzing narratives about Singapore’s peripheral spaces, Singapore’s nation-building priorities and local community histories are examined and recorded as part of a people’s history of rural areas and sites of early industrialization or modernity. The research that went into this writing is collaborative, and an extensive collection of photographs presents the reader with heritage sites, green spaces and peripheral spaces. A high degree of interpretation of visuals is introduced into this project to complement textual and documentary information. Other than visual interpretation and the collection of images for this volume, the writing includes certain aspects of observation studies, as the principal author embarked on hiking trips to observe how experienced local trekkers navigate the routes while listening to their stories and anecdotes from previous hikes and treks, including their motivations for embarking on nostalgic trips, idealizations of rustic kampong village lives found in the secondary forests and also participation in the various social rituals considered normative and conventional by the various groups. The observation studies also involved experiencing some of the activities conducted by experienced trekkers, including the social practices of co-existing with other stakeholders of the forest treks (e.g. dirt bikers). The main social ritual among hikers is the trekking activity itself, which requires substantial physical endurance, sustainable releases of energy through carbohydrate loading and disciplined regular hydration breaks. In other words, the quest for nostalgia is predicated upon the exertion of physical strength and mental endurance. The research objectives in this project are divided into three main areas. First, through collecting and interpreting visual images, the author hopes to reconstruct selected heritage and green spaces. Very often, secondary forests, former squatter farmlands, former rural villages and abandoned railways tracks are not the focus of historical narratives and research because they are less accessible physically and are often only 1 INTRODUCTION: A PERSONAL TREKKING HISTORY 5 visited by trekkers and walkers who are hard-core history buffs or natural landscape enthusiasts. Second, the author argues that rusting railway lines, beaten tracks, vanished kampong villages and squatter farmlands are objects of nostalgia for the nation-building pioneer generations—Singaporeans who grew up during the economic fast-growth period and Generation X-ers who are reaching middle-age. This project tries to reproduce some of the nostalgic moments when trekkers and heritage walkers came across objects or sites that evoked personal memories. Third, the project also examines the material history of local communities through visits to the abandoned temples and altars, the plants cultivated by communities in the past, the former squatter farms that were transformed into community gardens and the recreation of nostalgic lifestyles in gentrifed local community areas. The author collected the material artifacts that were discarded or were the organic remains of botanical species for further analysis. For immovable materials or items that are impractical to carry logistically, photographic images were captured instead. Material history is a tangible component of the project. If visual representations are cognitive in nature and memory recollections are emotively understood, then material objects are the only components that are examinable, quantifable and measurable physically. They may include items such as durian husks from abandoned durian plantations, aquatic tropical fsh from ponds and canals, discarded pebble markers found on the abandoned railway tracks or pre-modern porcelain shards as surface fnds. These material artifacts are the objective material existence of the past but, when they come into the hands of researchers, the interpretations of their existence become a narrative or a historical story. In terms of methodology for this writing, the author employed three approaches to the collection of data on heritage sites that are offcially conserved or featured in the popular imaginations of the population in general. First, for archival work, he collected heritage data from the National Archives, National Library and Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) library of Singapore. This collection consisted of three classes of document, including primary documents such as policy blueprints, developmental plans, offcial reports and conservation briefs. Another category of materials collected for this project included images, photos, postcards and other visual materials containing historical information. Finally, the project analyzed old transcripts of oral historical interviews kept by the oral historical unit of the National Archives. 6 T.W. Lim

Contemporary media reports were also utilized in the research work for the project. These can inform researchers of both diachronic and synchronic developments in the region under study. Besides collecting images, archival materials and secondary literature, a further methodology deployed in this project was based on observing heritage sites and how different stakeholders go about carrying out their trekking, cycling and hiking activities in various heritage sites and on nature trails. An important source of historical information comes from the contents of the signage erected by Singapore’s National Heritage Board (NHB). Because the Civic District is the oldest area of settlement in Singapore and the Tiong Bahru trail is the site of the pioneering public housing project, heritage signs preserving memories of those spaces can be found more frequently and generate a greater intensity of public interest. On the Tiong Bahru trail, for example, Kwek points out that the informative signboards at each of the numbered sites on the trail often have additional information about the person after whom the road at the site is named. In addition, there are informative signboards that, while not belonging to the trail, provide information on personalities behind road names. Together with the Fort Canning heritage trail case study, Kwek engages with the more general topic of the peripheral spaces of walks and shows how the study was made possible only by attending to the spaces from which displays and vantage points are presented; spaces that are peripheral and are overlooked when dominated by the spaces containing the objects of presentation. Having detailed the origins and methodology used in writing this volume, the next section will discuss the signifcance of the subject matter.

Significance of the Project The project is signifcant in that it contributes to understanding Singapore’s history in three ways. First, most literature on the city-state’s history tends to highlight the spaces that contributed to economic development. This volume acknowledges the acute importance of these areas and also includes the study of green, peripheral and heritage spaces as part of its historical narrative. For example, the abandoned parts of the Jurong Railway associated with Singapore’s industrialization, or the abandoned plantations that used to drive economic development in early-modern Singapore, contribute to the understanding of the spatial use of Singapore’s heritage sites, green spaces and peripheral areas. 1 INTRODUCTION: A PERSONAL TREKKING HISTORY 7

Gazing historically at Singapore from its periphery can help historians better understand Singaporean history from a non-privileged point of view. Second, current publications on green areas and spaces in Singapore include guidebooks written by volunteers, detailed writings on fora and fauna written by botanists and experts, and the literature found at the highly accessible heritage spaces for tourists and local visitors alike. These are all important publications. This project contributes to the existing literature by examining how Singaporean individuals who are willing to exert themselves to the limit of their endurance reach corners of Singapore that are not easily accessible and then interact with objects, landscapes and nature found in those areas and, in the process, create a community of stakeholders in the historically and botanically rich spaces of Singapore. Third, it is a project that examines Singapore as a single unit through its green corridors, park spaces, green areas and park connectors. This aspect of the project drew his attention as it conceptualizes Singapore as a single green and heritage unit whose stakeholders include trekkers, historians, tourists, local history buffs, botanists, heritage walkers/guides/ conservators, park wardens/rangers, city planning researchers and many others. In summary, the project attempts to document, through frst-hand experience, the historical, cultural and economic interactions, changes, motivations and consequences affecting land use in Singapore. The project engages with the concepts of changing land use and the resultant effects on communities and discrete individuals. There is espe- cial concern with nostalgia and the ways in which subjective discussions and understandings of changing land use impact the city.

Definitions Given the volume’s emphasis on peripheral green areas, heritage sites and abandoned spaces, rainforests become an integral part of the discussion. Most of the author’s treks in the Central Catchment Area and Seletar Forests were in secondary rainforests. Rainforests serve an important function as the lungs of the world and host a large biodiversity of species. They also absorb vast amounts of carbon released by the world’s industries. At the same time, they are depleted due to industrialization. They also provide shade for the wildlife species that live in them. The treks through these rainforests and the Catchment Area reveal the rich natural 8 T.W. Lim heritage found in Singapore. Besides natural landscapes and the historical elements, local community culture was also visible in the author’s trips. By trekking through former railways and plantations that used to constitute Singapore’s pre-modern or early-modern economy, one can better understand the historical changes that took place in local areas diachronically. It is a historical account of interactions between communities and their natural environments. Through the treks, the author is able to experience how untouched primary forests gave way to cultivated lands such as plantations and traditional kampongs, or how villages were transformed into public housing and park connectors were built to fulfll Singaporeans’ desires for greener lifestyle choices.

Certain Parameters of the Project This project is not interested in writing about historical or archeological accuracy. There are existing experts who navigate these topics based on funded digs and excavations, or who have access to archival materials. Neither are the writer and researchers of this volume botanists, ecolo- gists or scientists, so it is not possible to identify precisely all fora and fauna that were encountered during the treks. The writing centers on taking note of the elements that the author and other hikers visualized cognitively, experienced emotionally and recalled from memory. It is also a story of how they had a stake in the green areas, heritage locations and cultural corners of the island which they inhabit. After the visual experience of a hike or trek, recollections were just as important. Trekkers often remembered the spots where they frst encountered a cobra or saw a scorpion and the exact circumstances in which these sightings occurred. When shared with others, these memories become part of a personal narrative of how the older generations witnessed the changes in Singapore, from being the backwaters of the developing world to becoming a world-class fnancial hub. Therefore, engaging in trekking enabled participants to tap into ideas of nostalgia and to re-imagine the worlds in which they lived and their experiences during Singapore’s nation-building phase. For them, the austere and humble lifestyles, as well as the simple kampong village settings, were sometimes associated with secondary forests and rural treks encountered during hiking. The sceneries and landscapes were memories of a Singapore that had disappeared rapidly and faded into the background. Walking and trekking helped them identify their former lifestyles 1 INTRODUCTION: A PERSONAL TREKKING HISTORY 9 and habitats the way they imagined them. In a sense, this is also a tribute to the unnamed gardeners, park wardens, volunteers, rangers and other national parks employees who have made it possible for Singaporeans to access such green spaces. Trekkers, hikers, cyclists, walkers and others appreciate this. The feeling of nostalgia is strong among the middle- aged Singaporean residents who utilize the green spaces of parks, park corridors and secondary forests. There were also middle-aged trekkers and walkers who recalled how they grew up in economically fast-growing Singapore during the economic take-off stages in the 1970s and 1980s. For this group, riding a bike through the dirt tracks of the Clementi Forests represented the good old days when digital entertainment was still not widespread. The commonality that threaded through this group was a sense of nostalgia. It was an imagined community of individuals united by a sense of nostalgia for the Singapore of the recent past, a past that witnessed the disappearance of old-world habitats and lifestyles and their replacement by a more developed and prosperous Singapore. It is also a point that unites forest trekkers with heritage walkers, as they seek to re-imagine Singapore from recollections based on little corners and community spaces that are still insulated from development, or that have been preserved for gentrifcation. While writing about nostalgia, the author also wishes to state that he is in favor of sustainable progress. In that sense, the people behind this volume are not environmentalist tree-huggers; neither do they wish to impede progress through an excessive focus on heritage conservation. They also believe in the gentrifcation of old heritage spaces and are not against heritage tourism. The author believes the authorities have opti- mally carried out the redevelopment, gentrifcation and refurbishment of heritage spaces in Singapore. The author appreciated the presence of park connectors that allow hikers to connect, almost island-wide, with various regions of the island and to experience nostalgia in gentrifed heritage spaces, while keeping alive memories of community life in different heritage areas of Singapore. Singapore’s garden city approach has also been an inspiration for visitors and locals alike. While green spaces are also found in other countries, Singapore is a unique entity as a single city-state with the status of a cosmopolitan hub and highly urbanized area co-existing with rainforest environments. The transformation of many areas in which the author grew up into sustainable and proftable tourism sites for Singapore’s tourism industry, together with the meticulous attention paid to preserve local community and multicultural assets, 10 T.W. Lim is, in fact, the exception rather than the norm. The next section presents a literature review that surveys how other academics, public intellectuals, journalists and commercial writers have discussed the concepts of nostalgia, green spaces and development in the context of Singapore.

Literature Review

Theoretical Framework and Critique This writing examines several existing works that study narratives of Singapore history generated by different stakeholders. Different perspectives provided by an array of stakeholders in writing about green, peripheral and/or heritage spaces presents a social historical approach in examining how different groups, including both elite and non-elite members of a society, discuss the idea of Singapore history. The author and his research colleagues behind this project were introduced to Henri Lefebvre’s seminal work The Urban Revolution, a work that falls within the feld of philosophy. A major difference between Lefebvre’s work and this writing relates to the former’s ideological contents. Lefebvre witnessed, as well as engaged, some of his urban revolutionary examples. In this writing, no social revolutions are mentioned. Instead, the author and his research colleagues were interested in Lefebvre’s ideas about nostalgia, heritage, nature and environmental spaces. His ideas on nature, rural spaces and critiques of urbanization are relevant to this writing. He was one of the frst scholars to acknowledge the presence and formation of a community in the urban setting with its own social classes, means of production, economic capabilities and physical territory.1 Among the intellectuals on the left, particularly in the 1960s when Lefebvre was most active in this feld of research, the feld of urbanism was avoided due to an overwhelming focus on rurality. There was little acknowledgement of urban lifestyle, value systems and normative ideas. Ideas about accommodation, industries and local urban community development were little discussed. From one perspective, the discourse on urbanism is also a way to study capitalism from a perspective which had been neglected; Neil Smith

1 Lefebvre, Henri, The Urban Revolution (Minneapolis and London: University of Minnesota Press), 2003, pp. x, xi. 1 INTRODUCTION: A PERSONAL TREKKING HISTORY 11 characterizes Lefebvre’s method as trying to have a “grasp of modern capitalism by squeezing it through the neglected sieve of space”.2 The diachronic context of Lefebvre’s attempt to understand urbanism is different from this study of Singapore’s spaces. In contemporary Singapore, capitalism is highly developed and urban studies already a well-established discipline. Urban lifestyles are already well-rooted ways of life in a city-state. What Lefebvre offers his readers is not a critique of capitalism but, rather, a window of opportunity to understand the idea of nostalgia or nostalgic imagination in reconstructing green spaces in highly developed urban areas. He indicates that urban residents now yearn for spaces that have disappeared and how social revolutions (not revolts) have made it possible for environment or green movements, sustainability advocates, local community advocates and other stakeholders to mobilize resources to protect unused green spaces or to reconstruct them. To Lefebvre, space in its inherent nature is in stasis; it is immo- bile and rigid, and needs to be liberated from exploitation.3 Lefebvre argues that urban spaces promote social changes at street level and, in the context of a post-modern society (the concept of which was not yet in unambiguous existence during Lefebvre’s time), social agendas for change can also refer to the treatment of nature and the environment.4 From an economic and capitalistic point of view, unused green spaces or abandoned spaces that have been retaken by nature are unproductive, given there is no economic output from them. However, urbanism’s triumph over rurality means that unused green spaces have become rarer and commodifed indirectly when condominium projects or offce spaces seek to locate themselves in these green spaces, or tout the development or preservation of these unused spaces in their marketing campaigns. Lefebvre’s production of urban spaces is deterministic and is a staged theory, progressing from rural to mercantile and onto the industrial urbanized city, fnally joining the globalization of the urban.5

2 Lefebvre, Henri, The Urban Revolution (Minneapolis and London: University of Minnesota Press), 2003, p. ix. 3 Lefebvre, Henri, The Urban Revolution (Minneapolis and London: University of Minnesota Press), 2003, p. xiii. 4 Lefebvre, Henri, The Urban Revolution (Minneapolis and London: University of Minnesota Press), 2003, pp. xiv–xv. 5 Lefebvre, Henri, The Urban Revolution (Minneapolis and London: University of Minnesota Press), 2003, p. xi. 12 T.W. Lim

This volume agrees with Lefebvre that it is a deterministic process—but only to a certain point, when highly advanced forms of urbanization then revert back cyclically to a fundamental desire for nature, greenery and outdoor spaces. Determinism for urbanization is encapsulated within a cyclical mechanism that reverts back to the basic human cognitive and emotive desires for green natural spaces. Neil Smith argues that Lefebvre is concerned with the central tenet or concept that the greatest challenge brought about by capitalism is no longer industrialization but, rather, a dominant “urban problematic” (spotting, quite accurately, the idiosyncratic features of what was then an emerging post-industrial society in the West).6 As an advanced developing economy, Singapore is shifting from an industrial economy to an economy based on retail, fnancial services and banking (together with other high value-added as well as knowledge-based sectors such as biotech). It has developed post- industrial concerns on urban planning for sustainability, effcient resource usage, low-carbon lifestyles, waste minimization, green products consumption and so on—in some ways, becoming a world-class model to export its capabilities overseas. But Lefebvre also detects a potential wild swing to the green end of the sociopolitical spectrum when resources, the environment and the concept of nature enters the ideological realm, and this “ideological nat- uralization” can morph into parks, gardens and other forms of crafted spaces grafted onto urban space to compensate for the withdrawal of nature due to rapid urbanization.7 A critique of social revolution and activism to bring about change is criticized as romantic and idealistic. In many ways, urbanization is an unstoppable force of historical change and therefore managing it is probably more pragmatic and practical; therefore, parks and other constructed green spaces is a coping mechanism for such changes. Neil Smith argues that certain of Lefebvre’s ideas are critiqued for being out of touch with reality and premature by assuming that urbanism has triumphed over the industrial landscape.8 In the case of Singapore, the environment is highly urbanized; it is a city-state

6 Lefebvre, Henri, The Urban Revolution (Minneapolis and London: University of Minnesota Press), 2003, p. xi. 7 Lefebvre, Henri, The Urban Revolution (Minneapolis and London: University of Minnesota Press), 2003, p. xv. 8 Lefebvre, Henri, The Urban Revolution (Minneapolis and London: University of Minnesota Press), 2003, p. xvii. 1 INTRODUCTION: A PERSONAL TREKKING HISTORY 13 with little rural farming left. This feature complements Lefebvre’s ideas about the self-legitimization of the urbanization, industrialization and economic growth processes, expanding and proliferating autonomously to cover large tracts of land, including entire nations9 and also small city- state units such as Singapore. Industrialization and urbanization are related processes. With the advent of technologies and the characteristics of high-tech industries, the nature of industries has changed; from a scenario of urbanization supplanting industrialization, industrialization can continue to persist at a high-tech, non-labor-intensive, environmentally friendly level, co-existing with sustained urbanization and a shift to a service/retail-based economy. In this co-existence, the state and non-state groups work together on common interests. After economic development matures and urbanization becomes widespread, some people experience a nostalgic longing for the use of green spaces for their leisure activities, including activities they have enjoyed in the past. In Singapore, to satisfy these desires, state and other non-state initiatives offer the recreation of such spaces in the form of park corridors and other kinds of green spaces. Lefebvre argues that only the state has the “hegemony” to absorb and combine rural and urban areas under its command and allocation.10 One area in which this volume differs from LeFebvre’s work is that he tends to defne urban development and spatial use in terms of socio-economic class. To him, for example, gentrifcation is a form of “embourgeoisement”11 and it came naturally for him as a Marxist urban planning critic but, in the post-Cold War context, it is now diffcult to conceptualize urban planning and development in terms of class struggles or socialism, particularly since ideological struggles between com- munism and capitalism are no longer as pronounced in the post-Cold War world. But the idea of gentrifcation and its attraction of promis- ing environmentally sustainable lifestyles and recreating fashionable hipster trends and lifestyle choices is brought back into vogue, particularly after Richard Florida’s book on creative cities linked gentrifcation with

9 Lefebvre, Henri, The Urban Revolution (Minneapolis and London: University of Minnesota Press), 2003, p. 3. 10 Lefebvre, Henri, The Urban Revolution (Minneapolis and London: University of Minnesota Press), 2003, p. 12. 11 Lefebvre, Henri, The Urban Revolution (Minneapolis and London: University of Minnesota Press), 2003, p. xx. 14 T.W. Lim the attraction of human talents.12 In this study of peripheral spaces, gentrifcation is not an outcome or process of class struggle but, rather, an attempt to optimize the use of heritage and green spaces based on feedback from and communications with stakeholders. Some spaces may be transformed into park corridors, or gentrifed to facilitate access by interested users of those spaces. Other chapters look at gentrifed old neighborhoods, enhancing their relevance to contemporary lifestyle and retail trends while conserving local community histories. Gentrifcation’s embourgeoisement is not so much an outcome of capitalism claiming the space of the proletariat (a zero sum game) but, instead, a post-modernist counter-reaction to standardization and ubiquitous mechanistic reproduction of space. Gentrifcation does not nec- essarily kill access to spaces for select groups or individuals but, rather, hopes to make them more accessible to a wider audience, particularly the middle- and working-class people who wish to have their little sanctuar- ies of nature, cultural space, museums, hiking trails and bicycling trails at affordable prices, at least to the vast majority of the residents. Sometimes embourgeoisement may not even involve materialism; it may be as simple as self-motivated makeshift gatherings of hikers at a particular green location, or a gathering of racing car enthusiasts at a certain isolated spot for track-racing. These are activities which require a modest investment of fnances or time, but they are highly accessible by all socio-economic groups in Singapore. The Ministry of National Development’s objective in managing and building parks and park connectors is to cater to Singaporeans from all walks of life and from “all ages and interests”.13 Thus, in terms of policies, states initiatives are highly inclusive. Many of these parks and park corridors run through public housing estates where the majority of Singaporeans reside. According to Singapore’s public housing authority, the Housing & Development Board, over one million public housing units have been built in a total of 23 towns and 3 estates nationwide and they house over 80% of Singapore’s resident population, with some

12 Florida, Richard, The Rise of the Creative Class (New York: Basic Books), 2003. 13 Ministry of National Development, “More Parks and Park Connectors”, Ministry of National Development website [downloaded on 24 October 2016], available at http:// www.mnd.gov.sg/landuseplan/city_in_a_garden.htm. 1 INTRODUCTION: A PERSONAL TREKKING HISTORY 15

90% of them owning their apartments.14 Based on these statistics, most Singaporeans live in public housing units. Some of the longest and most extensive park connectors weave through these public housing estates, serving the needs of residents in those areas. The Park Connector Network is a country-wide open green space that weaves through parks, nature, wildlife, local community culture, lush greenery, recreational facilities and the major public housing estates in Singapore, exemplifed by the 36 km Central Urban Loop that runs through the central region of Singapore and includes Bishan, Ang Mo Kio, Toa Payoh and Whampoa, accessing Bishan-Ang Mo Kio Park, Kallang Riverside Park and Punggol Park (these areas form the so-called heartlands of Singapore).15 The desire for peripheral freedom from urbanism also arises from what Lefebvre described as “the uniformization of the grid, visible in the modernization of old streets, objects (merchandise) taken on the effects of color and form that make them attractive”.16 The mechanistic replication of the modern street “becomes the focus of a form of repres- sion that was made possible by the “real”—that is, weak, alienated and alienating—character of the relationships that are formed there”.17 This is a highly critical interpretation of the hegemonic character of urbanization, urban street formation and the characters and personalities of residents and pedestrians of those streets. It charges urbanism with weak and submitting denizens, the mechanistic reproduction of superfcial landscapes, and an oppressive presence and control over human relationships. While the logical conclusion appears to be resistance, it is extrem- ist in the sense that gentrifcation need not only be superfcial in terms of colors, materialism (“merchandizing”) and physicality (“form”).

14 Housing & Development Board, “Public Housing—A Singapore Icon”, 26 October 2015, Housing & Development Board website [downloaded on 1 January 2016], available at http://www.hdb.gov.sg/cs/infoweb/about-us/our-role/public-housing--a-singapore- icon. 15 National Parks (NParks), “Central Urban Loop”, undated and unpaginated, National Parks website [downloaded on 1 January 2016], available at https://www.nparks.gov. sg/~/media/nparks-real-content/gardens-parks-and-nature/park-connector-network/ brochures/central-urban-loop.pdf. 16 Lefebvre, Henri, The Urban Revolution (Minneapolis and London: University of Minnesota Press), 2003, p. 21. 17 Lefebvre, Henri, The Urban Revolution (Minneapolis and London: University of Minnesota Press), 2003, p. 20. 16 T.W. Lim

It is reductionist by omitting the possibility of authenticity of nostalgia, not generated by the hegemonic state that monopolizes rural and urban areas but, rather, by the stakeholders themselves. In a small city-state space such as Singapore, changes are far more dynamic than the scenario Lefebvre outlined. Besides discussing the socio-economic factor in this publication, one of its major arguments is continuity in use (somewhat correlated with Lefebvre’s ideas of “continuism” or “a sense of historical continuity or permanence associated with urban society”)18 and the relativity of the term “peripheral”. This volume argues that peripherality is relative, as spaces undergo cyclical phases of use and disuse, productivity and abandonment, high-density human habitation and habitual use, and so on. The speed of change is fast in a small city-state space such as Singapore. Therefore, renewal, gentrifcation, urban redevelopment and designing green spaces in consultation with stakeholders mitigate and prevent spaces being made uniform. In addition, both state and non-state groups make considerable efforts to build green spaces and to provide spaces for the recreation of nostalgia, or to gentrify heritage areas. The combination of local historical character and new, modern conveniences arises out of such collaborations. In this study, stakeholders that use heritage and green spaces—the bikers on the dirt tracks, the hikers on their walking trails, wildlife con- servationists, the history buffs archiving local history or the photogra- phy enthusiasts—are all examples of self-generated initiatives. Nostalgia, this volume argues, can be reconstructed authentically without sacrifcing development, conveniences or lifestyles. This volume argues that preservation does not even need to take on physical form, colors or shape; preservation can take the form of archived memories, authentic feelings and recollections, recalled memories or reconstructed experiences, even if the physical infrastructure is no longer there. When history enthusiasts or hikers engage in dialogues and conversations about nostalgia and heritage sites, they are contributing to the gentrifcation of a historical, natural or heritage space. Authenticity does not need to take on an objective physical or material form; this can take the form of subjective recollections. Sometimes, by means of its archived materials, and its access to records and historical documents, the state

18 Lefebvre, Henri, The Urban Revolution (Minneapolis and London: University of Minnesota Press), 2003, p. 1. 1 INTRODUCTION: A PERSONAL TREKKING HISTORY 17 becomes a valuable repository of information. Stakeholders, such as researchers, history buffs, students and other interested parties, tap into such repositories for their own self-directed learning and acquisition of historical knowledge. They are not alienated or weakened by the state’s presence and are, instead, empowered by access to its storehouse of knowledge. The socio-economic signifcance of urban streets that Lefebvre was concerned with as a philosopher wrestling with the concept of the class system can be physically divided into the footpaths and lanes of the proletariat or the pedestrians, which Lefebvre calls the “hunted”, and the “privileged” motorists in cars, but they traverse the same route for the common uniform objective of consumption.19 However, in the treks that the research team for this volume encountered in Singapore, the peripheral spaces became the reverse of Lefebvre’s observation. Instead of dis- tinguishing between economic classes, the park spaces, green corridors and gardens have become class-neutral sites for expatriates, locals, young and old alike (e.g. hikers and bikers on the nature trails) regardless of socio-economic class. A crucial difference between Lefebvre’s ideas and our project and experiences is that Lefebvre’s work was written in a nascent historical period when the concept of post-modernism had not appeared. But, in the contemporary context, Singapore’s gross domestic product per capita is the highest in East Asia, surpassing most other European and North American economies, and most of its citizens live in well-designed public housing. Singapore’s peripheral spaces and green spaces are class-neutral zones designed for universal access by Singapore. One of Lefebvre’s major themes that will be continually revis- ited in this volume is the concept and idea of nature. Lefebvre argues that there is a contradiction in the fact that nature is “shrinking” while “signs of nature and the natural are multiplying, replacing and supplanting real ‘nature’” at the same time.20 While many East Asian historians of nature and the environment see the process as a dialectical struggle between (Wo)Man, Her/His Will and Nature fought out in spaces, environments and habitats, Lefebvre argues that urbanization is actually

19 Lefebvre, Henri, The Urban Revolution (Minneapolis and London: University of Minnesota Press), 2003, p. 20. 20 Lefebvre, Henri, The Urban Revolution (Minneapolis and London: University of Minnesota Press), 2003, p. 27. 18 T.W. Lim replacing nature with constructed symbolisms, symbols and reconstructions of nature. The proliferation of representations of nature at the expense of nature itself is constantly spotted in our treks and walks. The ideas of park corridors, world heritage gardens and reservoir spaces are all examples of representations, or what Lefebvre calls “signs” of natural spaces (as opposed to actual nature itself). At the point of this writing, not only are these spaces “multiplying” but the authorities are also setting up a national network of park corridors, and gentrifying and developing a Green Rail Corridor (an abandoned railway space formerly occupied by Keretapi Tanah Melayu) to the delight of hikers, nature lovers, trekkers, history buffs, urban landscapers and bikers. The stakeholders in these green spaces are both benefactors and shapers of those spaces. While the actual landscaping and physical construction are carried out by the state, the non-state stakeholders shape their outcome through functional utilization, innovative forms of usage and intense conceptualization of their aesthetics. In other words, participants are shaping the spaces (both cognitively and physically) while developing and infu- encing ideas about the outcome of their aesthetics through feedback mechanisms and expression of opinions in the mass media. The classless, constructed and symbolic spaces are constantly shaped by the collective ideas of individual stakeholders and the use of state resources. The ironic point that Lefebvre wants to make is that, while nature is being circumscribed by urbanization, constructed images that represent nature are multiplying. Lefebvre also added that ideologically conceptualized ideas about nature are also proliferating.21 Lefebvre makes a value judgement here that “Parks and open spaces, the last word in good intentions and bad urban representation, are simply a poor substitute for nature, the degraded simulacrum of the open space characteristic of encounters, games, parks, gardens, and public squares.”22 This is a fair criticism of constructed green spaces but it may not take into account technological development enabling better conservation of green spaces, changes in mindset about sustainability planning in green spaces and a more equitable civil society–state relationship since Lefebvre’s time.

21 Lefebvre, Henri, The Urban Revolution (Minneapolis and London: University of Minnesota Press), 2003, p. 27. 22 Lefebvre, Henri, The Urban Revolution (Minneapolis and London: University of Minnesota Press), 2003, p. 27. 1 INTRODUCTION: A PERSONAL TREKKING HISTORY 19

The subsequent chapters in this volume will examine development in green spatial planning since the 1960s and early 1970s. Constructed spaces posed other problems for Lefebvre, as well. He is turned away by what he has described as the “imposed homogeneity” of the industrial landscape, or the tendency of the city to accumulate capital, generate surplus value and redistribute them.23 The utilitarian function of constructed spaces appears to take away the spontaneity of nature, the authenticity of random botanical growth and wildlife survival, and unstructured human activities. Lefebvre hints that he is not against the idea of constructed images of nature but is critical of the kitsch, commercialized, advertised and commodifed ways of doing so, contrasting with the Chinese and Japanese approach of not saturating the space humans inhabit by harmonizing their habitat with nature.24 In other words, harmony with nature negates the vulgar invasion of natural spaces, especially if it is humble, unassuming and not overwhelmingly deterministic on urbanization. In this view, he gives the example of the Japanese tokonoma that emphasizes the existence of a single chosen object harmonized with the season (an object displayed that changes with every season) as an example of humility and an uncluttered approach to reconstructing nature in human habitat. This is an important qualifcation of constructed spaces for this volume. It indicates the limit to Lefebvre’s discourse and critique on excessive urbanization, mitigating absolutism in his approach by offering the possibility of harmonizing human habitation with green spaces if over-commercialization is avoided and respect is given to the seasons, climate and species, together with the use of inconspicuously constructed aesthetics. Therein lie the approaches in contemporary notions of urban planning and constructions of green corridors take in harmonizing nature with habitation. This volume will discuss the construction of park corridors and use of peripheral spaces in the following chapters. Throughout his works, Lefebvre consistently indicated the relational nature of spaces. He argued that park and garden spaces delineated the boundaries of urban spaces. Gardens and parks make up the margins of

23 Lefebvre, Henri, The Urban Revolution (Minneapolis and London: University of Minnesota Press), 2003, pp. 34–35. 24 Lefebvre, Henri, The Urban Revolution (Minneapolis and London: University of Minnesota Press), 2003, p. 83. 20 T.W. Lim urban spaces that are “sensible, visible, and legible” as non-productive, non-industrial irrational spaces but yet, at the same time, they are also not inaccessible and still display their own kind of geometrical, ornamental and artistic logic, unlike wild natural terrains.25 This volume will reference his ideas in the treks through peripheral spaces in Singapore covered in the following chapters, which are divided geographically into regions for the purpose of analysis. The frst section of this volume looks at the Civic District, or the downtown area. This was where Singapore’s town life frst started in the late pre-modern period. From the downtown area, the analysis then shifts northwards through the Southern Ridge to the immediate periphery of the Central Business District (CBD). The Southern Ridge ends up in Kent Ridge, near Clementi. In addition to the Southern Ridges, the volume also follows the Green Rail Corridor running through the central spine of Singapore into the Catchment Area. On the East Coast of Singapore, this volume’s spatial studies follow the coastal and adjoining areas from Lavender to Tanah Merah. Finally, all roads converge in northern Singapore in the Woodlands and Kranji areas. This volume will only look at mainland Singapore and not its offshore islands. The volume utilizes the perspective of an individual perspective in presenting the individual chapters, which are based on the research trips, as it is the best way to present the visual and note-taking materials that the author has gathered on his travels. A participating observer’s frst-hand view also facilitates spatial observations of heritage and environmental sites. Organizing the chapter’s materials according to thematic or conceptual categories may also obscure a local community’s (or local sections of those communities) unique cultures and idiosyncratic features. Therefore, the volume documents and archives the natural wildlife and heritage artifacts studied at specifc sections of the green and peripheral spaces covered in the volume. An exception to this perspective is found in the introductory section of each chapter that details the research trip. These introductory sections typically take on a macro perspective in writing about the history of that area as a whole, diachronically, without going into details on specifc locations within those local areas or regions. This enables readers to conceptualize the historical role and

25 Lefebvre, Henri, The Urban Revolution (Minneapolis and London: University of Minnesota Press), 2003, pp. 131–132. 1 INTRODUCTION: A PERSONAL TREKKING HISTORY 21 function, local economy and community cultural origins of that area before going on to discover how they evolved over time and space to become peripheral spaces, green areas and/or heritage sites. Thereafter, detailed contemporary images of specifc locations and corners within that area are studied in greater detail.

Review of Other Secondary Sources In addition to Lefebvre’s ideas and in terms of academic literature on the environmental history of Singapore, Timothy P. Barnard’s edited volume Nature Contained: Environmental Histories of Singapore is probably the most important and updated volume on this subject matter. It is a story of historical change, as 50% of Singapore’s native species had vanished by the middle of the nineteenth century, with tigers a visible victim due to the loss of jungle cover for their activities.26 Gambier cultivation, for example, was a major contributor to the demise of original vegetation in pre-modern Singapore, followed by the expansion of rubber plantations. 27 Such narratives refect to some extent Lefebvre’s ideas about the dynamic changing nature of urbanization, which goes in stages from primitive land to farmland and then to townships before the emergence of cities. In the case of Singapore, Gambier and rubber probably represent the accelerated stages of agricultural cultivation that led to the formation of villages and townships. During his hikes, the author came across former rubber plantations which had transformed primary forests into productive usable land before reverting to secondary forested peripheral land through disuse. Also, some areas in land-scarce Singapore were transformed into new towns with public housing projects, beginning the phase of intense urbanization. But, at the same time, the authorities brought back green areas in the form of well-planned park corridors, hiking trails, cycling tracks and jogging paths. In these examples, which differ from Lefebvre’s analysis, changes are cyclical rather than deterministic. Primitive land can be utilized for productive means, but can also be abandoned and

26 Barnard, Timothy P., “An Introduction”, Nature Contained: Environmental Histories of Singapore, ed. Timothy Barnard (Singapore: NUS Press), p. 2. 27 Barnard, Timothy P., “An Introduction”, Nature Contained: Environmental Histories of Singapore, ed. Timothy Barnard (Singapore: NUS Press), pp. 2–3. 22 T.W. Lim revert to its original natural state, or formerly non-productive spaces can become high-density residential areas with community facilities. In certain cases, good planning can transform unsightly or unsanitary areas— such as storm drains, canals and sewage areas—into biologically correct, self-cleaning environments such as those found in the Ulu Pandan and Bishan Park spaces. There is therefore an attempt to re-introduce nature into man-made objects. The natural contours of such re-engineered spaces may be comparable to the tokonoma example cited by Lefebvre. Lefebvre also argues that human communities’ isolation and mar- ginalization from the green environment and nature actually invokes a passionate desire for recreated and reconstructed green spaces. This volume carefully navigates the interplay between the works of Lefebvre and Barnard, contextualizing them in the peripheral (green and heritage) spaces that the author hiked, trekked and visited. Lefebvre captured the essence of counter-reactions and addictions to an urban revolution and those counter-reactions tried to reconstruct what was lost in the process of urbanization. This volume follows this synchronic moment in time in the stage of urbanization. It also looks at urban planning to promote environmental sustainability, the restoration of nature to its pristine state, and the protection and conservation of local species. Lost Roads Singapore by Tan Shzr Ee and Desmond Foo is written in a reader-friendly, non-academic format and takes the form of a road trip through Singapore with literary musings and a recollection of precious memories in terms of lost roads and forgotten spaces in Singapore. The book is flled with interesting anecdotes and historical gems of information. In that book, peripheral spaces are conceptualized as lost memories, instead of an outcome of the urban revolution conceptualized by Lefebvre. Lost Roads Singapore proved a valuable resource for this project’s research team as the researchers and author of this volume consulted the publication for possible locations that may have been omitted in this volume’s conceptualization of peripheral spaces. Similarly, the literature review in Lost Roads Singapore reviewed other books that were useful for reconstructing memories of spaces covered in this volume. For example, Lynette Wan’s Kindred Memories: A Flash Fiction Collection provided a touching account of the Bukit Ho Swee fre which was useful for Chap. 3 on Tiong Bahru. Bukit Ho Swee is a good example of peripheral spaces that transformed unsightly and unproductive areas occupied by the ghettos of illegal squatters into an orderly, low-income public housing project that provided rationalized and economical shelter 1 INTRODUCTION: A PERSONAL TREKKING HISTORY 23 to victims of a great fre and is, once more, transforming into a peripheral residential space because of its aging residents. Besides commercial literature, such Wan’s account of a former squatter’s village, the author also consulted existing collections of pictorially rich coffee table publications. Fort Canning Hill: Exploring Singapore’s Heritage and Nature by Melissa Diagana and Jyoti Angresh is a handsome volume compiled in a coffee table book format for the general reader. Much knowledge about the Civic District and also the frst habitation of Singapore can be discerned from this volume. As with many other publications on Singapore’s green spaces, Fort Canning Hill was written for a commercial audience rather than academics. However, it was an extremely valuable reference work for this project as the luminar- ies and contributors to that volume offered a rich tapestry of information that goes beyond most commercial publications. The single-location focus also meant that the volume had substantial depth in analyzing one single space in Singapore, the charm and of the volume being its copi- ous images. Other than coffee table books, there are also guidebooks on areas in Singapore that can be walked and trekked. A guidebook for walking activities in Singapore is In Singapore by Marianne Rogerson. It is written in a fun manner with zany facts and attractive pictures, and its user-friendly format captures the essential information required by tourists on a walking tour of Singapore. The volume served the useful function of helping us locate the areas frequented by tourists on the walking trails, particularly in the urban districts of Singapore. Besides the historical and green environmental site of Fort Canning Hill, a valuable addition to studying Singapore’s elevated areas is Shawn Lum and Ilsa Sharp’s publication A View from the Summit: The Story of Bukit Timah Nature Reserve. As with the Fort Canning volume, the multi-stakeholders and array of contributors to the volume make it a useful resource. The volume covers the history of the Bukit Timah area with an eye to conservation issues, somewhat similar to the objectives of this Shawn Lum’s volume on the Bukit Timah Campus the narrative in the volume combines natural history with a systematic classifcation of natural species found in that area. The stunning photos in the publication attract any readers remotely interested in viewing the rich diversity of natural species in Singapore. Unfortunately, during the two years of the grant project for the current volume, the Bukit Timah Nature Reserve was closed for the regeneration of forests so this space could not be covered in this volume. 24 T.W. Lim

Another volume with a commemorative shine and a single-location focus exploring natural assets is Trees of Bukit Timah Campus written by Shawn Lum, Hugh Tan and Wee Yeow Chin. This publication is a natural historical publication of the historical Bukit Timah Campus of the National University of Singapore. The value of this volume is in its classifcation and explanations for the fora and fauna of the campus and, as it is located so near the Botanical Gardens, the book is useful for identifying fora and fauna in two locations that were covered in this project. The book is also interesting in that it adds cultural and folklor- ist anecdotes to explanations of natural wildlife. It is a beautiful volume put together by an enthusiast with a deep respect for the heritage and traditions of the campus environment. The contribution made by this volume is the spatial historical element and the contextualization of the Botanical Gardens and Bukit Timah not in terms of stand-alone sites by themselves but, rather, as a component of large park corridor spaces and green belts in Singapore. Next to the Bukit Timah Campus, National Parks Singapore published their own guidebook for identifying tall trees in the Botanical Gardens titled Tall Tales: Singapore Botanic Gardens Heritage Trees Trail Guide. This publication included a succinct take on the history of the Gardens. Its focus on tall trees meant that the publication served a specifc purpose for identifying the major tropical trees in Singapore. A publication that does not restrict itself to a single location is Leong, Tzi Ming and James Gan Wan Ming’s Our Fragile Rainforest, which conceptualizes Singapore’s fora and fauna in a specifc genre of natural environment found in the city state: the rainforests. In some ways, there are complementarities with the current volume’s contents in terms of its focus on conservation work, crafted spaces and green spaces for recreation, all three of which fall under Henri Lefebvre’s critique and observations in The Urban Revolution. The publication is intentionally designed to create public awareness of the issue of climate change. As with the National Parks’ Tall Tales, it is a splendid illustrated volume. The high- quality professional photos indicate the extent to which funding from the HSBC Bank helped. The diversity of wild life in Singapore is carefully captured in the images in this volume, making it a useful and colorful guide for identifying the wildlife that we encountered. Another useful guidebook that specializes mainly on plants is written by Boo Chih Min, Sharon Chew and Jean Yong titled Plants in Tropical Cities. This was 1 INTRODUCTION: A PERSONAL TREKKING HISTORY 25 one of the guidebook resources used as reference material in the current volume, especially on plant species. Most of the publications mentioned are written in modern and contemporary contexts. In terms of the pre-modern history of Singapore, the most important volume, particularly from an archaeological material historical point of view, is John N. Miksic’s Singapore & The Silk Road of the Sea 1300–1800, an outstanding academic publication of the frst order. This book is the stuff of empire-building and reaches far more deeply into the pre-modern and medieval history of Singapore than any other previous publications in the English language and in recent times. The most important component of this publication is the material evidence on which the writing is based, therefore lending legitimacy to synchronic changes over time in historical parts of Singapore, particularly the Civic District. The story of Singapore is frmly contextualized in the neighboring great empires surrounding the small island. Besides secondary literature sources, the project team for this volume also consulted policy papers related to heritage and natural spaces, as well as to their conservation. These papers provided valuable insights into policy-related matters relevant to the subject matter. The policy reports indicated the desires and needs of different local communities in Singapore. For example, the booklet series Biodiversity Nature Conservation in the Greening of Singapore written by the Centre for Liveable Cities Ministry of National Development Singapore and the National Parks Board Ministry of National Development Singapore notes that residents in dairy farms resisted initiatives to construct condominiums in the surrounding secondary forests as this could bring about foods and a loss of biodiversity.28 This was, in fact, a space that the author hiked almost every Saturday. Interactions such as this between stakeholders and the state in relation to various locations throughout the island are covered in this volume.

28 Centre for Liveable Cities Ministry of National Development Singapore and National Parks Board Ministry of National Development Singapore, Biodiversity Nature Conservation in the Greening of Singapore (Singapore: Centre for Liveable Cities Ministry of National Development Singapore and National Parks Board Ministry of National Development Singapore), 2015, p. 6. 26 T.W. Lim

Utilitarian and Functional Conservation Approaches to the Historical and to Heritage Besides the emotive response to conserved spaces, there is also a utilitarian angle to the utilization of green and heritage spaces. This utilitarian and functional approach examines the thesis question “How does the loss of heritage impact on national identity?” Unlike philosopher Henri Lefebvre, who conceptualizes spaces as the deterministic and organic evolution of spaces in a developmental staged format from wild nature through its transformation into metropolitan cities by means of an urban revolution, the utilitarian school and functionalist ideas defne history in terms of state goals including, but not exclusive to, identity formation and economic productivity. When nature is left fallow or heritage structures are left in their dilapidated forms, they are peripheral in the sense that they are left economically unproductive. The functional and utilitarian values of those spaces emerge when eco-tourism and heritage tourism are developed by the authorities and the local community. Perhaps one of the most enlightening and refective books in the academic and professional literature of this feld is the simply entitled Heritage written by Kennie Ting for the SG50 Singapore Chronicle series published by the Institute of Policy Studies (IPS) through the National University of Singapore (NUS) and the Straits Times Press. Kennie Ting is the Group Director, Museums and Development, at the National Heritage Board and he is responsible for the management of Singaporean museums and for their corporate development.29 The defnition of the term “heritage” as used in the current volume is clarifed in the following narrative:

Heritage refers to legacies of the past conserved in some fashion in the present to pass on to future generations. Heritage landscapes are thus the concrete and visible repositories of the nation’s common memories and traditions, providing threads of continuity, between past, present and future. […] By remembering the nation’s past in concrete form, heritage landscapes provide us with everyday material basis for the on-going task of nation building. (Peggy Teo et al. 2004, 108)30

29 Ting, Kennie, Heritage (Singapore: IPS/Straits Times Press), 2015. 30 Ting, Kennie, Heritage (Singapore: IPS/Straits Times Press), 2015, p. 7. 1 INTRODUCTION: A PERSONAL TREKKING HISTORY 27

In this defnition, the idea of “continuity” is highlighted. Like Ting, this volume also looks at physical landscapes that serve as reminders of common historical consciousness and this common consciousness, if archived, can be handed down generationally. In this sense, if heritage artifacts and structures can be conserved and can exist without discontinuity, they then become material history that transcends time. Materiality becomes a visible basis for forging common memories and consciousness. When there is broad consensus over heritage policies, there is complementarity of heritage work with nation-building policies, impulses and activities. One of Ting’s major arguments, and an innovation to the heritage narrative, is his postulation that “all Singaporeans are experts in heritage”. 31 The current volume suggests that subjective personal experiences are important in historical and heritage conservation. A simple invocation of a place-name such as Tiong Bahru, Bukit Brown or the Green Rail Corridor conjures up perceptions of and sentiment regarding a sense of loss of national “identity and soul”.32 In this sense, the linkage between heritage and national identity becomes personalized and individual narratives contribute to a collective grand narrative. While they are subjective and personalized memories, there is negotiation with the practical aspects of heritage conservation, including its economic value. Nostalgia and the preservation of memory are manifestations of Singapore’s fast economic growth in the 1970s and 1980s, resulting in heritage conservation efforts. From micro studies to macro-regional ones, some publications and policy papers conceptualize the idea of heritage from a regional ASEAN perspective. Continuing with utilitarian concepts of heritage and history, besides local implications, heritage tourism and eco-tourism also take on a regional portfolio in the ASEAN context. Given changing trends within the tourism industry and also to tap into intra-ASEAN potential for internal tourism, the terminology adopted by the organization to encompass heritage, cultural and environmental tours using local community resources and assets is “community-based tourism”. The ASEAN website adopts and uses a non-governmental organization defnition of community-based tourism:

31 Ting, Kennie, Heritage (Singapore: IPS/Straits Times Press), 2015, pp. 7–16. 32 Ting, Kennie, Heritage (Singapore: IPS/Straits Times Press), 2015, pp. 11–12. 28 T.W. Lim

Tourism Concern of the United Kingdom describes community-based tourism as that which aims to include and beneft local communities, particularly indigenous peoples and villagers. Community tourism projects should give local people a fair share of the benefts/profts of tourism and a say in deciding how incoming tourism is managed.33

Three points are important here. First, the defnition of community- based tourism indicates emphasis on the needs of local-born individuals, some of whom may be the most economically vulnerable individuals still engaged with traditional practices. The second feature is the idea of the equitable distribution of tourist revenue from the use of community cultural or natural resources. The third point is allocation of power and management control to the denizens at that resource. Inevitably, when it comes to cultural assets and the preservation of those resources, one has to include issues of identity formation, sustainability and cultural attachment to those resources. These three issues give rise to the importance of conservation. The items to conserve, the selective narratives and interpretations of local histories behind those material artifacts or memory-based constructs, are dependent on the conservation authorities and co-option, resistance or collaboration from the local community. Working with local communities takes on a new meaning in a regional landscape as, on 31 December 2016, the ASEAN Economic Community quietly came into being. At present, within the ASEAN community, in terms of community-based tourism (CBT), each ASEAN country has drawn up a list of three heritage spaces that they wish to promote under CBT. As this volume also touches on conservation, it would be useful to present a brief literature review on the connection between the Singaporean identity and the idea of conservation. The Heritage Awareness Survey 2006 reported that more than 90% of local respondents supported heritage preservation and state enhancement in this area, supported the idea of heritage as a “rooting” factor, and the augmen- tation of a sense of belonging—even with globalization, and that 70%

33 ASEAN, “Community-Based Tourism”, ASEAN Tourism website [downloaded on 7 June 2016], available at http://www.aseantourism.travel/explore/sub/culture-and-heritage/community-based-tourism. 1 INTRODUCTION: A PERSONAL TREKKING HISTORY 29 want to be engaged in heritage activities.34 In another source, the 2008 National Heritage Board drew up the Renaissance City Plan III Heritage Development Plan and the blueprint described the connection between heritage and culture in the following manner:

Heritage and culture are anchors for Singaporeans, instilling national pride and retaining their sense of identity and rootedness in the face of rapid globalisation. They enrich the quality of lives of Singaporeans, contributing towards making Singapore a great home. Through engendering greater community participation and engagement in the arena of heritage and culture, community bonds and attached to Singapore are strengthened. […] To this end, NHB’s engagement strategies have been guided by the ethos of social inclusiveness and community ownership, catering to diverse needs of our communities.35

There are three important points in this narrative related to the current volume. First, the idea of “national pride” suggests that, besides attachment to Singapore, there should also be a sense of pride rooted in Singapore that is suffciently resilient not to be overwhelmed by globalization that can bring about culturally transformative changes. Strengthening cultural and community bonds and cultural attachment suggest heritage’s role in identity-formation. Inclusiveness of different groups within Singapore also contributes to building these cultural attachments and community bonds. The National Heritage Board’s report defned a nation’s heritage as a “testimony to the collective meaning of a society’s values and informs the evolution of its culture and lifestyle” but, as early as 2008, the government realized the “rising threat of losing unique identities and [globalization] diluting traditional culture”.36 The most popular answers given by respondents to a Mediacorp survey in 2015 asking what made them “proud of Singapore” cited characteristics such as “safe” (81%),

34 National Heritage Board (NHB) Editorial Team, Renaissance City Plan III Heritage Development Plan (Singapore: NHB), 2008, p. 7. 35 National Heritage Board (NHB) Editorial Team, Renaissance City Plan III Heritage Development Plan (Singapore: NHB), 2008, p. 35. 36 National Heritage Board (NHB) Editorial Team, Renaissance City Plan III Heritage Development Plan (Singapore: NHB), 2008, p. 9. 30 T.W. Lim

“corruption-free” (50%) and “recognised world-wide” (57%).37 The survey covered 2000 citizens and permanent residents between 18 and 65 years of age of all races and socio-economic classes. It was discovered that social identity factors scored lower than factors of governance, global recognition and public security: social identity factors such as multiculturalism and heritage scored 48 and 30%, respectively.38 An important component of Singapore’s heritage conservation is mentioned on the website of the URA:

Conserving and restoring our historic buildings also adds to the distinctive character and identity of our city. More importantly, they give us a sense of history and memory even as we move into the future.39

The conservation of heritage structures highlights the idiosyncratic character of Singaporeans. This nation-building process is based on “Retaining a sense of familiarity and home amid a changing landscape is what roots Singaporeans”.40 It looks at what Singaporeans consider to be familiar. The URA is keen to promote the concept of “A Global City, An Endearing Home”, and the Authority has four strategies for conserving memories and material history. The frst concept focuses on community space, including places that either evoke collective memories or are familiar to Singaporeans; the second concept looks at local identity with a distinct character; the third concept revolves around community engagement, obtaining feedback and encouraging partnerships for a sense of ownership and belonging; and the fnal concept emphasizes

37 Channelnewsasia (CNA), “Singapore Singlish, cultural diversity and hawker food essential in forging a national identity, say celebs”, 20 August 2015, CNA website [downloaded on 1 June 2016], available at http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/ singlish-cultural/2056038.html. 38 Channelnewsasia (CNA), “Singapore Singlish, cultural diversity and hawker food essential in forging a national identity, say celebs”, 20 August 2015, CNA website [downloaded on 1 June 2016], available at http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/ singlish-cultural/2056038.html. 39 Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA), “Our Work Protecting Our Identity through Our Built Heritage”, 2 June 2016, URA website [downloaded on 2 June 2016], available at https://www.ura.gov.sg/uol/about-us/our-work/protecting-identity.aspx. 40 Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA), “Master Plan Identity”, 2014, URA website [downloaded on 1 June 2016], available at https://www.ura.gov.sg/uol/master-plan/ View-Master-Plan/master-plan-2014/master-plan/Key-focuses/identity/Identity. 1 INTRODUCTION: A PERSONAL TREKKING HISTORY 31 the identifcation of new identity nodes to preserve these places with a sensitivity to conservation in any new developments or gentrifcations.41 These four concepts will be referenced throughout this volume. Concluding this introductory chapter, this volume is written both for academics who are historians or who are interested in the felds related to environmental history and philosophy and for members of the public who are interested in walking histories as well as in heritage and conservation. It takes on an interdisciplinary format, straddling the disciplines of history, the environment, urban planning, nostalgia and heritage. The volume contributes to existing scholarship by addressing a gap in the literature concerning active, changing and ongoing meaning-making by a variety of stakeholders who utilize and are invested (culturally, emotionally, historically, economically) in the spaces—especially peripheral spaces—discussed within the project. This volume engages with existing philosophical ideas of urban planning and cityscapes such as those presented by Henri Lefebvre, as well as increasing concerns by academics such as Timothy Barnard on the containment, and perhaps curtailment, of natural spaces within the urban landscape. It also acknowledges and discusses other publications relevant to its area of study. The attempt to study Singapore as a “single green and heritage unit” contributes to the macro perspective of such spaces in Singapore as a whole, in addition to examining simultaneously the subjective experiences and narratives of using those spaces.

References ASEAN, “Community-Based Tourism”, ASEAN Tourism Website [Downloaded on 7 June 2016], Available at http://www.aseantourism.travel/explore/sub/ culture-and-heritage/community-based-tourism. Barnard, Timothy P., “An Introduction”, Nature Contained: Environmental Histories of Singapore, ed. Timothy Barnard (Singapore: NUS Press), pp. 1–8. Boo, Chih Min, Sharon Chew and Jean W.H. Yong (John), Plants in Tropical Cities (Singapore: Uvaria Tide), 2014. Centre for Liveable Cities Ministry of National Development Singapore and National Parks Board Ministry of National Development Singapore,

41 Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA), “Master Plan Identity”, 2014, URA website [downloaded on 1 June 2016], available at https://www.ura.gov.sg/uol/master-plan/ View-Master-Plan/master-plan-2014/master-plan/Key-focuses/identity/Identity. 32 T.W. Lim

Biodiversity Nature Conservation in the Greening of Singapore (Singapore: Centre for Liveable Cities Ministry of National Development Singapore and National Parks Board Ministry of National Development Singapore), 2015. Channelnewsasia (CNA), “Singapore Singlish, Cultural Diversity and Hawker Food Essential in Forging a National Identity, Say Celebs”, 20 August 2015, CNA Website [Downloaded on 1 June 2016], Available at http://www. channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/singlish-cultural/2056038.html. Diagana, Melissa and Jyoti Angresh, Fort Canning Hill: Exploring Singapore’s Heritage and Nature (Singapore: ORO Editions), 2013. Dümcke, Cornelia and Mikhail Gnedovsky, “The Social and Economic Value of Cultural Heritage: Literature Review”, July 2013, European Expert Network on Culture (EENC) Paper [Downloaded on 9 June 2015], Available at http://www.eenc.info/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/CD%C3%BCmcke- MGnedovsky-Cultural-Heritage-Literature-Review-July-2013.pdf. Florida, Richard, The Rise of the Creative Class (New York: Basic Books), 2003. Housing & Development Board, “ANNEX B1 Raised Income Ceilings for Citizen Families”, Undated and Unpaginated, Housing & Development Board Website [Downloaded on 1 January 2016], Available at www.hdb.gov. sg/cs/infoweb/doc/affordable-homes-b1. Housing & Development Board, “Public Housing—A Singapore Icon”, 26 October 2015, Housing & Development Board Website [Downloaded on 1 January 2016], Available at http://www.hdb.gov.sg/cs/infoweb/about-us/ our-role/public-housing–a-singapore-icon. Lefebvre, Henri, The Urban Revolution (Minneapolis and London: University of Minnesota Press), 2003. Leong, Tzi Ming and James Gan Wan Ming, Our Fragile Rainforest (Singapore: National Parks Board), undated. Lum, Shawn K.Y., Hugh T.W. Tan and Wee Yeow Chin, Trees of Bukit Timah Campus (Singapore: National University of Singapore and Nature Society Singapore), 2007. Lum, Shawn and Ilsa Sharp (eds.), A View from the Summit: The Story of Bukit Timah Nature Reserve (Singapore: Nanyang Technological University Singapore, National University of Singapore and National Parks Board Singapore), 1996. Miksic, John N., Singapore and the Silk Road of the Sea 1300–1800 (Singapore: NUS Press), 2013. Ministry of National Development, “More Parks and Park Connectors”, Ministry of National Development Website [Downloaded on 24 October 2016], Available at http://www.mnd.gov.sg/landuseplan/city_in_a_garden. htm. National Heritage Board (NHB) Editorial Team, Renaissance City Plan III Heritage Development Plan (Singapore: NHB), 2008. 1 INTRODUCTION: A PERSONAL TREKKING HISTORY 33

National Parks (NParks), “Central Urban Loop” Undated and Unpaginated, National Parks Website [Downloaded on 1 January 2016], Available at https://www.nparks.gov.sg/~/media/nparks-real-content/gardens-parks- and-nature/park-connector-network/brochures/central-urban-loop.pdf. Rogerson, Marianne, In Singapore: 6 Fabulous Adventures in the City (Singapore: Marshall Cavendish), 2009. Shee, Zhi Qiang, Ang Xing Qi, Lahiru Wijedasa and Nigel Taylor, Tall Tales Singapore Botanic Gardens Heritage Tree Trail Guide (Singapore: National Parks Board Singapore Botanic Gardens), 2014. Tan, Shzr Ee and Desmond Foo, Lost Roads Singapore (Singapore: SNP), 2006. Ting, Kennie, Heritage (Singapore: IPS/Straits Times Press), 2015. Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA), “Master Plan Identity”, 2014, URA Website [Downloaded on 1 June 2016], Available at https://www.ura.gov. sg/uol/master-plan/View-Master-Plan/master-plan-2014/master-plan/Key- focuses/identity/Identity. Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA), “Our Work Protecting Our Identity Through Our Built Heritage”, 2 June 2016, URA Website [Downloaded on 2 June 2016], Available at https://www.ura.gov.sg/uol/about-us/our- work/protecting-identity.aspx. Wan, Lynette, Kindred Memories: A Flash Fiction Collection (Singapore: Lynette Wan and Ho Printing with the Support of the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth Singapore), 2015. CHAPTER 2

Southern Singapore: The Constituency of Tanjong Pagar and the Surrounding Areas of Marina, Bayfront and Raffes Place in Southern Singapore

In exploring Tanjong Pagar, the research team realized that there are different conceptualizations of this area. For Singapore’s Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA), Tanjong Pagar denotes the city center section of downtown Singapore around the Tanjong Pagar MRT station with boundaries reaching out to Pearl’s Hill in the north, the end of Tanjong Pagar Road to the south, Duxton Plain to the west and Anson Road to the east.1 The URA’s boundaries for that area include a park connector leading towards Pearl’s Hill.2 For the city’s urban planning and design authorities, Tanjong Pagar will eventually become part of Singapore’s near-future greater Southern Waterfront City project, a 1000 hectare piece of land that integrates Bayfront, Marina Central, Labrador, Tanjong Pagar and Pulau Brani.3 The political constituency of Tanjong

1 Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA), “City Centre Tanjong Pagar”, URA website [downloaded on 10 December 2015], available at https://www.ura.gov.sg/uol/master- plan/View-Master-Plan/master-plan-2008/Growth-Area/City-Centre/Tanjong-Pagar. aspx. 2 Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA), “City Centre Tanjong Pagar”, URA website [downloaded on 10 December 2015], available at https://www.ura.gov.sg/uol/master- plan/View-Master-Plan/master-plan-2008/Growth-Area/City-Centre/Tanjong-Pagar. aspx. 3 Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA), “City Centre Tanjong Pagar”, URA website [downloaded on 10 December 2015], available at https://www.ura.gov.sg/uol/master- plan/View-Master-Plan/master-plan-2008/Growth-Area/City-Centre/Tanjong-Pagar. aspx.

Pagar is different from the URA defnition of the same area. In political terms, the Tanjong Pagar Group Representative Constituency consisted of districts such as Cantonment Road, Customs Land Division HQ, Tanjong Pagar Railway Station and Duxton Plain, according to a map dating back to 1982 retrieved from the National Library.4 In the updated 2015 electoral boundaries, it consists of Buona Vista, Queenstown, Moulmein-Cairnhill, Tanjong Pagar–Tiong Bahru, Henderson–Dawson, Tanglin, Orchard Road, Bukit Merah, Stevens, Newton, Little India, Pek Kio, Bukit Timah and Novena. Tanjong Pagar’s political boundaries are much larger than its functional administrative boundaries for the purpose of urban planning. When needed, its identity has been subsumed into greater regional projects such as the Southern Waterfront City. This chapter conceptualizes the boundaries of these areas loosely, outlining them as part of Tanjong Pagar generally defned in order to include the analyses, archival documents, blueprints, plans, white papers, media com- mentaries and journalistic reports as comprehensively as practicable. In other words, this chapter takes the broadest possible view of the political and administrative defnitions of Tanjong Pagar. An important reason for focusing on Tanjong Pagar and the historical southern areas of Singapore is a pragmatic one. When the research team carried out trials to track physical changes in a given area using satellite tracking systems, the team discovered that the features in Tanjong Pagar are easier to map out compared with other parts of the Green Rail Corridor due to the availability of information and the longevity of heritage buildings in that area. Due to tremendous changes taking place in the area arising from the implementation of the Southern Waterfront City plans, these changes have not yet been covered in current literature. There is also substantial eco-heritage and historical heritage in that area for research purposes. When the author visited the URA city gallery exhibition, he came across exhibition materials on Singapore’s oldest districts dating back to the 1800s and 1900s which included Chinatown and Little India. To have a better understanding of the Tanjong Pagar area, the author visited the URA on 10 December 2015 to gather

4 Singapore Government BookSG, “Map of Tanjong Pagar Constituency, circa 1982”, 1982, BookSG website [downloaded on 10 December 2015], available at http:// eresources.nlb.gov.sg/printheritage/image.aspx?id c4b8d74b-c376-4e7b-9468- = 0db042686ccf. 2 SOUTHERN SINGAPORE: THE CONSTITUENCY OF TANJONG PAGAR … 37 information. On this trip, the author learnt that the URA’s defnition of sustainability lies in the intersection between social factors (building a good living environment), environmental factors (using the environment responsibly) and using land in such a way that it provides jobs for people (economic factors). The URA strives to use land to promote sustainability. The author’s research team recognizes the important and effective work done by the URA in urban planning, which is why Singapore has become a model for effective urban planning for other cities in the world. At the point of writing this chapter, Singapore had just concluded an agreement with the leadership of China to develop Chongqing bilat- erally by capitalizing on Singapore’s world-class strengths in urban planning. In fact, Chongqing is the third government-to-government project between the two countries; the second such project, Tianjin Eco-City, focused more on the concept of sustainability. In that sense, Singapore’s Southern Waterfront City will be its new- est showcase in urban planning to the rest of the world. Historically, the Tanjong Pagar component in this project will be important due to the heritage value of the district. Tanjong Pagar served as both a site for human habitation and also Singapore’s lifeline in the colonial era. There was both a functional and community-building purpose in that area. In fact, Tanjong Pagar was crucial to the industrialization process of the early-modern period under the British. Industrially, in the southern coastal area of Singapore, the author and his research team’s visit to the URA revealed that the Tanjong Pagar Dock Company used to unload coal fuels at its wharves in the late 1800s. The Company constructed two-storey hostels to accommodate the coolies that carried the coal stocks from the ships to the warehousing facilities at the wharves. The URA city gallery also indicated that wind-powered shipping was replaced by coal-powered vessels as early as the mid-1800s and so a new harbor was constructed by the authorities to accommodate the new technologies. The new harbor in Tanjong Pagar eventually became Keppel Harbour. Henri Lefebvre highlighted the tendency of urbanism to veer towards scientifc studies.5 Lefebvre provides an additional perspective to scientifc rationality by including ideology so that urbanism refects prevailing political thinking within the ideological spectrum, conceptualized as a

5 Lefebvre, Henri, The Urban Revolution (Minneapolis and London: University of Minnesota), 2003, p. 6. 38 T.W. Lim dialectic between the left and the right.6 Lefebvre argues that technical and scientifc studies facilitate the input of capital and enterprise into business or urban planning, while the Left in society tries to resist such an eventuality by shifting the landscape away from the quest for complete urbanization.7 The dialectic that Lefebvre advocates is an important one and is inclusive in nature, taking into account all stakeholders’ needs. However, there are no boundaries to demarcate the social consensus needed for development, particularly in a city economy that is dependent on limited land resources for productive economic activities. There are dangers that ideological dialectic debate can go on indefnitely as a form of dialectical determinism without reaching social consensus or compromise. This reading takes into account Lefebvre’s ideas and the important role of ideology (as well as the possibility of dialectic determinism); however, this volume argues that it is mitigated by a social consensus-seeking Singaporean context when the URA and other state and non-state groups reach out to all stakeholders to formulate a mutually acceptable solution to land use. The accent on this outreach is based on pragma- tism, a deliberate attempt to remove destructive ideological conficts and elements and to replace them with constructive consultation and a social contract that promises benefts for the majority of land users. The post-ideology space constructed here is forged not by unmitigated enterprise, capitalism or entrepreneurship but, rather, is guided by social equity made possible by an enlightened progressive state working with a highly educated affuent society allied with the common goal of the redistribution of resources to meet community needs. In this case, soci- etal yearnings for green urban spaces and bohemian cultural spheres are pronounced, and they converge and coincide with the urban planners’ ideas of sustainability as an outcome of meeting economic, social and environmental priorities. The state understands these needs and reaches out to the citizenry.

6 Lefebvre, Henri, The Urban Revolution (Minneapolis and London: University of Minnesota), 2003, p. 6. 7 Lefebvre, Henri, The Urban Revolution (Minneapolis and London: University of Minnesota), 2003, pp. 6 and 7. 2 SOUTHERN SINGAPORE: THE CONSTITUENCY OF TANJONG PAGAR … 39

City Center Nestled in the center of the Central Business District is the Tanjong Pagar MRT station, which has become the nucleus of downtown Tanjong Pagar. The URA has been working with the community to improve and upgrade these spaces. Therefore, when the author and his research team visited the URA on 10 December 2015, they came across the URA Street Art initiative which featured 50 pieces of works from 33 artists, including those who worked on themes related to Tanjong Pagar. Two entries stood out in this sense—one of them advocated the improvement of Telok Ayer Park, while another proposed setting up a “Tanjong Pagar Backyard” using a space located above the Tanjong Pagar MRT station. The latter was the winner in the overall competitive category of the URA Street Art initiative while the former presentation included a narrative about Tanjong Pagar being the oldest conservation area in Singapore and commented how Singaporeans have forgotten vintage images such as jinrikishas plying their trade outside the Jinrikisha station in Tanjong Pagar.

Highlands Interestingly, within or near Tanjong Pagar (defned both politi- cally and administratively) there are three elevated areas that appear in contemporary maps: Fort Canning Hill (formerly known as Bukit Larangan), Mount Faber (part of the Southern Ridges) and Bukit Merah (Redhill). These areas were populated in the earliest human habitations found in Singapore. Pre-modern Singapore was populated by boat people or gypsies known as the orang laut, who resided mainly along the Singapore River, the Kallang River, the bay area at Telok Blangah and who, in the 1830s, were reputed to be pirates or their accomplices.8 These higher grounds are located in southern Singapore. In terms of trekking, according to hikers whom the author encountered they consist of highly urbanized terrain with lush green spaces and parks. The highest elevation in this area is probably Fort Canning Hill. Going further south

8 Hack, Karl, “The Singapore Malay Community Enclaves and Cultural Domains” in the National Institute of Education (NIE) website [downloaded on 5 June 2015], available at http://www.hsse.nie.edu.sg/staff/blackburn/MalayenclavesSingapore.pdf, p. 5. 40 T.W. Lim from the Mount Faber end of the Southern Ridges, one would reach the downtown area. According to the signage erected by National Parks at Fort Canning, when the British colonized Singapore, they removed the forest canopy on Bukit Larangan and, in the process, came across the remains of brick buildings. Artifacts have been recovered from this site dating back to the fourteenth century. These artifacts have played a part in providing clues to Singapore’s ancient past. The author’s Civic District trek started at Fort Canning on 31 May 2015. This trip led the author through the oldest parts of Singapore where community life frst started. Fort Canning is the highest elevated point overlooking the Civic District. The former Fort Canning facility had previously been transformed into a museum housing the Picotheque de Paris which was home to several galleries, including a free Southeast Asian gallery and a further gallery space featuring Western oil masters. The museum discontinued operations within a year. Near the Picotheque de Paris are structures designed by well-known architect George D. Coleman. A historical cemetery is located nearby. The National Parks signboard (numbered C8) indicated that this cemetery was known as the Old Christian Cemetery and was a place to bury the dead from 1822 to 1865; 600 individuals were buried here, one third of whom were Christians that were ethnically Chinese. The entrance was designed by Superintending Engineer Captain Charles Edward Faber, the namesake for Mount Faber, and is one of the earliest architectural structures in Singapore constructed in the Gothic Revival Style. Half of the cemetery was allocated to the Anglicans and half to other denominations. Due to wear and tear, most of the tombstones were removed in the 1970s.The entrance to the cemetery at Fort Canning features a white gateway lined by tall coconut trees. Following the removal of the tombstones, the cemetery is now a plain slope. The tombstones found at the Old Christian Cemetery reveal much about the Europeans who sailed to Singapore in the past and multiculturalism is rich in the textual information written on the tombstones. Some of the tombstones, for example, feature the Star of David, suggesting the presence of Jewish migrants and visitors to Singapore, while others prefer to indicate their military ranks and the names of the ships that brought them to Singapore. Another important cemetery lies in the same area. Considered to be a powerful place, the keramat (shrine) is the burial site of Sri Sultan Iskandar Shah, the last of the fve rulers of Singapore during the golden age of the Malay kingdom in the fourteenth century, according to the 2 SOUTHERN SINGAPORE: THE CONSTITUENCY OF TANJONG PAGAR … 41

National Parks signage. The whereabouts of the remains of Singapore’s founder, Sang Nila Utama and his chief minister are still a mystery, as they have not been recovered yet. The author and his research colleagues took time off to do some additional research on Iskandar Shah. There are conficting sources about the origins of this historical fgure. He is either the man who left Singapore to establish Malacca, or the offspring of this Malaccan founder; certain Portuguese records and the Malay Annals indicate that he is actually Parameswara (founder of Malacca) who took a different name (Iskandar Shah) after converting to Islam.9 This interpretation noted that Parameswara fed Singapura (the old Malay name for Singapore) after he killed the local ruler (Singapura was an allied vassal state of the Javanese) and faced reprisal from the Javanese.10 The Malay Annals added yet another layer of complex- ity to the story. It was noted that Parameswara, Iskandar Shah and the founder of Singapore Sang Nila Utama (later bestowed the royal title Sri Tri Buana) were one and the same person, as details from their life stories matched! All three persons administered Palembang before ruling Singapore and they saw a lion apparition in Temasek (yet another old name for Singapore).11 It is suggested that the coincidence is too good to be true. Other documentation recorded that Parameswara died in 1414 and was succeeded by (Megat) Iskandar Shah and this interpretation con- forms to Ming Chinese records, which say that Iskandar Shah’s successor Sri Maharaja visited Beijing in April 1424.12 Portuguese Tomes Pires’ records supported the idea that Iskandar Shah was the son of Singapore-born Parameswara and that the son persuaded his father to

9 Low, Cheryl-Ann, “Iskandar Shah”, 2009, National Library Board Singapore Infopedia website [downloaded on 16 December 2015], available at http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/ infopedia/articles/SIP_1540_2009-07-06.html. 10 Low, Cheryl-Ann, “Iskandar Shah”, 2009, National Library Board Singapore Infopedia website [downloaded on 16 December 2015], available at http://eresources. nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_1540_2009-07-06.html. 11 Low, Cheryl-Ann, “Iskandar Shah”, 2009, National Library Board Singapore Infopedia website [downloaded on 16 December 2015], available at http://eresources. nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_1540_2009-07-06.html. 12 Low, Cheryl-Ann, “Iskandar Shah”, 2009, National Library Board Singapore Infopedia website [downloaded on 16 December 2015], available at http://eresources. nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_1540_2009-07-06.html. 42 T.W. Lim set up a community in Malacca after seeing a brave mousedeer stand up to his hunting dogs.13 The origins of the tomb were so ambiguous that the author’s research colleagues had diffculty establishing the connection between the “King of Temasek” and Iskandar Shah. According to Pirés’ Javanese-language records, which have been lost, Parameswara murdered the local head of Singapura eight days after landing on the island and then controlled the territories for fve years before he was expelled from the island and, in his exile, established Malacca.14 This interpretation is given credence by that fact that 1389 marked the passing of the powerful Javanese king Hayam Wuruk and this date coincided with Parameswara (or Iskandar Shah)’s annexation of Singapura (or Temasek) after he left Palembang, either in 1390 or 1391; it also happened before he was ejected from the island in 1395 or 1396, after being attacked by Patani, Pahang or Majapahit.15 Iskandar Shah’s identity is so ambiguous that the author’s research colleagues wondered if he were also the “King of Temasek”, a title encountered during archival research. Technically, he was the “King of Temasek” for fve years from 1390–1391 to 1395–1396, following the different accounts of his story given earlier. He may have been an ille- gitimate king who usurped the throne after murdering the rightful ruler, who was said to be a vassal of an overlord in either Java or Siam (Patani); the motivation for the usurpation may have been Temasek’s wealth, as contemporary excavations indicated a prosperous trading post here.16 The Portuguese records quoting Malay Annals recorded it was a vassal of the Javanese-centered Majapahit empire but the late Yuan Chinese trave- ler Wang Dayuan noted that the Siamese kingdom was the overlord of

13 Low, Cheryl-Ann, “Iskandar Shah”, 2009, National Library Board Singapore Infopedia website [downloaded on 16 December 2015], available at http://eresources. nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_1540_2009-07-06.html. 14 HistorySG, “Sri Tri Buana/Parameswara 1299”, 2014, HistorySG Singapore Government website, available at http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/history/events/a9cbd- bfe-e4d4-4aca-ab91-b357bd419bf4. 15 HistorySG, “Sri Tri Buana/Parameswara 1299”, 2014, HistorySG Singapore Government website, available at http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/history/events/a9cbd- bfe-e4d4-4aca-ab91-b357bd419bf4. 16 HistorySG, “Sri Tri Buana/Parameswara 1299”, 2014, HistorySG Singapore Government website, available at http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/history/events/a9cbd- bfe-e4d4-4aca-ab91-b357bd419bf4. 2 SOUTHERN SINGAPORE: THE CONSTITUENCY OF TANJONG PAGAR … 43

Temasek or Singapura (the old Malay name for Singapore).17 Regardless of the differing interpretations, Iskandar Shah is today remembered by a traditional Malay tombstone keramat in Fort Canning. A wooden structure and terracotta tiles shelter the coffn from the elements. The keramat’s symbolic coffn of Iskandar Shah lies underneath the shelter. Iskandar Shah (also spelt Iskandar Syah—who some said was also Parameswara who had changed his name to an Islamic one) was probably either the Sultan of late-fourteenth century Singapore who established Melaka (also spelt Malacca), or had taken over the throne of Melaka from Parameswara who passed away in 1414.18 The Sulalat al-Salatin (Genealogy of the Kings) (also referred to as the Sejarah Melayu or Malay Annals) por- trayed Iskandar Shah as Sri Sultan Iskandar Shah (also known as Seri Sultan Iskandar Syah), a descendant of Paduka Sri Maharaja and successor to the Singapura throne, ffth in a line of kings, who administered Singapura for three years.19 Iskandar Shah escaped from Singapore when he was under a Javanese siege and eventually founded Melaka, controlling Melaka for two decades before the throne was handed over to his son, Raja Kechil Besar (royal title: Sultan Megat).20 Another Portuguese account written by Tome Pires, who resided in Melaka from 1512 to 1515, noted that Parameswara settled at Bertam after feeing the Javanese attack on Singapore. His son, Iskandar Shah (born in Singapore and married to the daughter of one of his father’s orang laut aristocrats), asked the father to move to Melaka instead after observing a brave mousedeer confronting his hunting dogs; Iskandar Shah eventually succeeded Parameswara.21

17 HistorySG, “Sri Tri Buana/Parameswara 1299”, 2014, HistorySG Singapore Government website, available at http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/history/events/a9cbd- bfe-e4d4-4aca-ab91-b357bd419bf4. 18 Low, Cheryl Ann, “Iskandar Shah” dated 2009 in the National Library Board website [downloaded on 1 Jan 2016], available at http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/ articles/SIP_1540_2009-07-06.html. 19 Low, Cheryl Ann, “Iskandar Shah” dated 2009 in the National Library Board website [downloaded on 1 Jan 2016], available at http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/ articles/SIP_1540_2009-07-06.html. 20 Low, Cheryl Ann, “Iskandar Shah” dated 2009 in the National Library Board website [downloaded on 1 Jan 2016], available at http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/ articles/SIP_1540_2009-07-06.html. 21 Low, Cheryl Ann, “Iskandar Shah” dated 2009 in the National Library Board website [downloaded on 1 Jan 2016], available at http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/ articles/SIP_1540_2009-07-06.html. 44 T.W. Lim

The green space of Fort Canning also featured remains of the British defensive system for Singapore, which included one of the nine-pound cannon used to defend Fort Canning against invaders. There is also a building structure of what was previously the staff training college for the British forces stationed in Singapore. In the periphery of Fort Canning are other heritage structures, including a Chinese Methodist church. A lighthouse is located at the peak of Fort Canning Hill. According to the National Parks signboard, there used to be a pair of early nineteenth-century nine-pounders that had initially been located at the Padang. They quickly became outdated and were used as ceremonial and decorative pieces when Fort Canning was constructed. Another nearby structure had been transformed from a training college for military offcers during the colonial period into Hotel Canning. A majestic-looking lion guards the entrance to Hotel Canning.

Wildlife at Fort Canning As well as the heritage remains of the Fort, one can also fnd wildlife at Fort Canning. Wild junglefowl walk freely across the old Christian cemetery. After all, it was the frst site of Singapore’s Botanical Gardens, set up in 1822 by the founder of modern Singapore, Sir Stamford Raffes. Tropical plants are therefore found in abundance at this site. For example, during the author’s visit to the site on 31 May 2015, he spotted a banana fower and its shadow cast upon a nearby banana leaf. A lone bird’s nest fern stands nearby at Fort Canning. A banana plant can also be found near Iskandar Shah’s burial ground. Crab claw fowers add color to the keramat of Iskandar Shah. Banyan tree dwarfs the park benches and provides shelter for visitors. Other familiar agriculturally cultivated plants include the wild yam and dwarf bananas near the peak of Fort Canning. In the same area, the author also captured a digital image of a cultivated ginger fower near Fort Canning peak on 31 May 2015 (Fig. 2.1). One reason for taking reference from the highest elevation in the Civic District of Singapore is that Fort Canning is a strategic location from which to travel in a variety of directions. From Fort Canning, one can reach Arab Street or Little India through the city campus of the Singapore Management University. To travel eastwards, one can trek through the Kallang River canal system after Bugis and Lavender 2 SOUTHERN SINGAPORE: THE CONSTITUENCY OF TANJONG PAGAR … 45

Fig. 2.1 A mother hen leading three chicks through Fort Canning. These are wild junglefowl. The rooster rummages through the bushes while keeping watch over his family nearby. Photo taken on 31 May 2015 to reach Arab Street. Fort Canning is also located near some important water sources in Singapore, including the Singapore River and Marina Bay. Following the Singapore River and proceeding southwards before the mouth of the river that opens up to Marina Bay, one arrives at the Fullerton Hotel. Another landmark in this area is the historic Cavenagh Bridge at the Boat Quay end of the Singapore River that heads towards Marina Bay. Originally planned as a draw- bridge, it eventually became a landmark fxed-structure bridge in Singapore’s Civic District. The bridge was built by Scottish engineers. Moving westwards, one comes across original colonial-era cast iron grills at the current vacated premises of what used to the Central Police Station at Pearl’s Hill. The building has changed ownership several times; initially a student hostel in 2015, it was the site of a commercial spa in late 2016. 46 T.W. Lim

Marina and Bayfront Areas Moving further south from the Civic District, the author reached the Bayfront area, which will eventually be integrated into the Waterfront City. For a more detailed on-site study of the Marina area, the author also participated in a night hike of Bayfront, Gardens by the Bay, Marina Bay Sands, Marina Bay and the Esplanade on 19 December 2015 from 7.00 pm to 9.30 pm. The author started walking at Bayfront and eventually ended up at the Esplanade. The distance walked was around 6 km but at a snail’s pace, patiently navigating through throngs of people visiting the Christmas Wonderland extravaganza and events happening in the Marina Bay area. The proximity between Marina Bay and Tanjong Pagar has been celebrated by leading private sector property development frms. Leading private property developer in Singapore, Far East, carried an article from The Business Times (published by Cushman and Wakefeld) characterizing the areas of Tanjong Pagar and Bayfront as “The renaissance of Tanjong Pagar” due to the integration of offce space between the Marina, Raffes Place and Tanjong Pagar, offering a full range of rents ranging from S$6 to S$9 per square foot.22 In terms of near-future development, the port of Tanjong Pagar, whose lease- hold will expire in 2027, will be connected with HarbourFront, Marina and Bayfront through the 4 km MRT line known as Circle Line Stage 6 (CCL6) and this line is likely to draw human traffc from Bayfront, Marina and HarbourFront to Tanjong Pagar.23 The removal of the Tanjong Pagar port, Tanjong Pagar Railway station and the rail for the trains that plied the track signifed the end of early industrialization. The future high-speed railway station located at Jurong

22 Dodd, Toby, “Rejuvenation of Tanjong Pagar”, 12 September 2013, Cushman and Wakefeld’s The Business Times [downloaded on 20 December 2015], available at http:// www.google.com.sg/url?sa t&rct j&q &esrc s&source web&cd 9&ved 0ahUKE ======wjZ8-7rmunJAhUVj44KHSipDo4QFghKMAg&url http%3A%2F%2Fwww.fareast.com.sg% = 2Fedm%2FLatest%2520News%2F120913%2520BT%2520Rejuvenation%2520Tanjong%2520P agar.pdf&usg AFQjCNGnbHy0kgxA1dkUq-QBdD6VieCBIg&bvm bv.110151844,d.c2E. = = 23 Dodd, Toby, “Rejuvenation of Tanjong Pagar”,12 September 2013, Cushman and Wakefeld's The Business Times [downloaded on 20 Dec 2015], available at http://www. google.com.sg/url?sa t&rct j&q &esrc s&source web&cd 9&ved 0ahUKEwjZ ======8-7rmunJAhUVj44KHSipDo4QFghKMAg&url http%3A%2F%2Fwww.fareast.com.sg%2Fe = dm%2FLatest%2520News%2F120913%2520BT%2520Rejuvenation%2520Tanjong%2520Pa gar.pdf&usg AFQjCNGnbHy0kgxA1dkUq-QBdD6VieCBIg&bvm bv.110151844,d.c2E. = = 2 SOUTHERN SINGAPORE: THE CONSTITUENCY OF TANJONG PAGAR … 47

East and the port facilities at Tuas are the future spots for railway and port logistics in Singapore. For Henri Lefebvre, the industrial city is a transitional point between the origins of the barter trade town to a sophisticated global exchange of ideas, fne arts, talents and creative individuals.24 Tanjong Pagar served the entrepôt trade during the British colonial era with railways transporting tin and rubber from Malaya to Singapore at the terminal station of Tanjong Pagar and wharf facilities in areas such as Kampong Glam adjacent to the Blair Plains. In the future, the world- class Waterfront City development will serve the service-oriented needs of global banking enterprises, leading property developers and the residential needs of high net-worth individuals and professionals and other Singaporeans interested in HarbourFront lifestyles and retail activities. Lefebvre argued that although transformation to urban societies can be “sudden”, “gradual, planned, determined”, it is diffcult to dis- tinguish between changes that are pre-planned and pre-ordained as opposed to those that are sudden, organic and maybe even “violent”.25 The question of dichotomous social relations is then further argued by Lefebvre in his observation that “urban reality modifes the relations of production without being suffcient to transform them”.26 But, inclusive development appears to be the case for the Tanjong Pagar development, which is well-planned to serve the needs of Singapore’s economy and society and to bring different stakeholders in that space together. The Straits Times, the leading English-language daily newspaper in Singapore, pointed out three objectives for the masterplan in the Tanjong Pagar, Marina, Raffes Place, Bayfront and HarbourFront areas: (1) “to build townships for all ages that are green, healthy, connected, strong in community interaction and spirit”; (2) “bring quality jobs closer to home”; (3) “provide a range of housing options”.27 The masterplan pre-determined changes, design and plans are likely to

24 Lefebvre, Henri, The Urban Revolution (Minneapolis and London: University of Minnesota Press), 2003, p. 14. 25 Lefebvre, Henri, The Urban Revolution (Minneapolis and London: University of Minnesota Press), 2003, p. 5. 26 Lefebvre, Henri, The Urban Revolution (Minneapolis and London: University of Minnesota Press), 2003, p. 15. 27 Tan, Melissa, “HDB fats in Marina South?” dated 15 Dec 2013 in The Straits Times [downloaded on 1 Dec 2015], available at http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/hdb- fats-in-marina-south. 48 T.W. Lim work both with the market-driven laissez faire developmental projects of commercial tenants and private developers and for individuals users and consumers who use the space for their own purposes, often in ways unanticipated by the urban planners. The symbolic landmark in the Bayfront is the Marina Bay Sands. The author caught a glimpse of the Marina Bay Sands under the pale December 2015 moonlight. In early 2015, at the southern tip of Singapore, Marina Bay, the author took the amphibious duck tour and spotted herons and egrets perching on foating buoys. Nature circum- vents urban planning and fnds its own niche in the urban landscape for survival. Nature adapts to the structures that humans built and then shapes it for its own habitation, complementary existence or destruction when there is dissonance with the forces of nature. From the Bay area, one can have a clear view of the skyline of the Central Business District of Shenton Way. Marina Bay features the daily Supertree Christmas light- up, which absorbs solar energy in the daytime to power the lights in the evening. Besides environmentally friendly technologies, the green space built on land reclaimed from the sea features festive community activities such as the Christmas Wonderland at the Bay 2015, which makes the Garden by the Bay a gathering place for visitors and tourists enjoy- ing a religious holiday. Community life is strong during the Christmas weekends at the Gardens by the Bay. LED lights lit the entrances to the Christmas Wonderland where visitors enjoyed the Carousel rides set up for the Christmas season and a Christmas choir sang. Even in such celebrations, nostalgia played a strong role in events planning. For example, there was a nostalgic appearance of the ice cream uncles who used to ply Singapore’s streets, selling ice cream in cones or in bread. The recreation of traditional cuisines is a strong means through which to feed the passion for the past. Featuring local favorites, a sea- food outlet in that location served the famous chili crab to visitors at the Esplanade. Makansutra Gluttons Bay featured the Tzu Char culture, a ubiquitous culinary tradition in Singapore where customers order a la carte dishes from a menu that usually offers a large number of dishes, mostly cooked by stir frying in a wok. The high heat obtained in a wok stir fry ensures ingredients are well-cooked by “wok hei”, an ambiguous and amorphous term denoting the optimal combination of heat, oil and water to the wok ensuring ingredients are fried thoroughly without undercooking or charring them. Nostalgia was also visible; a hawker used a traditional dried leave fan while barbequing chicken wings over 2 SOUTHERN SINGAPORE: THE CONSTITUENCY OF TANJONG PAGAR … 49 charcoal fames. Attracted by nostalgia, some of the author’s walking companions consumed the well-known Hokkien mee in the Esplanade. Even the Hokkien mee is placed on dried banana leaf for authenticity in accordance with the theme of nostalgic presentation. This reconstructed nostalgic presentation of noodles is carefully recreated by the company of a well-known local food critic turned entrepreneur who operated the esplanade alfresco hawker center. He had written books and studied old- school Singaporean cooking in great detail. Community life represented by the dried leaf fans of hawkers and the ice cream uncles are probably organic components of community life and not pre-planned. They represent how community users, tenants and even consumers mold public spaces for their own recreational and leisure use, the revival of nostalgic memory and even provide bohemian motivations for the hipster crowds. For example, the ice cream uncle (a nostalgic term of intimacy used by local Singaporeans for pushcart ice cream sellers) drew large crowds of people yearning for a slices of the nostalgic home-made bread (home-made in the past but mass-produced now) with sweet corn, red bean or durian ice cream sandwiched in between. The uncle’s motorized ice cream freezer also served a utilitarian purpose for those thronging to the festival in the Christmas Wonderland park area. One of my team-mates on the night hike was drawn simply to a can of cool frothy Root Beer to quench the thirst she had built up over the distance of the walk and while snaking through the crowd soaking in the festive atmosphere. The function played by the uncle in quenching the thirst of my team-mate represents the laissez faire organic market-driven needs of consumers. From this perspective of community-building, Melissa Tan from The Straits Times sparked off public debates and discourses with property development stakeholders when she raised the possibility of situating public housing (Housing Development Board fats) in the Marina South area, visualized as an upper-class residential area; some were for and others were against the idea.28 Henri Lefebvre raises the urban problematic, questioning whether the urban city can be considered as a superstructure growing on the substrate of an economic structure and whether the city

28 Tan, Melissa, “HDB fats in Marina South?”, 15 December 2013, The Straits Times [downloaded on 1 December 2015], available at http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/ hdb-fats-in-marina-south. 50 T.W. Lim is a capitalist or socialist phenomenon or a reality.29 The author does not conceptualize the Bayfront, Tanjong Pagar, Raffes Place, HarbourFront, Marina, Bayfront and the future Waterfront City areas in terms of a dichotomy of capitalist or socialist phenomena or realities. If those areas are defned ideologically, then it would become a natural argument against egalitarian community-building in these downtown areas. Reality indicates otherwise. Tanjong Pagar—despite being an economically productive area and a consequence of scientifcally rational urban planning with its zoned commercial spaces even during the British colonial era— always had complex and ambiguous social and socio-economic relationships between different stakeholders and individual users of the urban space. Melissa Tan noted that, historically, urban planning policies in this area were deliberately aimed at a mixed reality of social relationships:

Early HDB precincts were built in the city centre such as Tanjong Pagar and Chinatown, to house people living in the overcrowded central urban core […] The frst two HDB blocks in Tanjong Pagar were built on Cantonment Road in 1963, at Duxton Plain where the Pinnacle@Duxton now stands. In Chinatown, the fats at Jalan Minyak in York Hill were completed in 1964, while Blocks 335A and 335B Smith Street were completed in 1983. American political scientist Robert Gamer, who studied Singapore’s urban planning in the 1960s and 1970s, noted in a 1972 book titled The Politics Of Urban Development In Singapore: “The old city found millionaire and pauper living side by side […] Rich and poor could get to know one another, talk to one another, and help one another out on a personal basis. This undoubtedly had a tempering effect on class antagonisms.”30

The projects were conceived according to market demand and supply. Historically, the community has had horizontal social relations between various socio-economic classes since the days of Singapore’s independence. The co-existence of age-old public housing projects in Bukit Merah/Redhill, Tiong Bahru, Tanjong Pagar, Telok Blangah and Cantonment, all close to the Waterfront City, stands as testimony to the longevity of time and space with regard to mixed socio-economic

29 Lefebvre, Henri, The Urban Revolution (Minneapolis and London: University of Minnesota Press), 2003, p. 15. 30 Tan, Melissa, “HDB fats in Marina South?”, 15 December 2013, The Straits Times [downloaded on 1 December 2015], available at http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/ hdb-fats-in-marina-south. 2 SOUTHERN SINGAPORE: THE CONSTITUENCY OF TANJONG PAGAR … 51 projects if the founding of Singapore Improvement Trust in 1927 is taken as the starting date. The author shared his writings with a long- time resident in Tiong Bahru and Redhill within the Tanjong Pagar constituency and she made the comment that:

The continued and deliberate mix of housing and amenities across a broad socio-economic spectrum, especially in the Tanjong Pagar area and its environs, does play a key role, I think, in giving many Singaporeans a sense of a stake and an identity in Singapore’s modernisation, given the location and history of the area, and its long association with the development of Singapore, especially from its modern founding.

This echoes the sentiments of Melissa Tan’s comments. The hybrid- ized nature of urban development in a progressive market-driven society co-existing with mixed social relations does not ft neatly into Lefebvre’s categories of capitalism and socialism; neither is it a transitional social reality. Singapore’s determination to build housing and residential projects across socio-economic classes is well-known, with public housing co-existing with private housing projects in the same area. Regardless of income level, all Singaporeans appreciate good urban facilities and greenery. Even in a commercial district such as Marina Bay Sands, care is taken to craft green landscapes; for example, cultivated bamboo at Gardens by the Bay or multi-colored bougainvillea fowers. The same Straits Times article also cited the masterplan highlighting two new development sites, Marina South and Kampong Bugis, which were to be established as environmentally—friendly and “walkable” housing areas.31 It is interesting to note that the article characterized the Marina South and Kampong Bugis projects as a “fenceless”, non-gated (socio-economically unrestricted) community accessible to walkers and pedestrians.32 In this urban planners’ outreach towards the east coast of Singapore, the chapter will briefy discuss Kampong Bugis, Kampong Glam and Rochor areas.

31 Tan, Melissa, “HDB fats in Marina South?”, 15 December 2013, The Straits Times [downloaded on 1 December 2015], available at http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/ hdb-fats-in-marina-south. 32 Tan, Melissa, “HDB fats in Marina South?”, 15 December 2013, The Straits Times [downloaded on 1 December 2015], available at http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/ hdb-fats-in-marina-south. 52 T.W. Lim

From the Civic District to the East Coast by Connecting Through Eastern Singapore Leaving the Marina Bay area behind and heading eastwards, the frst district that one reaches is Beach Road, followed by Bugis Street. It also means that one is leaving reclaimed land (man-made space with crafted landscapes and nature) for terrain that was part of the original shoreline. Bugis Junction, which straddles Beach Road, City Hall and Arab Street, was named after the Bugis community in Singapore. The Bugis were an ethnic group within the Malay world and were well-known for their naval prowess and warrior skills. They set up a massive sprawling maritime empire that included the Riau- Lingga Islands, Johore and East Malaysian territories. Bugis Street, in the Bugis Village area, became a notorious site for transvestite prostitution in the early post-war decades before it was gentrifed and became a lively retail area anchored by a large shopping mall project known as Bugis Junction. At one point, it also hosted a well-known stand-up comedy club. The Queen Street end of the Bugis area was also developed into an art district in the same way as the neighboring Rochor area is being gentrifed. Rochor will feature a park corridor system for jogging or cycling along the Rochor Canal in the near future. It could also become the park corridor node for hikers in the future. Beyond Bugis, walking eastwards from the Civic District, one arrives at Arab Street and Kampong Glam. This was the site where Sultan Hussein frst instructed his Temenggong to build a palace for the sultan in a 56 acre parcel of land that extended beyond Kampong Glam to Rochor Canal.33 The sultan’s palace or Istana grounds eventually included all the property between Jalan Sultan and Arab Street, extending to North Bridge Road along the coastal area.34 The Sultan’s compound was gradually surrounded by the Arab and Bugis communities, becoming a Muslim area with people from different races, ethnicities and countries.35 Sultan Hussein’s son, Sultan Ali Islander Shah, started

33 Hack, Karl, “The Singapore Malay Community Enclaves and Cultural Domains”, National Institute of Education (NIE) website [downloaded on 5 June 2015], available at http://www.hsse.nie.edu.sg/staff/blackburn/MalayenclavesSingapore.pdf, p. 7. 34 Hack, Karl, “The Singapore Malay Community Enclaves and Cultural Domains”, National Institute of Education (NIE) website [downloaded on 5 June 2015], available at http://www.hsse.nie.edu.sg/staff/blackburn/MalayenclavesSingapore.pdf, p. 9. 35 Hack, Karl, “The Singapore Malay Community Enclaves and Cultural Domains”, National Institute of Education (NIE) website [downloaded on 5 June 2015], available at http://www.hsse.nie.edu.sg/staff/blackburn/MalayenclavesSingapore.pdf, p. 9. 2 SOUTHERN SINGAPORE: THE CONSTITUENCY OF TANJONG PAGAR … 53 a new Istana project between 1840 and 1843, placing George Coleman, Singapore’s pioneering European architect, in charge36; today, the Istana compound is a heritage center. Along with the former Istana, the most noticeable landmark in the Kampong Glam area is the current Sultan Mosque, which was constructed in 1924–1928 on the site of the original Mosque built during 1824–1826. The fence that rings the mosque has characteristic Roman-Greco ornamentation typically shaped like pine cones, pineapples or acorns. Arab Street is also decorated with murals featuring the traditional crafts of Muscat, Oman. One of them commemorates the contributions made by Muscati merchants to the development of Singapore. The neighborhood refects a rich Malay-Muslim heritage and lies along the eastern route. At its center is the majestic Sultan Mosque in Arab Street. The Sultan Mosque itself is surrounded by the earliest genre of shophouse architecture in Singapore. This is typically a double-storey shophouse of simple design, uncluttered by the architectural implements, mosaic design, broken ceramic tile decoration, gaudy tiles or fgurine ornamentation that characterized late-transition shophouses. It is also a less tall construction than later modern shophouses. One reason for its humble design is because merchants had not yet accumulated great wealth from trading in the city and so budgetary constraints kept the construction simple. Such rows of early Nanyang-style shophouses now house retail shops in Arab Street. Arab Street is a visual treat for hikers. Mosaic tile art found on the Malabar Muslim Mosque as well as the Muscati porcelain tile wall murals are not the only tile art visible in Arab Street. Visitors can also fnd a vibrant display of gaudy and symmetrical Turkish Iznik porcelain tile art along the street. Examples of such Iznik Islamic tile art can also be found on table tops positioned along the public spaces of the shophouses. The area is also rich in Malay–Muslim heritage and culture. The author came across an old Madrasah religious school during the trek on 7 June 2015 founded in 1912 by a prominent Muslim family, the Alsagoffs. In yet another example of multiculturalism in Singapore, Chinese shophouses have co-existed with the Malay–Muslim community

36 Hack, Karl, “The Singapore Malay Community Enclaves and Cultural Domains”, National Institute of Education (NIE) website [downloaded on 5 June 2015], available at http://www.hsse.nie.edu.sg/staff/blackburn/MalayenclavesSingapore.pdf, p. 10. 54 T.W. Lim for decades, conducting their trade and business. Alongside the mercantile society, Arab Street is also home to the Malay aristocracy. Kampong Glam, formerly the Istana grounds of royalty in Singapore, has been converted to a museum gallery and Malay Heritage Centre. The architecture of the Sultan Mosque building, its spires pointing skywards and a nearby colonial-era cast iron gate with defensive spikes, is an interesting fusion of local communities and European concepts of modernity. On a man-made structure near Arab Street, pigeons cool themselves down at a water fountain on a hot day. It is an example of how wildlife co- exists with human structures by making use of the fountain as a water source and a bathing area. In yet another example of how nature fnd its way to co-exist with humans, the author spotted a stray cat, probably fed and well-kept by the shophouse business owners in Arab Street, cleaning itself carefully on the streets, totally comfortable with human passers-by. There is rich community life in the Jalan Sultan and Kampong Glam areas. The author came across a traditional Chinese wedding tea set in Jalan Sultan. The tea set is placed on stacked up tables with traditional ornate Islamic designs for its leg support. Near the table, the author found Indonesian Batik textiles displayed along the public walkways of Arab Street shophouses in this neighborhood that is a milieu of global Islamic cultures. Persian carpets were unfurled along the public walkways at Arab Street and revealing the typical, almost fawless (with the exception of the deliberate ‘Persian faw’), symmetrical patterns of the carpets. Material objects in this case demonstrated the multicultural makeup of the neighborhood in Arab Street. To sample local culture, the author’s trekking team enjoyed a cup of teh halia, a traditional Indian ginger tea, on 13 June 2015. They also ordered a cup of bandung, an Indonesian rose syrup drink made with evaporated milk. The trekking team had a hearty meal of rusa murtabak, or Muslim deer pizza. For their side dishes, the team had complementary cut cucumbers with ketchup sauce. There were many hard at work in this community, making roti prata with a beaten egg integrated in the hand-thrown dough. A major feature of Arab Street is the Muslim dishes from all over the Islamic world, including the rich Indonesian rice table culture. Here, in Arab Street, one can enjoy the Minangkabau-style nasi padang dishes. While one section of Arab Street, Jalan Sultan and Kampong Glam, remains traditional and has a strong ethnic favor, another section of the same area is now gentrifed, having become a boutique retailing district. The Middle Eastern, Persian and North African favors of Arab Street are visible in 2 SOUTHERN SINGAPORE: THE CONSTITUENCY OF TANJONG PAGAR … 55 its restaurants. Here, one is able to spot Turkish lamps with Moroccan décor, a hybrid combination of the Middle Eastern feel and Southeast Asia Muslim traditions (Fig. 2.2). While the Sultan Mosque has Southeast Asian origins, another nearby mosque in Lavender has an Indian Muslim architecture and historical background. The Malabar mosque in Lavender is Indian–Muslim in origin and it sits between Bugis and Lavender. The Malabar Muslim Jama-ath Mosque was built in the 1960s, a relatively recent construction. It is the only Malabar Muslim facility in Singapore catering to the Malabar Muslim immigrants coming from the Indian state of Kerala who migrated to Singapore as traders. Creative elements in the local community welcomed the idea of street art to liven up the atmosphere. In the Jalan Sultan area, facing Lavender, the author spotted some creative street art, adding an artistic touch to the gentrifed area. Even ordinary, everyday objects can be interpreted as an art form and, sometimes, they can be combined with the sense of yearning for nostalgia. For hikers, the terrain is a signifcant element of the walking activity. When walking from the Arab Street area through Lavender and in the direction of Little Thailand in Beach Road, the author passed by the remains of foor tiles left over from the 1970s psy- chedelic design phase. They presented a beautiful heritage art form that represented nostalgia for individuals born in the 1960s and 1970s who were able to recall coming across such gaudy designs.

Little Thailand Moving eastwards and closer to the Kallang River, one reaches an informal ethnic community corner known as ‘Little Thailand’ to local Singaporeans. The author trekked to Little Thailand on 27 May 2015 and walked with another trekking team along the urban walkway from Little Thailand Golden Mile to Bugis MRT station on 7 June 2015. The landmark structure in Little Thailand in Singapore’s Beach Road is the four-faced Buddha altar located in front of the Golden Mile Complex. The altar is adorned with an array of traditional Thai dancers and fower offerings. Opposite the Golden Mile Complex is the venerable Golden Mile Food center, an old multi-storey hawker center that has served Singaporean foodies over generations. This is, again, an object of nostalgia for many Singaporeans who recall eating traditional hawker food in this facility and purchasing camping supplies from the wholesale 56 T.W. Lim

Fig. 2.2 The author’s camera captures the lone fgure of an Indian Muslim wearing muslin textiles sitting on a stool at the back of a shophouse taking a break from work, gazing far into the corridors of Arab Street where the watchtower of the Sultan Mosque stands. He is an example of the hardworking people in this area who make the daily commercial activities in Arab Street possible. Photo taken on 24 May 2015 2 SOUTHERN SINGAPORE: THE CONSTITUENCY OF TANJONG PAGAR … 57 distributors in the same complex. Near the food center, the multicultural character of Golden Mile Little Thailand is visible in a well-known Hainanese bakery that also sells Peranakan (a cultural fusion of the Malay and Chinese cultures) kueh confectionary. Not surprisingly, Little Thailand is well-known for its Thai food, serving both locals and Thai patrons with green curry, Thai-style milk tea and virgin coconuts. Thais and non-Thais alike shop here because fresh lychees, rambutans and other fresh Thai fruits and vegetables are sold in an open market format in Little Thailand. The iconic landmark in Little Thailand is a four-faced Buddha. The Taiwanese Buddhist Tzu Chi Foundation is a sponsor of this Buddhist altar, which is revered by Thai expatriates living and working in Singapore.

Little India Moving northeastwards from Arab Street and Little Thailand, one arrives at Little India, back to Tanjong Pagar’s political boundaries again. Similar to the ethnic quarters of Chinatown, the old British colonial architecture of shophouses feature the spiral fre escape staircase and rows of these shophouses still remain in the retail spaces between Little India and the Rochor Canal. Zinc and terracotta rooftops lined the skyline of traditional shophouses in Little India juxtaposed against a modern public housing estate. The Indian Hindu character of Little India is prominently displayed. It is one of the most colorful and culturally rich areas of Singapore. A small Jewish community once co-existed with the Indian community here, while Chinese retailers ran jewelry shops in this area. Near the entrance of Serangoon Road, leading to Little India from the city direction, an old building stands testimony to the Jewish community that used to be here. The authorities have revealed that this building will make way for redevelopment. As with the other areas in the Civic District, Chinatown and Tiong Bahru, the co-existence of different racial groups and religious practitioners is clearly visible. As with the other great religions that have come to the melting pot of Singapore, the local Indian community shows great reverence for their religion. Little shrines can be found throughout the shop corners and back lanes, set up by proprietors operating businesses in the Little India district. For example, a heavenly dancing maiden statue displayed in front of a Little India shophouse was erected by a proprietor whose shop faces the street. At another street corner, a statue of Ganesha is 58 T.W. Lim visible. Such religious devotions are an immediate experience for hikers and foreign backpackers traveling through this area. Even in matters of the afterlife, Hindu rituals, customs and traditions are strictly observed. Indian casket services are available for rental at Little India, including their specially designed vans with traditional motifs such as pea- cocks which are permanently parked near the Race Course Road public car park. Religious activities are organized by local Hindu temples. One of the major places of worship is the Sri Veeramakaliamman Temple in Little India. The Temple is decorated with gilding and bells at its doors and a temple tile featuring the peacock design. Hindu devotees buy peacock feathers for their worship at the temple. Due to the presence of affordable backpacking lodgings in Little India, one can often fnd backpackers wandering through this area. Besides cheap lodgings, backpackers, local residents and visitors alike can enjoy the affordably priced fresh produce in the provision shops in Little India. The retail and marketplace spaces of Little India are colorful and boisterous. Fruits are placed on sale by the roadside in Little India. The variety of restaurants here catering to Muslim, Hindu, vegetarian, Chinese and Malay patrons is delightful and prices range from the highly affordable to the extremely expensive. For his dinner after the trek, the author ate curry served on banana leaf. His team ordered naan served with curry. After his meal, the author respectfully made a fower offering on the steps of the temple. He placed oil lamps and left fower petals on a metallic offering table in the temple, in accordance with Hindu traditions. He also made coconut offerings to Hindu gods at the temple and lit a candle in the oil lamp stand in front of the temple. He wished for universal peace and good progress in the rest of the project’s trek. This chapter described the Civic District and its surrounding areas to paint an ethnographic picture of the oldest district in modern Singapore. It is where urban development started and all areas covered in subsequent chapters can take reference from this point as the rest of Singapore was once “peripheral” to this core area of development. Development extended outwards from this area, gradually absorbing these peripheral areas and, in the current context, only pockets of well-conserved catchment areas and secondary forests can truly be defned as the non- urbanized periphery today. But, as Lefebvre pointed out, when urbanization reaches its crescendo and becomes de-personalized from the city’s inhabitants, a deep sense of nostalgia takes over and its stakeholders yearn for the return of things lost, such as the green spaces, old 2 SOUTHERN SINGAPORE: THE CONSTITUENCY OF TANJONG PAGAR … 59 traditions, rustic neighborhoods, customary ways of living and a sense of community bonding. Some individuals in Singapore are engaging in this nostalgic remembrance and re-constructing certain nostalgic elements as a means to recover old practices and memories. Chapter 3 will continue the discussion on nostalgia in one of the earliest developed public housing districts of Singapore, the district of Tiong Bahru.

References Dodd, Toby, “Rejuvenation of Tanjong Pagar”, 12 September 2013, Cushman and Wakefeld’s The Business Times [Downloaded on 20 December 2015], Available at http://www.google.com.sg/url?sa t&rc = t j&q &esrc s&source web&cd 9&ved 0ahUKEwjZ8-7rmunJAh ======UVj44KHSipDo4QFghKMAg&url http%3A%2F%2Fwww.fareast.com. = sg%2Fedm%2FLatest%2520News%2F120913%2520BT%2520Rejuvenati on%2520Tanjong%2520Pagar.pdf&usg AFQjCNGnbHy0kgxA1dkUq- = QBdD6VieCBIg&bvm bv.110151844,d.c2E. = Hack, Karl, “The Singapore Malay Community Enclaves and Cultural Domains”, National Institute of Education (NIE) Website [Downloaded on 5 June 2015], Available at http://www.hsse.nie.edu.sg/staff/blackburn/ MalayenclavesSingapore.pdf. HistorySG, “Sri Tri Buana/Parameswara 1299”, 2014, HistorySG Singapore Government Website, Available at http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/history/ events/a9cbdbfe-e4d4-4aca-ab91-b357bd419bf4. Lefebvre, Henri, The Urban Revolution (Minneapolis and London: University of Minnesota Press), 2003. Low, Cheryl-Ann, “Iskandar Shah”, 2009, National Library Board Singapore Infopedia Website [Downloaded on 16 December 2015], Available at http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_1540_2009-07-06. html. Singapore Government BookSG, “Map of Tanjong Pagar Constituency, Circa 1982”, 1982, BookSG Website [Downloaded on 10 December 2015], Available at http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/printheritage/image.aspx?id c4b8d74b-c376- = 4e7b-9468-0db042686ccf. Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA), “City Centre Tanjong Pagar”, URA Website [Downloaded on 10 December 2015], Available at https://www. ura.gov.sg/uol/master-plan/View-Master-Plan/master-plan-2008/Growth- Area/City-Centre/Tanjong-Pagar.aspx. CHAPTER 3

A Passion for Heritage and Nature: A Case Study of the Mature Tiong Bahru Estate and Surrounding Areas

Introduction This volume focuses on the topic of peripheral spaces, so the reference point for its analyses begins from the most developed sectors of Singapore. Each chapter in this volume focuses on a sub-region within Singapore that exhibits its own unique and idiosyncratic character. This chapter selects Tiong Bahru as a case study for three important reasons. First, Tiong Bahru’s historical signifcance stands out from all the public housing estates encountered in this volume. It is the oldest public housing estate in Singapore with one of the world’s most well-preserved late Art Deco Streamline Moderne architectural structures. Its gentrifcation therefore carries special signifcance for heritage trail walkers. Second, Tiong Bahru’s proximity to Singapore’s downtown, Green Rail Corridor, Alexandra Park Corridor and the Telok Blangah/Mount Faber locations makes it a central location located amongst these green spaces. The combination of heritage space and pockets of greenery around it makes it suitable as a starting point for the volume’s analysis before looking northwest to the Southern Ridges area, northeast to the Botanical Gardens and south to Blair Plains. In terms of public housing residential projects, Tiong Bahru is the progenitor of all government housing in Singapore. In terms of nostalgia, Tiong Bahru is also the historical bridge between the pre-war and post-war post-independent Singapore. If the Civic District is the genesis of modernity, governance and colonial

© The Author(s) 2017 61 T.W. Lim, Cultural Heritage and Peripheral Spaces in Singapore, DOI 10.1007/978-981-10-4747-3_3 62 T.W. Lim culture in Singapore, then Tiong Bahru is the pioneering project of high-density living. With this in mind, it is logical to have the Civic District and Tiong Bahru as the starting points of analysis for three reasons. Because these two locations were the sites of Singapore’s early development and urbanization, it is possible to trace how they pushed back natural spaces such as forests as the human habitation, transportation systems, and trade and commerce expanded into the rest of Singapore. Second, the process of urban expansion makes it possible to realize how “peripheral space” is a subjective term, since a site can quickly be converted from a natural space to a productive one when urbanization occurs. Then, when the more developed urban areas mature, dete- riorate, are overtaken by more attractive, newly developed commercial areas, they become “peripheral spaces” benchmarked against the newer commercial districts. But their decline brings about new opportunities, especially when the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) steps in to gentrify that area to become well sought-after commercial and residential rental districts. At that point, they lose their peripheral nature. Blair Plains, off Tiong Bahru, is a good example of this transformation from an upper-middle-class residential area to a mature estate in post-independence Singapore. It was recently gentrifed and drew in the expatriate crowds and well-heeled bohemian locals who enjoy living in heritage shophouses. This trendy crowd makes the area lively and once more in demand. Third, Lefebvre’s ideas of nostalgia for spaces of old are most visible in the Civic District and the Tiong Bahru areas. Visitors come to Tiong Bahru to relive the Singapore of the early post-war years. With its late Art Deco buildings unchanged, a proliferation of fashionable and bohemian cafes, restaurants and drinking places, together with its rustic feel in the gentrifed areas of Tiong Bahru, it is an area that attracts individuals pining for the lifestyles and culture they lost alongside modernization and progress. In this area, the Singaporean government, especially the Urban Redevelopment Authority and Singapore Heritage Board, deserves accolades for working hard to conserve the character of old Tiong Bahru, even constructing food centers and new public housing car parks in the surrounding areas to ft in with the Art Deco character of the original neighborhood. Tiong Bahru is part of a political constituency known as Tanjong Pagar. Geographically, this area lies just outside the downtown area in 3 A PASSION FOR HERITAGE AND NATURE … 63 the southwestern part of Singapore and is surrounded by Tanjong Pagar and Outram Park to the south, Telok Blangah on the western coastal areas, Redhill/Bukit Merah to the northwest and the Botanical Gardens, River Valley and Fort Canning on its eastern fank. Some of these areas form part of the Civic District, the original town center (in terms of the economic, administrative and social aspects) of Singapore. This chapter focuses on Tiong Bahru and its surrounding area. The volume selects Tiong Bahru as one of the focal points for analysis for three main reasons. First, it is a major site for gentrifcation with its blocks of pristinely preserved late Art Deco Streamline Moderne public housing buildings. The neighborhood has the image of being a bohemian and trendy area. Second, the author of this volume is a resident in this area and able to contribute his standpoint analysis and a narrative of Tiong Bahru’s spatial layout. Third, from Tiong Bahru, one can trace the various park connectors and green spaces that link up most of the major southwestern areas, including both urbanized and peripheral spaces. Tiong Bahru and its surrounding areas are also sites of rapid economic urbanization and social changes, making them fertile for tracking synchronic changes over time. Next to Tiong Bahru, Tanjong Pagar is also important as a case study as part of its heritage will be incorporated into the Greater Southern Waterfront City. The popular imagery of Tiong Bahru can be conceptualized through its tangible structures and intangible symbolisms. The idea of Tiong Bahru tends to conjure up quaint public housing and, more recently, bohemian gentrifcation. Contemporary memories tend to highlight the fact that it was the site of the Singapore Improvement Trust’s frst public housing project. The idea that it was once swampy land and a former cemetery has vanished from the popular consciousness of contemporary Singaporeans and has been replaced by the image of a progenitor of public housing estates in Singapore. In this case, a passion for nature and greenery is not that obvious although, as the symbol of the genesis of public housing projects in Singapore, there is constant association of public housing planning with green spaces, spawning the likes of Tiong Bahru Park which is connected to the Alexander Canal Park Corridor and the installation of a rooftop garden on the top foors of newer public housing developments. In Tiong Bahru, it is possible to see both nostalgic reconstructions of green spaces and carefully landscaped parks and park corridors. The newer style of rooftop garden development is a form of green crafted 64 T.W. Lim space within an urban environment, while the concept of an urban park space such as Tiong Bahru Park refects planning and residential desires for green spaces. These constructs of nature are linked to a national consciousness of a green city, an optimal balance between the needs of the state for urban developmental use and the residential community’s access to lifestyle choices. Tiong Bahru lies at the very heart of conservation efforts to preserve pristine memories of the past, symbolized by the almost unchanging physical landscape of the late Art Deco Streamline Moderne style public housing, with Tiong Bahru Park an early attempt to integrate green spaces into public housing estates. The green aesthetics of Tiong Bahru also play an equally important role in perpetuating the idea of sustainable urban planning. The Housing and Development Board public housing estates have well- crafted curbside greenery, roadside trees that provide shade and rooftop gardens. A glance at the contemporary estates designed by the Housing Development Board compared with the older Singapore Improvement Trust housing reveals how the post-independence national green city project has made its imprint in the Housing Development Board fats. Residents living on the ground foor of a Singapore Improvement Trust fat at Tiong Bahru populated their backyard with potted plants, taking the initiative to introduce greenery into their living space, constructing their own symbolic green spaces through the congregation of potted plants. In the case of Housing Development Board fats in Tiong Bahru, the introduction of greenery was also ingrained into urban planning and development worldviews in post-independent Singapore. Tiong Bahru is connected to the nationwide park corridor network by means of the Alexander Canal Park Corridor. Here, the author spotted wildlife co-existing with human habitation. Large colonies of lepiota mushrooms colonized the damp areas beside the canal, proliferating in the wet and humid weather due to early June rains. Giant red ants tried to extract the nectar from the crab claw fowers on the park corridor shrubs. There was also wildlife in the built-up areas of Tiong Bahru and its surroundings. The author came across stray cats napping blissfully in the shaded areas of Tiong Bahru. It appears some local Good Samaritans were taking good care of these wild felines. 3 A PASSION FOR HERITAGE AND NATURE … 65

Methodology and Theoretical Framework This chapter employs an eclectic array of methodologies for researching Tiong Bahru. They can be divided into textual interpretation, feldwork, dialogues and conversations. In terms of textual interpretation, three categories of text are used. First, secondary readings are examined for clues and narratives related to Tiong Bahru and its surrounding areas. These secondary readings include both academic materials and commercial materials. Second, media reports and newspaper articles are used as updated textual information to curate and archive the latest developments relevant to the spatial history of Tiong Bahru. For more updated narratives on the gentrifcation and history of the area, the author collected media materials over the course of two years, from 2015 to 2016, to take note of recent developments and trends in the Tiong Bahru gentrifcation process. The third source of materials was policy papers and reports on the history and development of Tiong Bahru. In terms of feldwork, the chapter relies on hiking through the heritage areas and archiving images of greenery and historical sites during these expeditions. The treks include both urban spaces and peripheral locations (e.g. parts of the Green Rail Corridor running through Bukit Merah) for comparative studies. The author also had unplanned casual dialogues and conversations with former residents of Tiong Bahru and its surroundings, listening to their subjective narratives and memories of historical sites. These individual narratives are sometimes combined with a sense of nostalgia for things of the past. Together with other documentary evidence from the national archives, media reports and other published secondary sources, these resources help collectively piece together community life in Tiong Bahru understood from the subjective views and opinions of its former residents.

Literature Review Early images of Tiong Bahru and Tanjong Pagar’s green environments in the public housing areas served as pictorial publicity materials for the concept of Singapore’s Garden City in the early days of nation-building. This is visible in the policy papers reviewed for this chapter. In an image found in these offcial documents related to the early days of Singapore’s public housing project, Mr. Lee Kuan Yew, a former Prime Minister and 66 T.W. Lim

Member of Parliament for Tanjong Pagar, is photographed planting trees in mature public housing estates.1 The policy articulated in those days by Mr. Lee was:

One arm of my strategy was to make Singapore into an oasis in Southeast Asia, for if we had First World standards then businessmen and tourists would make us a base for their business and tours of the region. The physical infrastructure was easier to improve than the rough ready ways of the people. Lee Kuan Yew, Singapore’s frst Prime Minister, on the rationale for the Garden City.2

In newly independent Singapore, development of cultivated natural areas helped to attract foreign investors and tourists to boost the local economy. Since then, trees have been integrated in natural ways within high-density housing areas to present a pristine, natural appearance to visitors, tourists and investors alike. Crafted nature has co-existed with productive use of the land. It was an enlightened perspective, where the authorities designed the park and garden landscapes for use by the local community. The authorities involved greater stakeholder consultation in the development of park corridors and garden spaces after Singapore’s economic development matured. From the beginning of independence, there was a national project to develop a garden city and transform built- up areas into green ones.

Observation Studies On 16 May 2015, the author set off at 9.30 a.m. from Tiong Bahru Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) subway station, walking from the station to the Silat Walk section of the Green Rail Corridor. The walk yielded

1 Centre for Liveable Cities Ministry of National Development Singapore and National Parks Board Ministry of National Development Singapore, Biodiversity Nature Conservation in the Greening of Singapore (Singapore: Centre for Liveable Cities Ministry of National Development Singapore and National Parks Board Ministry of National Development Singapore), 2015, p. 12. 2 Centre for Liveable Cities Ministry of National Development Singapore and National Parks Board Ministry of National Development Singapore, Biodiversity Nature Conservation in the Greening of Singapore (Singapore: Centre for Liveable Cities Ministry of National Development Singapore and National Parks Board Ministry of National Development Singapore), 2015, p. 12. 3 A PASSION FOR HERITAGE AND NATURE … 67 wildlife photos for the volume. Bukit Merah connects Tiong Bahru with the Green Rail Corridor. Near the Tiong Bahru MRT station, a large Bukit Ho Swee fre broke out in 1961 and prompted the resettlement of residents of village kampong houses in modern housing estates. In secondary literature, research for this volume came across an eyewitness account of the great fre given by a resident in Bukit Ho Swee. James Seah witnessed the great fre on 25 May 1961 when he was walking to Beo Lane from Chin Swee Road, encountering fear and panic coming from a swelling crowd and witnessing black smoke at his destination.3 In the chaotic and terrible tragedy, Seah also witnessed acts of heroism:

The younger and stronger people piggybacked the older and weaker ones […] In such a chaotic manner all was a blur until a car pulled up beside us at Prince Philip Avenue. Its driver was a kind spectator who had wanted to help – strangers or otherwise.4

Such acts of kindness were, however, counterbalanced by opportunis- tic and evil acts: “and a woman pleading with some determined looking men not to take her shop belongings which comprised everyday items like radio sets and watches”.5 Acts of kindness in the aftermath of a great fre are not the only nostalgic memories recalled with fondness by the residents in that area. These were personal recollections of highly subjective memories of the Tiong Bahru area and its surroundings. Another former resident who stayed next to the Green Rail Corridor in the Lower Delta area just next to Tiong Bahru recalled spending nights with his friends chatting away at the old railway station in that area. Lacking the means to pay for other forms of entertainment, this was his favorite pastime with his kampong (village) buddies. It was at the railway station that they exchanged ghost stories of female and male spirits dressed in white wandering around the

3 Wan, Lynette, Kindred Memories: A Flash Fiction Collection (Singapore: Lynette Wan and Ho Printing with the support of the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth Singapore), 2015, p. 35. 4 Wan, Lynette, Kindred Memories: A Flash Fiction Collection (Singapore: Lynette Wan and Ho Printing with the support of the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth Singapore), 2015, p. 35. 5 Wan, Lynette, Kindred Memories: A Flash Fiction Collection (Singapore: Lynette Wan and Ho Printing with the support of the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth Singapore), 2015, p. 35. 68 T.W. Lim tracks, supposedly the wandering ghosts of individuals killed accidentally by the trains. These were personalized urban legends created by local residents. According to these former residents, the landmark structure in that area was a glass factory situated in the current location of the Henderson Industrial Park. Nearer to Bukit Merah, a former resident recalled the existence of a tofu and tofu skin producer at the former site of the Housing and Development Board headquarters. According to the personal recollection of this former resident, a shop in this area sold bean sprouts. Walking further down the railway tracks in the Tiong Bahru direction, former residents remembered the presence of a wet market known as “Si Kar Teng”, or the “Four Legged Pavilion”, wet market that hosted a Tua Pek Kong shrine later shifted to the current site of the Taoist temple Jin Lan Miao (or Kim Lan Beo, in Wades Giles’ pronunciation) at Kim Tian Place. There were other areas around Tiong Bahru besides Jalan Bukit Merah, Henderson and the Green Rail Corridor location. Next to Tiong Bahru lies the district of Redhill. This area is as historical as Tiong Bahru due to its long history of village settlement. This district is accessible today through the subway system stopping at the MRT Redhill subway station. In this area, subjective selective personal memories spawned another urban legend. A former resident recalled a temple that had stood at the top of this hill. Formerly standing at the current site of the Redhill subway tracks, one resident recalled the presence of a traditional medicine healer known as Lim Goh Neo, or Lim Goh, who drowned after she fell into a well. According to the former resident, Lady Lim was well-known as a traditional Chinese doctor who cured many people from their ailments and therefore a temple was built in her honor and to appease her spirit. The author encountered narratives about the same healer when he visited the Lei Yin Temple, which is discussed in greater detail later in the chapter. The author met another former resident by chance who is in his early forties and who recalled the existence of a small cemetery plot at the location of the current Redhill MRT station. On 2 December 2015, the author had a conversation with another resident who lives in Tiong Bahru who shared her subjective personal memories of the area. Her father had grown up in that area when it was a traditional kampong village. Opposite Tiong Bahru Park, this resident recalled her parents mentioning a cemetery known as San Fen (Cantonese for “Mountain Graves”). Her parents also recalled fshing and hiking around the Tiong Bahru area, and that the neighborhood 3 A PASSION FOR HERITAGE AND NATURE … 69 kids tended to be group-oriented in their activities and played together in that area. The resident’s father (a Cantonese dialect-speaking individual who had resided in Tiong Bahru since the Japanese Occupation of Singapore) kept away from the Bukit Merah View area, which is opposite Tiong Bahru Park, especially a little further up the hill where a cemetery used to exist. The resident relating this story revealed that her parents moved to Bukit Merah View in 1973 when in their thirties and that the family had resided in Bukit Merah (‘Redhill’ in Malay language) since then. Elderly local residents fondly recalled the food stalls in that area. According to the URA’s 2013 draft masterplan for Bukit Merah, two green spaces—the Bukit Merah section of the Rail Corridor and Kim Tian Green—will be developed for residents and visitors to enjoy the natural environment together with the presence of heritage buildings in a mature residential estate.6 Near Tiong Bahru Park, which was set up in 1967, interesting botany and landscaped features can be found. Certain fora and fauna thrived in the Tiong Bahru Park. For example, ripe betel nuts (inedible cousins to the betel nuts for chewing) can be found here. The author came across ripe betel nuts next to their dried-up husks on 28 February 2016. In the Tiong Bahru Park area, practices of ancestral worship continue amongst its elderly residents. Overripe man- darin oranges were placed as offerings to ancestors under a tree during the Lunar New Year period. Interesting plants and shrubs can be found in the green lung of Tiong Bahru Park; for example, white lily fowers. An old fcus tree, designated a heritage tree, can be found here. The fcus tree is deifed in Hindu mythology. They can grow to a considerable size, as tall as 30 meters and up to 200 meters across, and their sap is used as lacquer in traditional crafts. Old trees can be found at various spots in the Tiong Bahru area. For example, Tiong Bahru has a large old banyan tree that has grown over some concrete structures at the Outram Road Tan Tock Seng tomb. The author took a photo of the tree on 28 February 2016 but, when the author visited the tree again in the same year, it was no longer there. The tree might have been removed due to lightning strikes.

6 Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA). “Draft Masterplan 2013 Bukit Merah”, 2013, URA website [downloaded on 4 June 2015], available at http://www.ura.gov.sg/uol/ master-plan/View-Master-Plan/master-plan-2014/master-plan/~/media/dmp2013/ Planning%20Area%20Brochures/Brochure_BukitMerah.ashx. 70 T.W. Lim

Crafted spaces in Tiong Bahru also feature plants such as plumeria, including the scarlet frangipani fower variety that the author came across on 28 February 2016. Some residents practice community gardening, growing pomegranates at Tiong Bahru. The author came across the ripening fruits on 28 February 2016. Another example of edible fruits found in this area are citrus fruits, such as lemons. On 28 February 2016, the author spotted a lemon that fell from a tree in Tiong Bahru and the impact had split the skin off the fruit. Its citrus smell pervaded the air around it. During the author’s night walks along Tiong Bahru, he spotted papayas cultivated by residents in that area. Some of the largest mammals to roam Tiong Bahru are the beautiful stray cats, some of which have marbled fur. Besides the stray cats that lived in the park, other cats had wandered into the nearby housing estates where they were taken care of by Good Samaritans in the residential areas. Besides mammals, birds are another prominent resident in Tiong Bahru. The author spotted a marbled pigeon in the Tiong Bahru area, a short-necked striated heron waiting for its prey by the canal system in Redhill and invasive species such as the Javanese mynahs, which compete with the local species for food. Interestingly, media reports have even raised the possibility of the mynahs, which are considered pests, as a food source!7 The author spotted birds in the bushes near the Redhill section of the walk and came across what was probably a yellow-vented bulbul. Joining the birds is one of the largest types of bee in the world. The author spotted a carpenter bee at work, the gold-colored pollen dust still visible on its body, working on the morning glory fowers and their pollen. The carpenter bee is able to use its sting multiple times and can vibrate its body to drill holes in the tree where it lives its lone existence. Sometimes, females live in pairs. Another resident at the Tiong Bahru Park spotted by the author was a handsome Javanese woodpecker hard at work while the female tended to the nest on the same tree. The red spot in the middle of their wings is sometimes nicknamed a “bleeding heart”. The author spotted the Javanese woodpecker a second time, moving from the Botanical Gardens westwards through Tanglin to Redhill and Tiong Bahru. On another occasion, as the author walked to the Botanical Gardens from Tiong Bahru via the Henderson Park connector,

7 Lin, Yangchan, “The javan mynah: Today’s pest, tomorrow’s food?”, 22 April 2016, The Straits Times (Singapore: SPH), 2016, p. B12. 3 A PASSION FOR HERITAGE AND NATURE … 71 he spotted a red-eyed drongo in the urban setting. Near the end of the Tanglin Road lies the entrance to the Singapore Botanical Gardens.

The Botanical Gardens: Green Lungs in the Southwestern Sector The Singapore Botanical Gardens is a major feature of the green area connections throughout Singapore. If a walker, hiker or trekker is coming from the southwestern park corridors—for example, Alexander Canal or Tiong Bahru Park—and wishes to head towards the Central Catchment Area on foot, the Singapore Botanical Gardens is a useful natural and green transit point to pass through. If the trekker is coming through Orchard Road, passing through the Gardens will connect him or her with the Bukit Timah stretch of the semi-green environments of Singapore’s suburbia. If a hiker were heading south from the Green Rail Corridor and then through the Bukit Timah Road stretch, the Botanical Gardens is a point of transit towards the southwesterly direction. The Gardens act as a green lung near the downtown areas that can accommodate hikers or walkers who need shelter, rest and greenery away from the city. Historically, the most important contribution that the Singapore Botanic Gardens made—not only to Malaya, but also to the rest of the world—was the experimental cultivation of an important cash crop originally native to the Amazon region: rubber trees. Henry Ridley, Director of the Garden, revolutionized the Malayan economy when he highlighted the important commercial value of rubber. The emergence of the motorcar in an age of industrialization required tires made out of rubber to run on. Henry Ridley would go on to receive a gold medal from the rubber planter’s association. His amazing feat and the historical journey of the rubber plant to Singapore is recorded in a captioned signage within the Garden. On the author’s feld trip on 15 August 2015, he spotted this milestone on a signboard: “The frst rubber seeds to reach Southeast Asia arrived in the Singapore Botanical Gardens at 1877 as 22 seedlings shipped in glass cases from the Royal Botanic Garden Kew in London, England.” The Zoological past of the Botanical Gardens can no longer be found within the Gardens. The caption for the Marsh Gardens read: “The Marsh Gardens was once the site of a rhinoceros wal- low and alligator ponds when the Singapore Botanical Gardens had a 72 T.W. Lim zoological collection in the 1870s.” This area was later redeveloped into its current marshy terrain. From a location for colonial-era cash crop research, and also a zoological and botanical garden for leisurely enjoyment, the area evolved into a site for early awareness of environ- mentalism and a gathering point for the independence movement of Singapore. The Singapore Botanical Gardens served political and state campaigns in the past. In 1959, the Gardens became the site of a political campaign on its hundredth anniversary in the fght for independence. After independence, the Gardens became a symbol of improving the environment and beautifying spaces through introducing greenery. For example, a caption in the Gardens read: “The Tree Planting Campaign was launched by the government in 1971 with the objective of making Singapore a Garden City.” Such reminders indicated the importance of the garden in enlightened state policies to preserve the integrity of the environment in Singapore, even if it is crafted nature. It is a delicate attempt at reaching equilibrium between developing and protecting nature. In this sense, Singapore is unlike other major cities in which nature is cleared for modernization, industrialization and urban development. The preservation of nature, both in its natural state and in man-made form, is deeply integrated into developmental plans from the beginning. Wandering from Tiong Bahru through the Henderson Park connector and then connecting via Tanglin Road, one reaches the famed Singapore Botanical Gardens. Alternatively, moving from Dover to Buona Vista, one will reach the circle line of the MRT system that travels in a circular fashion to the Singapore Botanical Gardens. At the point of this writing, the Gardens became Singapore’s frst World Heritage Site. The Botanical Gardens is rich in wildlife and, on 30 November 2014, local media featured cover photos of sea otters consuming the carp in the Gardens.8 Otters have also been spotted in Pulau Ubin, Bishan-AMK Park, Marina Bay barrage and Sentosa Cove. The author has hiked in the Garden under stormy skies during the monsoon season, the birds having fed before the arrival of heavy rains. Besides storms, the resilient eco

8 Abu Bakar, Jalelah, “Otter spotted taking dip in Swan Lake at Botanic Gardens”, 30 November 2014, The Straits Times [downloaded on 30 November 2014], available at http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/otter-spotted-taking-dip-in-swan-lake-at-botanic- gardens. 3 A PASSION FOR HERITAGE AND NATURE … 73

Fig. 3.1 A beautiful wild stray cat with blue eyes in the Tiong Bahru area. Photo taken on 2 October 2014 system of the Singapore Botanical Gardens has also survived man-made disasters, as strong winds blow smoke from forest fres in the surrounding region to Singapore (Fig. 3.1). The hardworking gardeners in the Botanical Gardens water the plants to keep them green. During the author’s numerous hikes through the Gardens, he spotted the following plant species: ginger fowers near the Bukit Timah campus of the National University of Singapore, pendant hibiscus fowers (the national fower of Malaysia and a representative fower of Okinawa), pendant crab claw blossoms, a green bamboo grove (symbols of strength and robustness in Chinese culture), Iberian coffee bean plants, rattan plants with sharp ringed thorns, the usually evergreen and short red powderpuff fowers, lavender-colored snake- weeds that tend to attract butterfies and other insects, canna lilies by the side of the pond with a visible spider web on a fower, yellow tiger orchids after the rain, red tree shrub (a favorite fower platform for 74 T.W. Lim

Fig. 3.2 Mysteriously, a wild red junglefowl, the ancestor of the farmed chicken, has made Tiong Bahru Park its home. It is often seen hunting for worms near a drainage canal. Photo taken on 2 October 2016 butterfies), a nam nam caulifora tree from Sulawesi Indonesia, a vari- ant of the Sobralia orchid family, the mengkudu or noni fruit which is sometimes eaten by humans for food or medical purposes but is also fed to the pigs, the sugar cane grove and lemon trees. There are some special plants and trees in the Gardens. For example, the tiger orchid on display in the Botanical Gardens may be the largest orchid plant as well as the oldest (over 100 years old) in the world. One of the tallest trees in the Gardens is a kapok tree, which produces fbrous cotton-like seed heads. A coke tree is dedicated to Mr Nelson Mandela to commemorate his visit to the Gardens on 5 March 1997. The jelawai, one of the oldest trees in the Gardens, is more than 150 years old. It was struck by lightning once in the 1980s but did not perish (Fig. 3.2). 3 A PASSION FOR HERITAGE AND NATURE … 75

Wildlife While its zoological history may be a thing of the past, the Botanical Gardens next to the Bukit Timah campus continue to host wildlife that has found its way there. A little artifcial island in the middle of a pond in the Gardens served as a hiding place for wildlife, including birds and other animals seeking shelter from the heat or to hide from human visitors. The Gardens is also rich in insect species. The author spotted the following: a double-bladed dragonfy resting on the tip of a twig, a tiny fruit fy on a blade of the fragrant pandan leaf (often used for favoring chiffon cakes, Chinese soup deserts and chicken rice in Singapore), the brown butterfy (merrillie) resting serenely on a leaf and honeybees making a home within a wooden structure in the Gardens. Besides birds, reptiles, fsh and insects, following the removal of monkeys from the area and only occasional visits by the otters, squirrels are probably one of the largest and more common mammals in the Gardens at the moment. The author spotted one that hung upside down looking for food. The aquatic life in the Garden generally centers on species of tropical fsh. For example, the author spotted goldfsh swimming near the surface of a small pond in the Gardens, the milky white giant gourami fsh reared by the Garden swim peacefully in the pond, the Japanese kois are attractive and a delight to visitors who can see these ornamental fsh swimming peacefully in the pond sheltered by the leaves of aquatic plants. The bigger fsh in the Gardens’ pond include catfsh that excitedly leapt over one another whenever passersby cast a shadow on the water. They seem to associate the presence of humans with feeding time. Visitors can see a large number of gaping catfsh mouths demanding food as they walk by the pond at the Singapore Botanical Gardens (Fig. 3.3). The author spotted a black swan fapping its wings and wandering freely in the grounds of the Gardens (easily an attraction for visitors); complementing the presence of the Australian black swans, there are also white swans in the Gardens. While swans and waterhens were relatively common and easy to spot, ducks were comparatively more elusive. Other birds spotted by the author included: a mountain imperial pigeon perched majestically on a branch overlooking the Gardens, the waterhens and the ducks in the Gardens that co-exist peacefully in the same pond eco system, a magpie calling out for its partner and a pair building a nest for expected baby chicks, the silhouette of a crow that stood proudly on the 76 T.W. Lim

Fig. 3.3 A plantain squirrel at the Tiong Bahru park. Plantain squirrels inhabit the areas between Alexander canal, through Tiong Bahru Park and into the trees growing along Redhill. They survive well in an urban environment. The author has seen some wandering into the nearby housing estates. On 4 September 2016, the author spotted a plantain squirrel searching for fcus tree nuts. These squirrels are not threatened and are quite common, and can even be found near housing estates. This particular squirrel was versatile and hung upside down while searching for its food. Photo taken on 6 October 2014 top of a tree, a yellow vented bulbul that normally feeds on small fowers and fruiting shrubs, the elusive jungle fycatcher that was spotted during an early morning walk through the Botanical Gardens before work, a Eurasian tree sparrow that hid in the bushes to get some shade from the sun, a brown pigeon that strutted about the ground looking for food, the beautiful and elusive scarlet backed fowerpecker, a red wild junglefowl that hunted for earthworms driven out by the rain causing waterlogged soil conditions, waterhens stalking the grounds and near the pond, and an adult Oriental honey buzzard fying overhead hunting for prey (Fig. 3.4). The wild junglefowl is a proud resident of the Botanical Gardens. It struts around, sometimes roosting on the trees and crowing loudly to 3 A PASSION FOR HERITAGE AND NATURE … 77

Fig. 3.4 Tiong Bahru was the frst consolidated public housing estate in Singapore. This photo features the Singapore Improvement Trust buildings from the 1930s. Photo taken on 23 July 2016 declare its territorial ownership of the area. The red wild junglefowl is considered by some to be the ancestor of farmed chickens. They roost on trees and can fy at low heights. At the point of writing, local Singaporean media reported that their population is adapting well in areas such as Fort Canning.9 Compared with the rooster, the wild

9 Chua, Grace, “If you see this chicken, please don’t cook it”, 25 December 2010, The Straits Times (Singapore: Singapore Press Holdings), 2010, p. B4 [also available at http://newshub.nus.edu.sg/news/1012/PDF/CHICKEN-st-25dec-pB4.pdf]; Chua, Grace, “If you see this chicken, please don’t cook it”, 25 December 2010, The Straits Times hosted on Wild Singapore website [downloaded on 1 January 2017], available at http://wildsingaporenews.blogspot.sg/2010/12/if-you-see-this-chicken-please-dont. html#.WL5byW996Uk and Lee, Min Kok, “Stray chickens spotted wandering around several parts of Singapore”, 19 January 2016, The Straits Times [downloaded on 19 January 2016], available at http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/stray-chickens-spotted-wandering-around-several-parts-of-singapore. 78 T.W. Lim hens are more subdued in color and they follow the rooster in hunting for worms in the Gardens. They hunt as a family. Typically, the rooster stands alert on guard as the hen works the ground for worms with their chicks nearby. The author has spotted a monitor lizard in this area a number of times and they are natural predators of the chicks. The mother hen pecked at the dried leaves in the grass patches looking for worms. It was a particularly diffcult month for the brood as the weather was dry and the ground parched on 25 August 2015 when the author spotted the family hunting for worms. The end March and early April 2016 were challenging for the creatures living at the Botanical Gardens pond as they were some of the dri- est and hottest months in Singapore that year. In the previous year, the dry season had arrived even earlier, in February 2015. The author took a picture of the partially dried-up pond on 1 April 2016 during his walk. The birds react to climatic conditions at the Gardens, too. For example, the author spotted a white pigeon with puffed up feathers that stood on parched ground partially dried up by the comparatively drier month of August 2015. During the dry season, little pockets of water remain in the partially dried-up pond becoming valuable pools to the creatures living in that area. The author spotted Australian black swans, waterhens, red wild junglefowl, bull frogs, monitor lizards, and an assort- ment of birds, including ducks, around this area in the period September 2015–April 2016. Sea otters were spotted in other ponds near this area. Sections of the pond were so dry that aquatic plants were exposed and withered by the dry April heat. They seemed to be surviving on the moisture offered by the mudfats. As for amphibians, the author’s walks in the evening also spotted bull frogs that were out in force during the water-logged rainy season and a terrapin made its way over mud fat beds in the pond at low tide due to seasonally dry conditions. Predatory activities do take place in the Botanical Gardens. On 12 April 2016, the author observed how a monitor lizard swam from one bank of the pond to the opposite side in an attempt to snare a resting pigeon sitting peacefully on the grass. And, by sheer good fortune, the author captured the whole attempt with a digital camera. The monitor lizard swam stealthily across the pond, making little ripples and taking careful aim at the pigeon looking away from the pond. It waded quietly amidst the water lilies and lotus leaves and crept up the bank. Once on the bank, the monitor lizard crouched low and crept silently towards the resting pigeon, hidden by the slopes 3 A PASSION FOR HERITAGE AND NATURE … 79 of the bank. Sensing an opportunity, the monitor made a quick dash for the pigeon, whiplashing its tail for propulsion. But the attempt failed; the pigeon, sensing danger, few away in the nick of time. The monitor lizard scurried off to a pile of dried leaves. It used its forked tongue to search less ambitiously for insect snacks instead. The encounter between the prey and the predator ended ignominiously for the lizard. The nearby Australian black swan, known for attacks with its formidable beak and its fery temper, watched the entire encounter from afar. The Botanical Gardens also has its fair share of nostalgic designs. For example, signboards along the walking paths in the garden feature a stylistic wood carving featuring the name of the Singapore Botanic Gardens. The Gardens also has a classical 1930 octagonal gazebo bandstand that is well-preserved. The bandstand is situated on what used to be highest point in the Tanglin Core area. The Singapore Botanical Gardens have also become a haven for displays of beautiful artworks, especially open-air sculpture displays. There are a number of well-known sites on the periphery of the Botanical Gardens as well. In December 2015, the local media revealed the existence of a hidden World War II bunker and a grave site inside the boundaries of the Gardens. An archaeological team from the ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute was commissioned by the National Parks authority to discover and study this fnd, which included two graves dating back to 1842 (belonging to Qiu Zheng Zhi) and 1881 (belonging to Fujianese Huang Hui Shi, who married Si Ma Ni, possibly the Indonesian name “Nisma”, who came from the Dutch East Indies).10 Fruit trees and indigo were grown here before it became part of the British-era Botanic Gardens’ laboratory for rubber and exper- imentation with other trees.11 On 28 March 2016, the author spotted graves and tombstones hidden in a thicket of trees and shrubs in the Singapore Botanical Gardens and a tombstone embedded in the ground, covered by the ravages of time in soil and cow grass. An unknown concrete structure was found in the same vicinity. The author glanced at the side and front profles of what is probably a Christian gravestone.

10 Zaccheus, Melody, “Secret WWII bomb shelter, 19th century Chinese tombs lie on fringes of heritage site”, 13 December 2015 [downloaded on 28 March 2016], available at http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/more-history-unearthed-at-botanic-gardens. 11 Zaccheus, Melody, “Secret WWII bomb shelter, 19th century Chinese tombs lie on fringes of heritage site”, 13 December 2015 [downloaded on 28 March 2016], available at http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/more-history-unearthed-at-botanic-gardens. 80 T.W. Lim

From the Botanical Gardens, if one walks northwards, the Central Catchment Area can be reached through the Adam Road hawker center. If one heads southwards, moving from the Botanical Gardens through River Valley, passing through the Great World City shopping mall in the direction of Tiong Bahru, hikers can reach Havelock Road and Zion Road. Hikers can also see old Nanyang-style Peranakan shophouses along Zion Road. They are highly sought after due to their proximity to the central shopping district of Orchard Road. At this location, there is another old-school hawker center, the Zion Riverside Food Centre, where one can have affordable hawker fare al fresco next to a canal. Near the hawker center stand two old Taoist temples. At the Tua Pek Kong Temple in Havelock Road, the pineapple (or wang lai, in Hokkien, which is a homonym of “heralding luck”) is offered for prayers. The rooftop of the Geok Hong Tian Taoist temple built in 1887 displays many fgurines of Chinese Taoist deities. The author spotted a fa gao (or sponge cake offering) made near the Zion Road Tua Pek Kong Temple at a public fre hydrant. It connotes a form of ancestral worship or appeasing the spirit of the deceased. Beyond Havelock Road lies the Tiong Bahru area. Complementing the Tiong Bahru Park, Kim Tian Green and Kim Tian Road12 also have their own pockets of green space in an area that is also rich in heritage buildings. The Heritage Trail at Tiong Bahru, launched on 14 April 2013, features the unique architecture, religious communities and green spaces of that area.13 Tiong Bahru was originally a swampy cemetery that became the Singapore Improvement Trust frst public housing program. Because of its pioneering status as a public housing program and the fact that it is near downtown as well as the Chinatown area, the location is flled with rich heritage sites. Sitting in between Tiong Bahru and

12 Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA). “Draft Masterplan 2013 Bukit Merah”, 2013, URA website [downloaded on 4 June 2015], available at http://www.ura.gov.sg/ uol/master-plan/View-Master-Plan/master-plan-2014/master-plan/~/media/dmp2013/ Planning%20Area%20Brochures/Brochure_BukitMerah.ashx. 13 National Heritage Board, “Tiong Bahru”, 2014, National Heritage Board website [downloaded on 4 June 2015], available at http://www.nhb.gov.sg/NHBPortal/Places/Trails/ TiongBahru/TiongBahru-Overview;jsessionid a0q9_w-ETnkS5kYorezGujDzcnmYSO_ = omZBtMwuoGC7kGwjQJth2!1502992856?_afrLoop2224808909665414&_ afrWindowMode 0&_afrWindowId null#%40%3F_afrWindowId%3Dnull%26_ = = afrLoop%3D2224808909665414%26_afrWindowMode%3D0%26_adf. ctrl-state%3D8v58lynv6_4. 3 A PASSION FOR HERITAGE AND NATURE … 81

Outram Park is the Singapore General Hospital. In late 2014, at the site of the Singapore General Hospital’s Outram Campus, a boundary marker of a 129-year-old historical lunatic asylum and a minimum of four nineteenth-century tombstones were located. After they were identifed by heritage experts as “signifcant” structures, the Ministry of Health announced that they would not be removed for future development.14 The historical psychiatric institution known as the New Lunatic Asylum used to host 300 beds; it operated from 1887 to 1928 and was Singapore’s forerunner to the Institute of Mental Health.15 The New Lunatic Asylum is described as a progressive institution by experts who explained that the restriction of its patients’ movements was minimal and that straitjackets were non-existent.16 The tombstones in the area were the remnants of the Chua clan cemetery, which dates back to 1866 and was later purchased by Chua Bian Kay (a Thian Hock Keng Temple trus- tee). Subsequently, this plot of land was marginalized and hidden from memory when its surrounding areas became a site for residential and medical facilities in the 1920s.17 The local media report detailing the discovery also noted that Singapore Heritage Society executive committee member Dr Yeo Kang Shua suggesting the integration of these heritage assets into a walking trail for recovering patients and members of the public to promote a healthy lifestyle.18 Moving southwards, Tiong Bahru’s neighboring district is Outram Park. One of Singapore’s earliest pioneers, Tan Tock Seng, was buried in the boundary space between Tiong Bahru and Outram Park. Moving westwards towards the Tanjong Pagar coastline and wharves, one passes through Cantonment Road before reaching the former Tanjong Pagar railway station, the terminal station of the Singapore–Malaysian railway and also the current southernmost point of the Green Rail Corridor.

14 Zaccheus, Melody, “SGH to ‘preserve heritage features as far as possible’”, 28 March 2016, The Straits Times (Singapore: SGH), 2016, p. B1. 15 Zaccheus, Melody, “SGH to ‘preserve heritage features as far as possible’”, 28 March 2016, The Straits Times (Singapore: SGH), 2016, p. B1. 16 Zaccheus, Melody, “SGH to ‘preserve heritage features as far as possible’”, 28 March 2016, The Straits Times (Singapore: SGH), 2016, p. B2. 17 Zaccheus, Melody, “SGH to ‘preserve heritage features as far as possible’”, 28 March 2016, The Straits Times (Singapore: SGH), 2016, p. B2. 18 Zaccheus, Melody, “SGH to ‘preserve heritage features as far as possible’”, 28 March 2016, The Straits Times (Singapore: SGH), 2016, p. B2. 82 T.W. Lim

Decorating the walls of the Tiong Bahru old estate were large murals and a laminated picture of a goat at the Tiong Bahru Market. Public murals convey a sense of national identity by portraying memories and scenes of Singapore’s past. One piece recreates the bird-watching activities and bird singing contests that used to be commonly seen in one corner of Tiong Bahru but that particular spot is now vacated as the building beside it was developed into a boutique hotel. Another mural depicts a hawker at work selling laksa and Hainanese chicken rice, which are popular local dishes. The concept may have been to recreate the atmosphere of street-side hawkers that used to be located at the old Tiong Bahru market area. In the same area, the symmetrical Art Deco- style buildings at Tiong Bahru contrast against the contemporary Duke National University of Singapore campus building in the Singapore General Hospital grounds in the background. At one of the traffc junc- tions in the old Tiong Bahru estate, a landmark building is Singapore’s frst, and perhaps only, Taoist temple dedicated to worshipping the Monkey God. Devotees make incense offerings to the Monkey God deity at the temple, which was founded in 1920. A number of visitors from Hong Kong, Taiwan and China remarked to the author that they were not aware of anyone worshipping the Monkey God in their own countries. Every year, a large makeshift tent is set up during the Monkey God’s birthday as devotees arrive at the temple to donate cash or make offerings, some of these devotees also participating in either or both of the accompanying dinner event and a public opera performance. The Monkey God temple as well as the shopkeepers and stall owners in the area sponsor free Teochew or Chaozhou street opera performances during the birthday of the Monkey God. Old-timers and elderly residents in the area eagerly sit down on makeshift wooden stools to watch the street opera (or wayang). Judging by the demographic profles of the audience, appreciation for these shows is waning. There are many other reminders of old Singapore besides the wayang street operas. At night, many Tiong Bahru shops still use old-style metal shutters that are locked by their owners to protect the possessions inside. Such shutters were ubiquitous in the 1960s and 1970s but are rarely seen nowa- days. Rows of such commercial shophouses from the 1930 to 1940s are still preserved in Tiong Bahru. Many tenants of the shophouses have changed as the original proprietors retire, pass away or sell off their shophouse spaces. The sleek lines of late Art Deco Streamline Moderne designs are still visible on the buildings, the earliest of which were 3 A PASSION FOR HERITAGE AND NATURE … 83 constructed in the 1930s. They emulate the appearance of ships and air- craft wings and adjuncts that refect the period from the 1930s to 1960s. Some residents (especially the elderly) in the adjacent Jalan Bukit Ho Swee estate continue to decorate the entrance to their homes in the traditional way, with lacquered lamps dedicated to the heavenly emperor for good fortune. Such residents are probably Taoists. There is also a cel- ebratory mood in this neighborhood during National Day, which marks Singapore’s independence. The Jalan Bukit Ho Swee fats are decked out in National Day colors. Traditional cultural life in Tiong Bahru is also rich, given its status as a mature housing estate. Such cultures today mainly cater to senior citizens in the housing estates. Traditional Teochew dialect puppet shows, which are seldom seen in Singapore today, are performed at a Taoist temple in Kim Tian Road during a Taoist deity’s birthday. Traditions continue to thrive in the Tiong Bahru area; for example, a coffee shop set up a lohei counter in its entrance. Lohei is an indigenous form of salad eaten together with raw fsh during the Lunar New Year season. Handmade ritual objects are still displayed in the neighborhood, such as the lacquered and hand-painted traditional Hokkien lantern that is displayed outside the Monkey God temple. Other historical relics found in Tiong Bahru included the tomb and grave site of Mr Tan Tock Seng, a pioneering Chinese merchant in Singapore who contributed to the construction of public infrastructure facilities in the early days of Singapore. Tan Tock Seng owned part of Tank Road. During the author’s research in the National Archives of Singapore, he collected electronic images dating back to 1903 of the Tank Road Railway Station (the main terminal station for journeys to Malaya at that point of time), with jinrikishaws waiting in front of the station to ferry passengers. The Tank Road Railway Station was the main terminal for com- muters traveling on trains coming from the Woodlands jetty along the Singapore–Kranji Railway but the station was eventually closed in 1932 when the station at Tanjong Pagar was opened to replace it.19 There are also hidden shrines in forgotten corners of Tiong Bahru. The author came across a devotee praying to a makeshift Taoist ancestral facility in the interior of the Art Deco Singapore Improvement Trust public housing estate.

19 National Archives of Singapore, “Tank Road Railway Station, Singapore”, National Archives of Singapore website [downloaded on 1 June 2016], available at http://www. nas.gov.sg/archivesonline/photographs/record-details/d704dc04-1161-11e3-83d5- 0050568939ad. 84 T.W. Lim

The Tanjong Pagar, Silat and Neil Road Areas Moving further southwards from Tiong Bahru, one arrives at Tanjong Pagar and Silat at the southern end of the Green Rail Corridor walk. While Tanjong Pagar, Silat and Tiong Bahru are considered relatively developed lands and estates near the Civic District and city center, they are neverthe- less associated with interesting nuggets of information and stories related to the natural environment. For example, in the early 1890s, Agnes Joachim led Henry Ridley, the famous rubber planter, to view an attractive orchid hybrid that grew in her Tanjong Pagar garden and, in 1893, Ridley named it Vanda Miss Joaquim (Vanda referring to its species heritage and origins). This humble orchid became Singapore’s national fower in 1981.20 Tiong Bahru and its adjacent regions, such as Tanjong Pagar, Silat Walk and Jalan Bukit Merah, each has their own associated area-specifc heritage tales based on rich local community life and activities. At Silat Road and Jalan Bukit Merah, one can fnd old Sikh temples as well as those for Thai Buddhists. The largest wave of Sikh migration came to Singapore in 1881 and provided a major contribution to the law enforcement workforce; since then, they have entered the intellectual community, court system and other uniformed forces.21 One of their major places of worship can be found at Silat Road, between Bukit Merah Road and Kampong Bahru Road. Gurdwara Sahib Silat Road (the Silat Road Sikh Temple) was pre- ceded by a mud shrine and later became a formal building structure in 1924 before it expanded in 1966. It houses the samadh (tombstone) of Bhai Maharaj Singh Ji, a Sikh freedom fghter, after it was taken to the Gurdwara from the Singapore General Hospital on 12 October 1966.22

20 Taylor, Nigel P., “The Environmental Relevance of the Singapore Botanic Gardens”, Nature Contained: Environmental Histories of Singapore, ed. Timothy P. Barnard (Singapore: NUS Press), 2014, p. 127. 21 Chong, Zi Liang, “Story of Sikhs here ‘the story of S’pore’: PM”, 29 November 2015, The Straits Times (Singapore: SPH), 2015, p. A16. 22 National Library Singapore Infopedia, “Gurdwara Sahib Silat Road (Silat Road Sikh Temple)”, 12 September 2013, Singapore Infopedia website [downloaded on 4 June 2015], available at http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_402_2004-12-14.html?v 1 = &utm_expid 85360850-6.qNOOYF40RhKK6gXsQEaAJA.1&utm_referrer = = http%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com.sg%2Furl%3Fsa%3Dt%26rct%3Dj%26q%3D%26esrc %3Ds%26frm%3D1%26source%3Dweb%26cd%3D5%26ved%3D0CDAQFjAE%26url% 3Dhttp%253A%252F%252Feresources.nlb.gov.sg%252Finfopedia%252Farticles%252F SIP_402_2004-12-14.html%26ei%3DDENwVcPIH5DJuATZ04NY%26usg%3DAFQjCN HlrJuNrSDE047f-SChxgPc2Vvhpg. 3 A PASSION FOR HERITAGE AND NATURE … 85

The temple serves as a community hall, center of charitable activities and heritage relic. It serves 1000 daily meals during weekday and, during the weekends, 2000 daily meals to individuals of all creeds, ethnicity and religious beliefs.23 Perhaps, one of the most important landmarks in Tanjong Pagar is the railway station. The need for a large railway station arose when the station at Tank Road was considered too small. According to the Urban Redevelopment Authority website, by 1860 the need had arisen for a railway to transport the commodities, manufactured goods, and resources such as rubber and tin from the Malayan Peninsula. Keppel Harbour became the main port for import and export trade even though the construction of the inaugural railway system only began in 1903.24 Interestingly, Singapore was integrated into a planned railway system that would have been the genesis of a rail line extending west to Calais in France, North to Hankou in China and onwards to the Trans- Siberian network!25 This plan did not materialize. In terms of architecture styles, the station showcased neo-classical and Art-Deco designs and was designed by the locally well-known architectural company Swan & MacLaren. The station had a high and spacious interior suitable for tropical climates and four fgurines at its entrance representing the four sources of wealth from the lands of Singapore and Malaya: agriculture, commerce, transport and industry.26 Extensions to the railway tracks were carried out by the railway authorities at the Tanjong Pagar docks in the 1910s before the Tanjong Pagar Railway station itself was constructed in 1932 on reclaimed swamp lands near the harbor where rubber, palm oil, copra and tin

23 Chong, Zi Liang, “Story of Sikhs here ‘the story of S’pore’: PM”, 29 November 2015, The Straits Times (Singapore: SPH), 2015, p. A16. 24 Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA), “History: Brief History of Railways in Singapore”, undated, URA website [downloaded on 1 January 2016], available at https:// www.ura.gov.sg/railcorridor/history.html. 25 Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA), “History: Brief History of Railways in Singapore”, undated, URA website [downloaded on 1 January 2016], available at https:// www.ura.gov.sg/railcorridor/history.html. 26 Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA), “History: Brief History of Railways in Singapore”, undated, URA website [downloaded on 1 January 2016], available at https:// www.ura.gov.sg/railcorridor/history.html. 86 T.W. Lim were exported overseas.27 The creator of the Tanjong Pagar station was Serbian architect D.S. Petrovich, from the architecture frm Swan & Maclaren, who incorporated Art Deco, neo-classical and indigenous designs, and may have been inspired by Finland’s Helsinki Station designed by Eliel Saarinen.28 The station was offcially declared in use by Governor Sir Cecil Clementi on 2 May 1932. The address of the station was at Keppel Road, based on the National Archives of Singapore (NAS) collection of old photos. In 1989, the Singapore government made the decision to shift the Customs and Immigration Quarantine facility from Tanjong Pagar to Woodlands to prevent narcotics smuggling, illegal immigration and other domestic factors.29 The southern end of the Green Rail Corridor walk lies in this terminal station of Tanjong Pagar—now closed to the public except on open days during selected public holidays. The author attended the second last public event held at the station before it was due to be permanently open to the public after renovation and conservation work. At the point of writing, public work has already been initiated to integrate the Tanjong Pagar Railway Station into the Circle Line (Singapore’s local subway line). A conscious decision was made to take apart the station’s historical canopy features and then rebuild them after consulting with the heritage community and following extensive research led by a conservation expert.30 The canopy will be restored after the construction

27 City Form Lab, “50 ways to the Singapore Rail Corridor”, City Form Lab website [downloaded on 3 June 2015], available at http://cityform.mit.edu/projects/50. 28 Yong, Chun Yuan, “Tanjong Pagar Railway Station”, 2007, Singapore Infopedia website [downloaded on 4 June 2015], available at http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/ infopedia/articles/SIP_954_2005-01-10.html?v 1&utm_expid 85360850-6. = = qNOOYF40RhKK6gXsQEaAJA.1&utm_referrer http%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com.sg%2 = Furl%3Fsa%3Dt%26rct%3Dj%26q%3D%26esrc%3Ds%26frm%3D1%26source%3Dweb%26c d%3D8%26ved%3D0CDMQFjAH%26url%3Dhttp%253A%252F%252Feresources.nlb.gov. sg%252Finfopedia%252Farticles%252FSIP_954_2005-01-10.html%26ei%3Dkg5wVdzUG8 GcugT42YHICA%26usg%3DAFQjCNFhhGLKFjcNZ0X03kMvk2tk1dJILg%26bvm%3Db v.94911696%2Cd.c2E. 29 Singapore Government Press Release, “Ministerial Statement by Minister for Foreign Affairs, Prof S Jayakumar in Parliament on 31 July 1998 Singapore’s Re-location of its CIQ from Tanjong Pagar Railway Station to Woodlands Train Checkpoint”, 31 July 1998 [downloaded on 1 June 2016], available at http://www.nas.gov.sg/archivesonline/ speeches/view-html?flename 1998073111.htm. = 30 Tan, Christopher, “Work to link historic station starts this year”, 28 May 2016, The Straits Times (Singapore: SPH), 2016, p. B2. 3 A PASSION FOR HERITAGE AND NATURE … 87 of the Cantonment MRT station is fully completed in 2025.31 The Cantonment MRT station will be constructed underground below the historic Tanjong Pagar Railway Station. The architecturally elegant former Tanjong Pagar Railway Station is conserved and will be refurbished by the authorities, to the delight of many history buffs and those passionate for nostalgia. In front of the former Tanjong Pagar Railway Station, there are four large statues greeting visitors. This is how the URA described the four statues: “On the exterior of its front facade stand four heroic sculptures representing the four sources of wealth of Singapore and Malaya—Agriculture, Commerce, Transport and Industry.”32 There was no mention of the sculptor who created them because there is a debate about their creator. The National Library Board of Singapore noted that the statues were formerly associated with Italian sculptor C. Rudolfo Nolli but recent evidence suggests that they may have been the works of Angelo Vanetti (a peer of Nolli’s), since Vanetti’s signature was found on one of the statues.33 The Tanjong Pagar Railway station has come a long way. Parts of the docks were gradually amalga- mated into the expanding fnancial district as Singapore evolved from an entrepôt trading area to become a major fnancial center in the world. The Hakka cemetery at Tanjong Pagar and Jurong also made way for the Tanjong Pagar container ports and the railway from the ports to Jurong which bypasses traffc congestion.34 Warehouses at Kampong Bahru

31 Tan, Christopher, “Work to link historic station starts this year”, 28 May 2016, The Straits Times (Singapore: SPH), 2016, p. B2. 32 Urban redevelopment Authority (URA), “History: Brief History of Railways in Singapore”, 2011, URA website [downloaded on 4 June 2015], available at http://www. ura.gov.sg/railcorridor/history.html. 33 Yong, Chun Yuan, “Tanjong Pagar Railway Station”, 2007, Singapore Infopedia website [downloaded on 4 June 2015], available at http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/ infopedia/articles/SIP_954_2005-01-10.html?v 1&utm_expid 85360850--6. = = qNOOYF40RhKK6gXsQEaAJA.1&utm_referrer http%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com.sg%2 = Furl%3Fsa%3Dt%26rct%3Dj%26q%3D%26esrc%3Ds%26frm%3D1%26source%3Dweb%26c d%3D8%26ved%3D0CDMQFjAH%26url%3Dhttp%253A%252F%252Feresources.nlb.gov. sg%252Finfopedia%252Farticles%252FSIP_954_2005-01-10.html%26ei%3Dkg5wVdzUG8 GcugT42YHICA%26usg%3DAFQjCNFhhGLKFjcNZ0X03kMvk2tk1dJILg%26bvm%3Db v.94911696%2Cd.c2E. 34 National Archives of Singapore, “Statement from Prime Minister’s Offce after meeting with Fong Yun Thai Association”, 27 May 1971, National Archives of Singapore [downloaded on 1 June 2016], available at http://www.nas.gov.sg/archivesonline/data/pdf- doc/lky19710527.pdf. 88 T.W. Lim

Road where goods unloaded can be stored are located near the docks. The warehouses marked the end of the dock areas, beyond which is the Silat Walk stretch of the Green Rail Corridor. From Tanjong Pagar, the author exited the Green Rail Corridor near the Alexander hawker center and walked to Tiong Bahru on the Jalan Bukit Merah main road parallel to the former railroad. Along the urban track, the author spotted wildlife co-existing with humans in their public housing estates. For example, lepiota mushrooms and changeable lizards (calotes versicolor) inhabited the roadside planting that follows the boundaries of the mature estate of Redhill, just off the Jalan Bukit Merah stretch of the Green Rail Corridor. Here, the author spotted puffball mushrooms sprouting in the Bukit Merah section of the urban track. The author also photographed changeable lizards sunning themselves along the main roads. The main landmark in this Bukit Merah area at the intersection between Jalan Bukit Merah that runs parallel to the Green Rail Corridor and Henderson Road is a major Taoist temple known as the Lei Yin Temple. The author hiked around this temple area on 16 October 2016; built in 1957, the temple celebrate its sixtieth anniversary in 2017. When the author searched for this temple on 16 October 2016, he tried asking local residents for the location of the Lei Yin Temple but no one knew the directions to the temple. Eventually, an elderly store- owner who worked in that area for many years spoke to the author in the Teochew or Chaozhou dialect and informed him that the temple was better known as the Xitianniangniang Temple (or “the temple for the Heavenly Mother of the Western Paradise”—a major deity of worship in the temple) and pointed the author in the right direction for the temple. This was perhaps a good example of how local communities have developed their own familiar names for heritage buildings and sites in their own local areas. Nestled within a housing estate and effectively blocked by multistorey public housing apartments, the temple was effectively covered and blocked from view from the main road, making it diffcult for frst-time visitors to locate. The history of the temple is shrouded in mystery. The author was given the following account from the subjective memories of devotees at the temple and one of the temple’s custodians. Before the Lei Yin Temple was built on its current site in 1957, the temple was actually enshrined in an attap hut near the current location at the junction of Tiong Bahru and Henderson Road, according to devotees as well as the custodians of the Temple. Near this temple was the “Lin Guniang” 3 A PASSION FOR HERITAGE AND NATURE … 89

(or Maiden Lin) shrine dedicated to a mysterious lady with special healing powers. The author came across the story of this healer (almost an urban legend) a number of times from elderly cab drivers when taking taxis passing through this area. One mentioned that she was an ordinary lady who had special Shamanistic healing powers and even helped out at Traditional Chinese Medicine institutions to cure villagers and residents in that area of their ills. It is unclear how she passed away but her fame and prowess as a local healer ensured that her shrine continues to be worshipped by devotees in that area. Most individuals who still remembered the story are elderly citizens. In this area, a sign reveals that it is Singapore’s frst silver zone for elderly residents in an aging housing estate. Phoenix design ornamentation on the roof is symbolically linked to the main deity of Xitianniangniang (the Heavenly Mother of the Western Paradise) in the Lei Yin Temple. The main gate of the Lei Yin Temple is decorated with metal grills shaped like a Taoist bagua octagonal mirror, with the center of the mirror painted in red and radiating grill lines painted in yellow. Near its entrance was a porcelain lion, probably made in the Lingnan region of Shiwan in Guangdong, sitting astride the temple roof and overlooking the entire compound. The cloud and manda- rin collar patterns on the column at the main entrance also feature bats. The Chinese characters for bats are a homophone for ‘prosperity’ in the Chinese language. Inside the temple compound was a hulu (or gourd- shaped furnace). A similar furnace can be found in a Tiong Bahru Taoist temple named after the gourd shape but it has given way to a boutique hotel. The Lei Yin Temple’s gourd-shaped furnace is the only one left in the local area. Two celestial generals (tianjiang) guard the entrance of the temple. Instructions were pasted on the stands of the statues, advising devotees to use one joss stick for prayers. The Chinese characters for Xitianniangniang are written clearly at main entrance. When one arrives at the temple, the feeling is that it is a temple named after a deity. Technically speaking, Lei Yin Temple really refers to the main hall and one of the side temples within the overall compound. A pair of white marble lions stands guard at the entrance of the main temple. Beyond the two celestial dragons that guard the entrance to the Lei Yin Temple lies an idol of the Heavenly Emperor. Inside the Temple, the author was still able to detect the kampong spirit found in traditional Malay villages during colonial Singapore. Well- fed cockerels wandered freely on the grassy grounds of the Temple. 90 T.W. Lim

There was also a shrine dedicated to huye (or “Lord Tiger”). Taoist worshippers pray to the huye for protection against rivals and enemies and, sometimes, to curse those who are doing harm to the devotees. A number of smaller Taoist temples in this region have shrines dedicated to the huye deity. The age of the Temple is apparent from the stone chair in the Temple that was sponsored by small Chinese businesses (in this case, a jewelry shop) whose owner was probably a devotee of the temple deities. The donation was made to bring luck to the business. The phone number indicated in the advert on the bench shows that the chair was made at a time when phone numbers in Singapore had only 7 digits, compared with 8 digits today. The wantong (heavenly boys) fgurines carry items symbolizing longevity, such as peaches riding on clouds, along with a heavenly pagoda also foating on the clouds. Along this traditional decorative theme, the 12 signs of the Chinese Zodiac are painted on the walls of the Lei Yin Temple. The building has interesting architectural features, for example, concrete bars designed to look like green bamboo trunks make up the window frame. A mural features a celestial dragon chasing after a faming pearl that can illuminate good fortune and prosperity for the devotees. Two guardians of Hell (one in charge of patrolling at night and the other during the day) guard the entrance to Lei Yin Temple’s Hall of Hell. A bat motif brings luck and prosperity to an otherwise yin (or neg- atively damp and hellish) Temple hall. On the altar inside the Temple, there are idols of the Tripitaka monk (Xuanzhang) and the Monkey God travelling to the West to obtain Buddhist scriptures to bring back to China during the Tang dynasty. Outside the Hall of Hell in the Temple, one can fnd lacquered lanterns hanging at the entrance with writings indicating the jurisdiction of Baogong Daren (or Justice Bao), a famous dark-skinned judge in Chinese history who adjudicated on important court cases in the pre-modern era. The Temple’s Hall of Hell therefore was probably a judiciary hall in which trials for wrongdoing and crime took place at the gate of the Hall. In the open space of the Temple is an area for ritual offerings, burning hell money for the dead. The rings of fre are bordered and protected by bricks and stones to prevent the fre from spreading. A pagoda-shaped furnace for burning offerings to the ancestors can also be found. In front of the pagoda is an overturned Guangdong kiln-fred egg urn. The base and the pagoda itself are octagonally shaped, refecting the bagua mirror design of the Taoist religion. Figurings of the eight immortals are affxed to the bagua-shaped 3 A PASSION FOR HERITAGE AND NATURE … 91 furnace used for making offerings to the ancestors. They are deities from a Chinese mythical story of eight immortals crossing the sea. Walking southwards past Jalan Bukit Merah, Silat and Blair Plains, the author walked from Tiong Bahru to Chinatown and then trekked from Chinatown to Clarke Quay along the Singapore River on 10 January 2016. This route effectively connects Tiong Bahru with Chinatown and then leads to the Civic District. Chinatown was an important stop on this trail to study a historical ethnic quarter in Singapore, a heritage site where the Chinese migrant community used to congregate. On this day, Chinatown’s Lunar New Year decorations had just been put up. In the intersection between Outram Park and China lies Keong Saik Street, also a location for the gentrifcation process. The idea is to turn this little stretch of road into an artistic and culturally bohemian area where people are able to gather and interact, which justifes restricting access to pedestrians.35 Nearer to the Chinatown boundaries with Outram and Tiong Bahru, the author observed how a fock of pigeons fed on seeds near an Indian temple in Chinatown on 28 February 2016. The seeds came from the Cannonball plant, which is sacred to the local Hindus worshipping in that area. Cannonball fower offerings are placed at the entrance of the Sri Layan Sithi Vinayagar Temple in Chinatown. The year of the monkey, 2016, was celebrated in Chinatown during the Lunar New Year festive season. The author passed through the Chinatown section on 10 January 2016 before the light-up phase of the festivities. On one side of the Chinatown, royal yellow lanterns were hung up for decorations; on the other side vine-like decorations had been erected and cute stylized monkeys balanced or hung from the “vines”. Lunar New Year decorations depict a plum tree with monkeys dangling from it. New Year rice puddings were on sale during this festive season. These starchy sweet puddings are usually fried and consumed during the Lunar New Year season. Peach buns signifying longevity are sold in large quantities during the Lunar New Year season. Other all- year-round favorites include the fa-kou sponge cake, usually consumed by the Cantonese or used for worship in ancestral rituals or customs, and the traditional tutu confectionary served on pandan leaves. A lantern in the shape of a monkey appears to gingerly “walk” across the “vine”

35 Kaur, Gurveen, “Street Dreams”, 20 May 2016, The Straits Times (Singapore: SPH), 2016, p. D2. 92 T.W. Lim decorations put up in Chinatown. The festive atmosphere is supported by the fact that many sponsoring shops in Chinatown have a long history. For example, the author came across a self-proclaimed 100-year-old traditional Chinese Medicine shophouse. Like residents in Tiong Bahru, some elderly residents of Chinatown also practice traditional rituals; for example, the author spotted an abandoned ancestral tablet left under a tree on 28 February 2016. Unlike other Chinatowns in the rest of the world, Singapore’s Chinatown features historical mosques and Hindu temples. The well- decorated rooftop of the Sri Mariamman Temple in Chinatown has almost become an icon, recognizable by visitors and tourists. Besides deities, it is also decorated by the sacred Ox, which is a sacred animal in Hinduism. Near the Sri Mariamman Temple, old British colonial era shophouses line the street; these feature a spiral fre escape staircase typical of pre-war buildings in Chinatown. At the bottom of one of the fight of steps is a boxing club. Different races, religions and ethnicities co-exist with each other. Other non-Chinese religious sites in Chinatown include the Masjid Jamae Chulia Mosque in Singapore and the Chettiars’ Sri Layan Sithi Vinayagar Temple at Chinatown. Visitors led by the author to Singapore’s Chinatown are often surprised by the multicultural character of the location. Public murals convey this feeling of multiculturalism. One of them features a dragon dance event, while other public murals depict racial, religious and ethnic harmony in Singapore. Chinese opera murals are located on the frontal façade of the old Majestic Theatre in Chinatown. The greenest part of the Chinatown area is probably Hong Lim Park, a green lung in the central business district lying east of Chinatown. According to a noticeboard put up by the National Parks authority, Hong Lim Park is one of the oldest public parks and was formerly known as Dunman’s Green, after the island’s pioneering police superin- tendent Thomas Dunman (who stepped down in 1871). According to the notice put up at the Park, it changed its name to Hong Lim Green after Cheang Hong Lim, a member of the Straits Chinese Recreation Club, acquired the land and turned it into a recreational space for the general public. The green space was later used as a recreational space by the Straits Chinese Recreation Club founded in 1885. Members played British games such as cricket and lawn tennis here and, according to the National Parks noticeboard, the Club produced a number of skilled cricket and hockey players. In 1887 Cheang paid for the construction of 3 A PASSION FOR HERITAGE AND NATURE … 93 an octagonal pavilion in the middle of the greens that was also the Club facility before it was torn down in 1914. The tradition of playing cricket was continued in the 1950s and 1960s but soon the local community staged Chinese operatic performances in that area. In this green area, a building located next to Hong Lim Park won an architectural award. The Parkroyal Hotel on Pickering was designed by the reputable WOHA frm of architects and the free circulation of air throughout the building is cited in prestigious architectural awards. The presence of the Thong Chai Building found in that area betrays the age of the area. The author made notes of the heritage signs located at the entrance of the building. According to heritage notices placed outside the building, the Thong Chai building was formerly a medicinal facility founded in 1867 by seven ethnic Chinese merchants with one of the few surviving traditional designs in Singapore. The design is associated with zhu tong wu (or bamboo structure design) compartmen- talized into four halls and three courtyards, and is also known as palace- style architecture. It is also known as the “South China style”, with its serpent-like gables made by artisans with materials imported from mainland China. The Thong Chai Medical Institute that occupied the building tended to the medical needs of the coolies and boatmen (of all races and dialect groups in Guangdong and Fujian provinces) at no charge. The Thong Chai Medical Institution was originally called the Tong Chay Ee Say (Thong Chai Medical Society) and was based in Pickering Street; in 1892, it purchased the current Thong Chai site. Voluntary donations from the community funded its operation and the acquisition of the building. According to the Singapore Heritage Board’s on-site signboard, the Thong Chai building was a short-term facility for hosting the Chinese Chamber of Commerce when it was established in 1906 before the Chamber moved to Hill Street in 1911. It was preserved and designated as a national monument in 1973. The Thong Chai Medical Institution has since shifted to Chin Swee Road in a multistorey building. It contrasts with the mainly fat and formerly low-lying swampy terrain of Tiong Bahru. The next case study will relate to an iconic peripheral, underde- veloped and partially forested space in Singapore: the Green Rail Corridor. This will be the frst case study of an abandoned space in Singapore in this volume, contrasting with the highly-developed and urbanized Civic District and Tiong Bahru areas discussed in the Chap. 2 and this chapter. 94 T.W. Lim

References Abu Bakar, Jalelah, “Otter spotted taking dip in Swan Lake at Botanic Gardens”, 30 November 2014, The Straits Times [Downloaded on 30 November 2014], Available at http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/otter-spotted-taking- dip-in-swan-lake-at-botanic-gardens. Centre for Liveable Cities Ministry of National Development Singapore and National Parks Board Ministry of National Development Singapore, Biodiversity Nature Conservation in the Greening of Singapore (Singapore: Centre for Liveable Cities Ministry of National Development Singapore and National Parks Board Ministry of National Development Singapore), 2015. Chong, Zi Liang, “Story of Sikhs Here ‘The Story of S’pore’: PM”, 29 November 2015, The Straits Times (Singapore: SPH), 2015, p. A16. Chua, Grace, “If you see this Chicken, Please Don’t Cook it”, 25 December 2010, The Straits Times (Singapore: Singapore Press Holdings), 2010, p. B4 [also Available at http://newshub.nus.edu.sg/news/1012/PDF/ CHICKEN-st-25dec-pB4.pdf]. Chua, Grace, “If you see this Chicken, Please Don’t Cook it”, 25 December 2010, The Straits Times hosted on Wild Singapore Website [Downloaded on 1 January 2017], Available at http://wildsingaporenews.blogspot. sg/2010/12/if-you-see-this-chicken-please-dont.html#.WL5byW996Uk. Lee, Min Kok, “Stray Chickens Spotted Wandering Around Several Parts of Singapore”, 19 January 2016, The Straits Times [Downloaded on 19 January 2016], Available at http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/stray-chickens- spotted-wandering-around-several-parts-of-singapore. Kaur, Gurveen, “Street Dreams”, 20 May 2016, The Straits Times (Singapore: SPH), 2016, p. D2. Lim, Adrian, “Integrated North–South Corridor to be Ready in 2026”, 29 April 2016, The Straits Times (Singapore: SPH), 2016, p. A1. National Archives of Singapore, “Tank Road Railway Station, Singapore”, National Archives of Singapore Website [Downloaded on 1 June 2016], Available at http://www.nas.gov.sg/archivesonline/photographs/record-details/d704dc04- 1161-11e3-83d5-0050568939ad. Singapore Government Press Release, “Ministerial Statement by Minister for Foreign Affairs, Prof S Jayakumar in Parliament on 31 July 1998 Singapore’s Re-location of its CIQ from Tanjong Pagar Railway Station to Woodlands Train Checkpoint”, 31 July 1998, National Archives of Singapore (NAS) Website [Downloaded on 1 June 2016], Available at http://www.nas.gov.sg/ archivesonline/speeches/view-html?flename 1998073111.htm. = Tan, Christopher, “Work to Link Historic Station Starts this Year”, 28 May 2016, The Straits Times (Singapore: SPH), 2016, p. B2. 3 A PASSION FOR HERITAGE AND NATURE … 95

Taylor, Nigel P., “The Environmental Relevance of the Singapore Botanic Gardens”, Nature Contained: Environmental Histories of Singapore, ed. Timothy P. Barnard (Singapore: NUS Press), 2014, pp. 115–37. “Former Railway Land to be Used for Bus Interchange”, 23 May 2016, The Straits Times [Downloaded on 1 June 2016], Available at http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/transport/former-railway-land-to-be-used-for-bus- interchange. Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA), “History Brief History of Railways in Singapore”, undated, URA Website [Downloaded on 1 January 2016], Available at https://www.ura.gov.sg/railcorridor/history.html. Wan, Lynette, Kindred Memories: A Flash Fiction Collection (Singapore: Lynette Wan and Ho Printing with the Support of the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth Singapore), 2015. Whang Rennie, “Shophouses Draw Keen Investor Interest”, 2 May 2016, The Straits Times (Singapore: SPH), 2016, p. C1. Zaccheus, Melody, “SGH to ‘Preserve Heritage Features as far as Possible’”, 28 March 2016, The Straits Times (Singapore: SGH), 2016, pp. B1–B2. CHAPTER 4

The Pedagogical Contributions of the Peripheral Spaces of Walks: Fort Canning and Tiong Bahru Adrian Kwek

Introduction Spaces are peripheral by virtue of the fact that they exist alongside spaces with main functions. The standing spaces of vantage and walking spaces of galleries are spaces from which one is intended to experience the contents of another space. They are peripheral, yet have a main function. They are peripheral because the contents in the space that is presented from a vantage point or in a gallery take center stage in one’s experience, while one is located at the vantage point or in the gallery. Yet, the spaces of vantage and the galleries have the main function of presenting the contents of the other space to the viewer. Paying attention to the spaces of vantage and the galleries reveals features that can enhance or detract from one’s experience of the contents of the presented spaces. The content of a space can be presented for the purpose of teaching about it. The spatial layout of such spaces, determined by the peripheral spaces of vantage or galleries that present their contents, can contribute to learning about the contents. Spatial layout can contribute to learning by mirroring the conceptual relations between contents, controlling access to the material and by presenting the object that the information is about, giving the learner frst-hand experience of the object. We bring these considerations to bear on the spaces of vantage and galleries offered by two walks in Singapore that were designed, at least partially, with pedagogical intention: the fourteenth century Walk at Fort Canning and the Tiong Bahru Heritage Trail. Analyzing the layout of pedagogical

© The Author(s) 2017 97 T.W. Lim, Cultural Heritage and Peripheral Spaces in Singapore, DOI 10.1007/978-981-10-4747-3_4 98 A. KWEK content in these walks by considering how museum planners use spatial confgurations to implement pedagogical intentions, we assess the walks for pedagogical value.

Types of Museum Spatial Layout In this section, we discuss the implications of three types of museum spatial layout on pedagogy: sequential layout, gridded layout and hierarchical layout. The primary pedagogical beneft of a museum layout is that visitors come into immediate perceptual contact with the object about which information is conveyed. Being able to see the object from different angles and, in some cases, being able to feel the object lends concreteness to the otherwise abstract information describing the object. The locating of information describing an object where that object can be immediately perceived is pedagogically justifed because the visitor has their uptake of the information reifed by perception of the object that the information is about. We term the justifcation “in situ” justifcation: information about an object receives in situ justifcation from (or, equiva- lently, “is in situ justifed by”) being located where the object that it is about can be immediately perceived.

Sequential Layout A museum layout is sequential if it is designed with the intention of leading a visitor from one display to another in a fxed order.1 The displays can be artifacts, text panels, dioramas, art pieces, places, organisms, and so on. Displays are the particular objects that the museum curates and exhibits. A common instantiation of a sequential layout is a unidirectional passageway lined with displays. In moving along the space of the passageway, a visitor will arrive at each display in sequence. The peripheral space in which the visitor moves is a gallery. The contents of the spaces that a gallery presents are the displays and, possibly, accompanying signage. For a space of displays where there is no discernible passageway or where

1 Kali Tzortzi, “Museum Building Design and Exhibition Layout”, Proceedings, 6th International Space Syntax Symposium, Istanbul, 2007, pp. 72–74. 4 THE PEDAGOGICAL CONTRIBUTIONS OF THE PERIPHERAL SPACES … 99 there are many passageways, a sequence can be stipulated by a map and conceptually superimposed on the physical space. The spatial sequence of sequential layouts can mirror the temporal sequence of steps in a process, or a chronology of historical events.2 When the presented contents are the steps of a process or a chronology of events identifed by a historical theme, the unidirectional spatial sequence reiterates the asymmetrical temporal sequence and serves to reinforce the learning of the temporal sequence through another modality. The spatial sequence of sequential layouts can control access to displays.3 Sequential layouts encourage the movement of a visitor from one display to the next, and this movement can be exploited to thin out crowding at displays. In turn, the thinning out of crowding at displays encourages defer- ring on-site discussions of displays until afterwards, when the object of the discussion is remembered rather than perceived.

Gridded Layout A museum layout is gridded if it contains displays for which there is no predetermined sequence for visiting each display.4 Visitors are left on their own to visit each display as they desire. The peripheral space in which a visitor moves is also a gallery, but in the form of an open space, a room or a hall, rather than a passageway. For sequential layouts, a theme that requires sequential understanding is made known to the visitor in advance. In contrast, no such theme is stipulated for gridded layouts. Gridded layouts mirror the absence of a conceptual sequence structuring the meaning of the contents. This encourages visitors to interpret the presentations of displays on their

2 Ibid., pp. 72–10 (elaborating on the “long-model2” set-up). See also the contrast between sequential and constructivist exhibitions in Kali Tzortzi, “Spatial Concepts in Museum Theory and Practice”, Proceedings of the 10th International Space Syntax Symposium, 2015, 37: 3–4. 3 Layouts can have effects on visitor fow. For example, Tzortzi, “Spatial Concepts in Museum Theory and Practice”, 37: 3–4, which observes that the “layout of displays, the location of objects, and the vista, [defne] the direction of visitor fow”. 4 Tzortzi, “Museum Building Design and Exhibition Layout”, 72–104. 100 A. KWEK own, in turn fostering their own construction of the meaning of the presentations.5 The spatial gridding of layouts can control access to displays. The absence of direction of movement removes the pressure to move on to the next display. Together with an absence of a movement-determining passageway leading to the next display, visitors are free to gather at displays and discuss them on-site. Other visitors can choose to inspect other displays while waiting for their turn as there is no prior mandate to visit the displays in a certain order. They are free to walk past crowded displays and return to inspect them later. Depending on pedagogical intentions, sequential and gridded layouts can be combined. Spaces with a gridded layout can bud off from passageways with sequential layouts, when the pedagogical intention aims at exploration and meaning construction of a particular sub-theme engen- dered by a stage in a process or an event in a chronology. Conversely, spaces with a sequential layout can extrude from spaces with gridded layouts when the pedagogical intention aims at presenting processes or chronologies associated with certain displays, but where these displays are not sequentially related to neighboring ones.

Hierarchical Layout A museum layout is hierarchical if it presents classifcatory relations between displays.6 Classifcatory relations are asymmetrical: something being an instance of a type cannot itself be the type. In order to present classifcatory relations spatially, spaces containing displays should refect the asymmetry. This can be done in two ways: stipulating a sequential path of visit from displays of greater to lesser generality or vice versa (but not both), or proffering a vantage from which instances can be perceived from a location presenting the type that the instances refect.

5 Ibid., pp. 72–110 (the “short-model” set-up), 72–112 and 72–113. 6 Ibid., pp. 72–108 give a more general characterization in terms of asymmetry of directional order only. 4 THE PEDAGOGICAL CONTRIBUTIONS OF THE PERIPHERAL SPACES … 101

A hierarchical layout can mirror classifcatory relations.7 The classifcation can be processual, chronological or conceptual.8 Learning about these relations is reinforced when the content is presented to the museum visitor in a hierarchical layout.

Special Features of Walks as Museum Spaces In this section, we discuss special features of walks as museum spaces. We discuss how interpreting the peripheral spaces of walks in terms of the three types of layout described draws our attention to these special features, and how these special features may be exploited for pedagogical purposes. Walks exist against the backdrop of a plethora of features pertaining to human activity: roads, buildings, parks, shopping malls, coffee shops, schools, car parks, residential estates and so on. Among the items in the backdrop are some that are united by an interesting theme. A walk is an attempt, intentionally spatially, to unite items of a certain interesting theme such that the items, as with displays in a museum, can be visited on foot. The backdrop of human activity features that walks are imposed against can serve to constrain walks in three ways: they can impose a spatial order, they can exhibit multiple themes, and there can be main functions of the walk space that compete with the walk designer’s intention for the walk space to be akin to the aisle of a gallery space.

Imposed Spatial Order The backdrop of human activity can constrain the spatial order of a walk. First, movement determinants such as a narrow foot path that runs alongside several items marked as signifcant by the specifcation of a walk can determine a sequential order, as opposed to gridded, because there is simply no space to visit the items in an order other than sequentially.

7 Kali Tzortzi, “Spatial Concepts in Museum Theory and Practice”, Proceedings of the 10th International Space Syntax Symposium, 2015, 37: 4. 8 For a sophisticated example of how the spatial organization of a museum gallery can refect the conceptual difference between biological classifcations as immutable or muta- ble, see John Peponis and Jenny Hedin, “The Layout of Theories in the Natural History Museum”, 9H(3) (1982): 23. 102 A. KWEK

This can be exploited pedagogically for determining the visiting of displays in a fxed sequence corresponding to a process or chronology that is intended to be taught by the series of displays in question. It can also be used to control the number of visitors per display, as the width of the passageway would determine the number of people that can gather at a display at any one time. Second, obstacles such as mobility of referent, holistic apprehension, or private property can constrain the proximity of viewer inspection from display. An example of mobility of referent is fauna that is endemic to that locale. Because animals move around, it is likely that the location of the relevant signage (e.g. signage containing information about species found in the vicinity) does not imply the perceivable proximity of the signage’s referent (i.e. individuals of the species). An example of holistic apprehension is architectural styles that can only be perceived by perceiving the entire building. This fact already determines that one cannot stand too near the building if one is to appreciate its architectural style. Finally, some buildings are private property and breaching their outer perimeters can count as trespassing. The proximity constraint can be exploited pedagogically by having it introduce a speculative element to the taught content. Since locations near to the display item are not accessible, the visitor can be prompted to imagine how things are there, given what they have been taught about the display items in question. Third, there can be locations along a walk where a scene is presented. An array of display items is presented to the viewer with different relative positions to one another, which correspond, to various degrees, to the spatial relations between actual items in the scenery. We call such a scene a “vantage”. The most common presentation of a vantage is one of a scene where an annotated outline diagram foregrounds the scene, labeling items and locations of events in the scene that are signifcant vis-à-vis a predetermined theme. The space occupied by the signage is a peripheral space relative to the space occupied by the presented scene to which the signage refers. Other examples are that of the observable species of birds at a birdwatching location, or an overview of an activity from a location suitable for perceiving different stages of the activity. The imposed spatial order here is a hierarchical one. From one location, the visitor is apprehending different instances (stages) of the same type (activity), where each instance occupies a different actual or possible location in their feld of vision. 4 THE PEDAGOGICAL CONTRIBUTIONS OF THE PERIPHERAL SPACES … 103

Vantages can be pedagogically exploited by having them present summaries of processes, chronologies and taxonomic relations.9 Because such summaries are shown to correspond to actual or possible spaces in the visitor’s immediately perceivable vicinity, the summaries are imbued with concreteness that would be absent if the processes, chronologies and taxonomic relations were only textually described.

Multiple Themes Because walks are defned against a plethora of extant physical features of human activity, a walk co-exists with many other potential walks that are defned by other themes. This special feature of walks can be exploited pedagogically by allowing for the presentation of interconnections between themes, whether implicitly or explicitly. Where interconnections are implicit, visitors can be invited to construct meanings for themselves in identifying and appreciating cross-thematic connections. Where interconnections are explicit, the linkages are experienced by the visitor on the walk, bringing them out of abstraction for the visitor. There are three sorts of pedagogically interesting cross-thematic connections, corresponding to the three higher levels of the revised Bloom’s Taxonomy for cognitive process: Analyze, Evaluate and Create.10 First, cross-thematic connections allow us to appreciate constituent concepts of ideas when these concepts are compared or contrasted with others of different themes. According to the revised Bloom’s Taxonomy, analyzing is the action of “[b]reaking material into its constituent parts and detecting how the parts relate to one another and to an overall structure or purpose”.11 Cross-thematic connections allow for the comparison and contrast of concepts belonging to different themes, such that component parts of an idea are better understood, and its organizational structure is better understood, which results in a better grasp of the idea.

9 For a more sophisticated exploitation of vantages to nullify the dominance of temporal sequence, see Tzortzi, “Spatial Concepts in Museum Theory and Practice”, 37: 10, on the Acropolis: “But, while the display narrative stresses historical sequence, the spatial design synchronizes time by […] creating vertical visual links across exhibition levels, including through transparent foors”. 10 David R. Krathwohl, “A Revision of Bloom’s Taxonomy: An Overview”, Theory into Practice 41(4) (2002): 215. 11 Ibid. 104 A. KWEK

Second, cross-thematic connections allow us to evaluate ideas in comparison or contrast with related ideas of different themes. According to the revised Bloom’s Taxonomy, evaluating is the action of “[m]aking judgments based on criteria and standards”.12 The availability of relevant connections with ideas of other themes can help a learner with their evaluation of subject matter with which they are not familiar, and to which they are unable to deploy the evaluative standards that they currently possess. If an idea from another theme is something with which they have more familiarity than the subject matter that they are currently prompted to evaluate, they can rely on analogous reasoning to arrive at judgments about the current subject matter from their judgments about the related idea. Third, cross-thematic connections allow us to create content. According to the revised Bloom’s Taxonomy, creating is the action of “[p]utting elements together to form a novel, coherent whole or make an original product”.13 Cross-thematic connections, particularly of a gridded layout, allow a visitor the autonomy to construct their own meaning by association with related displays of different themes. A visitor can also be guided so as to be more likely to construct certain meanings rather than others at the intersection of sequential layouts.

Alternative Main Functions Because walks are defned against a plethora of extant physical features of human activity, a walk can utilize a space that is also fully or partially utilized by other activities. The sharing of display space along a walk with other activities can imbue it with characteristics that are pedagogically exploitable. Activities can be categorized into those that involve the passage of people and those that involve the gathering of people. Each category can be exploited for its own pedagogical features. Some activities involve the passage of people: they involve the movement of people over a certain distance. Examples of physical structures that enable the passage of people include roads, cycling tracks, jogging paths and footpaths. The number of viewers at a display along a passageway can be controlled when that passageway is also a jogging path.

12 Ibid. 13 Ibid. 4 THE PEDAGOGICAL CONTRIBUTIONS OF THE PERIPHERAL SPACES … 105

The need to accommodate the passage of joggers will result in a limited number of viewers at the display at one time. This will, in turn, limit the volume of information that can be taken up at a display. Voluminous text will delay the onward movement of viewers and create a bottleneck. Relatedly, if the passageway is also a unidirectional jogging path, visitors will be urged to visit each display along the passageway in the direction of the joggers. To go against the traffc of joggers is to the inconvenience of both the viewer and joggers. This creates a strong sequential layout and can be pedagogically exploited to mirror the sequence of a process or a chronology. Some activities involve the gathering of people. Examples of physical structures that enable the gathering of people include gazebos, rest stops, spacious lookouts, vending machines and restrooms. Display spaces that are shared with physical structures enabling the gathering of people can be pedagogically exploited for opportunities to discuss the displays, or for displays that require more time for appreciation—whether it is because there are intricate details that take time to admire, or because the signage for the display item presents a great deal of information to be imbibed. Structures that enable the gathering of people need not only be exploited for the exchange of information about on-site displays. When located at strategic points or termini of sequential layouts, they can be points at which visitors pause to discuss their experience of the sequence. When located after gridded layouts, they can be points at which visitors can compare and contrast their varied interpretations of what they have just experienced. In summary, walks can be analyzed with respect to the following characteristics in ways that are pedagogically useful:

• Layout – Sequential – Gridded – Hierarchical • Imposed spatial order – Movement – Obstacles – Vantages • Multiple themes – Analyzing – Evaluating 106 A. KWEK

– Creating • Alternative main functions – Passage of people – Gathering of people

In the next part of this chapter, we will study two walks in Singapore with respect to these characteristics and discuss the pedagogical insights that the analyses yield.

Fort Canning’s 14th Century Walk “Fort Canning” names a hill that has been the site of human activity that was already fourishing in the fourteenth century. The site’s long history results in its having a multitude of historically signifcant landmarks. It is also a park with many plants of botanical interest to lay- persons because of their historical signifcance. Amidst the backdrop of historically signifcant sites, landmarks, buildings and fora, Singapore’s National Parks Board has delineated what they call a “DIY guided walk” on pamphlets and signage in the park. In the introduction on the pamphlet, it is written:

As you embark on this trail, stroll back in time to the era of the fve kings and the golden age of fourteenth century Singapore. Visit the keramat that shelters an ancient tomb. This tomb purportedly contains the remains of the last ruler of pre-colonial Singapore. Explore the archaeological dig, where several fourteenth century artefacts on display reveal evidence of trading with Chinese merchants during that era. Stop at the interpretative signboards that point out historic locations and intriguing information on ancient Singapore.14

The intent is ostensibly pedagogical. The walk is designed to let a visitor learn about fourteenth-century Singapore by visiting locations that contain items, sites and informative signs. Each location of signifcance is numbered (H1 to H24) on the map given in the pamphlet and on the

14 National Parks Board, “A Guide to Singapore’s Ancient History Walking Trail at Fort Canning Park”, accessed 6 March 2017, https://www.nparks.gov.sg/~/media/ nparks-real-content/learning/learning-journeys/guided-walks/diy-guided-walks/revisiting-history/diy-trail-guide--singapores-ancient-history-walking-trail.pdf?la en. = 4 THE PEDAGOGICAL CONTRIBUTIONS OF THE PERIPHERAL SPACES … 107 signage. The numbered locations are situated alongside a footpath. The order of H1 to H24 along the footpath suggests a sequential layout.

The Sequential Layout and Its Pedagogical Implications The location numbered ‘H1’ contains a pair of informational signboards. The one on the visitor’s left is entitled “The 14th Century Walk” and serves as the initiating informational signboard of the walk. It gives a brief history of the hill and its signifcance in the fourteenth century, stat- ing that there was already a royal palace on the hill in 1330. The signboard on the visitor’s right is a magnifed version of the map of the walk that is found on the bottom of the left-hand signboard. This map is a simplifcation of the map of Fort Canning; the items of interest to the theme “The 14th Century Walk” H1 to H24 are highlighted, while other features on the hill are kept to a minimum and are there to fx the relative position of the walk. Each of H1 to H24 is informatively titled (for example, “H10 The Royal Palace” and “H19 Singapore’s Golden Age”) and is listed at the bottom of the map. Because the walk is superimposed on a prior existing landscape of human activity features and landmarks that are not within the scope of interest of the walk’s theme, the map is essential. It brings the 14th Century Walk into existence by identifying its path and displays from among the plethora of features and landmarks on Fort Canning. Without the walk map, the walk does not exist (Fig. 4.1). We can see from the sequence H1 to H24 that the layout of displays along the walk is probably intended to be sequential. A spatial sequential layout can be pedagogically intended as a mirror of conceptual sequences such as that of a process or a chronology. More straightforwardly, items can be in spatial sequence because that is where they are actually found. If so, then the information-bearing signboard marking the site in question is in situ justifed by the immediate perceptual presence of the object that it is describing. The conceptual relations between the items that are in sequence are of more than one kind. Table 4.1 shows possible conceptual relations between items that are in sequence on the walk. It also states where items are not conceptually related but have their positions in the sequence by virtue of the fact that they are actually found there. 108 A. KWEK

Fig. 4.1 The pair of informational signboards at the beginning of the 14th Century Walk 4 THE PEDAGOGICAL CONTRIBUTIONS OF THE PERIPHERAL SPACES … 109

Table 4.1 Possible conceptual relations between items that are in sequence on the walk

No. Descriptive title Comments on sequential relationa

H1 The 14th Century Walk H1 introduces and summarizes all the other Hs, including H2. H1 is hierarchically more general than is the case from H2 onwards H2 The Kings of 14th Century H2 is an elaboration of one aspect of Singapore in Singapore the 14th century, and thus an item hierarchically categorizable under H1. The spatial sequence of H1 and H2 is hierarchical H3 Keramat Iskandar Shah H3 is both hierarchically related to H2, as the purported fnal resting place of one of the kings of 14th century Singapore, and also an on-site display, in that the informational sign at H3 refers to the actual spot of the purported tomb H4 Parameswara’s Retreat H4 recounts a signifcant event in the life of the king purportedly buried at H3 (Iskandar Shah was also known as Parameswara). Chronologically, the sequence H3 and H4 should be reversed. The spatial sequence is incongruent with the chronological sequence H5 Longyamen (Dragon’s Tooth H5 describes a narrow passage of sea between Strait) Labrador Point and Sentosa, used extensively by traders, which was documented by travelers in the fourteenth century. That passage is now called the “Keppel Straits”, and is about 2 km away. While the relevance to the walk’s theme is evident, H5 bears no sequential relation to H4 or H6 as a matter of chronology. Furthermore, while H3 is in situ justifed because of its on-site referent, the referent of Longyamen 2 km away does not similarly justify the position of H5 H6 The Archaeological Dig and The archaeological dig is not an item of display. Exhibition Area Instead, the site is a gallery in itself, consisting of the dig site with a mini-sequence of informational signboards and the exhibition consisting of showcased artifacts and informational signboards. H6 will be discussed more fully later in the chapter. H5’s position is in situ justifed because of its on-site referent (continued) 110 A. KWEK

Table 4.1 (continued)

No. Descriptive title Comments on sequential relationa H7 14th Century Gold The location of H7 after H6 does not mirror any Ornaments evident sequential relation, just the association of gold ornaments as artifacts that may be discovered at an archaeological dig. The relevance to the theme is evident, however: the artifacts being gold ornaments “wrought in the style consistent with jewellery from the 14th century”.b This signage would have been more justifably located nearer to the service reservoir, where it would receive in situ justifcation by referring to where the gold ornaments were found (“Chinese labourers carrying out excavation work at the Fort Canning Reservoir discovered gold ornaments hidden 10 feet (3 metres) below the ground surface.”c) H8 Ancient Garden While there is no sequential relation between H7 and H8 that is refected by their spatial sequence, H8 receives in situ justifcation, since the entire hill, and hence the immediate environs of H8, used to be populated by tropical fruit trees. The signage reproduces the documentation of these trees by John Crawfurd in a diary entry around about 4 February 1822 H9 Singapore and Java H9 does not have any conceptual sequential relation to H8; neither does it have any in situ justifcation. The content of the signboard gives very brief notes about the political relationship between Singapore and Java in the fourteenth century H10 The Royal Palace There is no conceptual sequential relation mirrored by the spatial sequence between H10 and H9. The signage receives some in situ justifcation from the reported fact (on the signage) that the “slopes of the hill were landscaped to create terraces on which the king’s dwellings and other buildings stood overlooking the city below”.d This might include the immediate environs of the signage (continued) 4 THE PEDAGOGICAL CONTRIBUTIONS OF THE PERIPHERAL SPACES … 111

Table 4.1 (continued)

No. Descriptive title Comments on sequential relationa H11 Construction of the Palace H11 elaborates on one aspect of the information on the Forbidden Hill provided by H10. As such, the spatial sequence is justifable by the fact that the information provided by H11 is hierarchically subsumable by the topic of the royal palace on the hill. On the walk after H11, one arrives at an extensive comic strip panel detailing the historical events surrounding the fve kings of ancient Singapore. This panel stands in a space off the walk’s footpath. This space can be interpreted as a break from the sequence of the items on the walk, and thus the next item, H12, does not require justifcation by conceptual sequential relation to H11 H12 Parit Singapura “Parit” is Malay for “moat”. While conceptual sequential relation to H11 is not required, the location of signage with this content at this point of the walk seems arbitrary. The signage would receive in situ justifcation from being located at Stamford Canal/Stamford Road, where a wall was discovered by the British in 1819, and which is speculated to be the wall alongside which the moat ran, as this is what is reported by the signage H13 Clashes with Siamese H13 does not have conceptual sequential relation to H12; neither does it have in situ justifcation for its location. However, H13 details events that come sequentially prior to those detailed by H4, since it states that “decisive” attacks caused the ruler, who later founded Malacca, to “abandon his kingdom and fee for his life”. Hence, H13 should be placed along the walk just before H4. Given that H3 is the tomb of the aforementioned king, that location will also give H13 in situ justifcation. A little down the path from this signage stands another space just off the path with a bench facing a panel entitled “Pre-Colonial Singapore”. On this panel are comic strip-styled sketches with captions and titles that refect some of the signs on the walk—some yet to be covered. This area can, again, be construed as a break in the progression of the walk, removing the need for conceptual sequential or in situ justifcation of the next informational sign (continued) 112 A. KWEK

Table 4.1 (continued)

No. Descriptive title Comments on sequential relationa H14 14th Century Singapore Due to the break mentioned in relation to H13, H14 does not require conceptual sequential justifcation for its position in the spatial sequence after H13. H14 presents fourteenth-century Singapore in terms of two settlements, Longyamen and Banzu H15 Temasek, Singapore There is no clear sequential connection between and Singapura H15 and H14. H15 states that ancient Singapore was known as Temasek, and explains how the name “Singapura” was derived. The derivation of the name “Singapura” was an event in the life of the frst of the fve kings. As such, this event could have chronological sequential justifcation if located after H2 and before H3 H16 The Singapore Stone H16 does not bear any conceptual sequential relation to H15; neither does it have in situ justifcation. Its position in the walk’s sequence seems arbitrary H17 The Strongman of 14th H16 has a role in the events of the life of the per- Century Singapore son, the strong man Badang, to whom H17 relates. According to the signage’s information, Badang was appointed by Raja Muda as a “court warrior”.e This relation to the life of one of the fve kings of ancient Singapore would suit H16 and H17 as part of a chronological sequence if located early in the walk. Since, chronologically, Raja Muda was the third of the fve kings, signage such as H16 and H17 related to his life would fnd sequential justifcation if located before those of the last of the fve kings, Iskandar Shah (H3) H18 The Forbidden Spring We next come to a signage about Pancur Larangan (“Forbidden Spring”), which purportedly fowed from “the west side of Fort Canning Hill”.f This signage can have in situ justifcation as it is located on the west side of Fort Canning Hill. This justifcation can be made explicit by including the location of the signage in the description and by having a directional legend on the map that is reproduced on the bottom half of the signage (continued) 4 THE PEDAGOGICAL CONTRIBUTIONS OF THE PERIPHERAL SPACES … 113

Table 4.1 (continued)

No. Descriptive title Comments on sequential relationa H19 Singapore’s Golden Age This signage is unrelated in conceptual sequence to the previous signage and does not have in situ justifcation. It very briefy mentions that archaeological evidence supports the claim made by local Malay folklore that Singapore was a “prosperous port” H20 The Decline of Singapore’s This signage receives conceptual sequential justifca- First Golden Age tion as it presents the events that chronologically supersede those reported by H19. However, as the text is about Iskandar Shah and H20 does not have substantial matter about Singapore’s Golden Age, the content receives more conceptual sequential justifcation if presented on signage placed in chronological sequence about Iskandar Shah’s life, before his tomb H21 Hang Tuah H21 does not have conceptual sequential relation to H20; neither does it have in situ justifcation. Its inclusion at that position in the walk’s sequence seems arbitrary H22 Singapore in the 16th This signage and the next seem out of place in a Century walk that is named a “14th Century Walk”. H22, however, receives conceptual sequential justifcation as it comes at the end of the walk, mirroring the chronological sequence of the sixteenth century coming after the fourteenth century H23 Singapore in the 17th H23 receives conceptual sequential justifcation as Century it comes after H22, mirroring the chronological sequence of the seventeenth century coming after the sixteenth century H24 Ruins of ancient Singapore H24 receives in situ justifcation as it is located on the very site of the ruins

Note aThe table also states where items are not conceptually related but have their positions in the sequence by virtue of the fact that they are actually found there bNational Parks Board, “14th Century Gold Ornaments”, Fort Canning 14th Century Walk H7 Site Signboard, n.d. cIbid dNational Parks Board, “The Royal Palace”, Fort Canning 14th Century Walk H10 Site Signboard, n.d. eNational Parks Board, “The Strongman of 14th Century Singapore”, Fort Canning 14th Century Walk H17 Site Signboard, n.d. fNational Parks Board, “The Forbidden Spring”, Fort Canning 14th Century Walk H18 Site Signboard, n.d. 114 A. KWEK

Breaks in the Walk Sequence At H6, after H11 and after H13, there are breaks in the continuity of the spatial sequence of the 14th Century Walk. The break at H6 is different from the breaks at H11 and H13. While the break at H6 is an extensive detour that has a sequential structure of its own that teaches the elements of an archaeological dig and displays artifacts that were discovered on-site, the breaks after H11 and H13 contain straightforward summaries, in the form of cartoon panels, of sub-themes of the walk that are deemed important. The breaks after H11 and H13 double up as gathering rest stops—the break after H13 even has a long curved bench facing the cartoon panels, but the break after H6 has neither space nor furnishing for gathering or rest (Figs. 4.2, 4.3 and 4.4). H6, entitled “The Archaeological Dig and Exhibition Area”, marks the location of an archaeological dig site, which is left as it was during the dig. A series of informative signboards run along the sides of the dig site and extend into an exhibition gallery behind the site. They are numbered continuously from 1 to 19; this suggests the intention that visitors should pay attention to each signboard sequentially. The signboard H6 introduces the visitor to the facts about the dig site; for example, that it was started by Dr John N. Miksic in 1984, how long it lasted, and its relative location. It goes on to talk about other archaeological sites in Singapore and what we can conclude about the unearthed artifacts. A mini-sequence of signboards bud off from the signboard labelled H6. They begin at the dig site commencing with information about Singapore’s ancient history. The content of the sequence changes at the exhibition passageway where artifacts, mostly pottery shards, are displayed. The contents of the signs here refer to the displays and give information about earthenware and ceramics of the periods to which the displayed artifacts belong. After one emerges from the exhibition passageway, the walkway is at the opposite side of the archaeological dig, and concerns the technical aspects of an archaeological dig, with topics such as “Ceramics and Chronology”, “Stratigraphy: The Science of Soil Layers” and “Archaeological Techniques” (Fig. 4.5). The mini-sequential layout that buds off from H6 creates a break in the main H sequence of the walk. This break is cognitively demanding because it mirrors a sequence of going deeper into the topic introduced by the signboard at H6. The entire mini-sequence is in situ justifed— either by the dig site itself, or the artifacts on display in the gallery 4 THE PEDAGOGICAL CONTRIBUTIONS OF THE PERIPHERAL SPACES … 115

Fig. 4.2 The break at H6: The archaeological dig 116 A. KWEK

Fig. 4.3 The break after H11 behind it. The visitor is confronted by spaces that contain actual, concrete referents of the signage in the mini-sequence, reifying their uptake of the information that the signboards seek to convey. In contrast to the break from the main H sequence afforded at H6, the breaks after H11 and H13 are straightforward spaces for the visitor to rest, mingle with other visitors, or to recapitulate the various items covered by the walk so far by means of the summarizing informative cartoon panels present in those spaces. The break after H11 is at the far end of a paved clearing on the side of the walkway that leads to H12. It requires a deviation from the walkway to enter, allowing for a crowd to gather without obstructing the passage of visitors who choose to continue to H12. Similarly, the break after H13 is hived off from the side of the walkway, with a bench facing the cartoon paneling for visitors to sit and rest, or to inspect the summarizing information presented there while sitting down. These rest breaks double up as breaks in the conceptual sequence of the signage—even though the next signboard is in 4 THE PEDAGOGICAL CONTRIBUTIONS OF THE PERIPHERAL SPACES … 117

Fig. 4.4 The break at H13 118 A. KWEK

Fig. 4.5 The exhibition passageway 4 THE PEDAGOGICAL CONTRIBUTIONS OF THE PERIPHERAL SPACES … 119 spatial and numerical sequence, there is no need for a conceptual connection to the previous signboard because of the summarizing break.

Cross-Thematic Aspects of the Walk: Botanicals and Art As one proceeds along the 14th Century Walk, the interstitial spaces between the H signs contain many signs that serve to identify plant species that are present at the respective signs. These are plant species that have historical signifcance in that they were spices that were heavily traded in the region, or are plant species that were cultivated on those very locations from ancient to colonial times. The presence of the historically signifcant plant species such as sea hibiscus, ylang ylang and wild nutmegs serve to reify the visitor’s experience of the historical content of the H signboards; for example, of how the ancient palace grounds must have smelled. The signs that label and describe the plant species receive in situ justifcation since they have nearby referents (Fig. 4.6). The sequential signboards of the 14th Century Walk are also inter- spersed at points by art pieces such as “The Right Side Down” (Teo Huey Ling 2016), and “Wouldn’t Shoe” (Gerard Velthoen 2016). These installations are referred to by signage that not only includes the title, artist and year, but also a short write-up of its meaning. A visitor on the 14th Century Walk is invited to make their own associations by unexpected contemporary art pieces in the course of learning about Singapore’s fourteenth-century history. The connections that one can draw can serve to illuminate the H signboards that precede or succeed them. For example, one encounters the art piece “A Portrait” (Chang Wei 2016) after the signboard H17, about Badang, the “Strongman of 14th Century Singapore”. The art piece is surprising because it is ostensibly not a portrait as one normally understands the term to refer to a paint- ing, drawing or sculpture of a person’s upper body, where the person’s face is the focus. Instead, it looks like a wooden post with footprints stamped into its side. The signage about the art piece reads, “Generally, a portrait is not a snapshot, but a composed image of a person, on his personality and even his mood are displayed.” The surprise of the referent of something entitled “A Portrait” and the grammatically unsound sentence jolts one into the realization that portraits need not take their standard referents. This leads one to recompose the information conveyed by H17: to what extent is Lat’s (the cartoonist’s) cartoon rendering of 120 A. KWEK

Fig. 4.6 Botanical signage intermingled with walk signage

Badang a characterization of Badang? What if the story of Badang is a portrait of the Singaporean spirit, rather than a portrait of a historical person? (Fig. 4.7) These two cross-thematic aspects of the Walk serve to activate one’s speculative and evaluative thoughts about the information that the Walk presents. One is involved in knowledge construction rather than mere uptake, making one’s interaction with the presented material even more engaging and memorable.

The Tiong Bahru Heritage Trail In contrast to Fort Canning’s 14th Century Walk, the National Heritage Board’s Tiong Bahru Heritage Trail presents the visitor with an ostensibly gridded layout. Recall that a gridded layout does not determine any sequence in which the visitor should visit the displays. The fact that the Tiong Bahru Heritage Trail presents the visitor with a gridded 4 THE PEDAGOGICAL CONTRIBUTIONS OF THE PERIPHERAL SPACES … 121

Fig. 4.7 Chang Wei’s “A Portrait” 122 A. KWEK layout is not evident from the trail map. This is because the maps present the sites as numbered sequentially, from 01 to 10. The spatial experience of a visitor actually on the trail belies the sequential numbering for two reasons. First, the thoroughfares along which many of the sites are located are often wide combinations of pavement, street and grass verges that can accommodate walkers in opposite directions. Second, there are items in the vicinity of the trail that can prompt one to wander in directions other than those dictated by the number sequence (Fig. 4.8).

The Gridded Layout and Its Pedagogical Implications Table 4.2 organizes information about the various sites that are marked on the trail map as having heritage signifcance and the streets by which they are located, and relevantly interesting features of the streets. What can be noted from the descriptions of the street features is that many of the heritage sites are very close to one another, to the extent that one is visible from another. The heritage sites are numbered according to a walk that would take a visitor from one point to another without backtracking or crossing the path previously taken. This spatial sequence can be rationalized as a walk that effciently takes a person from one heritage site to another because it covers all the marked sites in the shortest distance. Considerations of effciency do not refect the conceptual connections between the informative content of the site signboards. However, because of the ample walk spaces and the lack of a superimposed conceptual sequence, the gridded layout allows a visitor to visit the sites in whichever order they please. This makes possible the spatial grouping of sites according to themes. We present two possible themes: architecture styles and road names.

Architectural Styles The fats of Tiong Bahru are renowned for their distinctive architectural styles. Chronologically, the bearers of these styles can be divided into pre-war and post-war fats that were built by the Singapore Improvement Trust. The fats that were built in the pre-war years were begun in 1936. These can be identifed by stretches of unpainted brick in the exterior walls of the buildings. The distinctive architecture is Streamline Moderne, an Art Deco style that was inspired by vehicles modern at that time. It is characterized thus: 4 THE PEDAGOGICAL CONTRIBUTIONS OF THE PERIPHERAL SPACES … 123

Fig. 4.8 The trail map reproduced on the top right-hand corner of every piece of site marker signage 124 A. KWEK

Table 4.2 Points of interest marked on the trail map

No. Heritage site title Street features

01 The Origin and Development The location of the heritage sign is closer to of Tiong Bahru the junction of Seng Poh Road and Lim Liak Street than is represented by the map. Seng Poh Road is a two-way street with a partially paved street divider. Lim Liak Street is a one-way street in the direction of Heritage Site 10 02 Bird Corner & Former Hu Lu The heritage sign and site are located at the Temple junction of Tiong Bahru Road and Seng Poh Road. In order to reach here from Heritage Site 01, one has to walk against the fow of traffc on the paved side of Seng Poh Road 03 Graves of Tan Tock Seng, Chua The sites are located on Outram Hill behind a Seah Neo and Wuing Neo bus stop on Outram Road. It is inconvenient to walk here from Heritage Site 02 because, as one walks against the fow of traffc along Seng Poh Road, one either has to jaywalk across the street or, on the other side of the street, walk on the road itself, as the sidewalk peters out into a drain and a curb 04 The Outram Precinct Walking down Outram Road in the direction of Singapore General Hospital, one encounters the signboard for the site next to the frst Singapore General Hospital building and across a building in the International Style along Tiong Bahru Road. Crossing the road takes the visitor to Heritage Site 05 05 Monkey God Temple The Monkey God Temple is at the intersection of Eng Hoon Street and Tiong Poh Road. Both streets are narrow, two- way streets with little traffc 06 The Architecture of Tiong Bahru Continuing down Tiong Poh Road in the direction of vehicular traffc, one reaches Heritage Site 06. The Streamline Moderne architectural style is exhibited by the blocks that line the road on both sides (continued) 4 THE PEDAGOGICAL CONTRIBUTIONS OF THE PERIPHERAL SPACES … 125

Table 4.2 (continued)

No. Heritage site title Street features 07 Tiong Bahru Community Centre Although one arrives at Tiong Bahru Community Centre by continuing down Tiong Poh Road from Heritage Site 06, this is the rear of the community center. To get to the front of the community center where the Heritage Site signboard is located, one has to walk around the community center via Guan Chuan Street and then Seng Poh Road. Here, Heritage Site 07 is just across the narrow Seng Poh Road from Heritage Site 08. One actually reaches Site 08 frst when turning right on Guan Chuan Street, before Site 07, which is diagonally across and down the road from Site 08, away from Guan Chuan Street 08 Seng Poh Garden and Dancing Girl Heritage Site 08, along Seng Poh Road, refers Sculpture to a garden that contains a sculpture of a dancing girl. The site is surrounded by blocks in the Streamline Moderne style 09 The Horse-Shoe Block The Horse-Shoe Block is built in the Streamline Moderne style. It is a massive block in a horse-shoe shape. Around the “U” of the horseshoe runs Yong Siak Street, Moh Guan Terrace and Guan Chuan Street. The interior space of the “U” provides car parking. At the “feet” of the “U” are two blocks in the Streamline Moderne style, and, on the other side of these two blocks, is Chay Yan Street. In stark contrast to the distinctive architecture of the Horse-Shoe Block, the row of shophouses across Yong Siak Street from it is of a nondescript and utilitarian later design 10 Design of Tiong Bahru’s Post-War Heritage Site 10 is situated at the end of Lim Flats Liak Street, close to where it ends at Kim Pong Road. The fats here were built in the post-war years, in a second wave of building by the Singapore Improvement Trust. They are in the International Style and have their boxy aesthetic broken by curved designs reminiscent of bows of ships and portholes 126 A. KWEK

[C]lean, curved shapes and rounded corners; long horizontal and vertical lines; occasional nautical elements (such as port-hole windows and stainless steel railings); simple, uncluttered lines; bands of windows; fat roof; racing stripes simulate speed and motion; and glass blocks and group windows.15

The style is ubiquitous along both sides of Tiong Poh Road, Eng Watt Street, Guan Chuan Street, and one side of Chay Yan Street, Yong Siak Street, Moh Guan Terrace and Seng Poh Road. These streets also contain six out of the ten heritage sites (Fig. 4.9). Seng Poh Road has fats of the pre-war Streamline Moderne style on one side and fats of the post-war International Style on the other side. Built between 1948 and 1954, these fats inherited the vehicular inspiration of the older style across the road by having curved open-air stair- wells that remind one of the bows of ships and a circular porthole-like design on the wall of the stairwell. The similarity ends here, however, as the nautical embellishment sought only to temper the brute utilitarian International Style. This style was characterized thus:

Practitioners of the International Style adopted a machine aesthetic, emphasising abstract, undecorated surfaces and following the edict that form follows function. This meant that the designs favoured the heavy use of concrete, steel and glass, and tended to be boxy and stark.16

The plot of land bordered by Seng Poh Road, Tiong Bahru Road, Kim Pong Road and Moh Guan Terrace contains 28 blocks of fats in the International Style. Lim Liak Street runs through the plot, connecting Seng Poh Road with Kim Pong Road. Double-counting the heritage sites found along Seng Poh Road and Moh Guan Terrace, four heritage sites can be found here, with Heritage Site 10 the only site that is not shared (Fig. 4.10). The distinctiveness of the two architectural styles, the proximity of the buildings that manifest these styles and the numerous marked heritage sites in the areas containing fats of these architecture styles suggests

15 National Heritage Board, “The Architecture of Tiong Bahru”, Signboard at Tiong Bahru Heritage Trail Site 06, n.d. 16 National Heritage Board, “Design of Tiong Bahru’s Post-War Flats”, Signboard at Tiong Bahru Heritage Trail Site 10, n.d. 4 THE PEDAGOGICAL CONTRIBUTIONS OF THE PERIPHERAL SPACES … 127

Fig. 4.9 Signage 06 and surrounding Streamline Moderne architecture visiting the heritage sites with the theme of architecture style in mind, rather than following their numerical sequence. The relative locations of the styles make comparison easy along roads such as Seng Poh Road, where different styles fank the road. One can even simultaneously compare other architectural styles visually; for example, between Streamline Moderne and Peranakan styles at the junction of Tiong Poh Road and Eng Hoon Street, and between Streamline Moderne and a nondescript utilitarian style fanking Yong Siak Street. Any information proffered by the various marking the heritage sites can then be imbibed in the context of architectural style, rather than read as stan- dalone pieces of information. The signboard for Heritage Site 10 at Lim Liak Street, which contains information about the International Style, states that the designers of the fats took seriously the heat and rain of the tropics. One might observe the fats around for features that are conducive to cooling shade in the tropical heat and shelter or food preventing features against heavy rain. 128 A. KWEK

Fig. 4.10 Signage 10 and surrounding international style architecture 4 THE PEDAGOGICAL CONTRIBUTIONS OF THE PERIPHERAL SPACES … 129

One could then construe information proffered by the Heritage Site 01 signboard near the other end of Lim Liak Street, at its junction with Seng Poh Street, in light of design features that are conducive to tropical living. One could also understand the “‘open development principle’ with open spaces such as grassy plots and playgrounds served by footpaths created between the blocks” to mimic the spaces that the residents of kampong houses would enjoy, for relaxation, as thoroughfares and for play.17 Furthermore, one could compare the almost makeshift zinc- roofed old Tiong Bahru Market from the photo available on the Site 01 signboard with the fats of the International Style and appreciate how the raised “fve-foot ways” serve to elevate walkways above rainwater fooding in a way that would have been impossible for the wares laid out on the open ground of the old market to avoid. One could then compare the information contained in the Site 10 signboard with the information contained in the Site 06 signboard. One may be surprised at how misleadingly titled the Site 06 signboard is (“The Architecture of Tiong Bahru”), given that it makes reference with ostensibly in situ justifcation to a distinctive architecture style that is dif- ferentiated from the “Design of Tiong Bahru’s Post-War Flats” referred to by the Site 10 signboard. Tiong Bahru does not have one but two distinctive architecture styles displayed by its fats. Continuing one’s exploration of the Streamline Moderne neighborhood, one may marvel at how the architecture style can be scaled up into the massive horseshoe block that the Site 09 signboard makes reference to, and how buildings of two completely different architectural styles, The Horse-Shoe Block and the Tiong Bahru Community Centre (marked by the signboard at Heritage Site 07) can similarly accommodate an air-raid shelter beneath each. Finally, at Heritage Site 06, one can speculate on whether the Dancing Girl Sculpture at Seng Poh Garden continues the vehicular inspiration that is shared by the two architectural styles: do the folds of her skirt resemble the fns of a jet engine? A gridded museum layout is conducive to knowledge creation as the visitor is free to visit and revisit displays in any order, and to make sense of the resultant order in their own way. There is no imposed sequence of visitation that refects a preconceived relation between the displays. Diverging from the effciency of spatially following the numbered

17 Ibid. 130 A. KWEK sequence of heritage sites on the trail, we can make sense of many of the sites in relation to architectural style. The discussion in this section shows how it can be done with certain sites as examples. Creating one’s knowledge from sites in a gridded layout has two benefts. First, the fact that one creates the knowledge by oneself gives ownership over the knowledge, and the ownership motivates the learner to fnd out more, or to make more connections. Second, the creation of links and the deriving of conclusions of one’s own walk of discovery serve to etch the details of the walk more deeply in one’s memory. In the next subsection, we consider another way of rationalizing the sites: by road names.

Road Names Another thematic grouping with which to visit the heritage sites is by road name. With the exception of Tiong Bahru Road and Outram Road, the roads in Tiong Bahru are named after notable Chinese businessmen in Singapore’s nineteenth-century history. The informative signboards at each of the numbered sites on the trail often have additional information about the person after whom the road at the site is named. In addition, there are informative signboards not belonging to the trail, which provide information on personalities behind road names. Table 4.3 summarizes information about the various heritage sites along the trail and about the personality after whom the road at which the heritage site is located was named (Fig. 4.11). In addition to the numbered trail sites, there are two informative signboards off the trail that also present extensive information about personalities after whom roads were named. One of the signboards presents the life of Tan Chay Yan, grandson of Tan Tock Seng, as the “frst rubber planter in Malaya”.18 It is found on the wall of one of the Streamline Moderne blocks along Chay Yan Street. The other signboard presents the life of Tan Kim Ching, the eldest son of Tan Tock Seng. He was a successful businessman, a leader of the Chinese community, appointed Justice of the Peace by the British, bestowed a second-rank imperial court title by the Ching emperor and was Siamese Consul-General.19 The road that bears his name in Tiong Bahru is Kim Cheng Street. Tan

18 National Heritage Board, “Tan Chay Yan: First Rubber Planter in Malaya”, Storyboard, 27 July 2014. 19 National Heritage Board, “Tan Kim Ching, J. P. (1829–1892)”, Storyboard, 27 July 2014. 4 THE PEDAGOGICAL CONTRIBUTIONS OF THE PERIPHERAL SPACES … 131

Table 4.3 Various heritage sites along the trail

No. Heritage site Road name described by site signboard

01 The Origin and Development of Tiong Tiong Bahru Bahru 02 Bird Corner & Former Hu Lu Temple Tiong Bahru Road and Seng Poh Road 03 Graves of Tan Tock Seng, Chua Seah Outram Road Neo & Wuing Neo 04 The Outram Precinct Outram Road 05 Monkey God Temple Eng Hoon Street, Sit Wah Road and Tiong Poh Road 06 The Architecture of Tiong Bahru Eng Watt Street, Sit Wah Road and Tiong Poh Road 07 Tiong Bahru Community Centre Eu Chin Street, Guan Chuan Street and Eng Watt Street 08 Seng Poh Garden & Dancing Girl Seng Poh Road and Moh Guan Terrace Sculpture 09 The Horse-Shoe Block Moh Guan Terrace and Guan Chuan Street 10 Design of Tiong Bahru’s Post-War Flats Lim Liak Street

Kim Cheng Road, though, is beyond the Tiong Bahru neighborhood, near the junction of Bukit Timah Road and Farrer Road. The signboard is located on the wall of Tiong Bahru Market and Food Centre, just beside the narrow Kim Cheng Street that runs along the wall. The other side of the street blocks of fats in the post-war International Style can be seen (Figs. 4.12 and 4.13). From the above summary alone, one can appreciate the history that one can learn by simply paying attention to the personalities after whom the streets are named. Should one take this approach, one could make connections between Heritage Site 03 (“Graves of Tan Tock Seng, Chua Seah Neo & Wuing Neo”), Chay Yan Street and Tan Kim Cheng Road, since these locations make in situ reference to names of members of the same family. Furthermore, one can appreciate the fact that the very existence of Site 03 was made possible by Tan Kim Cheng’s buying of the land on Outram Hill for family burial. Over and above the person after whom the street was named, some of the signboards at heritage sites give interesting details about the streets themselves. For example, the signboard at Site 04 (“The Outram Precinct”) tells us that Outram Road used to be known as River Valley Road, but that created confusion with a road of the same 132 A. KWEK

Fig. 4.11 Example of site marker signage with road name information 4 THE PEDAGOGICAL CONTRIBUTIONS OF THE PERIPHERAL SPACES … 133

Fig. 4.12 The informative signboard about Tan Chay Yan name that lay in a different river valley. We also learn about prominent buildings that used to be located along Outram Road. The signboard at Site 05 (“Monkey God Temple”) describes Eng Hoon Street as one of the earliest streets in Tiong Bahru to be developed, presents Sit Wah Road as the site of the “frst cluster of buildings to be constructed in Tiong Bahru”, a “row of three shophouses”, and the people who were responsible for these initial building projects. We learn also that Sit Wah Road and Eng Hoon Street “were once linked to each other and led to the Singapore General Hospital”.20 We can appreciate the difference in the current layout of the two roads, still linked together, but now separated from the Singapore General Hospital by the Central Expressway.

20 National Heritage Board, “Monkey God Temple”, Signboard at Tiong Bahru Heritage Trail Site 05, n.d. 134 A. KWEK

Fig. 4.13 The informative signboard about Tan Kim Cheng

Another example of a signboard describing roads, rather than just the person with whom it shares its name, is the signboard at Heritage Site 02 (“Bird Corner & Former Hu Lu Temple”). From the signboard at Heritage Site 01 (“The Origin and Development of Tiong Bahru”), we already learn the meaning of “Tiong Bahru”. Here, we learn that Tiong Bahru Road “ran through a large Chinese cemetery that stretched all the way to Leng Kee Road”.21 Finally, while we learn from the signboard at Heritage Site 08 (“Seng Poh Garden & Dancing Girl Sculpture”) about the person that Seng Poh Road is named after, it is at the signboard at Heritage Site 01 where we discover that on the current site of the Tiong Bahru Market and Food Centre once stood the Seng Poh Road Market, which took the place of the frst market in the Tiong Bahru neighborhood, at Tiong Poh Road. While the Tiong Bahru and Food Centre and the Seng Poh Road Market occupy the same plot of land at the corner

21 National Heritage Board, “Bird Corner & Former Hu Lu Temple”, Signboard at Tiong Bahru Heritage Trail Site 02, n.d. 4 THE PEDAGOGICAL CONTRIBUTIONS OF THE PERIPHERAL SPACES … 135 of Seng Poh Road and Lim Liak Street, they are worlds apart. We can observe from the photographs on the signboard at Site 01 the rudimen- tary zinc-roofed structure and the disorganized laying of wares by hawkers on the ground that was Seng Poh Market, and compare this image with the clean, well-lit and well-ventilated two-storey building with a rooftop carpark before us.

Conclusion By way of concluding this study, we summarize how the 14th Century Walk at Fort Canning and the Tiong Bahru Heritage Trail, in exempli- fying a sequential layout and a gridded layout, respectively, can fail to contribute pedagogically to conveying their historical information. Finally, we return to the more general topic of the peripheral spaces of walks and show how the study was made possible only by attending to the spaces from which displays and vantages are presented; spaces that are peripheral and overlooked when dominated by the spaces containing the objects of presentation.

The Pedagogical Pitfalls of Sequential Layouts Sequential layouts are pedagogically useful when the order of displays mirror some conceptual order between the information presented at the different displays. This can be chronological, processual or hierarchical. There are two ways in which the spatial sequence of displays can serve to thwart pedagogical goals. The frst way is where the spatial sequence is reversed in the conceptual sequence; for example, in a sequential layout that whose direction of visitor travel corresponds to the movement from earlier to later in a chronology, unjustifed reversals in the chronological sequence can serve to confuse the visitor. The second way is where an item in an explicitly sequential layout exhibits no conceptual continuity with the previous item in the sequence and there are no alternative jus- tifcations for its inclusion at that point in the sequence. Such inclusions can also serve to confuse a visitor expecting a reason for including something at a certain point in a sequence. A sequential layout does not mandate that every item contains information that can be sequentially rationalized, but it does require that information that cannot be sequentially rationalized has its presence at that point in the sequence rationalized in some other way. In our 136 A. KWEK discussion, we explored two forms of rationalization: frst, breaks in the spatial order, exemplifed by rest stops and gathering spaces, can indicate the start of a new sequence at the next display, thus obviating the need for it to be sequentially rationalized; second, a display that bears no sequential rationalization to the previous display in the sequence can have in situ justifcation because that spatial position is, or was, precisely where the referent of the information is found. In designing walks in which the sequential layout is explicit, care should be taken to ensure that the spatial sequence is rationalized by the information presented by the displays.

The Pedagogical Pitfalls of Gridded Layouts Gridded layouts are pedagogically useful when the scatter of displays allow a visitor to construct their own knowledge vis-à-vis the displays and the in situ justifed information provided about them. Because the knowledge is constructed by the visitor, their ownership of the knowledge motivates them to discover more and inscribes the learning more deeply in their memory. There are two potential problems that a gridded layout presents and which can distract a visitor from concertedly pursu- ing one line of knowledge construction: competing sequential themes and competing objects of interest. The frst problem is that of conficting sequential themes. The designer of a walk in which many, if not all, of the signifcant items on the walk have in situ justifcation may want to specify a sequence of visitation for the visitor so that the visitor effciently covers all the notable sites in the shortest distance. The items that are in the stipulated spatial sequence do not have any systematic conceptual relations that are mirrored by the sequence. As such, the visitor does not beneft from the spatial reiteration of such a sequence. Treating the trail experience as one of ticking off a checklist of notable sites to visit, the visitor could end the walk with a completed mental checklist of sites and the corresponding photographs, but little retained knowledge. The second is that of competing objects of interest. The Tiong Bahru neighborhood is replete with quaint bookstores, coffee shops, cafés, bak- eries and restaurants. Examples of quaint bookstores include The French Bookshop along Tiong Bahru Road, which specializes in the French books niche market, and Books Actually along Yong Siak Street, an independent 4 THE PEDAGOGICAL CONTRIBUTIONS OF THE PERIPHERAL SPACES … 137 bookstore that specializes in literature and poetry. Strangelets, a few doors away, tempts one away from the heritage trail with interesting knick-knacks for sale. Hua Bee at Moh Guan Terrace is the traditional coffee shop where Eric Khoo’s classic flm Mee Pok Man was flmed. One can stop to savor the offerings of the famous P. S. Café Petit along Guan Chuan Street, or the Nonya kuehs (confectionaries) from Galicier Pastry along Tiong Bahru Road. At Tiong Bahru Market and Food Centre there is a smorgasbord of delectable local hawker fare, some of which were the same stalls that operated at the Seng Poh Road Wet Market that stood on the same site. One can seriously pursue a food-themed exploration of local fare here, relin- quishing one’s prior pursuit of less gastronomic knowledge. Finally, if one walked the heritage trail in the evening, venerable Chinese restaurants such as the Por Kee Eating House and the Golden Spoon Restaurant at either end of Seng Poh Lane beckon the dinner-hungry visitor away from the heritage trail. Without a strong conceptual sequence justifying an explicitly designed spatial sequence, the mindboggling variety of distractions intermingled with the heritage trail sites threaten to distract the casual visitor from the knowledge that the trail can impart.

The Peripheral Spaces of Walks It is unsurprising that the spaces of walks are frequently overlooked as a signifcant pedagogical contributor to the walker. What is of perceptual and cognitive interest to the visitor is not the space in which they walk but, rather, the objects contained in the spaces that are presented along their walking space. Yet, a visitor to a historical walk or a heritage trail can have their learning experience enhanced by attention to the spatial and conceptual organization relevant to the space in which the walking occurs: conceptual sequences mirrored by spatial sequence reit- erate the conceptual relationships; exploration in unstructured layouts engender knowledge construction with the attendant benefts of ownership over the knowledge. In this exploratory study, we applied layout types and features from the area of museum design to an analysis of the pedagogical contributions of two walks in Singapore, Fort Canning’s 14th Century Walk and the Tiong Bahru Heritage Trail. The discussions about the two walks correspond to a discussion about a sequential layout and a gridded layout, respectively. We acquire pedagogical insights about these ways of organizing peripheral walk spaces in the process. 138 A. KWEK

References Krathwohl, David R. “A Revision of Bloom’s Taxonomy: An Overview”,. Theory into Practice 41(4) (2002): 212–218. National Heritage Board. “Bird Corner & Former Hu Lu Temple”, Signboard at Tiong Bahru Heritage Trail Site 02, n.d. ———. “Design of Tiong Bahru’s Post-War Flats”, Signboard at Tiong Bahru Heritage Trail Site 10, n.d. ———. “Monkey God Temple”, Signboard at Tiong Bahru Heritage Trail Site 05, n.d. ———. “Tan Chay Yan: First Rubber Planter in Malaya”, Storyboard, 27 July 2014. ———. “Tan Kim Ching, J. P. (1829–1892)”, Storyboard, 27 July 2014. ———. “The Architecture of Tiong Bahru”, Signboard at Tiong Bahru Heritage Trail Site 06, n.d. National Parks Board. “14th Century Gold Ornaments”, Fort Canning 14th Century Walk H7 Site Signboard, n.d. ———. “A Guide to Singapore’s Ancient History Walking Trail at Fort Canning Park”, Accessed 6 March 2017, https://www.nparks.gov.sg/~/media/ nparks-real-content/learning/learning-journeys/guided-walks/diy-guided- walks/revisiting-history/diy-trail-guide–singapores-ancient-history-walking- trail.pdf?la en. = ———. “The Forbidden Spring”, Fort Canning 14th Century Walk H18 Site Signboard, n.d. ———. “The Royal Palace”, Fort Canning 14th Century Walk H10 Site Signboard, n.d. ———. “The Strongman of 14th Century Singapore”, Fort Canning 14th Century Walk H17 Site Signboard, n.d. Peponis, John, and Hedin, Jenny. ‘The Layout of Theories in the Natural History Museum’. 9H, no. 3 (1982): 21–25. Tzortzi, Kali. “Museum Building Design and Exhibition Layout”, Proceedings, 6th International Space Syntax Symposium, Istanbul, 2007. ———. “Spatial Concepts in Museum Theory and Practice”, Proceedings of the 10th International Space Syntax Symposium, 2015. CHAPTER 5

Peripheral Land No More? Fetishisms of Space and Case Studies of the Green Rail Corridor and Clementi Forest

Introduction, Literature Review and Conceptual Framework This is the frst chapter of this volume that ventures outside the developed Civic District and the Tiong Bahru public housing area into peripheral spaces and disused industrial infrastructure located near patches of secondary forest. The Green Rail Corridor and the Clementi Forest are the quintessential spaces to discuss and through which to examine Henri Lefebvre’s ideas, found in his seminal work The Urban Revolution. Lefebvre presents an interesting idea that overturned notions of urbanization, which is a deterministic process where humans craft and shape nature to the extent that it is no longer recognizable and land use becomes functional and productive with economic value. But Lefebvre deconstructs this idea and replaces it with what he calls the “fetishism of nature”, a more sophisticated way of conceptualizing change. The “fetishism of nature” is dilemmatic, dialectical and contradictory because urbanization constrains nature; however, this limitation of nature is iron- ically matched by a human obsession with urban landscaping of parks and green corridors.1 Humans desire, fetishize and yearn for “nature” when their activities reduce green spaces and make nature a rare

1 Lefebvre, Henri, The Urban Revolution (Minneapolis and London: University of Minnesota Press), 2003, p. xv.

© The Author(s) 2017 139 T.W. Lim, Cultural Heritage and Peripheral Spaces in Singapore, DOI 10.1007/978-981-10-4747-3_5 140 T.W. Lim commodity in an urban landscape. This concept applies to the chapter’s case study of the Clementi Forest in Singapore. The Clementi Forest was originally part of a rubber plantation. In the colonial period, rubber plantations in the Malayan Peninsula were colonized by planters serving the world commodity market and British Malaya was the global leading supplier of rubber and tin. The plantation spaces had strong productive value and, as a tropical plantation, commercial crops co-existed with nature (including secondary forests). During the British colonial period, parts of the Clementi Forest that were once rubber plantation and other plantation spaces in Malaysia and Singapore conformed to Lefebvre’s idea of industrial capitalism, a core–periphery perspective where colonial spaces fed the industrialized world’s demand for raw materials used for mass manufacturing. Parts of the Clementi Forest have evolved from a rubber plantation to be a site for railway tracks and a green rail corridor, and now comprise the subject of a new exciting plan for redevelopment. These former and evolving multiple identities makes it an interesting study. In the British Malayan colonial context, its function as a rubber plantation in the past is a stereotypical example of the commodity periphery in a global mass production network. In the post-war years, urbanization and the reclamation of nature saw the co-existence of a traditional Malaysian/Singaporean kampong village setting and a boys’ town (remand school for troubled youths) located on the fringes of the Clementi Forest. The original rubber planter owner did not return after World War II to reclaim his land and the Clementi Forest remained untouched for the ffty years, with the Malayan Railway running through it. In the post-war years, the kampong villages here co- existed with nature (secondary forests) and beasts (leopard cats, estuary crocodiles and so on). Individuals had access to the Forest and wildlife wandered into the villages. Some residents of Clementi Road ventured freely into the Forest to catch fsh, while the Singapore–Malaysian railway ran through its interior. In other words, the space was penetrated freely by Man represented by the local residents and the land just outside the Forest generated productive value as small-scale orchid farms, guava plantations, chicken farms and so on. Before World War II, rubber plantation spaces, including the former rubber plantation in Clementi Forest, were part of a global economic production network through which rubber was used to make tires. When the Clementi Forest ceased to be a rubber plantation, subsistence farming and small-scale commercial crops such as the fowers grown in the nurseries took over. 5 PERIPHERAL LAND NO MORE? FETISHISMS OF SPACE … 141

By chance, the author met a long-time resident of the area at the end of a hike. He recollected that, in the immediate post-war period, the village community along Clementi Road had its own provision shop, Taoist temple, local shrines and a bus system that connected them to urbanized areas in nearby Bukit Timah. Bukit Timah was linked to the transportation arteries that led to downtown Singapore and facilities such as schools along Bukit Timah Road. In Lefebvre’s terms, this resembles a transition from a plantation economy to what he calls an “agricultural town”2 with small-scale agricultural producers who are connected to the metropolis or the large city. In this case, Clementi Road village was connected by a single bus system to the more developed Bukit Timah area. The Clementi area as a whole has since been transformed through systematic and well-planned urbanization. The area now hosts a number of educational institutions, and public and private residential areas. The productive value of the area has increased. The Clement Road areas close to Clementi Forest have also been developed with tertiary institutions and housing estates in Sunset Way and Ulu Pandan, as well as Clementi town. Currently, the areas bordering the Clementi Forest are used productively for the much-needed road widening projects to ease heavy rush-hour traffc. Green spaces were built in the area even before such road widening projects began, creating an optimal green environment for the residents living in the area; for example, at Clementi Neighbourhood Park. A community garden is also located near the Park. Both the Clementi Neighbourhood Park and the community garden are close to the Ulu Pandan River park connector (which will eventually be connected with a nationwide park connector). These crafted green spaces signify how human stakeholders are concerned with bringing greenery back to their communities for healthier and more aesthetically pleasing lifestyles (the Lefebvrian “fetish”). A consequence of this outcome is the author’s ability to spot natural creatures venturing and migrating into these high-quality man-made green spaces, including large monitor lizards, kingfshers, green pigeons, large spiders, egrets, various kinds of snail, frogs, semi-chameleonic changeable lizards (calotes versicolor) and wild stray cats.

2 Lefebvre, Henri, The Urban Revolution (Minneapolis and London: University of Minnesota Press), 2003, p. 4. 142 T.W. Lim

Critics who criticize Lefebvre’s spatial concepts as overly romantic overlook the point that space is an “ideological construction”.3 They may be unaware that, besides human existence, other living creatures share the same urban space as well. These critics may be overly conceited and arrogant in assuming only humans master and use these spaces. Animals, too, are guided by rationality. If crafted green spaces such as parks, community gardens and green corridors are made to resemble natural spaces, they can also attract wildlife from the Forest to live in them, supplying food and shelter for these creatures. Then it can be implied that spaces are not merely “constructs”, since they can attract animals which do not have the same cognitive reasoning or ideological affliations as humans do. It is not a form of constructed and imagined utopianism when animals migrate based on rational evolutionary needs and basic survival instincts.

Significance of the Clementi Forest and Henri Lefebvre’s Ideas Henri Lefebvre pointed out the loss of autonomy of agriculture production because crops now feed a global production network managed by the developed economies of the world.4 This applies to commodities as well. British Malaya supplied most of the world’s natural rubber (in fact, this was the only rubber available until artifcial rubber or hybrid vulcanized rubber became available) for most of the twentieth century. The historical background of the Clementi Forest as a rubber plantation from the 1920s to the 1940s is only a small fraction of this global rubber trade. The other signifcance of the Clementi Forest space is the fact that another economic historical heritage, the Singapore–Malaysia railway line, used to run through the Forest carrying goods such as rubber and tin to Singapore to be subsequently shipped to other locations in the world. The Clementi Forest space contributed in a small way to industrialization and global industrial capitalism. In post-independent Singapore’s history (i.e. post-1965), a trunk line known as the Jurong Railway was connected to the main Singapore–Malaysia Keretapi Tanah Melayu (KTM)

3 Lefebvre, Henri, The Urban Revolution (Minneapolis and London: University of Minnesota Press), 2003, p. xvi. 4 Lefebvre, Henri, The Urban Revolution (Minneapolis and London: University of Minnesota Press), 2003, p. 3. 5 PERIPHERAL LAND NO MORE? FETISHISMS OF SPACE … 143 line which served the Jurong Industrial Park, the very frst industrial park started by then Deputy Prime Minister Goh Keng Swee who kick-started Singapore’s rapid industrialization. This railway eventually ceased operation in the 1990s, when superseded by faster and cheaper forms of vehicular transportation. Singapore’s industrialization eventually turned the city into one of the four dynamic tiger economies of East Asia and it became a frst-tier global urban city. In the era of modernization theories, there was a tendency towards what Lefebvre calls “the complete urbanization of the world”—a notion that does not equate with the complete disappearance of rural areas and the triumph of urban areas but, however, one that implies strong motivation for, or a tendency towards, that eventual goal.5 Given Singapore’s rapid economic development, increase in population size and multiple pressures for urban infrastructure, the motivation for complete urbanization would have been a possible reality but enlightened government policies also realize the value and effectiveness of environmental sustainability. There were concerted efforts by the authorities to construct a Garden City. Besides keeping green spaces that are aesthetically beautiful, the authorities and the scientifc community also strove to have a clean, sustainable environment. Ulu Pandan has a research station that studies microbes which can break down waste naturally and installed water fltration facilities that remove industrial pollutants. The fltration and anti-pollutant facilities are located in a park connector green space. The presence of these facilities implies policy choices and residential preferences that are in favor of more greenery, lifestyle choices and a cleaner environment for the community. Lefebvre argues that, with rapid urbanization, while nature is “the- oretically” shrinking, “signs of nature and the natural are multiplying, replacing and supplanting real ‘nature’”.6 Symbols and signs that objectify nature are promoted and replicated in commercial advertising, corporate social responsibility campaigns, manufactured products designs, infrastructural development in green spaces and so on. In other words, while nature is degraded and downsized, its symbolic

5 Lefebvre, Henri, The Urban Revolution (Minneapolis and London: University of Minnesota Press), 2003, p. xxii. 6 Lefebvre, Henri, The Urban Revolution (Minneapolis and London: University of Minnesota Press), 2003, p. 27. 144 T.W. Lim value is upsized, promoted and multiplied. The reproduction of nature addresses the issue of scarcity of nature. Scarcity is based on the idea that nature has downsized and become limited so the natural instinct is to re-introduce its commodifed form. This re-introduced nature may be a downgraded version of the original, but it is also pervasive at the same time. In the public parks and park corridors, signs of green awareness (public signs that says ‘Do not litter’), lifestyle choices (exercising in park spaces as part of healthy lifestyle) and green corridors integrated into urban planning designs are all symbolic of the replication of “nature” in non-tangible forms. The reproduction of natural spaces for the resident communities can also be found in Ulu Pandan and Clementi Road through green corridors and park connectors. The areas along Clementi Road and beside Clementi Forest were historically the site of traditional kampong villages. With urbanization and development, these areas are now connected spatially nationwide through the green spaces of the park corridors. While larger carnivorous creatures originally found in the kampongs and the nearby forest such as leopard cats, estuary crocodiles and civet cats are no longer common or in existence, other creatures such as monitor lizards, snails, smaller birds such as the sunbird, common butterfies and migratory birds such as egrets and herons have taken their place in the public parks and park corridors. They adapt to the new natural environment and take the place of the larger mammals and reptiles that used to live in near the kampongs and the Forest. The occupation of urban spaces by nature occurs but involves a different set of creatures that can adapt to the new environment.

Historical Background of the Clementi Forest The Clementi Forest is technically made up of abandoned plantation lands that were left to regenerate and were eventually claimed by enough vegetation to become a secondary forest. The Forest land lies between the former Singapore–Malaysian Railway KTM line and Clementi Road that runs from the East–West MRT line to King Albert Park. The vascular plant study report by Neo, Yee, Chong and Tan from the Department of Biological Sciences at the National University of Singapore defned the Clementi Forest as “abandoned plantations” that occupy the space between Clementi Road and the now defunct KTM railway line in Singapore. It is also bounded on the north by King Albert Park and on the south by Holland 5 PERIPHERAL LAND NO MORE? FETISHISMS OF SPACE … 145

Fig. 5.1 The lush green canopy of the Clementi Forest. Flocks of birds fy over this area in the late afternoon and evening. The Clementi Forest has witnessed thunderstorms and a variety of man-made events, including the smoke particles that were blown into Singapore from forest fres in the region. Photo taken in October 2015

Road, having a total land mass of 37.5 ha.7 The reason why it is classifed as an abandoned plantation is because it was part of a rubber plantation that existed from the 1920s to the 1940s but was untouched during World War II and not subsequently re-cultivated (Fig. 5.1).8

7 Neo, Louise, Alex T.K. Yee, K.Y. Chong and Hugh T.W. Tan, “The Vascular Plant Flora of Abandoned Plantations in Singapore I: Clementi Forest”, 17 October 2012, Nature in Singapore 2012, 5 (Singapore: NUS), 2012, p. 275. 8 Neo, Louise, Alex T.K. Yee, K.Y. Chong and Hugh T.W. Tan, “The Vascular Plant Flora of Abandoned Plantations in Singapore I: Clementi Forest”, 17 October 2012, Nature in Singapore 2012, 5 (Singapore: NUS), 2012, p. 275. 146 T.W. Lim

Nearer the Ulu Pandan area, there is information found in the news media that guava plantations used to exist on the fringes of Clementi Forest. A railway branch line known as the Jurong Railway goes through that same area in Ulu Pandan, plying the route between the Jurong industrial park and southern Malaysia and Singapore’s coastal areas. A freshwater river runs through Ulu Pandan (parallel to a major road that cuts from Ulu Pandan to Holland Village) and is part of Singapore’s water supply. A water treatment plant here removes the smell from the freshwater river so that residents here can enjoy clean and odor-free air. Clementi New Town has become a mature housing estate. Beyond the public housing areas, Ulu Pandan River also cuts the Clementi Forest into two sections, if one defnes the southern boundaries of the Forest along Holland Road. One section runs from King Albert Park to the Ulu Pandan park connector. A further small patch of secondary forest runs from the Ulu Pandan park connector to a major road that connects Buona Vista to Dover and Clementi Road. At one end of this forest patch, new public housing estates are under construction, next to secondary forest tree canopies. The silhouettes of the tree canopies are visible at night because the forested areas at Dover are dark and unlit by street lamps, unlike the well-lit, developed public housing areas. The Dover section of the secondary forest is currently being developed with ongoing public housing projects under construction and a pre-tertiary school facility expanding in that area. This forest is best viewed form the elevated MRT platform level as it runs along Buona Vista and Dover at the southwestern end of the Clementi Forest. Nearer to the northern end of the Clementi Forest area, an old eatery operated in the Clementi Road area as a family business and some of the family’s older members have lived in this area for ffty years. The site used to be a chicken farm started by the progenitor of the family before they began operating a restaurant in the area in 1942. This family rented the plot of land (where the restaurant currently stands) from its landlord. The restaurant operates subject to the landlord’s intention and the authorities’ future plans for the area. The restaurant sits on a green belt that cannot be used for urban development at the present moment. A nearby site was formerly a boys’ town known as Gimson Boys’ Town or Gimson School. Even though the Forest itself used to be an abandoned rubber plantation, its periphery was very much inhabited. Therefore, as early as 1947, a boys’ town was located here. Older residents recall the presence of an orchid farm in Clementi Road. The farm no longer exists and some individuals related to the previous farm operators have become 5 PERIPHERAL LAND NO MORE? FETISHISMS OF SPACE … 147 owners of a forist shop and nurseries nearby. Older residents also recall fshponds that ran along Clementi Road all the way up to the current site of National University of Singapore at Kent Ridge. They recalled that farming was phased out in the 1970s and early 1980s. According to the elderly residents who lived here, in the location currently occupied by the Children’s Aid Society there was a provision shop (in local parlance known as a “Mama shop”, also spelt “mamak”) operated by an Indian shopkeeper from whom villagers from the local community purchased their daily necessities. Across the road from the “Mama shop”, before reaching present-day King Albert Park, elderly residents in the area recalled an old lady who looked after a small Taoist temple for worshippers in the local community. They also remembered that, moving further up in the direction of Ngee Ann Polytechnic where its running track is currently situated, the site used to be a Chinese cemetery. Beyond this Taoist temple, which was located in the present-day King Albert Park, older residents used to see people bringing domesticated elephants to feed on vegetation found in that area. Besides this Taoist temple, the long-time residents in the area highlighted the existence of another small Datuk Gong temple in a location that is now part of Maju Camp. This Datuk Gong shrine was eventually shifted down a slope to a restaurant at Clementi Road. The idol is now housed in a small shrine in a corner of the restaurant. In the present-day setting, a small proprietor in this area whose family members are Thai Buddhists prays to a variety of Buddhist and Taoist gods. An elderly resident recalled that, in the past, venturing out of the kampong village settings required taking a bus (there was only one service) to Bukit Timah, where they could change bus services to reach the other parts of Singapore or Malaysia. Rich in wildlife, a long-time resident claimed to have seen monkeys, snakes, estuary crocodiles and the common palm civet (known as “musang” in Malay) in the villages next to Clementi Forest. According to the National Parks of Singapore, the common palm civet is a nocturnal creature that con- sumes fshtail palm fruits, rain tree seeds, mangoes, bananas and buah chi- kus, in addition to small animals.9 But the most exotic animal that he saw in the 1960s was the leopard cat. The National Library Board’s Singapore Infopedia database has a brief description of this creature:

9 National Parks, “Civets”, 30 December 2014, National Parks website [downloaded on 14 October 2015], available at https://www.nparks.gov.sg/gardens-parks-and-nature/ dos-and-donts/animal-advisories/civets. 148 T.W. Lim

The Leopard Cat is a small, carnivorous mammal that looks like a domestic cat with a leopard-like coat. It is widely distributed in various parts of Asia but is considered a rare animal in Singapore, where it is believed to be the only remaining wild cat. It is classifed as “critically endangered” in the 2008 edition of The Singapore Red Data Book, which describes the locally threatened fora and fauna.10

A leopard cat seen in this area by a long-time resident in the 1970s was accidentally knocked down by a car somewhere near the present-day Clementi Park and died on the spot. Interestingly, he recalled the existence of a small zoo-like residence in this area owned by a Russian man. Amongst the animals that he kept was a gorilla! It appears the area round Clementi Forest was not only a habitat for a wide variety of wildlife and vascular plants, but was also home to some exotic kept animals such as elephants and a gorilla not native to this part of the world.

Observation Study To understand the space and topography of the Forest, the author ventured into different sections of the Clementi Forest on several hiking trips. The Clementi Forest was one of the most fascinating research sites that he visited in terms of unused peripheral spaces. The author hiked through the Forest three times along the Green Rail Corridor track, made three nighttime treks and also made a trip to examine the aquatic life in the Forest, including a trip to the freshwater environment of the Clementi Forest on 18 June 2015. Much of the author’s trips into the Forest were sheltered by rainforest tree canopies. The trees’ slender trunks and branches were visible reaching upwards to the sun. Some of them hosted parasitic creepers climbing up their tree trunks, eventually some tree hosts will be strangled by their creepers. On clear days, one can see the sun’s rays penetrating through the clouds and shining down on the Clementi Forest. A trail that used to be part of the Green Rail Corridor runs through the interior of the Clementi Forest. On 18 June 2015, the author left the beaten track and made a path through the elephant grass in the patch opposite Ngee Ann Polytechnic to take photos of tree canopies within the Forest. He was able to take

10 Singapore Infopedia, “Leopard cat”, 2009, Singapore Infopedia National Library Board website [downloaded on 14 October 2015], available at http://eresources.nlb.gov. sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_1508_2009-04-20.html. 5 PERIPHERAL LAND NO MORE? FETISHISMS OF SPACE … 149 close-up shots of some of the tallest tree canopies. Starting on muddy terrain near the interface between the Forest and man-made infrastructure, the author walked into comparatively wilder parts of the Forest, negotiating natural obstructions in the Forest, such as a fallen log. In this section of the Forest there are no trails to walk along; the grasses (including elephant and lalang grasses) had grown knee- and even hip- high. Walking through the tall grasses, the author relied on a view of the skies and the forest tree canopies to reach his destination at the freshwater pond. With the water supply coming from a viaduct located across the road from Ngee Ann Polytechnic, a pond leads to a stream which runs through a concrete waterway towards the Bukit Timah area. The concrete drainage viaduct was the largest man-made object near the pond and directs the water stream to the drainage system in Bukit Timah. The freshwater pond was covered with wild water-lilies during the author’s visit in June 2015. Wild hydrilla plants proliferate in this nutrient- rich and sunlight-exposed freshwater pond in the Forest. The pond is surrounded by lalang grasses. This pond has existed for some time, according to a resident who lived near Bukit Timah for more than ffty years. He and other neighborhood children used to catch fsh in this pond when they were young. Wild water-lilies grew out of the nutrient-rich muddy waters and rose above the lily pads that co-exist with hydrilla plants. In this pond, the author came across abundant common or green mollies. These are an introduced hardy species native to Central and South America and are omnivores that feed on plant matter as well as worms.11 According to the US Geological Survey, the Poecilia sphenops (also known as the Mexican Molly in North America and the lib- erty molly) can be found in the Salt River’s convergence with the Gila River of Arizona, the Salton Sea area, the Santa Ana River in California, parts of Florida, the Ruby River in Montana, Lake Mead, Las Vegas Wah and other river drainage systems.12 The Clementi Forest species is a localized short-fn version of its original South American cousin. How they were introduced from Central and South America to Singapore

11 Ecology Asia, “Common Molly (introduced)”, EcologyAsia website [downloaded on 18 June 2015], available at http://www.ecologyasia.com/verts/fshes/common-molly.htm. 12 Nico, Leo, Pamela J. Schofeld, Matt Neilson and Bill Loftus, “Poecilia sphenops Valenciennes in Cuvier and Valenciennes, 1846”, 17 June 2015, US Department of the Interior US Geological Survey (USGS) website [downloaded on 22 June 2015], available at http://nas.er.usgs.gov/queries/factsheet.aspx?SpeciesID 864. = 150 T.W. Lim remains unknown. It is a good example of how nature reclaims its place through its own means. Foreign invasive species are given the mandate to thrive in an environment as long as they prove adaptable to the Clementi Forest’s evolving use by the authorities and local residents. Mollies are known to be a popular feed for fsh farms breeding larger tropical home aquarium fsh as well as fsh destined for the marketplace and human consumption. These are hardy fsh, able to survive in arduous conditions that would have killed other tropical fsh, including brackish water, streams with unpredictable tides and bodies of water that receive rain from tropical thunderstorm. As introduced species, they caused substantial havoc to the US aquatic eco-systems, endangering the US dace and springfsh.13 Its impact on the Singaporean aquatic eco- system is unknown. In Singapore’s local parlance, they are also known as longkauhe in the Hokkien language (drainage fsh), a generic label used to describe all wild fsh (especially wild mollies and guppies) found in Singapore’s drainage and canal systems. The National University of Singapore Raffes Museum of Biodiversity Research and Singapore Science Centre, quoting the study of these fsh by Kelvin Lim and Jeffrey Low, describes the poecilia sphenops (LeSueur) as a “green molly” with the anal fn evolved into a gonopodium, 14 a fexible projection through which the male fsh injects sperm into the female’s genital pore during the breeding season.15 The eggs hatch inside the female fsh which then gives birth to live young.16

13 Nico, Leo, Pamela J. Schofeld, Matt Neilson and Bill Loftus, “Poecilia sphenops Valenciennes in Cuvier and Valenciennes, 1846”, 17 June 2015, US Department of the Interior US Geological Survey (USGS) website [downloaded on 22 June 2015], available at http://nas.er.usgs.gov/queries/factsheet.aspx?SpeciesID 864. = 14 Lim, Kelvin K.P. and Jeffrey Y.K. Low, “Green Molly”, undated, Habitat News website [downloaded on 22 June 2015] (Singapore: National University of Singapore (NUS) Raffes Museum of Biodiversity Research and Singapore Science Centre), available at http://habitatnews.nus.edu.sg/guidebooks/marinefsh/text/245.htm.

15 Lim, Kelvin K.P. and Jeffrey Y.K. Low, “Some fshy trivia”, undated, Habitat News website [downloaded on 22 June 2015] (Singapore: National University of Singapore (NUS) Raffes Museum of Biodiversity Research and Singapore Science Centre), available at http://habitatnews.nus.edu.sg/guidebooks/marinefsh/text/107.htm. 16 Lim, Kelvin K.P. and Jeffrey Y.K. Low, “Some fshy trivia”, undated, Habitat News website [downloaded on 22 June 2015] (Singapore: National University of Singapore (NUS) Raffes Museum of Biodiversity Research and Singapore Science Centre), available at http://habitatnews.nus.edu.sg/guidebooks/marinefsh/text/107.htm. 5 PERIPHERAL LAND NO MORE? FETISHISMS OF SPACE … 151

The color of the fsh in Singapore is identifed as varying between green- ish, blackish and marbled colors options and it is said to be a surface dweller,17 although the author spotted this fsh scavenging through submerged mud in oxygenated water. The author caught some of these fsh for observation and reared them in a fsh tank. Under controlled conditions, he observed the fsh moving towards light sources and hiding quickly when there was sound or when shadows blocked the light source. The author fed the mollies with tiny shrimps but they are more attracted to plant matter and faky feeds, preferring to swim near the hydrillas and plant matter. There is a contrast in water quality and chlo- rine level between the tap water introduced into the author’s aquarium and the original muddy water conditions of the Clementi Forest pond. Therefore, the author had to de-chlorinate the water frst before adding the fsh into the tank. Once in the tank, a pair of molly fsh, including a pregnant female, preferred to hide behind the hydrilla plants. They were also sometimes bottom feeders, scavenging the bottom mud for food. Their translucent bodies blended in with the environment.

Plant Life In addition to aquatic creatures, “The Vascular Plant Flora of Abandoned Plantations in Singapore I: Clementi Forest” refers to 98 species of vascular plants from 54 families were recorded: 53 native species, 43 exotic and two cryptogenic.18 Some were formerly thought to be extinct.19 The author still managed to see ample plant life inside and along the periphery of the forest. Near the Green Rail Corridor section of the Forest, the author spotted the red banana plant native to the tropics growing under the cover of secondary forest canopies.

17 Lim, Kelvin K.P. and Jeffrey Y.K. Low, “Green Molly”, undated, Habitat News website [downloaded on 22 June 2015] (Singapore: National University of Singapore (NUS) Raffes Museum of Biodiversity Research and Singapore Science Centre), available at http://habitatnews.nus.edu.sg/guidebooks/marinefsh/text/245.htm. 18 Neo, Louise, Alex T.K. Yee, K.Y. Chong and Hugh T.W. Tan, “The Vascular Plant Flora of Abandoned Plantations in Singapore I: Clementi Forest”, 17 October 2012, Nature in Singapore 2012, 5 (Singapore: NUS), 2012, pp. 275–283. 19 Neo, Louise, Alex T.K. Yee, K.Y. Chong and Hugh T.W. Tan, “The Vascular Plant Flora of Abandoned Plantations in Singapore I: Clementi Forest”, 17 October 2012, Nature in Singapore 2012, 5 (Singapore: NUS), 2012, pp. 275–283. 152 T.W. Lim

Around the boundaries of the Forest, moist fertilized soil laid down by the authorities for the cultivation of cow grass at the roadside kerbs often sprouted parasol or puffball mushrooms. They belonged to the white- colored lepiota family of mushrooms that are found in both Europe and tropical countries, and which are mostly toxic. Walking through what used to be the squatter farms located at the periphery of the Jurong Railway, the author spotted trees that were formerly cultivated in plantations in the area but are now abandoned and left to grow wild. These trees produced fruits such as mangoes and guavas. Some of them continue to be cultivated in community gardens found near Clementi Park. Clementi Neighbourhood Park is one of the green spaces found along Clementi Road built for nearby Sunset Way and Ulu Pandan residents for the purpose of exercising in the fresh air. Old banyan trees grow at the periphery of the Forests near Clementi Neighbourhood Park that seem to be decades old; at least one had to make way for the road-widening scheme which was required to ease traffc conditions. In this park and its surroundings at the Ulu Pandan periphery of the Forest, fower pods exploded spreading their seeds far and wide. Flower pods in their unexploded state are often mistaken for fruits.

Birds and Flying Insects A number of birds and fying insects such as butterfies can be spotted fying out of the Clementi Forest, particularly during the evening. White- collared kingfshers can be seen, some of whom resided in the Clementi Neighbourhood Park area, asserting ownership of the area with their characteristic calls. Unidentifed butterfies are often found resting on the leaves at the Ulu Pandan edge of the Forest. Some of these butterfies are so comfortable with the quiet environment at the edge of the Forest that they rest on gravel paths. The author has recorded sightings of yellow sunbirds well-camoufaged in the trees and the double-bladed crimson dragonfy resting on grass by the edge of the Clementi Forest. At the outskirts of the Forest near the Clementi Neighbourhood Park area, various species of snail are active nocturnally.

Community Life and Urban Development Along the Clementi Road, opposite the Forest, near a major polytechnic campus, some zinc-roofed vintage kampong houses remain. It now houses a well-established restaurant serving paper-wrapped chicken. Across the kampong houses, a section of the Clementi Forest was cleared as part of 5 PERIPHERAL LAND NO MORE? FETISHISMS OF SPACE … 153 a road widening project, required to ease the build-up of traffc heading into Ulu Pandan every morning. At the oldest restaurant in this area, Thai Buddhist devotees (the owner and his family members) who live at the periphery of the Forest make their offerings of fowers and prayers every morning. Travelling further down Clementi Road in the direction of Ulu Pandan opposite the Clementi forests, one reaches a major public residential estate known as Sunset Way. During the Lunar New Year, small business proprietors at Sunset Way hang up paper cutouts of red pineapples to herald good luck for the Lunar New Year. Red pineapples are known as as “wang lai” in the Chinese dialects of Cantonese, Hokkien and Teochew, which is a homophone for a different set of Han characters (Hanzi) meaning “heralding good luck” with the same pronunciation. Long-time residents who have stayed here for ffty years or more were able to narrate the evolution of the spatial use in this area. Later arrivals to the area, such as the residents in contemporary public housing projects or landed properties in the Clementi Road spaces, may not be aware of the area’s former history. In this sense, for many newer local residents this temporal disconnect meant that Clementi Forest and its natural fauna lose historical legitimacy as the original progenitor of this natural space. For them, historical awareness of the area began when the bulk of residents moved into the large private and public housing projects in Sunset Way, Ulu Pandan, Clementi, Pine Grove and Pandan Valley. The Forest itself had endured considerable natural adversity. During the author’s two-year observation study period (2015–2016), the blue skies over the silhouette of the Clementi Forest had to cope with the polluting haze from regional forest fres from August to September 2015. Also, barricades were erected at the edge of Clementi Forest when road widening started. The authorities planned to preserve some of the green spaces in the Clementi Road area even as Singapore developed its urban infrastructure. The Urban Redevelopment Authority consulted with the Nature Society of Singapore for more suggestions on land use in the Clementi Forest. In their Feedback Report to the URA, the Nature Society of Singapore advocated “restoring as much of the forest patches, such as at Clementi, Alexandra, Maju Camp, etc. that are contiguous to the Green Railway corridor”.20 The Society also recommended the

20 Nature Society (Singapore), “Feedback on the Updated URA Master Plan (November 2013)”, 19 December 2013, Nature Society (Singapore) website [downloaded on 1 June 2015], available at http://www.nss.org.sg/report/d265090c-7Nature%20Society%C2%B9s%20 Feedback%20on%20the%20Updated%20URA%20Master%20Plan%20(fnal).pdf, p. 8. 154 T.W. Lim establishment of a wildlife corridor that can “hold a critical biomass of trees and shrubs”, and, in doing so, include bodies of water in the landscape, replant native species, introduce rare species conservation and limit human entry.21 Preservation is one way of maintaining nature but, according to Lefebvre’s arguments, nature was never really lost, it has always been there lurking in the background, reclaiming ground in its own way. Reminders of nature also exist symbolically through everyday narratives and mass advertising driving the “fetish” for nature. For example, eco-friendly condominium projects located near forests and green spaces. Whether symbolic or restored through man-made crafted spaces, “nature” never left the consciousness of human awareness. When challenged, it reasserts itself by becoming a scarce commodity which is then cherished by humans. Humans then try to restore it as much as possible through recreated “green” spaces such as park connectors and green corridors. From this perspective, the state is highly enlightened, maintaining a stakeholder’s approach in consulting different ideological groups, from the environmentalists to the productive users of the land (residents, road users, offce workers and so on). It may be useful to use one of Lefebvre’s urban infrastructural spaces, the idea of a “street”, as an analogy. In Lefebvre’s conceptualization of urbanization, the “street” is a major space in the urban landscape where interactions take place, automobiles ply invasively, where “disorder” can be found; but it is also a platform that compels humans to circum- scribe the extent of urbanization, limiting “the rights and powers of the automobile”, for example.22 Again, this is Lefebvre’s dialectics at work, pointing out the self-limiting expansion of the urban streets that pro- vokes counter-balancing reactions against it. Sections of Clementi Forest

21 Nature Society (Singapore), “Feedback on the Updated URA Master Plan (November 2013)”, 19 December 2013, Nature Society (Singapore) website [downloaded on 1 June 2015], available at http://www.nss.org.sg/report/d265090c-7Nature%20 Society%C2%B9s%20Feedback%20on%20the%20Updated%20URA%20Master%20Plan%20 (fnal).pdf, p. 8. 22 Lefebvre, Henri, The Urban Revolution (Minneapolis and London: University of Minnesota Press), 2003, p. 18. 5 PERIPHERAL LAND NO MORE? FETISHISMS OF SPACE … 155 that used to be the site of heavy industrial and passenger logistics, the inter-state railway, may become green spaces or corridors. This outcome fundamentally aligns with Lefebvre’s dialectical observation of the destruction of nature co-existing with the reconstruction of green spaces.

The Green Rail Corridor According to the City Form Lab, an urban design group that emerged from collaborations between the Singapore University of Science and Technology and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the concept of a railway system to transport goods between Singapore and Malaysia began in the 1860s. City Form Lab quoted a tract by the Singapore Heritage Society regarding this aspect of urban infrastructural development:

The development of the railway in Singapore is not just part of the socio- economic history of British activity in the region, but also a catalyst for local histories. From the mid to late nineteenth century, Singapore began to act as a key distribution and collection point for British Malaya as well as the wider region of Southeast Asia. Communication and transportation infrastructure were developed in tandem with Singapore’s increasing importance in the colonial economy established by the British in the region.23

The date of the 1860s was corroborated by Urban Redevelopment Authority reference materials, which confrmed that an interest in Singapore’s railway system also started in that period, particularly to service the burgeoning import/export trade of Keppel Harbour.24 Construction started in 1903 and the main terminal station was located at Tank Road near the Tank Road Chettiars Temple before extending beyond the river to reach the Tanjong Pagar wharves in the 1910s.25

23 City Form Lab, “50 ways to the Singapore Rail Corridor”, City Form Lab website [downloaded on 3 June 2015], available at http://cityform.mit.edu/projects/50. 24 Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA), “History: Brief History of Railways in Singapore”, 2011, URA website [downloaded on 4 June 2015], available at http://www. ura.gov.sg/railcorridor/history.html. 25 Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA), “History: Brief History of Railways in Singapore”, 2011, URA website [downloaded on 4 June 2015], available at http://www. ura.gov.sg/railcorridor/history.html. 156 T.W. Lim

The Tanjong Pagar Railway Station has become the starting point for marathons and long walking events in Singapore. The Green Corridor run is organized on a yearly basis, starting at Tanjong Pagar Railway Station and ending at the former Bukit Timah Railway Station. This is the same trek that my colleagues and I walked on 17 May 2015. The run was advertised by the organizers as part of “a rail network that was planned to extend all the way to Russia”.26 The source of this information is unknown but it serves as an example of interesting nuggets of community and local history that are interpreted by interested stakeholders. The Urban Redevelopment Authority even mentioned a planned transnational railway system:

Singapore was envisioned to be the starting and ending point of a rail network which would stretch West to Calais in France, North to Hankou in China and onwards to the Trans-Siberian network.27

In reality, however, the actual system in place described by Singapore’s Urban Redevelopment Authority was a modest transnational railway system that connected Malaya (Malaysia), Singapore and Siam (Thailand).28 In terms of ownership, the Singapore railway line plying northwards towards Malaysia was a fully-owned subsidiary of the Malaysian Keretapi Tanah Melayu Berhad (KTMB) company. It was originally constructed to ferry goods from the tin industry and the rubber plantations. The construction and extension of the railway line was succinctly detailed by the Singapore Infopedia:

Costing a total of $1,967,495, the Singapore–Kranji Railway line running from Tank Road to Kranji was fnally completed in 1903. Opened in two phases, the frst section was launched on 1 January 1903. It ran from Tank Road to Bukit Timah and consisted of four stations along the line: Singapore, Newton, Cluny and Bukit Timah. The second section, which extended the line

26 Groundswell Events Pte Ltd Green Corridor Run, “Green Corridor Run”, 2015, Green Corridor Run website [downloaded on 4 June 2015], available at http://www. greencorridorrun.com.sg/. 27 Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA), “History: Brief History of Railways in Singapore”, 2011, URA website [downloaded on 4 June 2015], available at http://www. ura.gov.sg/railcorridor/history.html. 28 Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA), “History: Brief History of Railways in Singapore”, 2011, URA website [downloaded on 4 June 2015], available at http://www. ura.gov.sg/railcorridor/history.html. 5 PERIPHERAL LAND NO MORE? FETISHISMS OF SPACE … 157

to Woodlands, was completed three months later when the Woodlands station was opened for use on 10 April 1903. Soon after, work began on an extension of the railway line to the wharves. The extension was completed and opened to the public on 21 January 1907. With the extension, the stations along the railway line now consisted of Woodlands, Bukit Panjang, Bukit Timah, Holland Road, Cluny Road, Newton, Tank Road, Borneo Wharf and Pasir Panjang.29

On the author’s hike through the rest of the Green Rail Corridor, he mainly covered the track extension from Bukit Timah through Holland Road and then onto the passenger terminals of Tanjong Pagar. He came across the quarters built for the railway staff at Kampong Bahru. This was how Singapore Infopedia, operated by the National Library Board, described those apartments:

Along with the station, lodgings known as the Kelantan Flats along Kampong Bahru Road were constructed to house the workers for the Malayan Railway and the Malaysian Customs. The workers constituted mainly Tamils and Malays and their privileges included free medical facilities for themselves and their families.30

Malaysia decided to exchange the 26 km Green Rail Corridor property for four parcels of land in Marina South and two parcels of land in the Ophir-Rochor areas. Singapore promptly took out the tracks and other structures belonging to KTM and returned such materials to Malaysia

29 Tan, Bonny, “Railway in Singapore”, Singapore Infopedia [downloaded on 2 June 2015], available at http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_953_2005- 01-25.html?v 1&utm_expid 85360850-6.qNOOYF40RhKK6gXsQEaAJA.1&utm_ = = referrer http%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com.sg%2Furl%3Fsa%3Dt%26rct%3Dj%26q%3D% = 26esrc%3Ds%26frm%3D1%26source%3Dweb%26cd%3D9%26ved%3D0CFgQFjAI%26ur l%3Dhttp%253A%252F%252Feresources.nlb.gov.sg%252Finfopedia%252Farticles%252F SIP_953_2005-01-25.html%26ei%3DukRtVYjVBM6QuATD54OwCg%26usg%3DAFQjC NGA1WnQYGF5fsO1UVaoUP5Lb8wLcg. 30 Tan, Bonny, “Railway in Singapore”, Singapore Infopedia [downloaded on 2 June 2015], available at http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_953_2005- 01-25.html?v 1&utm_expid 85360850-6.qNOOYF40RhKK6gXsQEaAJA.1&utm_ = = referrer http%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com.sg%2Furl%3Fsa%3Dt%26rct%3Dj%26q%3D% = 26esrc%3Ds%26frm%3D1%26source%3Dweb%26cd%3D9%26ved%3D0CFgQFjAI%26ur l%3Dhttp%253A%252F%252Feresources.nlb.gov.sg%252Finfopedia%252Farticles%252F SIP_953_2005-01-25.html%26ei%3DukRtVYjVBM6QuATD54OwCg%26usg%3DAFQjC NGA1WnQYGF5fsO1UVaoUP5Lb8wLcg. 158 T.W. Lim in 2011 before allowing public access to the corridor in January 2012.31 The Nature Society of Singapore had a different set of dates with regard to the changed ownership and public access to the Green Rail Corridor. According to the Nature Society of Singapore, the 24 km32 Green Rail Corridor was eventually opened to the public on 24 May 2010 because the Singaporean and Malaysian government reached an agreement to complete the KTMB station’s move to the Woodlands area on 1 July 2011.33 In the post-handover period, different stakeholders began to conceptualize the future development of the Green Rail Corridor. Principal investigator Andres Sevtsuk and his team from the City Form Lab pointed out the unique feature of the Green Rail Corridor as a large 173.3 –hectare area of natural space in Singapore (three times larger than the Singapore Botanical Gardens) that had developed independently of the country’s nation-building master-plan for ffty years.34 On 16 and 17 May 2015, the author joined organized walks along the Green Rail Corridor which; by sheer coincidence had been scheduled back- to-back. This time, the author decided to walk from Silat Walk northwards to Portsdown Road while he joined another hike from Rife Range Road to Tanjong Pagar heading southwards. This provided two important opportunities to explore the Green Rail Corridor that connected Upper Bukit Timah with Silat Walk. As the author hiked along the Green Rail Corridor, long- time residents who live near or within the Bukit Timah stretch of the Rail Corridor shared their childhood stories. Other hikers related stories to the author of quiet spots where they caught “longkauhe” or drainage fsh such as wild mollies and tiger barbs when they were young. These stories were individualized interpretations of what the Green Rail Corridor signifes based on subjective personal memories. Diversifed personal memories of the Green Rail Corridor emerged with different stakeholders ranging from cyclists to trekkers to environmentalists and local history enthusiasts. The next section of this chapter goes on to discuss the Green Rail Corridor spaces.

31 City Form Lab, “50 ways to the Singapore Rail Corridor”, City Form Lab website [downloaded on 3 June 2015], available at http://cityform.mit.edu/projects/50. 32 Note: Some sources, such as City Form Lab, indicate the total length of the Green Rail Corridor as being 26 km. . 33 Nature Society (Singapore), “About”, The Green Corridor website [downloaded on 2 June 2015], available at http://www.thegreencorridor.org/about/. 34 City Form Lab, “50 ways to the Singapore Rail Corridor”, City Form Lab website [downloaded on 3 June 2015], available at http://cityform.mit.edu/projects/50. 5 PERIPHERAL LAND NO MORE? FETISHISMS OF SPACE … 159

The Green Rail Corridor from Rifle Range Road to Silat Walk The author had two opportunities to walk and trek the Green Rail Corridor, frst on 16 May 2015 and then on 7 June 2015. On the frst trek, the author walked from Silat Walk to Portsdown Road. On 7 June 2015, the author walked from Rife Range Road to North Buona Vista. On both occasions, the distance walked was approximately 8 km. The climate on 16 May 2015 was hot and dry, meaning that the author needed to make frequent stops to rehydrate; the weather on 7 June 2015 was wet and humid with continuous slight drizzle. On the frst occasion, the author stopped at Portsdown Road and took a detour because a section of the rail corridor was fooded due to overnight rains; on the second occasion, he stopped at North Buona Vista due to muddy conditions. The trails on both occasions were enjoyable as they presented a side of Singapore that he had not experienced before. A favorite spot along the Green Rail Corridor for hikers, cyclists and, interestingly, wedding photographers is the cast iron bridge near Rife Range Road, a popular destination for young couples to take wedding photos. In May 2015, when the author walked from Rife Range Road to Tanjong Pagar, he came across the Rife Range Road’s Bukit Timah Railway Station and its environs where he was struck by the cottage-like British architecture and the design of this section of the railway. The station emulated the British tradition of train station design.35 It was the site of freight interchange where train tokens were exchanged by railway staff as the halfway point between the northern and southern stretches of the railway line and through which cargoes such as horses were transported.36 An old Bukit Timah station sign points in the southward direction to downtown Singapore and northwards to Woodlands. The words found on the Bukit Timah sign are already fading with time. Along the railway track itself, old blue pebble markers are reminders of the distance

35 Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA), “History: Brief History of Railways in Singapore”, 2011, URA website [downloaded on 4 June 2015], available at http://www. ura.gov.sg/railcorridor/history.html. 36 Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA), “History: Brief History of Railways in Singapore”, undated, URA website [downloaded on 1 January 2016], available at https:// www.ura.gov.sg/railcorridor/history.html. 160 T.W. Lim that the trains traversed on the corridor. Other than distance markers, another relic of the old days was a shed or hut previously owned by the railway and still visible at the Kampong Bahru section of the Rail Corridor. Behind the railway station is another track that used to be the preferred hiking path before the actual railway tracks were removed. More experienced walkers remembered those walking paths and explained how they have now been reclaimed by Mother Nature and her plants and creepers. Hikers and trekkers develop their own sentimental- ity, nostalgia and attachments to their familiar routes. Besides creepers, larger plants such as banana trees and yam trees have covered up what used to the walking path parallel to the train tracks. Alternative well-trodden sandy and pebble paths are the preferred routes for hikers and bikers today. A closer look at the railway track revealed that the wooden sleepers have already started cracking and giving way due to the harsh weather conditions. There were a number of cycling trails off the beaten track. Hikers who leave the trail before hitting Tanjong Pagar may walk up a hidden sloping path which provides an exit from the Corridor to the Queensway urban areas and public roads. Further south, public housing residences in Silat Walk are boarded up for closure. Some of them may have served as residences for former railway personnel. Communities used to thrive along the railway track. Along the Green Rail Corridor, the author came across non-proft retail activities in religious facilities, such as selling self-harvested honey from Malaysia. Wildlife was also visible along the track. Along the Green Rail Corridor, the author spotted a Javanese mynah collecting leaves to build a nest for its young on the Kampong Bahru section, a yellow oriole that frequented the trees near the Silat Walk end and a black and yellow millipede that crawled across a gravel path near the Rife Range Road section. In the absence of wild dogs, stray cats are amongst the largest wild mammals roaming the grounds of the Silat Walk end of the Green Rail Corridor. Wild fruits were also found in the area; wild mangoes grew near the Kampong Bahru end while cultivated orchids were found near the Silat end. As the Green Rail Corridor passed through several large man-made canals, wildlife in wetland areas can be spotted, too. The Bukit Timah canal runs underneath the cast iron bridge of the Green Rail Corridor and continues down the whole stretch of Bukit Timah, heading towards the Botanical Gardens. The author spotted an egret hunting for fsh in the Bukit Timah canal near the Rife Range Road section. Before the canal was built and renovated, Bukit Timah used to experience fash foods 5 PERIPHERAL LAND NO MORE? FETISHISMS OF SPACE … 161 during heavy downpours. The author experienced such fash foods when he was a secondary student in a school at this locale (Fig. 5.2). During the author’s Green Rail Corridor hike, he was able to observe examples of the co-existence between man-made structures and nature: a plant growing out of a concrete infrastructure found on the Green Rail Corridor, or a creeper that hung down from a bridge perpendicular to the Corridor. Both are good examples of the co-existence of wildlife with urban infrastructure. The former railway track heads southwards towards the Buona Vista MRT station and passes through North Buona Vista. Signs of community activities can be spotted at this junction. At the North Buona Vista end of the Green Rail Corridor is an offcially sanctioned area for local graffti artists to create their artworks. Some of them carry images of contemporary hipster fashion. In the course of

Fig. 5.2 A changeable lizard hides in waiting at the Kampong Bahru end of the Green Rail Corridor 162 T.W. Lim this writing, construction workers were busy laying out the gravel path in sections of the Green Rail Corridor. This delighted some hikers who would like to avoid muddy trails and water-logged soil. The section has since been closed to the public in order to construct a water pipeline (it will remain closed until July 2017, according to a sign posted in the Corridor space). Other locations of community activity include places of worship along the Rail Corridor such a mosque near Queensway, a church near Silat Walk and a Hindu temple. Near the southern terminal end of Silat Walk lies a prominent Sikh temple. The other major temple for the Sikh community is found at the Mount Ophir site, which used to be an area where the Sikh community congregated and dwelt, in addition to the temple located at Towner Road. To explain the origins of historical structures found along the Green Rail Corridor, such as religious monuments, the heritage authorities have also marked the historical spaces with plaques that indicate the sites and locations of the former Malayan railways. In the mosque found in the Queenstown section of the Corridor walk, the author took some notes of the contents found on the heritage plaque for this area. According to the heritage plaque located at 100 Jalan Hang Jebat, near the mosque, construction of the current Masjid Hang Jebat Mosque fnished in 1973 to replace an old surau prayer hall and its name refected the presence of the Hang Jebat Regiment of a nearby base that was, in turn, named after a Malay folk hero. The current facility started as prayer hall for Malay soldiers serving under the British in 1952. The original structure created problems for worshippers in terms of access, as devotees had to trek along a dilapidated concrete path along Queens’ Crescent and through railway tracks to reach the mosques. This resulted in tragic consequences when worshippers were hit by trains in the 1970s and 1980s, but this danger was removed when the KTM stopped plying the tracks in 2011. Short of food supplies during the hike, the author stopped by the mosque and purchased some dry rations in the form of biscuits that included traditional Middle Eastern Malay cookies semolina biskut suji and another kind of hard, crispy cookie. They were very tasty when consumed with the local coffee (kopi) and Ceylon tea dust brewed tea (teh) after the trek. On 7 June 2015, the author walked the Green Rail Corridor for the third time. Unlike the frst two walks, this walk took place during light rain that gradually turned into a heavy downpour. Driven out of their habitat by water-logged soil and clay, garden variety snails climbed up 5 PERIPHERAL LAND NO MORE? FETISHISMS OF SPACE … 163 concrete walls to reach safety. Birds coped better with the torrential rain conditions as they hid in nests found along the Corridor and a dove few under tree shelter near the Holland Village stretch of the Corridor. A changeable lizard also waited for the rain to stop and sought shelter in well-camoufaged plants near the Holland Village/North Buona Vista stretch of the Rail Corridor. Carpenter bees stationed themselves on wooden panels in the Silat Walk. While wild creatures hid from the rain, the fora of the Green Rail Corridor welcomed the downpour. Hibiscus fowers near Rife Range Road (the representative fower for Malaysia and Okinawa), frangipanis and morning glories bloomed in the wet season after the rain on 7 June 2015. On the 9 January 2016 hike, the author spotted more fowers, such as mimosa plants, common dropseed grass, wedelia or the yellow creep- ing daisies and fowers that grew in between the tracks, simpur (also spelt simpoh) fg plants with exploded seed pods whose seeds had been half-eaten by birds and parasitic creepers that were “strangling” some of the simpur fg plants. Constant battles for survival between parasites and hosts go on in the wilderness of the Corridor. The Singapore rhododendron (senduduk) was also spotted at the Green Rail Corridor. The sweet berries of this plant attract brigades of giant red ants to harvest its sugary sap. A bamboo grove found near the Kampong Bahru section of the Green Rail Corridor and green variants of bamboo cultivated at the residences found along Holland Road near to the North Buona Vista section of the Rail Corridor also received rainwater. Community gardens can also be found in the Commonwealth section of the Green Rail Corridor where plants have been cultivated to beautify the environment. Besides green-colored bamboos, the Sumatran red bamboos can also be found along the Corridor. Bigger plants also benefted from the rain, as had an old banyan tree along the Silat section of the Green Rail Corridor. Fifty years of land use as a railway track closed to Singaporeans and developed autonomously from the rest of Singapore has created some gigantic plants in the Corridor. Other than wild creatures and plants, edible plants can also be found in the same area. Large wild yams found along the Green Rail Corridor may have toxic roots and so are not recommended for consumption. Other plants commonly found in the kitchen are tapioca leaves, which grow in profusion in the Green Rail Corridor. The simpur leaves used to wrap tofu for sale in the local wet markets in the past, along with their yellow fowers (related to the national fower of Brunei), thrived in the rains. Wild mangos, plantain 164 T.W. Lim banana groves, green unripe coconuts, sugar cane, papayas and large cultivated nangkas (jackfruits) could be found in the Portsdown Road section of the Rail Corridor. Rambutans could also be found near the cast iron railway bridge at Ulu Pandan, while a prolifc mango tree was spotted at Tiong Bahru near Silat Walk. Papayas, mangoes and bananas were cultivated and grown in the Green Rail Corridor Portsdown section. On 9 January 2016, the author also found okra plants growing wild along the Green Rail Corridor’s North Buona Vista stretch. For the hikers, the rain forest canopy at the Clementi Forests provided some temporary shelter. Due to drizzle and continuous rain on 7 June 2015, the mud track became a muddy stream. In the Clementi Forest section of the trail, bikers’ track marks opened up shallow gutters for water to fll, thus becoming muddy very quickly. To get around it, some hikers placed branches on the muddy terrain and crossed the muddy section by balancing on them. These are good examples of hikers and trekkers helping each other in a laissez faire manner, facilitating the co- existence of hikers, trekkers and dirt bikers on this trail. To manage dirt biking marks left behind by bikers traversing the Green Rail Corridor, hikers also set up makeshift infrastructure along the Corridor to help others hike or run more smoothly over the terrain. On 9 January 2016, the author’s frst trek in 2016 started with a team of experienced hikers. The author began walking from Dairy Farm Nature Park and traversed through the Bukit Timah–Chestnut dirt biking trail before reaching Rife Range Road and then followed the Green Rail Corridor down to Alexander Road—altogether, a total distance of 14 km. The author spotted the largest array of wildlife on this trip, walking along paths that were too bumpy and had too many slopes for bikers to traverse. Bikers on mountain bikes were more comfortable with traversing fatter terrains and bare patches on the ground. The Dairy Farm Nature Park had long continuous paths that seemed endless and delighted the bikers. In this way, natural terrain features separated the hikers from the bikers. On this trail, the author came across large man- made structures and signs of community life. One of the most majestic sights on this trail are the large water pipelines found in the Dairy Farm Nature Park which transported water from the southern Malaysian state of Johore Bahru to Singapore, supplying the latter with potable water. Some of this water is then fltered before being exported back to Johore Bahru. They are a sight to behold in the mainly rural landscape, like gigantic missile silos penetrating through deep troughs in the ground. 5 PERIPHERAL LAND NO MORE? FETISHISMS OF SPACE … 165

Iron grills can be found perpendicular to the pipes to prevent hikers from walking over them. It is a safety measure provided by the authorities, as the pipes are slippery to walk on. The full lengths of the pipelines are visible when one stands on a higher elevation looking down. The concrete shoulders hold the pipes frmly in stationary positions. The author came to a section of the Dairy Farm Nature Park and saw mysterious formations of piled-up stones. The stones are balanced intri- cately, indicating painstaking efforts and attempts to stack them up without toppling them over. Their origins and purpose are unknown. It is unclear if they were the works of some bored cyclists or hikers, or pranks played by them on fellow trekkers. Walking further down to Rife Range Road, the author came across large concrete boulders that seemed to be abandoned in the open space. Roadside signs were put up advising cars to slow down due to hikers frequenting this northern reach of the Rife Range Road. Besides hikers, this stretch of the road was part of a Bukit Timah–Chestnut mountain biking trail. Signs like these reminded the author of the non-governmental initiatives taken by bikers to warn truck- ers of cyclists frequenting the Lim Chu Kang and Kranji areas. Along Rife Range Road, the author was able to spot disused oil drums used for burning “Hell’s money” paper for ancestral worship. Abandoned local deity plaques can also be found at the foot of some of the trees in the Rife Range Road. Because of their spiritual attachment to the land, ani- mists and Taoists do not want to discard them when they move out of the neighborhood. Therefore, they are placed in green or natural areas, and the new incense sticks in the incense burner suggest that the original owners continue to worship and give prayers to their idols. The Rife Range section of the Green Corridor was scenic and pleasant. It was also mostly shaded compared with the southern last section of the Corridor walk. Some parts even had intact railway tracks. During the author’s observation study period, substantial work had already started on the canal section of the Clementi Forest. By 9 January 2016, the canal that ran through the Clementi Forest had undergone signifcant construction activity. A gravel path was laid down in the Forest and heavy construction machinery was deployed for infrastructure development to improve community well-being. Some stakeholders and users of the Green Rail Corridor trail are looking forward to the eventual development of a park connector in the near future. Some hikers and cyclists alike are excited about the prospects of a park connector going through this path. It was in this area that the author found an 166 T.W. Lim over-glazed enamel porcelain shard in the ground. Based on the design and visual identifcation, it is likely to have originated from the period between the late Qing dynasty and Republican period, having a thick porcelain body and a green interior over-glazed color. The shard probably came from a decorative bowl. It was discovered alongside a shard that quite likely came from a contemporary Shiwan cobalt blue fower- pot. Both surface fnd items were discovered at the gravel track in the interior of the Clementi Forest section of the Green Rail Corridor on 9 January 2015. Their origins and how they got there were unknown. The author’s wildlife spotting was most extensive in the Green Rail Corridor walk on 9 January 2016. During the walk on 9 January 2016, the author came across long-tailed macaques at the start of his trail at the Dairy Farm. These macaques were spotted on the Bukit Panjang trail adjacent to the Dairy Farm Nature Park. The long tail macaques raided jackfruit trees in the Dairy Farm area. In terms of bird species, the author spotted a bulbul in the bushes eating the seeds in the pods of the simpur fgs. In the Belukar section of the Dairy Farm area, the author spotted spider cobwebs on the ground, indicating these creatures were confdent that humans rarely walked through this area. The web trapped the morning dew. Reptiles also came out to sun themselves. The author spotted changeable lizards at the start of the trail on 9 January 2016 near the Dairy Farm estate. Changeable lizards are related to iguanas; and they are smaller than chameleons and have a longer tail. The range of color-changes for changeable lizards is also limited compared with chameleons. Changeable lizards are known to be recent invasive or introduced species to Singapore. The changeable lizard that the author spotted climbed up an algae covered tree near the Dairy Farm area. Some animals found along the trail are semi-feral in nature, as they could have been reared by human residents and either subsequently escaped, becoming strays, or were released into the wild after kampong village communities were relocated. A large variety of kampong or stray village chickens were spotted on the Rife Range Road wandering along the roadside. The rooster was minding its harem of two hens, one black and the other one greyish, while preying on worms in the grass. Kampong chickens were highly sought after in the past as an ingredient for boiling traditional chicken soup with a scattering of Chinese herbs and spices. However, the black chicken the author 5 PERIPHERAL LAND NO MORE? FETISHISMS OF SPACE … 167 encountered was the common variety of chicken which just happened to have black feathers. The black chicken meat cooked with herbs in a soup actually comes from a much smaller, very distinctive species of chicken which has completely white plumage and a brilliant red comb that, oddly, has the black skin and fesh valued for their medicinal qualities. An experienced hiker described to the author how she was taught to slaughter such a chicken. She inherited a brood of the pretty white-feathered chickens which she reared to make those “valuable soups” (bao tang, in Hanyu Pinyin romanization) for health benefts. The author also spotted both grey and white kampong village chickens roaming the car park space of a mosque in the Green Rail Corridor on 9 January 2016 (Fig. 5.3).

Fig. 5.3 One of the author’s most important visual sightings was that of a black spitting cobra! It hurriedly avoided the Green Rail path and slithered away in muddy water when it spotted hikers. When threatened, the black spitting cobra opens up its hood and can spit venom accurately at the eyes of a predator up to 2 meters away. This particular snake is estimated to be around 1.7–2.0 meters long. Photo taken on 9 January 2016 168 T.W. Lim

Conclusion Overall, the Green Rail Corridor and the Clementi Forest are important nodes that connect downtown Singapore (also part of the Central Area) with the Central Catchment Area, which is then linked to Woodlands and Punggol. At its southern tip, as indicated in the Bukit Merah masterplan, the Rail Corridor is connected with the Singapore River through Tanjong Pagar, Tiong Bahru and the Alexandra Canal Park connectors. The Jurong railway line that branches off from the Green Rail Corridor is part of an extensive green corridor that leads, eventually, to the northwestern sector of Singapore. This feature will be covered in a later chapter on green spaces in the western sector of Singapore. To the east, through the Tanjong Pagar terminal end of the Green Rail Corridor (which was closed for gentrifcation and the construction of infrastructure at the point of writing), one can hike eastwards towards Chinatown and Bugis before proceeding in northeasterly towards Tanah Merah. This will also be covered in a later chapter that details the author’s journey through green and peripheral spaces heading towards the east. While this chapter is about the frst large stretch of green and peripheral spaces outside the oldest urbanized and developed city center in Singapore (downtown Singapore, or the Central Area), this status may not last permanently. The Green Rail Corridor and Clementi Forest are accidents of history rather than deliberately peripheralized or abandoned spaces. Development of these secondary forested lands lagged behind other parts of Singapore because the property was owned by a Malaysian railway company. Political negotiations over the land necessitated a long wait until 2010/2011 before the lands reverted back to the ownership of the Singapore government. With this return, many stakeholders, including the government, are excited about land use intended for the Green Rail Corridor and the government has revealed there are sustainable, consensus-based plans to develop them according to the national development needs of Singapore, the enrichment of local communities and the careful preservation of local heritage. According to the City Form Lab, at the northern tip of the Green Rail Corridor the planned North Coast Innovation Corridor will connect Woodlands to Punggol when realized.37

37 City Form Lab, “50 ways to the Singapore Rail Corridor”, City Form Lab website [downloaded on 3 June 2015], available at http://cityform.mit.edu/projects/50. 5 PERIPHERAL LAND NO MORE? FETISHISMS OF SPACE … 169

On 9 November 2015, the Urban Redevelopment Authority declared that the Japanese frm Nikken Sekkei and the Singaporean landscape company Tierra Design came up with the winning bid to redevelop the Green Railway Corridor. The developers and the Urban Redevelopment Authority are careful to shape the space based on continual public feedback and their winning proposal features 122 locations and 21 platforms along the Rail Corridor that will host public facilities such as restrooms and recuperation areas along the 24 km north–south route.38 Other high-tech additions will include the Queenstown viaduct section becoming a “Passage of Light”, complete with foor lighting sensitive to the speed of movement and lighting up whenever a cyclist or pedestrian goes along that stretch, together with a frefy garden.39 While the Green Rail Corridor’s fate is being discussed and allocated equitably to all stakeholders in the name of sustainable and consensus-based development, Chap. 6 will discuss a more unequivocally permanent green space in Singapore that is historically zoned for nature conservation for a purpose – as the green lungs of the city-state and a major catchment area in Singapore. Chapter 6 will look at the Central Catchment Area, argu- ably Singapore’s most important forested area.

References City Form Lab, “50 Ways to the Singapore Rail Corridor”, City form Lab Website [Downloaded on 3 June 2015], Available at http://cityform.mit. edu/projects/50. Ecology Asia, “Common Molly (Introduced)”, EcologyAsia Website [Downloaded on 18 June 2015], Available at http://www.ecologyasia.com/ verts/fshes/common-molly.htm. Groundswell Events Pte Ltd Green Corridor Run, “Green Corridor Run”, 2015, Green Corridor Run Website [Downloaded on 4 June 2015], Available at http://www.greencorridorrun.com.sg/.

38 Heng, Janice, “Winning concept master plan chosen for Rail Corridor”, 9 November 2015, The Straits Times [downloaded on 9 November 2015], available at http://www. straitstimes.com/singapore/winning-concept-master-plan-chosen-for-rail-corridor. 39 Heng, Janice, “Winning concept master plan chosen for Rail Corridor”, 9 November 2015, The Straits Times [downloaded on 9 November 2015], available at http://www. straitstimes.com/singapore/winning-concept-master-plan-chosen-for-rail-corridor. 170 T.W. Lim

Heng, Janice, “Winning Concept Master Plan Chosen for Rail Corridor”, 9 November 2015, The Straits Times [Downloaded on 9 November 2015], Available at http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/winning-concept-master-plan-chosen-for-rail-corridor. Lefebvre, Henri, The Urban Revolution (Minneapolis and London: University of Minnesota Press), 2003. National Heritage Board, “Tiong Bahru”, 2014, National Heritage Board Website [Downloaded on 4 June 2015], Available at http://www. nhb.gov.sg/NHBPortal/Places/Trails/TiongBahru/TiongBahru- Overview;jsessionid a0q9_w-ETnkS5kYorezGujDzcnmYSO_omZBtM- = wuoGC7kGwjQJth2!1502992856?_afrLoop 2224808909665414&_ = afrWindowMode 0&_afrWindowId null#%40%3F_ = = afrWindowId%3Dnull%26_afrLoop%3D2224808909665414%26_ afrWindowMode%3D0%26_adf.ctrl-state%3D8v58lynv6_4. National Library Singapore Infopedia, “Gurdwara Sahib Silat Road (Silat Road Sikh Temple)”, 12 September 2013, Singapore Infopedia Website [Downloaded on 4 June 2015], Available at http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/ SIP_402_2004-12-14.html?v 1&utm_expid 85360850-6. = = qNOOYF40RhKK6gXsQEaAJA.1&utm_referrer http%3A%2F%2Fwww. = google.com.sg%2Furl%3Fsa%3Dt%26rct%3Dj%26q%3D%26esrc%3Ds%26frm% 3D1%26source%3Dweb%26cd%3D5%26ved%3D0CDAQFjAE%26url%3Dhttp %253A%252F%252Feresources.nlb.gov.sg%252Finfopedia%252Farticles%252F SIP_402_2004-12-14.html%26ei%3DDENwVcPIH5DJuATZ04NY%26usg%3 DAFQjCNHlrJuNrSDE047f-SChxgPc2Vvhpg. Nature Society (Singapore), “About”, The Green Corridor Website [Downloaded on 2 June 2015], Available at http://www.thegreencorridor. org/about/. Nature Society (Singapore), “Feedback on the Updated URA Master Plan (November 2013)”, 19 December 2013, Nature Society (Singapore) Website [Downloaded on 1 June 2015], Available at http://www.nss.org.sg/report/ d265090c-7Nature%20Society%C2%B9s%20Feedback%20on%20the%20 Updated%20URA%20Master%20Plan%20(fnal).pdf. Neo, Louise, Alex T.K. Yee, K.Y. Chong and Hugh T.W. Tan, “The Vascular Plant Flora of Abandoned Plantations in Singapore I: Clementi Forest”, 17 October 2012, Nature in Singapore 2012, 5 (Singapore: NUS), 2012, pp. 275–283. Nico, Leo, Pamela J. Schofeld, Matt Neilson and Bill Loftus, “Poecilia sphenops Valenciennes in Cuvier and Valenciennes, 1846”, 17 June 2015, US Department of the Interior US Geological Survey (USGS) Website [Downloaded on 22 June 2015], Available at http://nas.er.usgs.gov/ queries/factsheet.aspx?SpeciesID 864. = 5 PERIPHERAL LAND NO MORE? FETISHISMS OF SPACE … 171

Tan, Bonny, “Railway in Singapore”, Singapore Infopedia [Downloaded on 2 June 2015], Available at http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/ articles/SIP_953_2005-01-25.html?v 1&utm_expid 85360850-6. = = qNOOYF40RhKK6gXsQEaAJA.1&utm_referrer http%3A%2F%2Fwww. = google.com.sg%2Furl%3Fsa%3Dt%26rct%3Dj%26q%3D%26esrc%3Ds%26frm %3D1%26source%3Dweb%26cd%3D9%26ved%3D0CFgQFjAI%26url%3Dhtt p%253A%252F%252Feresources.nlb.gov.sg%252Finfopedia%252Farticles%25 2FSIP_953_2005-01-25.html%26ei%3DukRtVYjVBM6QuATD54OwCg%26 usg%3DAFQjCNGA1WnQYGF5fsO1UVaoUP5Lb8wLcg. Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA), “Blair Plain (Includes Former Fairfeld Methodist Girls’ School)”, URA Website [Downloaded on 4 June 2015], Available at https://www.ura.gov.sg/uol/conservation/conservation-xml. aspx?id BLP. = Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA), “History: Brief History of Railways in Singapore”, 2011, URA Website [Downloaded on 4 June 2015], Available at http://www.ura.gov.sg/railcorridor/history.html. Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA), “History: Brief History of Railways in Singapore”, Undated, URA Website [Downloaded on 1 January 2016], Available at https://www.ura.gov.sg/railcorridor/history.html. Wheeler, Rachael, “A Walk Along Bukit Timah’s Old Railway Track: A Little History and a Lot of Greenery”, Expatliving Website [Downloaded on 4 June 2015], Available at http://www.expatliving.sg/blogs/A-walk-along-Bukit- Timahs-old-railway-track-A-little-history-and-a-lot-of-greenery-7600.ece. Wild Factsheets, “Senduduk”, 10 November 2009, Wild Singapore Website [Downloaded on 11 January 2016], Available at http://www.wildsingapore. com/wildfacts/plants/others/melastoma/malabathricum.htm. Yong, Chun Yuan, “Tanjong Pagar Railway Station”, 2007, Singapore Infopedia Website [Downloaded on 4 June 2015], Available at http://eresources. nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_954_2005-01-10.html?v 1&utm_ = expid 85360850-6.qNOOYF40RhKK6gXsQEaAJA.1&utm_ = referrer http%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com.sg%2Furl%3Fsa%3Dt%26rct%3Dj%2 = 6q%3D%26esrc%3Ds%26frm%3D1%26source%3Dweb%26cd%3D8%26ved%3D0 CDMQFjAH%26url%3Dhttp%253A%252F%252Feresources.nlb.gov.sg%252Fin fopedia%252Farticles%252FSIP_954_2005-01-10.html%26ei%3Dkg5wVdzUG8 GcugT42YHICA%26usg%3DAFQjCNFhhGLKFjcNZ0X03kMvk2tk1dJILg%2 6bvm%3Dbv.94911696%2Cd.c2E. CHAPTER 6

Singapore’s Green Lungs: The Central Catchment Area and Its Peripheral Areas

Chapter 5 discussed an abandoned or peripheral space in post- independent Singapore, made up of a combination of abandoned rubber plantation, squatter farms, mothballed railway tracks and obsolete cast iron railway bridges in the Green Rail Corridor. While the Corridor stretches from south to north, it runs through a very important green area in the Central Catchment Area. The Central Catchment Area is truly the heart and lungs of Singapore, supplying Singapore with pho- tosynthesized oxygen and potable water. The Central Catchment Nature Reserve makes up more than 2000 hectares of forest cover and the Dipterocarp forests abundant with wildlife and primary lowland forests make up less than 0.5% of the original primary forest in the Central Catchment Nature Reserve and Bukit Timah Nature Reserve, but the rarest forests are the Nee Soon primary forest freshwater swamps.1 The secondary forests of the Central Catchment Area from Adam Road off Bukit Timah and the MacRitchie Reservoir to the Upper Seletar Reservoir form a large green space where hikers, cyclists, history buffs, nature photographers, ftness enthusiasts, retirees, expatriates, golfers and other stakeholders form an organic thriving community of users. Limited angling is allowed in some designated parts of the Catchment

1 National Parks Board, “Central Catchment Nature Reserve”, 3 June 2015, National Parks website [downloaded on 5 June 2015], available at https://www.nparks.gov.sg/ gardens-parks-and-nature/parks-and-nature-reserves/central-catchment-nature-reserve.

Area. Other groups of stakeholders with specialized needs are the remote control racing car enthusiasts, who bring their toys out for a spin in the open space, and the canoeists and the kayakers who use the aquatic environment for their activities. In the Seletar forest, trekkers and dirt bikers share the precious space with each other. Dirt bikers sometimes attempt to shape the forest terrain to carry out their activities. For example, the author came across a dirt biker who checked out his bike after practicing on a makeshift ramp in the forest grounds. For ftness enthusiasts who do not feel like hiking through the secondary forests, the authorities installed exercise bench facilities at MacRitchie Reservoir. Some retirees and elderly visitors who are keen to have a relaxing short walk around the reservoir without entering the forest can stroll out to a solitary pavilion built in the center of the lake at the Reservoir. To retain authenticity, items reminiscent of the past can still be found in the park; for example, cast iron lion heads decorating the arm rests of an old bench. The design is either an original artifact from the colonial period or a contemporary piece emulating the original item. There is a colonial feel to the design with its faded green paint. The common feature in this eclectic community is that they all yearn for wide open green spaces to pursue their hobbies and interests. Some of them nostalgically recall rural or suburban Singapore when hiking through the forest trails and walking past structures from previous eras, or simply admiring and cherishing rarely seen secondary forests left undeveloped by the authorities with the foresight to conserve some green areas for utilitarian purposes. The unstructured greenery sometimes gave a nostalgic feel of the greenery surrounding kampong villages. Activities in these kampong environments included such things as collecting saga seeds, catching fghting spiders, netting tiger barb fsh, rearing grasshoppers and sucking sweet nectar from ixora fower stems. All these activities are made possible with objects found in the forests. While reminiscing about natural spaces, many appreciate modern amenities made possible by urbanization, state agencies and industrialization. Forests sometimes also reminded hikers of the “old days” in the kampong setting when they were bitten by mosquitos, had muddy feet whenever there was rain, scratched by rattan thorns, drawing water from wells, co-existing with farm animals, the smell of dung from the farms, termite-ridden wooden houses and other inconveniences. 6 SINGAPORE’S GREEN LUNGS: THE CENTRAL CATCHMENT AREA … 175

Besides the Central Catchment Area, there are other green zones of natural and heritage sites that further expand options for Singaporeans with a passion for nature and engagement with nostalgia to enjoy the area. These green areas include the Singapore Botanical Gardens and Bukit Brown Hill (almost contiguous with the Adam Road end of the Central Catchment Area) and Dairy Farm Estate, Zhenghua Park as well as Chestnut Nature Park bordering the area between the Upper Pierce and Upper Seletar Reservoirs. The Singapore Island Country Club is a prestigious club next door to the MacRitchie Reservoir. The Club itself has a golf course that co-exists with the secondary forests of the MacRitchie Reservoir. Footpaths meander around the boundaries of the pond at the Singapore Island Country Club and the MacRitchie Reservoir, connecting the forest with the Club. Another community living on the periphery of the MacRitchie Reservoir comprises the residents in Caldecott Hill and Andrew Road. A highway demarcates the boundary between the secondary forests of MacRitchie and human habitation at Andrew Road and Caldecott Hill, which are located on the other side. These peripheral spaces next to the Catchment Area are themselves rich in natural heritage, possess historical signifcance and bring together a diversity of stakeholders. They will also be discussed in this chapter, together with the Central Catchment Area. Bukit Timah is connected at one point with the Green Rail Corridor through the old cast iron railway bridge at Rife Range Road. This is one of at least three cast iron railway bridges found in the area. Another relic of the Green Rail Corridor is the old cast iron railway bridge located in the Upper Bukit Timah stretch almost reaching Dairy Farm Estate. The third cast iron railway bridge at Ulu Pandan is located near the Green Rail Corridor and the Clementi Forest. An important node in the network of green corridors located near the Green Rail Corridor is the Dairy Farm Estate and, from the Estate, one can walk to the Central Catchment Area and reach the MacRitchie Reservoir. One of the most accessible sections of the Central Catchment Nature Reserve is the MacRitchie Reservoir. According to City Form Lab, the authorities has constructed a pan-island Park Connector Network to integrate Singaporeans with nature and which it was thought would accumulate 300 kilometers in length by 2015, including parts of the Green Rail Corridor and the Central Catchment Nature Reserve (the biggest natural area in Singapore) before connecting up with the 176 T.W. Lim

Southern Ridges parks to its east.2 In order to serve the public and to better understand the natural environment, the frst census or survey to understand the different species in the Central Catchment Area was carried out in the mid-1990s and the second major study was carried out between 2008 and 2010 by National Parks offcials as well as corporate volunteers.3 Besides natural historical heritage, the Central Catchment Area also yields rich historical relics and sites. A familiar landmark in the MacRitchie area is the reservoir. Funded by a donation of S$13,000 by prominent Chinese merchant Tan Kim Seng in 1857, the MacRitchie Reservoir, whose name was formerly the Impounding Reservoir, was ready for use in the late 1860s and became the pioneering water supply system for Singapore.4 The name “MacRitchie” was used for the reservoir from 1922 onwards as a namesake for the Reservoir’s Municipal Engineer of Singapore (1883–1895) James MacRitchie.5 The Central Catchment Area was also the site of a 70 acre rubber plantation before it became a military camp. The signboard put up near the MacRitchie area indicated that Sime Road Camp was part of an area that belonged to

2 City Form Lab, “50 ways to the Singapore Rail Corridor”, City form Lab website [downloaded on 3 June 2015], available at http://cityform.mit.edu/projects/50. 3 National Parks Board, Our Fragile Rainforest (Singapore: National Parks Board), 2011, p. 6. 4 Mohamed, Zaubidah, “MacRitchie Reservoir”, 2004, National Library Board Singapore Infopedia website [downloaded on 10 June 2015], available at http://eresources.nlb. gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_159_2004-12-27.html?v 1&utm_expid 85360850-6. = = qNOOYF40RhKK6gXsQEaAJA.1&utm_referrer http%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com.sg% = 2Furl%3Fsa%3Dt%26rct%3Dj%26q%3D%26esrc%3Ds%26frm%3D1%26source%3Dweb% 26cd%3D2%26ved%3D0CCgQFjABahUKEwjD5rCsjITGAhWo3KYKHUwyAG8%26ur l%3Dhttp%253A%252F%252Feresources.nlb.gov.sg%252Finfopedia%252Farticles%252F SIP_159_2004-12-27.html%26ei%3DK6N3VYOlNai5mwXM5ID4Bg%26usg%3DAFQjCN E6ghoFnX4gIvqsz-jUN-nOJ04I-w%26bvm%3Dbv.95277229%2Cd.dGY. 5 Mohamed, Zaubidah, “MacRitchie Reservoir”, 2004, National Library Board Singapore Infopedia website [downloaded on 10 June 2015], available at http://eresources.nlb. gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_159_2004-12-27.html?v 1&utm_expid 85360850-6. = = qNOOYF40RhKK6gXsQEaAJA.1&utm_referrer http%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com.sg% = 2Furl%3Fsa%3Dt%26rct%3Dj%26q%3D%26esrc%3Ds%26frm%3D1%26source%3Dweb% 26cd%3D2%26ved%3D0CCgQFjABahUKEwjD5rCsjITGAhWo3KYKHUwyAG8%26ur l%3Dhttp%253A%252F%252Feresources.nlb.gov.sg%252Finfopedia%252Farticles%252F SIP_159_2004-12-27.html%26ei%3DK6N3VYOlNai5mwXM5ID4Bg%26usg%3DAFQjCN E6ghoFnX4gIvqsz-jUN-nOJ04I-w%26bvm%3Dbv.95277229%2Cd.dGY. 6 SINGAPORE’S GREEN LUNGS: THE CENTRAL CATCHMENT AREA … 177 the Royal Air Force Headquarters and, before that, the Combined Army and Air Force Operational Headquarters that became operational in early December 1941. During World War II, Commanding Offcer General Percival planned and executed the Battle for Singapore from here before it was shifted south to Fort Canning and the facility was taken over by the Japanese. Inside the forests of MacRitchie are the remaining relics of the Shinto Shrine that was built by the Japanese in the mid-twentieth century.6 In post-independent Singapore, the 12 ha MacRitchie Reservoir Park, which many trekkers and runners use as a starting point for their foray into the Central Catchment Area, became accessible in 1967. Gradually, features such as a clock, water fountain, exercise areas, cafes and gardens were introduced.7 The author had been on several long walks through the Central Catchment Area, including on 24 January 2015 (10 kilometers), 7 February 2015 (15 kilometers) and 11 April 2015 (6 kilometers). The longest walks were carried out on 5 March 2016, when the author walked 30 kilometers within the Central Catchment Area. These are some pockets of attraction for hikers in the Catchment Area. For example, a suspension bridge can be found at the tree top walk in Venus Drive. At the entrance of this tree top walk a sign indicates the starting point of the hike, shortly after which one comes across clear streams

6 Mohamed, Zaubidah, “MacRitchie Reservoir”, 2004, National Library Board Singapore Infopedia website [downloaded on 10 June 2015], available at http://eresources.nlb. gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_159_2004-12-27.html?v 1&utm_expid 85360850-6. = = qNOOYF40RhKK6gXsQEaAJA.1&utm_referrer http%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com.sg% = 2Furl%3Fsa%3Dt%26rct%3Dj%26q%3D%26esrc%3Ds%26frm%3D1%26source%3Dweb% 26cd%3D2%26ved%3D0CCgQFjABahUKEwjD5rCsjITGAhWo3KYKHUwyAG8%26ur l%3Dhttp%253A%252F%252Feresources.nlb.gov.sg%252Finfopedia%252Farticles%252F SIP_159_2004-12-27.html%26ei%3DK6N3VYOlNai5mwXM5ID4Bg%26usg%3DAFQjCN E6ghoFnX4gIvqsz-jUN-nOJ04I-w%26bvm%3Dbv.95277229%2Cd.dGY. 7 Mohamed, Zaubidah, “MacRitchie Reservoir”, 2004, National Library Board Singapore Infopedia website [downloaded on 10 June 2015], available at http://eresources.nlb. gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_159_2004-12-27.html?v 1&utm_expid 85360850-6. = = qNOOYF40RhKK6gXsQEaAJA.1&utm_referrer http%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com.sg% = 2Furl%3Fsa%3Dt%26rct%3Dj%26q%3D%26esrc%3Ds%26frm%3D1%26source%3Dweb% 26cd%3D2%26ved%3D0CCgQFjABahUKEwjD5rCsjITGAhWo3KYKHUwyAG8%26ur l%3Dhttp%253A%252F%252Feresources.nlb.gov.sg%252Finfopedia%252Farticles%252F SIP_159_2004-12-27.html%26ei%3DK6N3VYOlNai5mwXM5ID4Bg%26usg%3DAFQjC NE6ghoFnX4gIvqsz-jUN-nOJ04I-w%26bvm%3Dbv.95277229%2Cd.dGY. 178 T.W. Lim with sandy bottoms and secondary forests before reaching a suspension bridge. The Venus tree top walk gives a rustic feel of Singapore with an old broken-down wooden bridge sitting astride the Venus tree top walk over a clear stream. These are some visible remains of a former inhabited area on the Venus tree top walk trail. The Venus tree top walk, 250 meters in length and 25 meters at its tallest point,8 is the tallest suspension bridge in Singapore; it is not for the faint-hearted or those who fear heights. For the adventurous, the walk offers a tree top view of canopy of the secondary forests in the Central Catchment Area. There are lookout points on the Venus tree top walk for bird-watching enthusiasts. Some of the lookout points and shelters are made of hardwood resting on concrete foundations. Hiking around the Reservoir is made easier by access on sandy gravel paths sheltered partially by rainforest tree cover. The gravel paths bypass long grasses that block the access to the secondary forest at MacRitchie. Besides lookout points, watchtowers are also constructed inside the Catchment Area offering a bird’s eye view of the hiking path. These watchtowers typically sway with the winds to absorb or withstand the forces acting on it without toppling. The tree top walk is connected to the MacRitchie Reservoir through a number of trails. The terrain and scenery in the peripheral green spaces of the Reservoir are similar to the Venus tree top walk. A number of passes consist of a stone bridge built over a stream. In the stream were freshwater shrimps and wild molly fshes. The bodies of water that lead to the Reservoir is an extensive area populated by mangroves, their roots holding the soil of a swamp-like environment in the secondary tropical forest. In the early morning, the MacRitchie Reservoir is charming as the blue skies and the glow of the rising sun refect off the MacRitchie waters. The terrain at the Central Catchment Area is beautiful and, at times, captivating. It consists of swamp-like bodies of water. Aesthetically, when the author showed photos of sections of the Reservoir to his friends, they had a hard time imagining the photo was shot in Singapore. One even thought it was a shot of the tundra of Russia! As with the Venus tree top walk, there are other signs of human

8 National Parks, “Tree Top Walk”, 10 November 2016, National Parks website [downloaded on 10 November 2016], available at https://www.nparks.gov.sg/gardens- parks-and-nature/parks-and-nature-reserves/central-catchment-nature-reserve/treetop-walk. 6 SINGAPORE’S GREEN LUNGS: THE CENTRAL CATCHMENT AREA … 179 habitation in the MacRitchie sector. The author spotted discarded Bin Keow bricks embedded in the sandy gravel trek on the Terentang trail. Bin Keow is the name of the company that fred these bricks and which is now located at 110 Neythal Road Singapore 628597. The freshwater environment forms a major component of the natural space of the Central Catchment Area. The author came across a clear freshwater pool deep into the Terentang trail with part of the rainforest, including the roots and stalks, permanently submerged in the water. Essentially, the Reservoirs in the Catchment Area are large bodies of water sitting in the middle of a secondary tropical rainforest. Watergates or dams are located at the mouth of a reservoir fow in the Central Catchment Area. There are sectors of the reservoir where aquatic hydrilla plants proliferate due to good exposure to sunlight and access to fertile mineral-rich water. Occasionally, workers from the National Parks have to harvest the excess hydrilla plants to prevent them from clogging up sections of the reservoir thereby depriving other organisms of oxygen, particularly those sections of the reservoir made up of shallow, low tidal, freshwater streams with sandy bottoms. The proliferation of hydrillas is greatest along the shallow banks of MacRitchie Reservoir. A highlight of trekking the banks of the Reservoir is the boardwalk section, built using environmentally friendly structural materials that allows the trekkers to skirt around the Reservoir and view its aquatic landscape. The National Parks staff use a combination of machinery and man- ual labor to remove aquatic weed from the water so that it does not deprive the eco-system of oxygen. When the hydrilla grows extremely rapidly, a river dredger clears the reservoir of the overgrown plants to prevent them from choking the eco-system. The Catchment authorities are careful not to interfere with the pristine freshwater resources and they built an environmentally friendly structure over the pond to allow hikers to walk over the waters and enjoy viewing the fsh and landscape without causing them damage. Some technologies and a level of mecha- nization are implemented in the Central Catchment Area, such as the use of John Deere vehicles by National Parks staff to clear the walkways of obstacles and to maintain the cleanliness of the walking trails. Solar energy is utilized at the MacRitchie Reservoir to power some of the lamps found in the Catchment Area. Monkey-proof trash bins designed for human use are also placed along the trail to prevent littering and, at the same time, guard against monkeys rummaging through the rubbish (Fig. 6.1). 180 T.W. Lim

Fig. 6.1 The rising sun and still waters at MacRitchie Reservoir on 5 March 2016. Photo taken by author

Wildlife Observed in the Central Catchment Area Given the abundant natural scenery and landscapes of the Catchment Area, fora and fauna are naturally extensive and proliferate in the secondary forests and aquatic environments. One of the biggest mammals to be found in the forest is the long-tailed macaque. The author has seen some of these monkeys peering inquisitively at hikers near the Venus tree top walk. The macaque packs consisted of an alpha male monkey leading his family troop. They appeared at the trails on feeding expeditions. As the macaques are comfortable with human presence, the author came across grinning female monkeys resting at the ranger station located at the Venus tree top walk. Those monkeys patiently foraged through the tree leaves in the forest searching for nuts and fruits. The author saw a baby monkey foraging on the ground, probably for fallen simpur fgs, during his 5 March 2016 hike. A bigger mammal in the Catchment Area is probably the wild boar 6 SINGAPORE’S GREEN LUNGS: THE CENTRAL CATCHMENT AREA … 181 but the author did not manage to spot any during his two years of working on this project. The closest evidence he has seen hinting at the presence of wild boar are their tracks and the marks left by their snouts in the Chestnut Nature Reserve, which is peripheral to the Central Catchment Area. During his hike, the author also spotted an inquisitive squirrel peering at him from the thicket during his Venus tree top walk (Fig. 6.2). Besides mammals, MacRitchie Reservoir and the Catchment Area offer ample opportunities for bird-spotting enthusiasts. During the author’s treks, he has come across migratory birds, both indigenous and invasive species. In terms of aquatic birds, egrets forage through the wetlands of the Central Catchment Area searching for food; the area is rich in fsh, including grass carp, tilapias and other smaller fsh. Another bird that feeds in the aquatic region is the kingfsher, one of which the author spotted perched on a concrete structure in Thomson Road. On land, wild junglefowl, which the local media claimed may be adapting well,9 forage through the cow grass for worms. The greater racket-tailed drongo was probably the most exotic bird the author spotted during his hiking expedition on 11 April 2015. A unique feature of this bird is the pair of elongated outer tail feathers with webbing restricted to their tips resemble rackets, almost seeming like two objects chasing the drongo when it is in fight. In terms of reptiles, the author spotted monitor lizards camoufaged in a pile of dried-up leaves at MacRitchie on 5 March 20. A highlight was spotting a banded mangrove snake curled up on a branch in the Bukit Panjang Zheng Hua Park. Other than mammals, birds and reptiles, the Central Catchment Area hosts a rich diversity of insect species. Some of these insects are adaptable and co-exist with man-made structures. For example, the author came across a wasp nest embedded in a concrete structure at MacRitchie on 5 March 2016. On the same hike, he spotted a number of fying insects, including the

Fig. 6.3 In the Bukit Panjang area, the author encountered a slightly venomous banded mangrove snake sleeping curled up in a tree. A nocturnal creature, it becomes active at night look for small prey double-bladed crimson dragonfy, the common palmfy butterfy and a Horsfeld’s baron butterfy resting on a leaf. Giant ants scurry on the forest foor and the author spotted much smaller weaver ants colonizing a fower stalk on the Terantang trail at the Central Catchment Area. Some insects have adapted well to the forest environment (Fig. 6.3). Through their plants, fowers, seeds, fruits and other organic matter, the forests provide food for the animals and insects. Fig fruits provide a popular food source for the forest animals. Signboards at the Central Catchment Area indicated that fgs had a wide span of colors and different creatures prefer different colors; for example, birds prefer orange-red fgs and consume them during the daytime, while mammalian bats eat green fgs at night (so color matters less to them). When ripe, the fruit explodes, finging its seeds far and wide. Other popular food sources for wild creatures at the Central Catchment Area include the large wild yam 184 T.W. Lim leaves such as those that grow along the Venus tree top walk path, plantain bananas the author encountered during his trek on 11 April 2015 and exploded simpur fruits whose seeds are tasty to some bird species. Flowers add to the character of the forests, the heliconia fowers near the MacRitchie section of the trail showing off their colors. The beauty of heliconias can be found throughout the MacRitchie nature reserve while the bright scarlet red ixora has sweet sap at the bottom of each stem. The browning and yellowing fallen leaves at the Terengtang trail at the Central Catchment Area are another source of color. One of the most exotic fowers the author has ever encountered in his treks is the bat lily he saw on 11 April 2015. Obstacles that hikers and cyclists have to watch out for are the rattan and banyan roots that stick out into the trail in locations such as the Upper Thomson end of the tree top walk. The forest also has rattan plants armed with thorns that pose a challenge to trekking, even for seasoned hikers. Even though the bark may have dried up on some of the stalks, the thorns are still formidable. Some large spiky thorns can give a painful injury if they penetrate the skin. The resilience of the rainforest trees was demonstrated when strong winds prevailed in parts of MacRitchie during the author’s hike on 5 March 2016. The trees swayed in the wind to withstand the force of nature. Some trees, however, do fall in the strongest of storms. Therefore, one can sometimes fnd sawn-off logs to prevent danger to trekkers after a tree has fallen; the logs are left to decompose naturally, which makes them ideal for bracket fungi growth. The author spotted some dried-up bracket fungi on 5 March 2016 during his MacRitchie hike in the dry months of late February–early March. Other parasitic plants include the bird’s nest ferns that colonized the branches of large trees. The author spotted an unusual bird’s nest fern dangling from a banyan tree at MacRitchie on 5 March 2016. The roots had grown so frm that they could support the full weight of a large, mature bird’s nest fern. Other hosts may not be so lucky. As in the Clementi Forest, in the secondary forest in Bukit Brown parasitic creepers grow around the trees, eventually strangling their original hosts.

Bukit Brown Next to the MacRitchie Reservoir lies an abandoned space. Across Adams Road from the MacRitchie Reservoir lies a piece of land with secondary forests similar to those found around MacRitchie Reservoir but it 6 SINGAPORE’S GREEN LUNGS: THE CENTRAL CATCHMENT AREA … 185 is a major site for graves and tombstones. A number of them have been abandoned by the descendants of the deceased when they stopped customary ancestral worship. This area is known as Bukit Brown and the author conducted his feldwork observations here on 17 October 2015, receiving most of his information about local history from a volunteer group active in guiding visitors around the area. According to this group’s guide and interpretation, the greater Bukit Brown area is made up of Kopi Sua (Coffee Hill), Ong Clan Cemetery and Bukit Brown. Bukit Brown’s history started in 1822 but it was in the 1840s that the area was purchased by a British gentleman from Calcutta (the seat of British Indian power) with the surname Brown, who turned it into a plantation for nutmeg and gambier. He was also experimenting with coffee but was not very successful and did not achieve the results desired. Unfortunately, when he was trying out coffee grinding equipment, it trapped his arm and he never really recovered from the accident, eventually dying from the injury. His son, who took over the plantation, died in a freak accident while fshing in the plantation grounds. The remaining family members, including Mr Brown’s wife, moved back to Britain. The plantation was sold to a Hokkien buyer, the Ong clan, who turned it into a cemetery. Chinese cemeteries generally do not have maps or any means with which to search systematically for individual graves or tombs. Individual searches for an ancestor’s tombstone are usually carried out by referenc- ing a tree or some visible cue offered by family members of relatives who have visited the tomb before. This is likely to be the case when Chinese devotees attend the annual tomb-sweeping ritual as part of ancestral worship, or when paying respects to one’s ancestors. When these physical markers disappear, some families lose their bearings to the ancestral grave; this is one reason that led to discontinuity in descendants taking over the tomb-sweeping rituals. Another reason was the past practice for Chinese individuals to change their names several times in their lives. They have birth names, they may have names given to them for auspi- cious reasons, they may have acquired a new name after becoming successful in their career and they could even acquire names posthumously. Some descendants are unable to recognize their ancestors’ tombstones due to these changes in their names. When someone is unable to search accurately for the correct tombstone, a Taoist temple in Bukit Brown used to provide the services of a spiritual medium to help descendants locate graves. Eventually, over time, tombstones that are not visited by 186 T.W. Lim the descendants of the deceased show signs that the tomb had not been visited for a period of time, such as the tombstone becoming overgrown with shrubs. This is nature’s way of reclaiming land from human use. The tombs at Bukit Brown can be categorized socio-economically from their physical appearances and sizes. Those with large open spaces in front of the gravestones tend to be those of wealthy individuals. This is because traditional Chinese beliefs infuence the positioning of gravestones. Some tombstones face unobstructed views and most prefer to have the back of the tombstone facing a hill or mountain. While it is comparatively easier to create an artifcial mound to satisfy the criteria of having the back of the tomb face elevated ground, it is much harder to clear the view in front even if one has fnances to do so, since that is tantamount to clearing the grave in front. Heritage and environmental groups such as the Brownies encouraged their tour entourage to walk along the periphery of tomb mounds as exhumed bodies may leave a cav- ity behind and people walking on incompletely flled mounds may fall through the loose earth. One of the most important tombs in this area is actually found within the confnes of MacRitchie Reservoir and it belongs to Singaporean war hero General Lim Bo Seng. The grave of another wartime personality, local World War II hero Tay Koh Yat, is located in neighboring Bukit Brown. Migrating from Kinmen, Tay sold dried fsh and exported them successfully to Indonesia. He helped to mobilize 20,000 volunteer troops from the Chinese community to fght the Japanese and had to fee to Indonesia when Singapore fell to the Japanese. He was number two on the Japanese wartime “most wanted” list but returned to Singapore safely after the War. The tomb is fronted by two guardians (jintong yunu, or the heavenly maiden and lad). For his war effort, Tay was posthumously awarded the Order of the British Empire issued in London and local SCH class honors. In the 1930s, he founded a bus company that connected the eastern and western ends of the island that later merged with other companies to form the Singapore Bus Service. His wife’s name, written in red, meant that Mrs Tay survived her husband’s death. Tombstones belonging to a variety of dialect groups can be found at Bukit Brown. They include the Peranakan tombs, tombs belonging to the Hokkien community, the Teochews and others. Others include smaller dialect communities such as Hakka graves. Some visitors to tombs leave a rock on the tombstone to indicate they have visited the 6 SINGAPORE’S GREEN LUNGS: THE CENTRAL CATCHMENT AREA … 187 grave. The Peranakans have tombstones that are distinctive and easily spotted. Just as they are visible in the Bukit Brown area, colorful Peranakan tiles can also be found at the MacRitchie Reservoir’s Peranakan tombs, overgrown with grass. The gaudy Peranakan tiles are a hybrid heritage of British design infuences and local Peranakan adap- tations in displaying them, and their cosmopolitan nature is highlighted by the fact that they are fred in different locations around the world, including Holland, England, Japan and Turkey. The author came across a Peranakan grave with colorful Peranakan tiles embedded into the grave design. This tombstone was also covered with white marble slabs. Some Peranakan graves had perpendicularly adjoining walls with panels of Peranakan tiles featuring the English country rose design. Other than the Peranakans, many tombs in Bukit Brown belonged to Hokkiens and Teochews. An ethnic Hokkien tombstone overgrown with grass bore the names of the deceased’s children but not those of his wives, unlike Teochew practices. Some tombstones found in Bukit Brown reveal information that the person buried there originated from Fujian Anxi, a region famous for growing tea (camelia sinensis). Hokkien tombs are different from their Teochew counterparts as they have a free- standing tombstone that is not integrated into an armchair framework. A perimeter wall surrounds the back of the grave in the typical confguration of a Hokkien grave design. In contrast, a Teochew tomb typically has a large mound at the back built on sloping terrain with a standard- ized armchair-shaped Teochew tombstone. Some of the tombstones are constructed using red bricks built into a mound behind them. In the typical Teochew confguration, the tombstone lies at the feet of the buried body. A number of designs integrating the use of red bricks could be found. One tombstone revealed information about a Lijiang-born Peranakan individual’s grave. The colorful Peranakan tiles are visible and the body of the deceased is buried in the mound behind the tombstone, the boundaries of which are marked out by red bricks. There are many similarities between the Bukit Brown tombstones that cut across ethnic lines. Aesthetically, designs are incised, carved and then painted onto the tombstone structures. Regardless of their ethnic groups, the graves of a husband and wife sometimes have their tombstones lying side by side. Another Chinese tomb feature that cuts across ethnic lines is the presence of celestial lion tomb guardians. These decorative features were originally reserved for the tombs of offcials that had been Chinese gentry but they can be found in some Bukit Brown graves 188 T.W. Lim because some Nanyang merchants accumulated enough wealth to quietly install such symbols of Chinese offcialdom. Value systems were sometimes found in tomb designs. For example, some universal depictions of the Chinese sense of morality were also displayed in the tombstone designs. A relatively new tombstone dated 1943 indicated the buried person was a “flial” son—flial piety is considered a universal virtue in traditional Chinese society. The rites for ancestral worship also cut across ethnic lines. Ritually, individuals paying respects to a tomb frst pay their respects to the earth deity located by the side of the tomb before proceeding with the tomb-sweeping activities. The dating system of a tombstone also reveals much about the deceased. Interestingly, this grave stone uses the anno domini dating system originating from the Birth of Christ. The other dating systems found in Bukit Brown include the use of the Qing dynastic imperial reign, Republican China and Gregorian numbering systems. Sometimes, such dating systems reveal the religious background of the deceased. Another indication of the religious background of the deceased is the use of objects by the devotees to perform their rites during the tomb-sweeping season. The author came across a family who came to pay respect to their ancestors and put up a multicolored Buddhist fag over the tombstones. Bukit Brown is now at the center of a discussion for relocation with its important heritage artifacts slated for conservation and housing in an appropriate facility. The author came across an exhumed grave which had had its tombstone removed, perhaps in preparation to make way for future developmental plans. Hiking through Bukit Brown revealed some potential advantages of development. For example, some areas within Bukit Brown were infested with mosquitos due to the swampy grounds. Development of the area will transform its existence from a partially abandoned space into an economically productive area once more.

Bukit Panjang and Zhenghua Heading northwest from the Central Catchment Area towards Kranji, the author trekked through Bukit Panjang (the “Long Hills”, trans- lated from Malay). The terrain consists of a long range of ridges and is another green natural area peripheral to the Central Catchment Area. Bukit Panjang sits between the western regions of Bukit Gombak and the Dairy Farm and the Central Catchment Area. Heading northwest 6 SINGAPORE’S GREEN LUNGS: THE CENTRAL CATCHMENT AREA … 189 from Zhenghua Park leads to the Choa Chu Kang Park. Zhenghua is a well-hidden gem among cyclists and hikers. It has pockets of green areas that still delight forest walkers. It is also the gateway for hikers, walkers and cyclists to pass through when they travel westwards from the Catchment Area, or vice versa when the hikers, trekkers and walkers travel eastwards from the western areas towards the Catchment Area. A mysterious source of mineral water can also be found in the Zhenghua Park. The author witnessed a number of joggers and visitors flling up large containers of water to take home for consumption, believing in the unverifed health qualities of the water fowing out of the hole. Water resources appear to be a major feature in Bukit Panjang; the giant pipelines from the Malaysian state of Johore channel water southwards to Singapore for consumption, another water source being the Pang Sua Pond. Pang Sua is a scenic spot with a small island located in the middle of the Pond surrounded by tall housing estates blocks. The Public Utilities Board created a natural fltration system in the canals comprising pebbles, sand and aquatic plants through which waters from the drainage systems must pass before being introduced into Pang Sua Pond.

Wildlife and Botany Wildlife can be found in the housing estates of Bukit Panjang, the crafted natural environment of Zhenghua Park and the small patches of secondary forest in the Chestnut Nature Reserve. Probably one of the biggest mammals in the residential areas, stray cats patrol the housing estates for food and they are probably well-taken care of by the animal lovers amongst the residents. Another mammal that usually stay in the forest but sometimes wanders out into the residential areas to search for food is the long-tailed macaque. The author also spotted a changeable lizard (calotes versicolor), the long-brand bushbrown (mycalesis visala phamis) butterfy which frequents the Zhenghua Park, and a wild junglefowl and its hen emerging from rainforest shelter after heavy rains to dry their feathers. A favorite roosting spot for birds, the author has spotted bird’s nests at Zhenghua Park. There is an array of planted fruit trees found in the Bukit Panjang area which used to host kampongs and traditional villages. Breadfruit trees can be found at Bukit Panjang near its Zhenghua Park end. The author spotted an overripe buah chiku fruit that fell from a tree and split its skin on the cow grass. 190 T.W. Lim

In the Dairy Farm Estate area, water apples fall from trees cultivated by local residents and drop onto the asphalt roads. Community farming in nearby Zhenghua Park uses traditional bamboo sticks to prop up plants. Larger community gardens are found in the Pang Sua district. This area features community gardens maintained by the local authorities in partnership with residents interested in green environmentally friendly activities. Non-edible plants and mushrooms and fungus proliferate along sections of roadside plants in the Zhenghua area, as well. During the heavy rainy seasons, the author spotted bloated, waterlogged lepiota mushrooms on 29 October 2016. Another sturdy plant, the morning glory, allows entry to carpenter bees to extract pollen. The resilient simpur ayer are found in sections of Zhenghua Park, proliferating and growing strong (Fig. 6.4).

Fig. 6.4 On 29 October 2016, the author spotted a green crested lizard (bronchocela cristatella) on the Bukit Panjang/Zhenghua Park trek 6 SINGAPORE’S GREEN LUNGS: THE CENTRAL CATCHMENT AREA … 191

Community Life Besides fora and fauna, local community life is rich in the Zhenghua area. During one of the author’s hikes, a local lion dance troupe performed at Zhenghua for residents who hired them for specifc purposes (usually for the opening day of a new business, or to celebrate good news within the family). Besides traditional rites, other local community activities are initiated by hobbyists. For example, remote control car hobbyists helped set up ramps underneath the expressway. It is a good example of hobbyists self-motivating to manage their space. In the Bukit Panjang town center, elderly vegetable hawkers sell their wares just like the good old days in Chinatown, laying their goods out on the ground and on styrofoam boxes. Another hawker placed his mangosteen products into plastic baskets and then laid them out on a piece of worn board to sell to customers. In the town center, Taoist devotees from the Zhenghua area pray at the Taoist temple located next to the town center. Aware of residents’ interest in taking short walks around the neighborhood, a Zen-style stone walking path was built for elderly residents to enjoy foot massage when they walk on it barefoot.

The Seletar Forests Further north of the Upper Pierce end of the Central Catchment Area secondary forests are found in the Mandai and Seletar areas. An interesting feature of hiking in this area is the different terrains and landscapes one can experience. On the expeditions from Dairy Farm through Seletar to the Mandai forests on 23 and 30 May 2015, the author hiked through various terrains. They included the sandy ground on which morning glories grew, dirt tracks that were both sandy and muddy, muddy streams created by heavy rainfall (the author experienced a tropical thunderstorm while hiking on 23 May 2015), mud-beds with streams running over them occasionally, and clay-like soil that is dusty and dry and easily cakes together when wet. Some parts of the trail were paved with gravel rocks. Trekkers have used the various terrains to identify the different sections of the forests. One can also fnd parts of the trail paved with bricks manufactured in the Jurong kilns. Certain landmarks serve as makeshift meeting points on the trek. For example, granite boulders marked the Track 7 trail. The uphill climbs are one of the most challenging parts of the trail, as one has to walk over uneven ground. Besides hikers, there are others 192 T.W. Lim use the trail, evidenced by makeshift ramps constructed by the cyclists who share Track 7. The author also spotted a century egg urn (probably Guangdong stoneware pottery) embedded upside down in the ground. They act as raised platforms for stepping on when the trail is covered in mud and sludge during monsoon downpours. Nearer to the modern and contemporary historical periods, Seletar and Jalan Kayu were the sites of pig farms but they were phased out for development. The area serves multiple functional purposes today: the site where water pipes run through, a reservoir and places of interest for tourists. Singapore is a well-known leading area for tourism. The Singapore Zoological Gardens are situated in the area nestled between the Mandai rainforests and Upper Seletar reservoir. A current use of land in that area is for residential purposes. Pig farms in Punggol and Jalan Kayu have given way to Sengkang New Town to accommodate Singapore’s increasing population. While the traditional kampong villages are no longer there, in some areas of Upper Seletar, the author still spotted kampong chickens wandering around freely. Some parts of the Seletar and Mandai Forests are probably the only spots left where one can still fnd wild kampong durians. Sometimes, they are clustered in large numbers at abandoned durian plantations. Besides durians, there were also wild yams (inedible to humans). Coconut trees can be seen throughout the Seletar forests, their husks sometimes becoming a host for other small plants. The author spotted a small shrub growing out of fallen coconut husks which provided nutrients for other plants. Other edible fruits growing wildly in the tropical secondary forests included rambutans and jackfruits. Information from the National Parks indicated that the Seletar Reservoir was constructed in 1920 and offcially inaugurated by Princess Alexandra on 10 August 1969 before it was renamed the Upper Seletar Reservoir.10 During the author’s treks to Seletar Reservoir, he encountered wildlife, the largest of which were the packs of wild dogs. The author was able to locate fresh wild boar tracks during his weekend hikes in this area but saw no wild boars during his hikes in 2015. Seletar Reservoir and its network of waterways and canals provide rich stocks

10 National Parks, “Upper Seletar Reservoir Park”, National Parks website [downloaded on 1 June 2015], available at https://www.nparks.gov.sg/gardens-parks-and-nature/ parks-and-nature-reserves/upper-seletar-reservoir-park. 6 SINGAPORE’S GREEN LUNGS: THE CENTRAL CATCHMENT AREA … 193 of fsh for the blue collar kingfsher’s diet. During the hike, the author was careful not to stir up a hornet’s nest that he encountered. Like the other secondary forested spaces that the author visited, he encountered some fg-loving long-tailed macaques in the stretch from the Dairy Farm Estate to the Seletar Reservoir. At the Dairy Farm Estate, the author spotted a long-tailed macaque family trespassing into human territory to search for cultivated fgs, rambutans and durians. Typically, when the monkeys travel in a troop, the alpha male stands guard while the females and their children search for food. The author observed mothers being protective of their babies, and pinning them down or pulling their tails when they were straying from motherly protection. When the alpha male that mated with this harem’s females spotted people near his family, he quickly climbed up a tree to track the people’s movements and kept watch to see whether there was any threat or danger to his family. The authorities are dissuading members of the public from feeding them (and even making it an offense) because there is enough food in the forests, such as the wild nuts. Seletar forest was also rich in insect species and the author spotted giant forest ants scurrying quickly around the forest foor. Their bites feel like a painful stinging sensation but are not life-threaten- ing. The author has also seen these creatures in the MacRitchie Reservoir track. Other larger-than-normal insects in the forest included a giant millipede that the author spotted emerging from the cover of fallen leaves. Just as the area features wild creatures, it is also abundant with fora. The tallest botanical species are the rainforest trees, providing canopy cover for the rest of the forest beneath. The forest canopy allows some rays of sunlight to flter through the gaps in between the leaves, creating aesthetically beautiful images that are a joy to photograph. Near some of the drainage and canal areas, the author came across kapok trees spewing their fuff-clad seeds into their surroundings. The beautiful simpur ayer’s exploded fg is sometimes mistaken for a fower to the untrained eye and its seeds feed monkeys who love their taste. Sunlight pierced through the rainforest canopy and fltered through the foliage of the fshtail bamboo, an exotic-looking plant with leaves that resemble fshtails. Other familiar plants found in this secondary forest include wild pandan leaves and plantain bananas. A formerly economically important commercial crop, the exploded pods and seeds of rubber trees are scattered over the forest foor. The author found an unopen rubber tree fruit pod on 16 January 2016. A natural scratch on a rubber tree spotted on that day revealed a scar with 194 T.W. Lim rubber sap that had eventually dried up, leaving a white scratch line on the tree trunk. A section of the trail was lined with bat lilies. After fnd- ing cotton fbers, fgs, rubber pods, and edible leaves and fruits, the author located some samples of the highly toxic pong pong fruit which has white latex-like sap. The pong pong’s toxins can affect the heart rate, resulting in death. Plants with spikes of all kinds can also be found in the Seletar forests. Some plants are armed with thorns that come in pairs at regular intervals on the stem. Formidable thorns usually found on palm trees can give deep scratches to hikers if they are not careful when navigating the trails. While trekking from Dairy Farm through Seletar to Mandai on 30 May 2015, the author also spotted kitchen pottery shards of the late Qing dynasty embedded in the foor of the secondary forest. The origins of these shards are unknown. Dairy Farm Estate, for example, is an inhabited area with low density residential occupancy, mainly private terraces, detached, semi-detached, houses and condominiums.

Chestnut Secondary Forests The Chestnut Drive section of forested areas leads to the Seletar forests. Like the Central Catchment Area of MacRitchie, Pierce/Upper Pierce and Seletar, the Chestnut Nature Park is teeming with wildlife. Chestnut Avenue and Dairy Farm are located at the boundaries between urban and forested areas where residential spaces co-existed with the secondary forests nearby. Large water pipes also run through this area. The author spotted a changeable lizard resting on the trunk of a tree and an olive sunbird perched on the twigs and branches of a plant and searching for sources of nectar. Smaller reptiles and birds were easier to spot in this area. Freshwater sources can also be found in the Park and freshwater streams can be found in the jungle. The frst freshwater stream the author encountered could only be crossed by walking over terracotta fower pots. The ground was fooded with water and mud as a result of a sudden thunderstorm on 23 May 2015. The second stream that the author encountered, on 6 June 2015, was negotiated by walking on logs found that had fallen onto the ground. The third stream, which author passed by on 6 June 2015, could only be crossed by gingerly balancing on two fallen logs. Sometimes, a small stream can swell up to become a signifcant obsta- cle for hikers when it is swollen by continuous rain, which happened on the trek on 16 January 2016. The author spotted wild mollies in this 6 SINGAPORE’S GREEN LUNGS: THE CENTRAL CATCHMENT AREA … 195 stream, hardy and tough tropical fsh that can survive in swampy, muddy freshwater streams. Besides the streams that required acrobatic acts to cross, there were other streams in the forest that had bridges built over them. Some bridges were rickety and looked like they had existed when the forest had had been walked through by villagers. A section of the trail is romantically named the “Woodcutters’ trail”, which has a number of fallen logs that may have been left in place by loggers or good Samaritans in the past. The logs were probably sawn off from fallen trees that had died due to old age, disease and lightning strikes. A corner of the Seletar forest has been utilized for tourism. It denotes an important case study of the commodifcation of natural space for economically productive use. The author visited one of the best-run zoos in the world at Mandai. The Mandai end of the Upper Seletar trek ends near the Singapore Zoological Gardens, which has one of the most recent tourist attractions in Singapore, the River Safari, which opened in 2014. Here, the author was able to take a slow boat out into the Reservoir to see its natural beauty, as well as the animals owned by the Zoo. The author viewed a large array of monkeys and elephants at the River Safari.

Field Trip: 16 January 2016 The author went on a research trip along the Track 7 Mandai track on 16 January 2016, with dawn breaking and the sun rising early in the day. Interestingly, on 16 January 2016 the weather was hot, exposing hikers to the danger of dehydration. An additional challenge was that it had rained heavily the night before and so the forest foor was wet and muddy. The author walked through stretches of sludge in the hot sun. Fortunately, the tropical trees in the forest provided considerable shade. The morning was particularly misty in the secondary forest due to early sunshine. Those humid and warm conditions were probably ideal conditions for fungi and mold to grow in the forest, accounting for the particularly large varieties of fungi and mold spotted during the hike. One example is the bracket fungi that grew in the hot and humid conditions of the forest. The bracket fungi play an important role in decomposing the rotten logs in the forest. Repeated rain resulted in mud track marks caused by mountain bike riders that eventually became shallow mud trenches in the forests. Hikers sometimes have to negotiate through thick foliage within the forest. In parts with thick grass, it may be useful to carrying a hiking stick to ruffe the grass and scare away snakes. 196 T.W. Lim

Upturned terracotta fower pots are useful platforms for hikers when the forest foor are waterlogged or fooded, enabling them to step across to the other side. Nearer the end of the trail, unripe pomegranates were found on the ground at the end of the hiking track on 16 January 2016. The fruits appeared to have been plucked by monkeys and discarded or dropped on the former site of Nee Soon Village. The highlight this hike was probably spotting bluebottle butterfies, also known as “blue triangles”. They inhabit Australia, India and parts of Southeast Asia, and can be spotted feeding on nectar, decomposing matter, faeces and the carcasses of dead animals by the pavements. Males feed in small groups. A large spider was spotted near the Seletar Reservoir on 16 January 2016. Such spiders like to live near areas where mangroves grow. As the author emerged from the forest trail, a Japanese-looking stone lantern marked the end of Track 7 trail through the forest. Like a beacon symbolizing the light at the end of the tunnel, it was a welcome sight for the author at the end of his hike. An abandoned kerosene lamp indicated the presence of some night trekkers in this area. The appearance of Seletar Reservoir is a welcome view for hikers as it marks the end of Track 7. The Reservoir stretches all the way to the Mandai Zoo and River Safari. Walking around the reservoir on 16 January 2016 revealed some cultivated plant life. Blooming bougainvillea fowers were spotted at the end of the track with tiny green fowers surrounded by leafy bracts. Pine tree cones, which had been deliberately planted courtesy of benefcent human interference, also proliferated around the Seletar Reservoir, which should delight the squirrels. Bright lemon-yellow mushrooms grew on a moist fallen log. Tree roots take on interesting shapes and forms, their curly, gnarly roots sometimes resembling intertwined ropes. Hikers also have to be careful of these roots as they lose their footing and slip or fall on the forest foor. Located at the junction of Sembawang Road and Mandai Road, the terminal end point of our hike on 16 January 2016, was the historical site of the Nee Soon Village which, together with Chong Pang Village, is one of the two large settlements in northern Singapore. According to the signboard put up by the National Heritage Board, Nee Soon village has a taxi stand in the northern region of Singapore that provides com- muter services. The village also featured other service providers such as barbers and spice processors. When the British troops established a base in Sembawang, it brought prosperity to the region as the soldiers purchased and used the services offered by the village, including 6 SINGAPORE’S GREEN LUNGS: THE CENTRAL CATCHMENT AREA … 197 car mechanics, laundries and even recreational services in which to rest and relax, such as bars. Most of the residents of Nee Soon Village were resettled in Yishun New Town due to Singapore’s urbanization. Adjacent to Nee Soon Village was another human settlement at the end of the foot of Seletar River. The National Heritage Board plaques placed here explained the origins of the settlement. It was pioneered by a Chinese agriculturalist who planted gambier and pepper here. The settlement was named after this founder, Chan Chu Kang (the ‘House of Chan’), but the place name eventually evolved to become Chia Chu Kang, which related to a freshwater stream here. Gambier and pepper plantations eventually declined in favor of pineapple and rubber cultivation stretch- ing from Seletar to Sembawang. From the 1950s to early 1980s, rubber cultivation eventually declined. Lim Nee Soon’s rubber empire and Tan Kah Kee’s pineapple company facilities used to be situated here. Simple rustic bangsal (or huts) used to be situated here to house workers but this housing also gave way as Singapore became urbanized. The historical markers and signboards erected by the National Heritage Board contain much useful information for history buffs.

Conclusion Environmentally friendly facilities and resting points can be found at the end of Track 7. A solar lamp powers the electrical needs of the bus stop located there—an environmentally friendly and energy effcient initiative. Refectors integrated into the pavilion located at Seletar Reservoir help to defect heat away so that hikers and visitors to the reservoir can enjoy a cool moment under the pavilion. There are basins, water foun- tains and toilets to wash up and cool down. The green spaces found in the Seletar and Mandai forests and Catchment Area have become a fxture in Singapore’s hiking and biking communities, who have learnt to co-exist with one another. These communities have developed coping strategies, such as bikers and hikers shouting early warnings to avoid clashing into each other. Very often, bikers travelling downhill are unable to stop in time, so they shout advanced warnings to provide ample time for hikers to step out of the way. As can be seen from these examples, there is camara- derie between these communities, which is also evident in the provision of terracotta pots for fellow hikers to step on when the forest foor is fooded, or the simple act of greeting each other along the way demonstrating the social rituals and courtesy between fellow stakeholders of the trail. 198 T.W. Lim

References Chua, Grace, “If You See this Chicken, Please Don’t Cook it”, 25 December 2010, The Straits Times (Singapore: Singapore Press Holdings), 2010, p. B4 [Also Available at http://newshub.nus.edu.sg/news/1012/PDF/CHICKEN- st-25dec-pB4.pdf]. Chua, Grace, “If You See this Chicken, Please Don’t Cook it”, 25 December 2010, The Straits Times, Hosted on Wild Singapore Website [Downloaded on 1 January 2017], Available at http://wildsingaporenews.blogspot. sg/2010/12/if-you-see-this-chicken-please-dont.html#.WL5byW996Uk. Lee, Min Kok, “Stray Chickens Spotted Wandering Around Several Parts of Singapore”, 19 January 2016, The Straits Times [Downloaded on 19 January 2016], Available at http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/stray-chickens- spotted-wandering-around-several-parts-of-singapore. Mohamed, Zaubidah, “MacRitchie Reservoir”, 2004, National Library Board Singapore Infopedia Website [Downloaded on 10 June 2015], Available at http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_159_2004-12-27. html?v 1&utm_expid 85360850-6.qNOOYF40RhKK6gXsQEaAJA.1&utm_ = = referrer http%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com.sg%2Furl%3Fsa%3Dt%26rct% = 3Dj%26q%3D%26esrc%3Ds%26frm%3D1%26source%3Dweb%26cd%3D2 %26ved%3D0CCgQFjABahUKEwjD5rCsjITGAhWo3KYKHUwyAG8% 26url%3Dhttp%253A%252F%252Feresources.nlb.gov.sg%252Finfopedia% 252Farticles%252FSIP_159_2004-12-27.html%26ei%3DK6N3VYOlNai 5mwXM5ID4Bg%26usg%3DAFQjCNE6ghoFnX4gIvqsz-jUN-nOJ04I- w%26bvm%3Dbv.95277229%2Cd.dGY. National Parks, “Tree Top Walk”, 10 November 2016, National Parks Website [Downloaded on 10 November 2016], Available at https://www.nparks.gov. sg/gardens-parks-and-nature/parks-and-nature-reserves/central-catchment- nature-reserve/treetop-walk. National Parks, “Upper Seletar Reservoir Park”, National Parks Website [Downloaded on 1 June 2015], Available at https://www.nparks.gov.sg/ gardens-parks-and-nature/parks-and-nature-reserves/upper-seletar-reservoir- park. CHAPTER 7

Terminal End of Singapore’s North–South Hike: Fetishisms of Nostalgia and Rusticity in Northern Singapore

Introduction and Methodology If the Central Catchment Area is the green lungs of Singapore, northern Singapore represents the last frontier for hikers heading northwards. Northern Singapore offers beautiful wide spaces and newer housing estates with cutting-edge designs. Walking northwards along the Green Rail Corridor, one of the northern points marking the end of the Corridor is the area of Kranji. In 2015, the author travelled to Kranji and Sungei Buloh a number of times. During his Kranji hikes, the author covered Singapore’s far north territories on three occasions and was fas- cinated by its wildlife. Kranji, which borders on the maritime boundaries with Malaysia, has some of the most diversifed and abundant wildlife on Singapore. A wetlands reserve found in this area, Sungei Buloh, lies in one of the international fight paths for migratory birds. Besides eco- heritage, it is also rich in history. But it was on 12 and 13 December 2015 that the author camped overnight in this area for the frst time, observing and interacting with the local community. Part of the hiking expedition included a stay in a farm. The building had a very basic structure and the barest of amenities, retaining the rusticity of an old Southeast Asian farmhouse. The farmhouse owner practiced traditional ways of harvesting the farm’s produce; for example, he manually separated germinated sprouts from non- germinated ones. He also used basic equipment as a fltration system that sieved out germinated bean sprouts before draining the water off

© The Author(s) 2017 199 T.W. Lim, Cultural Heritage and Peripheral Spaces in Singapore, DOI 10.1007/978-981-10-4747-3_7 200 T.W. Lim in green netting. The author observed how a local farmer used nets for freshwater fshing on 13 December 2015. The fshing net was located near a small jetty on a freshwater artifcial lake that had been dug out by a local farmer using an excavator. Staying at the farm was an authentic experience in a building that retained its original simple shed design, using zinc roofs and tropical hard wood for its frame construction. Staying at the farmhouse was an authentic experience in every way because it mirrored the lifestyle of the local community in that area, particularly that of a local elderly farmer. The author and other outdoor enthusiasts bathed in facilities located in a natural environment and used a non-fush standing toilet. The author used well water to wash his hands. The entire experience was attuned towards connecting with nature and the countryside. Next to the wash- room, the farmhouse owner was growing water hyacinth, a plant that was grown as pig feed in Singaporean pig farms in the past. The author and other outdoor enthusiasts also cooked dinner using a table top stove. The camp participants lived in complete rusticity and zen-like simplicity. Spiritual life was also rich in this area. To worship the local deity of the land, the farm owner built a shrine dedicated to the tudigong (local earth deity). When the author started his stay at the farm, he showed appropriate respect to the local deity (even as a non-believer in Taoism) as it was guarding the back entrance of the accommodation. In his preparation for the expedition, the author learnt to respect local community spiritual beliefs and not belittle them. Local community life and beliefs were also found at places of worship. Chek Chai Long Chuen Temple, a Chinese temple decorated with green Shiwan roof tiles, is located in the Kranji area within an industrial estate. The temple served the religious needs of the local Taoist community and hosted major Taoist festi- vals. Besides devotees, community-based action groups worked with the authorities to put up signs in the area to warn those cycling in an industrial area of the large trucks thundering down the highway. The author encountered slushy, muddy terrain which had been sof- tened by days of continuous rain on 12 December 2015. When staying in the old and rustic farmhouse, to prevent accidents from slipping the author used an industrial agent to eliminate the slippery algae growth on the ground. The author and other guests also warned each other about the large trucks that were thundering down the narrow lanes of the farming community. The farmhouse owner also advised all his guests to turn off the lights between 6.00 pm and 8.00 pm, as they would 7 TERMINAL END OF SINGAPORE’S NORTH–SOUTH … 201 otherwise attract the bees from his bee farm. Bees and hornets have been sighted in this area before, although the farmhouse owner only mentioned bees. He believed that the presence of the bees negated the existence of the more dangerous mosquitos, as the two could not co-exist in the same area. The author observed the beehive and its honeycomb at the farm on 12 December 2015 and watched the bees feeding on sugar supplied by the beekeeper. At the end of the camping session, all guests and participants in the outdoor activities, including the author, carried out a closure session, systematically recollecting the two weekends of activities, and assessing as well as evaluating those activities for feedback in the spirit of continuous improvement. In the December 2015 rainy season, during the period of outdoor camping experience in Kranji, the weather conditions over Kranji and Lim Chu Kang were erratic. The weather alternated between extreme heat, generated by the radiation emanating from the zinc-roofed shed, and heavy torrential rain that pounded on the zinc roof during the expedition training. The torrential rain reduced the time available for the evening hike and the hiking trip around Sungei Buloh. The author and other hikers started their evening hike from Lim Chu Kang Lane 3 at about 5–6 pm but the potential for torrential rain that night cut short the hiking expedition and also cancelled another outdoor bonding activity planned for that night. The author and other outdoor enthusiasts decided to stay indoors to sit out the torrential rain that rattled down on the zinc roof and created deafening echoes that resonated throughout the farmhouse. Besides the weather conditions, an astronomical phenomenon was also experienced in this location. During the author’s hiking expedition on 9 March 2016, he viewed a solar eclipse by sheer coincidence. The source of natural lighting was affected and some of the author’s hiking teammates mistakenly thought it was the onset of a heavy thunderstorm. On a separate occasion, the author embarked on a hiking experience with a team from a local university to the Kranji Marshes on 9 March 2016. The marshlands had been newly opened to the public in the previous month on 1 February 2016. The aquatic plant facility featured Chinese water chestnuts, hydrilla, water primroses and water lettuce at the entrance of the Kranji Marshes. With a land area of 56.8 hectares, the Kranji Marshes is the largest in Singapore next to to the Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve and Kranji Reservoir, hosting over 170 species of birds, 54 species of butterfies and 33 species of dragonfies. Its ecosystem is 202 T.W. Lim an effective sieve for brackish water moving into the reservoir, with an open area and another restricted core area that is ecologically fragile and sensitive.1 The Senior Minister of State for Home Affairs and National Development, Desmond Lee, announced strict conservation measures at the opening of the Marshes:

For example, the structures installed were carefully considered and sen- sitively designed to blend into the existing landscape. To minimise any impact on wildlife and their habitats, we always worked 50 metres away from sensitive areas and prefabricated most of the structures off-site before assembling them on-site.2

The beautifully maintained green spaces in Kranji co-exist with hi- tech, manpower non-intensive farms that dot the roads of Lim Chu Kang and Kranji. There were also some art installations along the coastal areas of Kranji near Sungei Buloh; for example, a baya weaver’s nest sculpture and a public installation for trekkers who may be art lovers as well. Another public artwork found at Sungei Buloh is an installation of a giant mudskipper. Hikers can also look across the Straits and enjoy a view of Johore, Malaysia, with a view of mosques and tall buildings. Kranji’s proximity to Johore, Malaysia, mean that it has experienced the cultural infuences of southern Malaysian food, such as the giant “Amy Yip” buns on sale in Singapore.

History Kranji Road is a two-way street that originates from the intersection of Woodlands Road and Turf Club Avenue and terminates at Kranji Loop; it was named after the Kranji tree (Keranji tree, scientifc name dia- lium indicum) that grew island-wide during the frst 50 years of the

1 Tang, Louisa and Chan Luo Er, “Kranji Marshes, Singapore’s largest freshwater marshland, now open to visitors”, 1 February 2016, Channelnewsasia website [downloaded on 9 March 2016], available at http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/kranji- marshes-singapore/2476804.html. 2 Tang, Louisa and Chan Luo Er, “Kranji Marshes, Singapore’s largest freshwater marshland, now open to visitors”, 1 February 2016, Channelnewsasia website [downloaded on 9 March 2016], available at http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/kranji- marshes-singapore/2476804.html. 7 TERMINAL END OF SINGAPORE’S NORTH–SOUTH … 203 nineteenth century.3 According to the Sungei Buloh gallery, in 1890 Kranji was already marked out to be a forest reserve and it was isolated from development right up until 1938 as one of the few remaining untouched areas of Singapore, at least the protected sections of Kranji. The gallery also mentioned that during the post-war period, especially after 1973, light industries, horticulture and agricultural frms rearing prawns and fsh emerged. Other sources highlighted Kranji’s status as a transportation hub as early as the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Kranji experienced an economic awakening when the Singapore- Kranji Railway was inaugurated in 1903, linking Tank Road with Kranji, replacing a steam-powered tramway system that existed in that area from 1885 to 1894, a highway from downtown Singapore to Kranji that goes on to Johore, as well as ferry services between Johore and Kranji.4 In other words, from the late nineteenth century onwards, Kranji had already become a transport hub with modern steam-powered transportation systems running through it. Economic development in the area was further stimulated by the founding of the Johore State Railway in 1909 and the newly operational status of the Causeway in 1923. These developments led to the emergence of a Kampong Kranji village that existed right up until 1946 (evidence of this kampong can be found in the railway maps from that period).5 Historically, it was here in Kranji that Singapore witnessed some of the fercest battles during World War II. The local Chinese volunteer Dalforce soldiers were dispatched to their positions to strengthen regular troops on 5 February 1942, including Lim Chu Kang at the 19.5 milestone, Woodlands near the Causeway, and the area between Serangoon River and Pasir Ris.6 The Australian troops’ 22nd Brigade

3 Thulaja, Naidu Ratnala, “Kranji Road”, 2009, Singapore Infopedia (Singapore: National Library Board), [downloaded on 9 December 2015], available at http:// eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_384_2005-01-20.html. 4 Thulaja, Naidu Ratnala, “Kranji Road”, 2009, Singapore Infopedia (Singapore: National Library Board), [downloaded on 9 December 2015], available at http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_384_2005-01-20.html. 5 Thulaja, Naidu Ratnala, “Kranji Road”, 2009, Singapore Infopedia (Singapore: National Library Board), [downloaded on 9 December 2015], available at http:// eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_384_2005-01-20.html. 6 Chow, Alex, “Dalforce”, 2014, Singapore Infopedia (Singapore: National Library Board), [downloaded on 9 December 2015], available at http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/ infopedia/articles/SIP_765_2005-02-01.html. 204 T.W. Lim combined with the volunteer Dalforce to ward off enemy soldiers coming in from the western end of Sungei Kranji’s river-mouth, while to the east the Sungei Kranji River was guarded by the 2/26th Battalion of the Australian 27th Brigade.7 A single Overseas Chinese Guard Platoon was positioned in the proximity of Kampong Kranji (east Kranji River) as part of the four Dalforce companies sent to the battlefeld to face professional Japanese troops, while the remaining Dalforce infantrymen were grounded and considered unprepared for warfare because of insuf- fcient training.8 While the Japanese troops were crossing the causeway, rumours emerged detailing local Chinese volunteer defenders wiping out the entirety of the Japanese reconnaissance personnel and guards that were entering the Johore Straits, but no hard evidence emerged to authenticate these claims and they were not chronicled in offcial histories of the Allied battalion that Dalforce reinforced.9 On 8 February 1942, Dalforce Company No. 2 (numbering 150 men) retreated from Lim Chu Kang Road and then swam through the Kranji River to reach Choa Chu Kang Road, only approximately 60 lived to tell their tale.10 When it became dark on 9 February 1942, the Japanese Imperial Guards Division went beyond the south of the Johore Straits and tried to penetrate the 2/26th Australian Battalion’s position, However, they met with resistance from the Australians, who stopped them in their tracks.11 Petrol from containers located in Sungei Mandai Kechil was poured into the River and the defending troops set the watery oil trail on fre. This action engulfed the coastal areas of the Johore Straits and Kranji

7 National Heritage Board (NHB), “Kranji Beach Battle”, 2 July 2015, NHB website [downloaded on 9 December 2015], available at http://www.nhb.gov.sg/places/trails/ world-war-ii-trail/trail-sites/events/kranji-beach-battle. 8 Chow, Alex, “Dalforce”, 2014, Singapore Infopedia (Singapore: National Library Board), [downloaded on 9 December 2015], available at http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/ infopedia/articles/SIP_765_2005-02-01.html. 9 Chow, Alex, “Dalforce”, 2014, Singapore Infopedia (Singapore: National Library Board), [downloaded on 9 December 2015], available at http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/ infopedia/articles/SIP_765_2005-02-01.html. 10 Chow, Alex, “Dalforce”, 2014, Singapore Infopedia (Singapore: National Library Board), [downloaded on 9 December 2015], available at http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/ infopedia/articles/SIP_765_2005-02-01.html. 11 National Heritage Board (NHB), “Kranji Beach Battle”, 2 July 2015, NHB website [downloaded on 9 December 2015], available at http://www.nhb.gov.sg/places/trails/ world-war-ii-trail/trail-sites/events/kranji-beach-battle. 7 TERMINAL END OF SINGAPORE’S NORTH–SOUTH … 205 shores, repelling the Japanese troops and caused their Commander LG Nishimura to retreat hastily with his division.12 Unexpectedly, a strate- gically ambivalent order then came from the Australian 27th Brigade Commander to pull back his solders from the shoreline, which enabled the Japanese to occupy the shores of Kranji leading to the Causeway.13 When that happened, the Battle of Kranji was over. To commemorate the Battle, the Kranji Memorial was constructed in 1946 by Colin St Clair Oakes for the 24,000 soldiers who perished in the War. The memorial site also hosts the Kranji War Memorial, the Military Cemetery and the Singapore State Cemetery.14 The location of the author’s farm-stay was close to these battlegrounds where combatants were killed, drowned or ended in a fery death. At the weekend, the Kranji Reservoir, where the fghting took place, is a resting area for migrant workers who are residents at the Kranji industrial park. The author came across three watchtowers that stand guard at the Kranji Reservoir estuary site today. Kranji underwent another phase of transformation after the War ended. In the post-war years, Sungei Kadut School (which later became the Woodlands Primary School in 1976 and relocated to Marsilling) attracted students from Sungei Kadut, Mandai, Kranji, Marsiling, Woodlands and even Johor Bahru for 22 years. Sungei Kadut School was established in 1953 inside Kampong Kranji; it had no electricity supply or installation and the school was lit using torches and candles. To reach their school, students had to navigate a path peppered with potholes that often fooded.15 At the same time, the Kranji KTM/Malayan Railway land became an area of settlement for squatters; this lasted until 1997 when 110 eviction papers were disseminated to these illegal squatters,

12 National Heritage Board (NHB), “Kranji Beach Battle”, 2 July 2015, NHB website [downloaded on 9 December 2015], available at http://www.nhb.gov.sg/places/trails/ world-war-ii-trail/trail-sites/events/kranji-beach-battle. 13 National Heritage Board (NHB), “Kranji Beach Battle”, 2 July 2015, NHB website [downloaded on 9 December 2015], available at http://www.nhb.gov.sg/places/trails/ world-war-ii-trail/trail-sites/events/kranji-beach-battle. 14 Thulaja, Naidu Ratnala, “Kranji Road”, 2009, Singapore Infopedia (Singapore: National Library Board), [downloaded on 9 December 2015], available at http:// eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_384_2005-01-20.html. 15 Thulaja, Naidu Ratnala, “Kranji Road”, 2009, Singapore Infopedia (Singapore: National Library Board), [downloaded on 9 December 2015], available at http:// eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_384_2005-01-20.html. 206 T.W. Lim clearing the area once and for all.16 In the post-independence years, these squatters co-existed with early timber-based industries in Kranji (mainly sawmilling), which became one of Singapore’s earliest industrial parks when land was reclaimed between 1965 and 1970 to build the Kranji Industrial Estate.17 Historically, this Industrial Estate became the frst recorded reclamation work found in the documents of the Land Offce and, when Singapore embarked on its post-independence drive for modernisation, the area eventually became the Sungei Kadut Industrial Estate for heavy industries. However, in 1996 much of it had to make way for the Woodlands MRT Line from Yew Tee to Kranji Station.18 Even today, the low-lying 2.5 storeyed shophouse-sized Kranji Industrial Estate continues to serve the needs of higher value-added tenants. For the author’s camping trip on 12 December 2015, he travelled in a pickup truck with traditional wooden sidings. The pickup tour of part of the estate revealed the presence of concrete suppliers, scrap car junkyards, a medical clinic, food courts and other tenants. The Kranji Industrial Estate today still has timber businesses stacking up wooden planks and processed wood. Other than timber companies, the Kranji Industrial Estate has played host to recycling centres for motor vehicle frameworks and second-hand hydraulic cranes. Kranji is also the location of several places of interest: the Sungei Buloh Nature Park at Neo Tiew Crescent in Kranji Road, (an 87 hectare bird sanctuary and mangrove plants reserve designated as a national nature park in 1989); the Kranji Reservoir, which was constructed in about 1975; the Kranji Reservoir Park (a 9 hectare park for anglers with facilities for children) which was constructed in about 1979; and a horse-racing track. Kranji became an important water source in 1975

16 Thulaja, Naidu Ratnala, “Kranji Road”, 2009, Singapore Infopedia (Singapore: National Library Board), [downloaded on 9 December 2015], available at http:// eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_384_2005-01-20.html. 17 Thulaja, Naidu Ratnala, “Kranji Road”, 2009, Singapore Infopedia (Singapore: National Library Board), [downloaded on 9 December 2015], available at http:// eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_384_2005-01-20.html. 18 Thulaja, Naidu Ratnala, “Kranji Road”, 2009, Singapore Infopedia (Singapore: National Library Board), [downloaded on 9 December 2015], available at http:// eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_384_2005-01-20.html. 7 TERMINAL END OF SINGAPORE’S NORTH–SOUTH … 207 when a dam was built at the estuary of the Kranji River.19 According to the Sungei Buloh visitors’ gallery, the early Sungei Buloh reserve was inaugurated by former Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong on 6 December 1993 as the pioneering wetland in Singapore and, by 1994, its popular- ity was confrmed by the attendance of its 100,000th visitor. The same gallery at Sungei Buloh noted that, in January 2002, the nature park and sanctuary was increased substantially from 87 to 130 hectares and it adopted its current name, which is Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve. This status equated Sungei Buloh with other gazetted reserves such as the Central Catchment Area, Labrador and Bukit Timah. “Sungei Buloh” means “river of bamboo” in the Malay language. The canal in the Kranji marshlands that leads to the main reservoir was teeming with aquatic life and plants. The watchtower in the Kranji marshlands, constructed for visitors to enjoy the scenery and engage in bird-watching, is known as the 10.65 meter “raptor tower”.20 Large boulders have been placed as stepping stones across a pond. Aquatic life can be observed here, including needlefsh which live in shallow and murky brackish environments. On 16 May 2015, at the entrance of the road that leads to the farms in Lim Chu Kang, the author came across a banner that welcomes visitors to the Kranji countryside. On 12 December 2015, across the Straits, the author caught an early morning misty view of Johor Bahru in Malaysia’s southern state from Sungei Buloh (Kranji’s wetlands, as well as a bird sanctuary). On entering the farms 16 May 2015, the author spotted organic chili grown in Singapore soil on a Kranji farm. In an organic guava farm in Kranji, the author observed species that originated from Taiwan. They had different shapes and sizes from the local guavas that the author observed in Ulu Pandan and the Southern Ridges. Organic peanuts are grown on the Kranji farms and some of the vegetable farms operate large aeroponics cultivation systems. Crops at the farm also included tapioca leaves, ladies’ fngers and their fowers. These were seen on 16 May 2015, along with guava fowers.

19 Thulaja, Naidu Ratnala, “Kranji Road”, 2009, Singapore Infopedia (Singapore: National Library Board), [downloaded on 9 December 2015], available at http:// eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_384_2005-01-20.html. 20 Tang, Louisa and Chan Luo Er, “Kranji Marshes, Singapore’s largest freshwater marshland, now open to visitors”, 1 February 2016, Channelnewsasia website [downloaded on 9 March 2016], available at http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/kranji- marshes-singapore/2476804.html. 208 T.W. Lim

On the frst night of the author’s camping expedition in Lim Chu Kang, he ventured out into Lim Chu Kang Lane and visited local farms in that area. The character of the farms changed between locations. The local marketplace at Lim Chu Kang focused on retailing organically farmed, higher value-added products to consumers who were willing to pay more for better quality food. When the author was at the market, large winter melons grown locally were in season. There were frefies at this farm but, unfortunately, the elusive creatures have been visible only a few times in the past 10 years, according to the farm owner. The author’s visit also coincided with the rainy season so sighting the frefies was not possible. The farm where frefies could be seen cultivated organic corn. In its publicity brochure, the farm declared that it does not use pesticides, chemicals or animal organic waste. The compost heap for fertilising the crops at the progressive farm uses seaweed mixed with rock mineral dust. Consequently, their crops need no additional washing before consumption. Other fruits grown in this area included the buah ciku (a local fruit in Southeast Asia—“buah” means “fruit” in Malay). It is also called sapodilla and the latex, or chicle, extracted from the bark is used in making chewing gum. The fruit is chock-full of minerals and vitamins, and is potentially valuable for cultivation in Southeast Asia. The more progressive farms in the area practice aeroponics, which is more suitable for land-scarce Singapore. Aeroponics can be implemented in multi-storey, level facilities with nutrient sprays; the system is completely automated with minimal utilisation of human labor. Aeroponics is the process of growing plants in an air or mist environment; the equipment involves the use of a variety of devices to create a fne mist of solution to deliver nutrients to the plant roots. This cutting-edge technology offers agriculturalists the ability to grow crops with the need for soil (traditional farming) or partial immersion in water (hydroponics). Besides hi-tech farming, high value-added products such as ornamental fowers can also be found in the Kranji farms. The author came across ornamental fower cuttings grown in a nursery in Kranji on 11 March 2016. Ornamental fowers and plants such as sunfowers and orchids are high value-added items among the cultivated botany in the Kranji farms. The Indonesian red bamboo, which also grows in the Kranji marshlands, has become a popular ornamental plant in the public areas of the housing estates in Singapore. 7 TERMINAL END OF SINGAPORE’S NORTH–SOUTH … 209

Besides cultivated ornamental fowers, wild fowers noted by the author in the Kranji marshlands included the morning glory; mimosa, the leaves of which close up when touched and, consequently, in the Chinese language, they are known as “hanxiucao” (“shy grass”); the simpur fower, whose fgs are popular with monkeys; and costus curvibrac- teatus, a kind of wild ginger fower. The author saw morning glories in full bloom under the hot sun on 9 March 2016, its creepers enveloping the tree branches, stems and trunks in the secondary forest and reaching into cultivated land in Kranji. These morning glories were growing side-by-side, thriving under the hot and dry sun of February and early March. An abundance of ixora fowers could also be seen in the Kranji marshlands during the author’s visit on 9 March 2016. The sap found at the bottom of the fower stem is sweet and succulent. The author also came across water hyacinth cultivation in Kranji and Lim Chu Kang. In the old days, they were used for feeding livestock such as pigs. The water hyacinth fowers were in full bloom at the estuary of Sungei Buloh on 9 March 2016. The author also spotted fsh-tail palm—whose skins, according to experienced hikers, can be cooked and eaten—grow wild in the Kranji marshlands. The wild yams growing at the Kranji marshlands are toxic and therefore inedible (Fig. 7.1). Garden snails have become a pest to the growers of organic produce at the Kranji farmlands. There are domesticated animals as well. The author spotted a former stray cat that had been domesticated by the farm owners sleeping quietly curled up on a plastic chair at the farm on 16 May 2015. The author spotted another unique wild cat that the locals call the “cat with the yin-yang eyes”. It had contrasting eye colors and facial features. Chinese customs and some Taoist devotees believe that animals and humans with yin-yang eyes are often able to see supernatural spirits and beings. Former stray dogs on the Kranji farms have also been domesticated by the farm owner. Up in the air, the author spotted the silhouette of a brahminy kite circling his camp in the afternoon on 12 December 2015. On the ground, smaller creatures were also seen. The large red ant in the Kranji marshlands can give a nasty bite and they worked alone in solitary mode. The author spotted a double-bladed dragonfy resting on a dried leaf in the Kranji marshlands on 9 March 2016. Wildlife was protected within the sanctuary of Sungei Buloh. The author spotted a rich diversity of species. One variety was plantain squirrels but they were too fast for the author to capture on camera. Other wild creatures 210 T.W. Lim

Fig. 7.1 The highly toxic pong pong fruit. Its white sap contains toxins that may affect the heart. Photo taken at the Kranji Marshes on 9 March 2016 7 TERMINAL END OF SINGAPORE’S NORTH–SOUTH … 211 in this wetland reserve include the three spot gourami, which the author observed on 13 December 2015. This fsh emerges from the muddy mangrove water to take a breath of oxygen at the surface before retreating into the hydrilla-flled pond on 13 December 2015. There are large fsh found in the mangroves in Sungei Buloh. The giant mudskipper in the mangrove is amongst the biggest in the world. A highlight of the author’s camping trip to Kranji on 13 December 2015 was spotting the scorpion mimic jumping spider that apparently likes to be near banana plants; it imitates a scorpion for defensive and offensive purposes, and practices cannibalism. Continuing with insect-spotting, three months later, on 9 March 2016, when the author visited Kranji again, he came across a caterpillar that had fallen onto the burning-hot tarmac in the Kranji marshlands and was trying to scramble for a cool spot before it got fried in the sun. In Sungei Buloh, the author was able to photograph a variety of monitor lizards. Some were lazing around in the sun on 13 December 2015, while others had eyes that rotated away from its pupil to its sclera (Fig. 7.2, Fig. 7.3, Fig. 7.4).

Fig. 7.2 A monitor lizard lazes on a wooden deck sunning itself. Photo taken on 13 December 2015 212 T.W. Lim

Fig. 7.3 A monitor lizard sticks its forked tongue out to taste the water. Photo taken on 16 May 2015

Marsiling: The Northernmost End of Singapore East of Kranji lies another northern Singapore district, Marsiling. On 26 November 2016, this volume’s research team ventured further in the northerly direction of Kranji into the Marsiling area. Marsiling and its neighboring Woodlands districts are at the northern-most end of mainland Singapore. It is the fnal northern destination of North–South hikes from the Civic District or Tiong Bahru in southern Singapore, where modernity and sociocultural and political-economic life in modern Singapore started developing and emanating outwards to the rest of Singapore. Marsiling also indicates how the current network of Park Corridor networks have almost extensively reached out to all corners of Singapore, with some breaks in continuous connection along the way. It is therefore, possible for hikers to follow the Park Corridor trails and travel from southern Singapore to its borders with Johor Bahru, Malaysia. The research team for this volume carried out observation 7 TERMINAL END OF SINGAPORE’S NORTH–SOUTH … 213

Fig. 7.4 The crocodile captures visitors’ imagination. The author spotted a submerged estuary crocodile hiding in the water with only its eyes above the surface of the water. Photo taken on 16 May 2015 studies and a hiking trip in the area on 26 November 2016. At the northern tip of Woodlands, the author recorded notes from signboards put up by the authorities to explain the Woodland Waterfront district’s role and function in the national network of park corridors:

Woodlands Waterfront is part of URA’s Parks and Waterbodies Plan exhibited in 2002 which seeks to enhance our green spaces and open up coastal areas and waterbodies for more leisure activities. Conceptualised along the theme of ‘active and healthy community lifestyle’, Woodlands Waterfront consists of a 1.5 km long waterfront promenade, a 9 ha park waterfront park and a 400 m long jetty. These facilities provide a variety of recreational opportunities for the residents of Woodlands and the North region. Woodlands Waterfront is linked to Admiralty Park and other parks in the northern region of Singapore along the 25 km long Northern Explorer Park Connector Network. 214 T.W. Lim

The Woodlands Waterfront area is conceptualised as part of the nationwide network of corridor connections. This works towards the realisation of the goal of connecting all parts of Singapore through conduits that facilitate hiking and cycling activities, contributing to the state’s objective of the promotion of a healthy lifestyle and the provision of recreational facilities for Singaporeans, especially for residents living in this region. In the northern areas of Singapore, objects of nostalgia can also be found. A prime example is the sleepy neighborhood of the old town center in Woodlands. The center of residential and commercial life in Woodlands has been re-directed to the Causeway Point area, a swanky new mall where the MRT subway station and the main bus terminal are located. Lefebvre’s ideas of nostalgia in terms of yearning for natural spaces and old town centers are applicable to the old Woodlands town center. In the context of northern Singapore, the author is able to understand the reasons for the nostalgic sentiments for the old days of Marsiling and Woodlands. Many Singaporeans made their frst trips overseas to Johor Bahru, Malaysia, when Singapore was still a developing economy. Taking a plane or venturing further than Southeast Asia was a luxury for working-class people. This area represented the gateway for Singaporeans excited about shopping and sight-seeing in “JB”, a terminology used in popular parlance to mean Johor Bahru or downtown Johore in Malaysia. The old Woodlands town center represented a former nucleus of commercial activities for local travelers. It also featured mum-and-pop shops before larger chain stores offered higher-end goods for wealthier Singaporeans after the city economy became highly developed. The sleepy, rustic, old town center featured old-style balus- traded architectural features for regional malls. Today, the Woodlands Town Centre remains a stopover for Malaysians travelling back to JB, or vice versa. Many who work in Singapore’s industries arrive before day- break and make a pit stop at the old town center for simple breakfast fare, to convert their currencies, or to do some shopping before going to their offces.21 Marsiling’s landscape is an interesting co-existence of urban town centers that are comparatively lightly populated with green spaces and

21 Teo, Basil Edward, “Living City: Woodlands keeps things buzzing at the border”, 7 February 2017, The Straits Times [downloaded on 8 February 2017], available at http:// www.straitstimes.com/singapore/living-city-woodlands-keeps-things-buzzing-at-the-border. 7 TERMINAL END OF SINGAPORE’S NORTH–SOUTH … 215 small patches of secondary forest. Old traditional Malay kampongs were cleared from this part of Singapore to make way for housing and commercial units. Even amongst the members of the research team for this publication, some (including the author) recalled passing through the bustling town center whenever they returned from a trip to Johor Bahru. Since the town center and bus transfer are moved to Woodlands Square where Causeway Point is located, the former town center has become a rustic stop for passengers resting before their long journey to or from Johore. When the research team for this publication hiked through this area, the author came across an old Kentucky Fried Chicken eatery with an entrance resembling the older KFC outlets displaying the word “restaurant” in cursive font that had withstood the test of time. A popular Shaw Brothers cinema has also moved away but the MacDonald’s outlet remains. Together with the old Oriental Emporium, the Shaw Brothers cinema and the old Oriental Emporium were major tenants of the old town center. The author found a number of money changers operated by ethnic Chinese vendors at the town center and they displayed elaborate Taoist charms at their shops, believing in spiritu- ality heralding good luck for their small businesses. While the old center has become a rustic place, its hawker center still features iconic foods, including a unique Teochew crayfsh stew dish, favored with fsh maw, meatballs, tomatoes and fsh meat. The piping hot stew dish was especially tasty for this publication’s research team, who had hiked through Marsiling and Woodlands in grey, overcast, rainy weather and the author was soaked. In some of the food centers and coffee shops that the research team passed during the Marsiling hike, the author came across this crayfsh dish, which seems to be popular in this part of Singapore. The Steel beams and nuts and bolts of a hawker center in Marsiling gave character to the neighborhood’s old-school rusticity. The oldest example of a cast iron structure for a food center is probably the Maxwell Market, which is one of the oldest standing hawker centers and the former wet market in Singapore. It has a Victorian-era fligree cast iron beam structure similar to the hawker center in Marsiling. Finally, the research team arrived at the Causeway. In the observation studies trip on 26 November 2016, the author noted the following information on the signboard found near the Singapore end of the Causeway: 216 T.W. Lim

Before the completion of the Causeway in 1923, this stretch of coastline was the location of a jetty and railway station which was connected to the rest of Singapore by rail. During the Second World War in February 1942, the Japanese forces landed at the area west of the Causeway, which was partially blown up by the Allied forces.22 After the war, the Woodlands Waterfront site was subsequently used for naval installations until 1997.

According to the textual narrative, the site is historical and has multiple identities as a military facility (naval base), an industrialised facility (railway station) and a battle site (Japanese invasion of Singapore). All three memories of this site and its spatial use are relegated to historical memories and the area has become a jogging and hiking area with a spectacular view of the coast and a glimpse of the skyline of downtown Johor Bahru on the opposite bank. The mangrove environment meandered along the northern coastal area in Woodlands and, on the opposite bank to the mangrove swamps, is downtown Johor Bahru with its offce buildings.

Flora and Botany Great care is taken by the URA to recreate the ecology of the area. In some ways, this sensitive recreation of a wild environment based on local ecology refects Lefebvre’s concept of a tokonoma (a crafted man-made alcove with stylised fower arrangement but carried out to refect nature as closely as possible). In the case of Woodlands Waterfront, the skilled crafter is the state’s redevelopment agency and the botany is recreated based on a scientifcally rational reconstruction of a natural space, indicated in a public plaque at the site:

Plant species planted at Woodlands Waterfront are those which thrive well in the hot and humid tropical climate. These were carefully chosen to enable the rapid re-vegetation of the previously barren site. Over 50%

22 The following text was found on the National Heritage Board’s metal commemorative plaque of the events in World War II related to the Causeway: “The Causeway, completed in 1924, provided a road and rail link between Singapore and Malaya (today Malaysia). During the Second World War, the last Allied military troop in Malaya withdrew to Singapore through the Causeway on 31 January 1942, after losing Malaya to the Japanese. Allied military engineers proceeded to blow up the Causeway to slow down the Japanese troops’ advance to Singapore. However, the Japanese repaired the damage and crossed the Causeway on 9 February.” 7 TERMINAL END OF SINGAPORE’S NORTH–SOUTH … 217

of the newly-planted trees and shrubs are species native to the island of Singapore. In the wild, native species like the Putat Kampong, Alexandrian laurel, Rose myrtle and Spider lily are dwindling in numbers. With the planting of these species, Woodlands Waterfront would play a part in the conservation of Singapore’s fora biodiversity.

In fact, the re-planting of shrubs to meet the natural ecology of the land is an enlightened policy that not only re-introduces diminishing species in Singapore due to rapid urbanisation, but also provides local residents with green recreational space and lifestyle enhancement facilities connected to the rest of the island. It is a dual-tracked strategy to provide green space for those nostalgic and yearning for it while reconstructing it in a way that is ecologically and ethically responsible to the natural environment. The author came across botanical species in the urban areas of Marsiling. They included what was probably a Pong Pong tree, spotting mysterious knobs on its bark. The seeds of the pong pong fruit are toxic and were used by pre-modern indigenous inhabitants of Singapore to make poisonous fsh darts. The wood produces a powdery substance used in making gunpowder in Southeast Asia. The seeds are so toxic that they interfere with a body’s regulation of its heartbeat and had apparently been used in suicides and murders in the past in locations around the world. During their walk on 26 November 2016, the research team also passed by Marsiling’s green spaces, which feature rainforest tree canopies. These canopies were found along Marsiling Road close to the old town center. There were bushes with the common yellow cassia fowers which are tropical fowers typically found in the secondary forests and some of these are planted by the National Parks near the Woodlands Town Garden. Cultivated bright scarlet red heliconia fowers provide color for the public housing estate and the bright red Sumatran bamboo adds color to the roadside plants in Marsiling Court. Another common roadside plant, the colorful plumeria, also found near the Woodlands Town Garden, was planted by the National Park authorities. Along the hiking trail, the author came across an old banyan tree that grows near the town center and black sugar cane plants were cultivated near the housing estates at northern-most end of Woodlands, spotted on the author’s trip of 26 November 2016. In corners of local community garden, cultivated jackfruit looked ready for picking. Ripe mango fruit fell onto the cow grass in the community garden corners in the Marsiling 218 T.W. Lim public housing estate. Fortunately, the public housing estates do not have monkeys that are attracted to such fruits. The largest example of wildlife that our research team came across on 26 November 2016 was a stray cat with blue eyes.

Human Habitation The Sungei Mandai Kechil abstraction station is a landmark structure located in Woodlands Town Garden. During heavy rainfall and thunderstorms, an abstraction facility collects overfowing rainwater and stores it in ponds before channeling it back to a reservoir. Near the abstraction station, the Park Corridor network has two parallel paths for cyclists and hikers to avoid clashes between them. The Park Corridor network at Marsiling meanders around Woodlands Town Garden, a scenic district with a lake. The old Woodlands Town center is situated next to the entrance onto the Causeway bridge that links Singapore with Johor Bahru, the southern tip of the state of Johore, Malaysia. A watchtower from the early 1980s still stands just before the entrance onto the Causeway heading for Johor Bahru in Malaysia. At the town center, the author spotted a clue that he was walking near the northern coast when he saw large fshing nets hung up to dry on 26 November 2016. In the urban areas of Marsiling, the usual amenities of community clubs, playgrounds, and resting areas can be found. A unique feature of the Marsiling housing estate is an underpass for pedestrian use. Beautiful landscaped gardens could also be found on the housing estates. The author came across an interesting local interpretation of a stone garden, complete with landscape rocks with wave-shaped patterns and a curved Japanese wooden bridge. The stone garden had tropical cow grass growing around the rocks. A Chinese Lingnan-style pavilion with green Shiwan tiles on its roof stands nearby, alongside a Japanese-style stone lantern. The crafted garden lends a hybridised cross-cultural feel to the neighborhood. The frst religious structure our research team came across on 26 November 2016 during our hike was Masjid An-Nur, built in 1980 and serving as a center of learning for Islamic teaching as well as Arabic studies. The research team came across smashed coconut offerings for a Chinese deity’s birthday event near a hawker center. As far as the author is aware, coconuts are usually used for Hindu ceremonies; usually they are smashed in front of the temple doors during the festive season but this was the frst time the author had come across the use of coconuts for Taoist rituals. Oranges are more common fruit offerings for a Taoist 7 TERMINAL END OF SINGAPORE’S NORTH–SOUTH … 219 deity at local shrines near the Marsiling industrial park area. After prelim- inary research on this discovery, the author learnt that it may be possible that the coconuts were used by the Taoist devotees in their worship of the Datuk Gong (Nadugong, in Hanyu Pinyin) deity, a Taoist god that combines Malay and Chinese folklore elements. As well as coming across a major Masjid An-Nur mosque, Taoist rituals and shrines, the research team and the author discovered the New Life Bible Presbyterian Church. The presence of multiple places of worship indicated the multi-religious and multi-ethnic character of the local neighborhood. Besides Islam, Taoism appears to have substantial followers in Marsiling’s private housing estates. A classic Shiwan pottery architectural implement can be found in a small shrine located at the industrial park along Marsiling Lane. The small shrine housed Taoist deities to bless the companies located inside the industrial park. Taoist shrines are also sites for traditional Taoist rituals, when paper offerings are burnt in state-provided cages to pay respect to and worship the Heavenly Jade Emperor. The tent that the author came across during his hike was set up for a deity’s birthday celebra- tion. The tent was yellow, representing the gold color that can only be used by the Emperor or the Son of Heaven in accordance with Chinese customs from the past. A dinner gathering with an auction event for participants was held in the Jade Emperor’s honor. Food vendors who sponsored this event believed that buying decorative and household items in the auction would bring them luck for their business in the coming years. By sheer chance, the research team came across a large number of Taoist objects in the Marsiling area on 26 November 2016, including a Taoist Bagua (octagonal) mirror with geomancy designs hung on shopfronts to herald good luck to the small businesses found in that area. The author also saw displays of cut-out paper red pineapple. Read as “Wang Lai” in Cantonese and Hokkien, the pronunciation is homophonic in the southern Chinese dialect for the words meaning “heralding luck”. Small-scale shop proprietors put them up for customary and superstitious reasons (Fig. 7.5).

Coney Island The last stop in the author’s northern treks on mainland Singapore before reaching the Serangoon Straits that separate Pulau Ubin from Singapore was Coney Island. Coney Island (Pulau Serangoon) is an island that is connected to the main island by two land bridges; it is connected to mainland Singapore in the north and reachable on foot. 220 T.W. Lim

Fig. 7.5 Arrival at the northern-most point of Singapore. This was the point beyond which the research team could go no further without a passport. In the future, Jurong East will be the new site for a train terminal for the high speed rail system to Malaysia. Photo taken on 26 November 2016

Coney Island is a popular destination with bikers, anglers and hikers. Singapore Infopedia has informative contents about the island’s origin. The island itself was 13 hectares in size before land reclamation expanded it to 100 hectares.23 The island was developed by the Aw brothers, tycoons who profted from their highly popular medicinal ointment known as Tiger Balm oil.24 They constructed their villa on the island but

23 Lim, Fiona, “Coney Island (Pulau Serangoon)”, 12 February 2016, Singapore Infopedia website [downloaded on 1 January 2017], available at http://eresources.nlb. gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_243_2005-01-19.html. 24 Lim, Fiona, “Coney Island (Pulau Serangoon)”, 12 February 2016, Singapore Infopedia website [downloaded on 1 January 2017], available at http://eresources.nlb. gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_243_2005-01-19.html. 7 TERMINAL END OF SINGAPORE’S NORTH–SOUTH … 221 it was not maintained when the ownership of the island changed hands several times.25 It is currently in a dilapidated state. Coney Island was subsequently purchased by an investor who intended to turn it into an entertainment complex; however, this commercial venture closed three years after opening and it was eventually sold to a Thai investor.26 The state bought the island back from the Thai investor in the 1970s.27 Today, Coney Island is accessible from Punggol Point, amongst other entrances. The open spaces in Punggol Point facilitate activities such as horse-riding. The Punggol Road takes hikers and cyclists to the tip of Punggol Beach, where they can either take a chartered boat to Outward Bound School or turn right to hike towards Coney Island through its western entrance. To reach Punggol Point, hikers can take the MRT to Punggol Town center and take Bus No. 84 to reach Punggol Point or Coney Island. When the author hiked at Coney Island on 19 November 2016, days of heavy rain had created strong fows in the small channels found in or around the island. The maritime coastal scenery around the island is beautiful. Shipyards and port facilities across the Serangoon Straits in Johore, Malaysia, are visible from Coney Island. Here, one can spot kelongs (foating fsh farms) dotting the coastal areas of the island. Nearby, is the Marina Country Club at Punggol. Punggol Point itself is a favorite spot for anglers. Punggol and Coney Island both have a rich diversity of fowers in their green spaces; okra fowers can be found by the Punggol boardwalk heading towards Coney Island and lepiota mushrooms proliferate in the damp wooden chips used to fertilise the plants found in Punggol parks. The author also spotted mimosa, the hibiscus, morning glories, and purple fountain grass growing on Punggol boardwalk, and colonies of lepiota mushrooms proliferated in the hot, humid, rainy weather in the month of November 2016. He also came across the beautiful pink

25 Lim, Fiona, “Coney Island (Pulau Serangoon)”, 12 February 2016, Singapore Infopedia website [downloaded on 1 January 2017], available at http://eresources.nlb. gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_243_2005-01-19.html. 26 Lim, Fiona, “Coney Island (Pulau Serangoon)”, 12 February 2016, Singapore Infopedia website [downloaded on 1 January 2017], available at http://eresources.nlb. gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_243_2005-01-19.html. 27 Lim, Fiona, “Coney Island (Pulau Serangoon)”, 12 February 2016, Singapore Infopedia website [downloaded on 1 January 2017], available at http://eresources.nlb. gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_243_2005-01-19.html. 222 T.W. Lim plumeria in a landscaped part of Punggol and spotted mucilago crus- tacea mold on a tree stump, Honolulu creepers, Lantana fower cluster umbrels, the bracket fungus, wild yams growing at Punggol Point and parasol mushrooms on the hiking trip of 19 November 2016. In the coastal waters of Coney Island, the author spotted a foating coconut that was already sprouting and looking for land in which to take root on 15 November 2015. An exotic plant in this area was the fsh killer tree that produces toxins which used to be applied to darts and used by native hunters to hunt for fsh in the past. The hot and humid weather conditions also attracted butterfies out into the open on 19 November 2016. The author spotted the following species of butterfies on Coney Island: the rare cornelian butterfy and the blue pansy butterfy on 19 November 2016, the wasp moth on 15 November 2015, the club silverline buttery on 5 June 2016, the f-incommoda jacintha eggfy, the black veined tiger butterfy and the black crow on 19 November 2016. In terms of birds, on 5 June 2016 the author came across the ashy tailorbird, the stock-billed kingfsher, the Asian golden weaver, the yellow-vented bulbul, the scaly-breasted munia and the Pacifc swallow. He also caught a glimpse of the elusive fame- back woodpecker on 19 November 2016 and the silhouette of a drongo at Punggol Point on 15 November 2015. The author also discovered a male baya weaver nest on Coney Island on 15 November 2015. Reptiles were found sunning themselves on a hot day. On 5 June 2016, the author spotted a terrapin sunning itself in Punggol Point and a changeable lizard following suit on Coney Island. Other insects found on Coney Island besides butterfies included termites coming out of a termite nest (spotted on 19 November 2016), a crushed dead beetle attracting decomposers and ant burrows in the ground. Another creature found in this area was the large African snail. From Coney Island, it is possible to look across the Serangoon Straits at the granite rocks of Pulau Ubin, which used to have an operational granite quarry. Old bricks from a kiln labelled “Bin Keow” found on former grounds of human habitation on the island are material remains of former residency on this island. Such bricks can also be found in the MacRitchie Catchment Area and Pulau Ubin. On a clear day, the island of Pulau Ubin can be viewed from Coney Island (Fig. 7.6, Fig. 7.7). The author’s hikes in northern Singapore revealed several points about spatial use in Singapore. Even though the development of northern peripheral areas such as Kranji, Marsiling and Woodlands are more 7 TERMINAL END OF SINGAPORE’S NORTH–SOUTH … 223

Fig. 7.6 The tawny coster butterfy found on Coney Island. Photo taken on 5 June 2016

Fig. 7.7 The majestic brahminy kite soars over Coney Island. Photo taken on 5 June 2016 224 T.W. Lim recent compared with the Civic District, the rate of change in spatial use in land-scarce Singapore is just as rapid. A case in point is the relocation of the main bus terminal in Woodlands, turning the old town center into a quiet suburban retail space. Nostalgia is another important theme, as the author recollected memories of the town center as a stopover in early trips to Johor Bahru, Malaysia. The town center was transformed from a bustling and busy retail space to a quieter setting with tenants selling household products next to an old-school hawker center. It went from a town nucleus to a peripheral suburban mall space selling basic items. In doing so, the old town center retained its nostalgic charm for older Singaporeans keen to recollect or relive the past. Similarly, a railway station space along the coast of Woodlands Waterfront is gone. In its place, the authorities have built a beautiful coastal trail with carefully selected planting to refect the original botany of the area. The care taken by the authorities to recreate the original landscape with authenticity indicates the possibility of re-introducing green spaces to highly urbanised areas as part of a response to human fetishisms for nature. If done carefully, it can look highly natural, as the Japanese have done with their landscaping (tokonoma or bonsai). In some ways, it presents the prospect of humans helping nature retake its spaces after the original urban use of those spaces lapsed or were superseded (e.g. a railway station making way for a waterfront park corridor). The waterfront park corridor and trail are also a form of peripheral freedom from urbanisation and the urban environment. The re-introduction of original species of plants into the habitat facilitates continuity in that area’s natural history and prevents spaces becoming uniform or standardised, as they would if turned into commercial malls or residential areas. After discussing the North–South hiking trails, Chap. 8 will move on to discuss the hiking trails and park corridors in the western sector.

References Chow, Alex, “Dalforce”, 2014, Singapore Infopedia (Singapore: National Library Board) [Downloaded on 9 December 2015], Available at http:// eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_765_2005-02-01.html. Lim, Fiona, “Coney Island (Pulau Serangoon)”, 12 February 2016, Singapore Infopedia Website [Downloaded on 1 January 2017], Available at http:// eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_243_2005-01-19.html. 7 TERMINAL END OF SINGAPORE’S NORTH–SOUTH … 225

National Heritage Board (NHB), “Kranji Beach Battle”, 2 July 2015, NHB Website [Downloaded on 9 December 2015], Available at http://www.nhb. gov.sg/places/trails/world-war-ii-trail/trail-sites/events/kranji-beach-battle. Tang, Louisa and Chan Luo Er, “Kranji Marshes, Singapore’s Largest Freshwater Marshland, Now Open to Visitors”, 1 February 2016, Channelnewsasia Website [Downloaded on 9 March 2016], Available at http://www.channelnewsasia. com/news/singapore/kranji-marshes-singapore/2476804.html. Teo, Basil Edward, “Living City: Woodlands Keeps Things Buzzing at the Border”, 7 February 2017 in The Straits Times [Downloaded on 8 February 2017], Available at http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/living-city- woodlands-keeps-things-buzzing-at-the-border. Thulaja, Naidu Ratnala, “Kranji Road”, 2009, Singapore Infopedia (Singapore: National Library Board) [Downloaded on 9 December 2015], Available at http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_384_2005-01-20.html. CHAPTER 8

Journey to the West: Hiking Along the Peripheral Spaces of the Southern Ridges

The Southern Ridges run along the west coast of Singapore, passing through Tanjong Pagar docks, the Pulau Brani port terminal, and the Telok Blangah and Pasir Panjang areas. From work at the National Archives of Singapore, old postcards—including one dating back to 1911, stored at the National Archives database—indicated in writing that Pasir Panjang was mainly an ethnic Malay area. Maritime shipping and related businesses started moving into the Telok Blangah district, motivating Malay families to relocate westwards (having traditionally resided in the east coast areas). Having moved, they took up work as coastal fshermen, charcoal-burners and bullock-cart drivers servicing the docks and harbors.1 Nearer to the downtown city area south of the Central Catchment Area, the Southern Ridges makes up 10 kilometers of the green space that links Mount Faber, Telok Blangah Hill, Hort Park, Kent Ridge and the Labrador Nature Reserve. (The signboard found in the Telok Blangah section indicated that the trail was 9 kilometers in length.) The Southern Ridges cover forested areas and elevated hills. According to the signboard at the treetop walk, Mount Faber is the second highest hill in Singapore after Bukit Timah and its elevation is 105 meters above sea level.

1 Galstaun, Arshak C., “Pasir Panjang, Singapore”, 1911, National Archives of Singapore (NAS) website [downloaded on 1 January 2016], available at http://www.nas.gov.sg/ archivesonline/photographs/record-details/ae1e5db4-1161-11e3-83d5-0050568939ad.

Mount Faber is named after Captain Faber, who constructed a road that ran through the Telok Blangah Hill in 1845. It became a public park for recreation in 1970. All along the trail, one can enjoy panoramic views of southern Singapore. At the peak of Mount Faber, visitors can see the cable car system that ferries passengers to the resort island of Sentosa. One can also enjoy the view of southern islands from this vantage point. The Universal Studios theme park on Sentosa Island is visible from the peak of Mount Faber. Singapore’s symbol, the Merlion, is visible from this position. On the Singapore mainland, Keppel Harbor is also visible from the peak of Mount Faber. On 13 June 2015, the author enjoyed a view of the evening sky fushed with a purplish hue as the day drew to a close at the Telok Blangah end of the Southern Ridges. Another impressive bird’s eye view can be seen from the vantage point of Henderson Waves Bridge where one can see the clearly defned lines of the Jurong Island and a seafront condominium project in the foreground. The Southern Ridges straddle the area connecting other trails that the author has walked before. For example, proceeding westwards from Alexandra Road, one reaches the area in between the Telok Blangah Hill and Hort Park. Telok Blangah is a mature housing estate connected with Henderson and the Tiong Bahru areas. When Singapore developed under the British colonial government, some of the seafaring orang laut people were re-settled to the Telok Blangah and other locations in 1842/43.2 They were probably some of the earliest settlers in this area. Currently, Telok Blangah Hill is the site of some public housing apartments and a recreational site for visitors to enjoy elevated green spaces near the city. According to the contents of the signboards at the treetop walk section of the Southern Ridges, the URA frst declared plans to construct the ridges connections during a public event related to the Parks and Waterbodies and Identity Plans in 2002. According to the same signboard, after a global open call for proposals, the bridges at the Southern Ridges were designed for public enjoyment. On 13 June 2015, the author hiked the Telok Blangah Hill and Mount Faber, proceeding to Telok Blangah Hill from Alexandra Road.

2 Hack, Karl, “The Singapore Malay Community Enclaves and Cultural Domains”, National Institute of Education (NIE) website [downloaded on 5 June 2015], available at http://www.hsse.nie.edu.sg/staff/blackburn/MalayenclavesSingapore.pdf. 8 JOURNEY TO THE WEST: HIKING ALONG THE PERIPHERAL SPACES … 229

At the bottom of the Telok Blangah Hill and perpendicular to Alexandra Road lies the north–south Green Rail Corridor (for more details on the Green Rail Corridor, please refer to Chap. 5). After almost 50 years of developing autonomously from the rest of the city, the plants here have grown lush with little human interference. The author spotted wild yams with large leaves on this trek on 13 June 2015. The trail leads directly to the terminal point of the Singapore-Malaysian railway line near Tanjong Pagar. The author took a bird’s-eye-view photo of this terminal point from Mount Faber on 13 June 2015. The highlight of the Telok Blangah section of the Southern Ridges walk for hikers is the treetop walk. Proceeding from Telok Blangah, the author hiked the treetop walk and reached the Henderson area. Here, he spotted various wild creatures near or on the bridge at Henderson Waves. The Henderson Waves Bridge is made up of strips of tropical hardwood with raised platforms that function as resting places for visitors. It connects Mount Faber with the Telok Blangah areas. From the treetop walk to the Henderson Waves Bridge, one can have a bird’s eye view of the hiking trails at Telok Blangah. On 13 June 2015, the author reached the boundary between the forest walk and Henderson Waves Bridge. The avant garde architectural designs of the Henderson Waves Bridge blended well with the natural forest canopies of the forest walk. Here, the author spotted wildlife at the Telok Blangah Hill. He saw the long-tailed macaque balancing effortlessly on the handrails of the Henderson Waves Bridge 118 feet above Henderson Road. It is the highest pedestrian bridge in Singapore. On the handrail of the bridge was a female monkey, a baby monkey following closely behind her. The baby monkey glanced cautiously to the side, searching for fruits and nuts in the trees. An alpha male monkey stood guard while his family members rested in the shade at Mount Faber. Within the brood, two siblings checked each other’s bodies for insects. Nearby a lazy wild stray cat sunned itself on the deck of the Henderson Waves Bridge while a squirrel looked for food at the treetop walk. The beautiful wild stray cat sat astride the fallen leaves in the area leading to the top of Mount Faber. On 13 June 2015, the author came across a bird’s nest hidden in the trees and a caterpillar that made its way to a dried leaf at the Henderson Waves Bridge. The author also spotted bees trying to pollinate a simpur ayer fower. Nearby, a garden snail climbed a tree trunk near the top at Mount Faber (Fig. 8.1). A number of birds were also spotted by the author on his hike on 13 June 2015. Wild macaws cleaned each others’ feathers at the foot of Telok 230 T.W. Lim

Fig. 8.1 Amazingly, the giant red ants form a bridge using their own bodies so that their compatriots can cross between a signboard and a leaf, connecting an urban infrastructure with a natural green leaf. Photo taken on 13 June 2015, near the Henderson Waves Bridge

Blangah Hill. A whole fock of these macaws was travelling together but it is unknown whether they were released pets that have adapted to the wild and proliferated. A white-throated kingfsher perched on top of a tree in Mount Faber, taking a rest in its home base from hunting for fsh or small insects. Besides birds, the author also spotted decomposers at Mount Faber, such as the bright orange-colored bracket fungi. There are some interesting specimens of fora at Telok Blangah Hill, including peacock fowers and tall elephant grass inching towards the treetop walk bridge noted on 13 June 2015. Some tall tropical trees can also be found in this area as well, including the red sandalwood trees. According to the signboard displayed at the treetop bridge for this tree, this tree has multiple uses, often being used for making furniture as a substitute for sandalwood; also, four of its seeds weigh one gram and, therefore, it was often used as 8 JOURNEY TO THE WEST: HIKING ALONG THE PERIPHERAL SPACES … 231 a weighing measure for jewelry in the past. On his 13 June 2015 walk, the author found a number of fruit trees in this area, including a guava fruit hanging outside a black-and-white bungalow, a dried-up coconut that was trying to germinate at the foot of Mount Faber, a coconut that had fallen into a water source with rotting leaves was afforded a chance for germina- tion, a ripe cultivated mango that had fallen into a water source and split apart, and banana trees near the entrance to the treetop walk near Hort Park. The author also came across an exploded fg fruit at Telok Blangah. The treetop walk allowed the author to look across the tops of a variety of tropical trees at eye level. The author took a picture of an old banyan tree with a bird’s nest fern nestled on it on 13 June 2015. Another tall tree is the stilted simpoh, an endangered tree that can grow up to more than 60 meters in height. On 13 June 2015, the author also spotted a fallen tree overgrown by foliage. There are some attractive trees that provide shade for residences in Telok Blangah as well; for example, the trave- ler’s palm tree that stands in front of a black-and-white bungalow. There were a number of unidentifed fungi growing on a wooden stump on a slope at Mount Faber. The author also found parasol and puffball mushrooms at the foot of Mount Faber on 13 June 2015. Green bamboo and deadly-looking thorns were found on some of the trees along the treetop walk. The treetop walk affords beautiful views of the forest canopy and the Telok Blangah secondary forest. A stream runs through this section of the forest walk. Visitors can also take a scenic photo of the treetop at the peak of Mount Faber from the Henderson Waves Bridge (Fig. 8.2). The Southern Ridges also feature splendid British-era colonial black-and-white bungalows, particularly along the treetop walk area, rented by expatriates or corporate entities near Hort Park, the treetop walk and Telok Blangah Hill. While some bungalows had signs that indicated they were available for rent at the time of the author’s hike, many were visibly occupied. A mansion stood out amongst others in this area. The grandeur of the Alkaff Mansion and its splendid lawn, owned by a prominent Muslim trading family, is visible to hikers. The Alkaff Mansion is a bungalow with Tudor-inspired architecture and constructed in 1918 by the Alkaff family, who migrated to Singapore from Yemen in 1852 and operated trades in sugar, coffee and spices.3 It became a mansion for Singapore’s high society circle in the 1930s and,

3 Kamil, Asyraf and Louisa Tang, “Lease extended, but fate of Alkaff Mansion restaurant still uncertain”, 4 March 2016, Today (Singapore: Mediacorps), 2016, p. 12. 232 T.W. Lim

Fig. 8.2 Bright orange fungus growing on rotting wooden logs along the Henderson Waves trail. The same bright orange fungus could also be found growing on rotting wood along the sloped pathways of Mount Faber. Photo taken on 13 June 2015 8 JOURNEY TO THE WEST: HIKING ALONG THE PERIPHERAL SPACES … 233 from the 1990s onwards, the Alkaff Mansion became known as a popular Dutch Indonesian restaurant. Religious communities and devotees are also active in this area, with Taoists putting up a banner depicting the Monkey God as part of a traditional ritualistic practice. Islamic burial relics can also be found in an old Malay cemetery with tombstones at the foot of Mount Faber. Besides traditional rituals and burial practices, another signifer of traditions in this area is the food sold in hawker centers and coffee shops; for example, traditional Teochew beng kueh (rice cakes) near the foot of the Telok Blangah Hill along Alexandra Road (Fig. 8.3).

Ulu Pandan Walking northwards from Telok Blangah and beyond Hort Park, one eventually reaches Kent Ridge. Kent Ridge is connected with Ulu Pandan and the Clementi Forest area via Clementi Road. Moving southwards from Dairy Farm to Upper Bukit Timah and then the Rife Range Road, one can also reach Ulu Pandan. Ulu Pandan therefore is a connecting point between the Green Rail Corridor and Southern Ridges. If one walked westwards from Ulu Pandan, a walker, cyclist or trekker would eventually reach Jurong. If a walker, hiker or trekker continued walking in the northerly direction, they would reach Bukit Timah, the Upper Bukit Timah area, Gombak and then Dairy Farm estate. Heading southwards, one could walk or cycle along the Ulu Pandan section of the Park Corridor and reach the North Buona Vista end of the Green Rail Corridor. The author trekked Ulu Pandan, especially the section perpendicular to Clementi Road, and took notes of the National Heritage signboards that were erected in the area. The author explored Ulu Pandan tracks on 4 March 2015, 21 May 2015, 28 May 2015 and 10 June 2015. At a local event related to SG50 (Singapore’s fftieth anniversary of nationhood), it was revealed that Ulu Pandan used to be the site of a guava plantation.4 The authors found few materials or information on the existence of this guava plantation, although some guava trees can still be found in a community garden in Ulu Pandan. On 10 June 2015, the author followed a small path that led to the remains of the squatter farming areas at the Ulu Pandan site. It has now been turned into a community garden and local residents still tended to former Ulu Pandan farmland that had been converted into community gardens. The community farmers and local residents used net coverings to protect their shrubs and fruits from animals. Organic matter was used to fertilise the banana trees. Sheds were constructed to store the farming equipment. There is also innovative use of recycled materials; for example, PVC pipes are used for the cultivation of farm plants and shrubs. A shed was constructed with a shelter where community farmers rested under the hot sun. At the time of the author’s visit, a transistor radio provided simple entertainment for them.

4 Chia, Alice, “Carnivals, exhibitions on Ulu Pandan’s history kick off”, 9 May 2015, Channelnewsasia [downloaded on 29 May 2015], available at http://www.channelnewsasia. com/news/singapore/carnivals-exhibitions-on/1836430.html. 8 JOURNEY TO THE WEST: HIKING ALONG THE PERIPHERAL SPACES … 235

The author had a panoramic view of the farmland from a nearby housing estate on 10 June 2015. Some specimens of cultivated fruit trees and their fruit spotted in the community farming area in Ulu Pandan on 10 June 2015 included ripe mangoes that bobbed up and down in a pool of water in the community garden,; a ripe mango, whose fragrance and sap attracted a wasp to its skin; and nangka (jackfruit) carefully wrapped up with bags to prevent them from being eaten by wildlife. The bags prevent the jackfruit from suffering the same fate as the durians which had been half-eaten by wildlife on 10 June 2015. It is unclear why bags were not used to cover the durians. The durians naturally fell to the ground when they were ripe. The author also came across pomegranate cultivation in the urban gardens of Ulu Pandan’s Clementi housing estates. Local community groups also chipped in. Ulu Pandan’s Clementi housing estate’s residential committee planted sugar cane in the community garden. The residential committee also kept aloe vera plants. Besides cultivated fruit trees, wild mango trees grew in the green belt in between Maju Camp and Clementi Park. Interestingly, the author found an fshpond with schools of molly fsh in the Ulu Pandan community garden. The dug-out fshpond was well-camoufaged, with only a stick holding up a plastic sheet covering. The covering may have been placed there to prevent birds from eating the fsh (especially since the area is populated with blue collared kingfshers, amongst other birds of prey) and also to provide shade for the fsh from the hot weather. Wild mollies and guppies populated the fshpond when the author came across it on 10 June 2015. There were other signs of community life in the area, as well. The author came across the remains of the foundations of kampong houses formerly located in the Ulu Pandan area. Local residents now use part of the space for traditional activities such as appreciating their caged songbirds. In the community garden, an abandoned body of water that resembled a holding area for water drawn from a well may have been used for washing clothes and vegetables, or functioned as a pond of some kind. Next to this water basin was a depression in the ground covered with grass. Besides hosting squatter farms in the past, Ulu Pandan was the site of military camps. The Singapore Infopedia, an electronic encyclopedia on Singapore’s history, culture, people and events, noted the following: 236 T.W. Lim

[Kranji War Cemetery] … incorporates the graves of the prisoners of war from Changi Camp, the Buona Vista Camp, 306 of the 1939–1945 war graves originally located at Ulu Pandan and 61 graves of the 1914–1918 war graves from Biddari5

The cemetery was located nearer to the Pine Grove section of Ulu Pandan. Moving further down Ulu Pandan’s valley towards the direction of Jurong East, one can see the cast iron bridge that used to be part of the Singapore-Malayan railway. A detailed explanation of the Jurong railway is available at the Ulu Pandan trail. The author took notes from the National Heritage Board (NHB) signboard posted on the trail:

As the Jurong Industrial Estate expanded in the 1960s, there was a need to establish better transport links for the import and export of goods. To facilitate this, Keretapi Tanah Melayu (Malayan Railway Limited) built the Jurong Railway as a new section of the main Singapore–Malaysia railway line with a loan from the Economic Development Board. The Jurong Railway was the frst new line to be built by Malayan Railways since World War II. The line was completed in early 1966. A total of 12 miles (about 19.3 kilometers) of track were laid. The main Jurong line ran for nine miles (about 14.5 kilometers), starting from the Bukit Timah Railway Station (located next to King Albert Park, off Bukit Timah Road) and heading westwards to Jurong via Pasir Panjang. The line ended at Shipyard Road near the Mobil Refnery. There were three branch lines running to other sections. One led to the National Iron and Steel Mills, the estate’s frst factory, another to the heavy industries’ section and the third to the wharves of Jurong Port. The railway offcially opened on 5 March 1966. The railway proved to be a vital cog in the wheel that drove Singapore’s economic development following its separation from Malaysia in 1965.

5 Wong, Heng, “Kranji Memorials”, 2002, Singapore Infopedia [downloaded on 29 May 2015], (Singapore: National Library Board), 2010, available at http://eresources. nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_183_2004-12-27.html?v 1&utm_expid 85360850-6. = = qNOOYF40RhKK6gXsQEaAJA.1&utm_referrer http%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com. = sg%2Furl%3Fsa%3Dt%26rct%3Dj%26q%3D%26esrc%3Ds%26frm%3D1%26source%3D web%26cd%3D1%26ved%3D0CBwQFjAA%26url%3Dhttp%253A%252F%252Feresou rces.nlb.gov.sg%252Finfopedia%252Farticles%252FSIP_183_2004-12-27.html%26ei% 3DsR5oVeavGMO1uQSYnIGIBg%26usg%3DAFQjCNF86w99IeJINKnnHdCl_iCtS- uZyQ%26bvm%3Dbv.94455598%2Cd.c2E. 8 JOURNEY TO THE WEST: HIKING ALONG THE PERIPHERAL SPACES … 237

Regular cargo services brought raw materials from Peninsular Malaysia into Jurong. It was also responsible for the transportation of products for export to the rest of the world. A Straits Times article from 1965 projected that two to three million tons of cargo could be moved per year, and it was expected that between seven and ten trains would run each day. Over the next few decades, however, the advent of better transport options very likely led to a decline in demand for rail transport. It is believed the Jurong Railway ceased operation in the mid-1990s. The majority of the track has been removed or has rusted away over the years. This bridge over the Pandan River is one of the best preserved segments of the line. Another bridge can be found over Sunset Way.

During the phase of Singapore’s post-war industrialisation, railway systems imported raw materials from Malaysia for industrial production and re-export. It is a story of land use and spatial changes with Ulu Pandan, Clementi and Jurong incorporating railway land, freshwater riv- ers and swamps, farmland and a new satellite town. The farmland also supported guava plantations and the establishment of a modern water fltration system removed the pungent smell in the air in this area. The author walked through a stretch of the former Jurong Railway line on 10 June 2015. The track remains in relatively good condition at the western end of the Ulu Pandan area and then it gradually degenerates to a dilapidated state before it crosses the Ulu Pandan River through a cast iron bridge. A bird’s eye view of the railway track can be had from an elevated vantage point at a nearby high-rise public housing block. In some sections of the railway, the wooden supports have rotted away or are in poor condition. The rusted nuts and bolts of the track are a testimony to the Jurong Railway that used to operate in this area in Ulu Pandan. Wear and tear to a railway track concrete support is evident. The structure has become too dangerous to walk on, so the author did not venture to cross this railway track. A small path led the author to the remaining tracks of the Jurong Railway line. Signs of former local community life were visible as a makeshift Hindu altar was found at a holy site underneath the expressway. The origin of this altar is unknown. It could have been there since the operation of the Jurong Railway. At the time of his visit, the author did not meet any devotees on 10 June 2015. There must be a substantial number of Hindu railway workers, as the author located another abandoned Hindu temple at the Green Rail Corridor’s Portsdown Road section. 238 T.W. Lim

The Ulu Pandan Water Reclamation Plant (formerly the Ulu Pandan Sewerage works, or Sia Chwee Tee) was built in 1961. A byproduct of its operations was foul air but a process to reduce its this gas output was put in place, which enabled Ulu Pandan to be used for housing and leisure purposes.6 Today, Ulu Pandan and its perpendicular Clementi Road now boast valuable residential space, public housing with maisonette-typed apartments, two polytechnics and two universities. Ulu Pandan’s nature trail and its surrounding areas (Clementi Road and Sunset Way) are rich in natural and historical heritage, as well as leisure facilities such as a pleasantly-landscaped canal and pond. Some parts of the trail are inter- sected by major expressways plying the western sector of the island. On 10 June 2015, a brownish-looking river at Ulu Pandan, rich in nutrients, nourished the wildlife in it. The old Singapore–Malaysia railway tracks crossed this river through an overhead cast iron bridge which is still visible today. At night, the village-like rustic kampong environment with its zinc-roofed houses features a restaurant, which was closed at the time of the author’s hike. It is probably one of the last few zinc-roofed kampong-style houses left in Singapore. A research center on aquatic science is also located at Ulu Pandan near Albert Winsemius Lane. The center was offciated by HE Dr Jan Peter Balkenende (Prime Minister of the Netherlands) and presented to the Singapore-Delft Water Alliance at the National University of Singapore on 23 October 2009. The Aquatic Science Centre of the Ulu Pandan area was offcially opened by Dr Vivian Balakrishnan (Minister for the Environment and Water Resources Singapore) on 6 July 2011. According to the Centre’s public displays, with the vision of achiev- ing sustainability in water supply, Singapore invested in research for an integrated system of water supply from catchment areas, foreign sources, NEWater reclaimed water and desalinated water. Winsemius Lane is named after a well-known Dutch economist who was central to Singapore’s post-war industrialisation. The Van Kleef Centre located here researches water treatment and microbes that remove water pollutants.

6 Zeye, “Ulu Pandan Water Reclamation Plant Waste Sludge Incineration”, 29 May 2015, Page Nation website [downloaded on 29 May 2015], available at http://sg.pagenation. com/sin/Ulu%20Pandan%20Water%20Reclamation%20Plant_103.7543_1.3315.map. 8 JOURNEY TO THE WEST: HIKING ALONG THE PERIPHERAL SPACES … 239

On 1 March 2015, the author embarked on a short trek along the Ulu Pandan trail and discovered wildlife along the way. Excited by these fnds, the author classifed the wildlife sightings in his explorations into several categories. In terms of reptiles, the author came across a fascinating changeable lizard that was in the middle of changing color to adapt to its environment. On the morning of 7 May 2015, a changeable lizard was crawling near the entrance of a tertiary institution’s campus. A monitor lizard scurried into a drainpipe when it was spotted by the author. The author also spotted a sea eagle fying around this campus. Because of its high altitude fight, it was diffcult to capture the eagle on camera. The author spotted an olive green sunbird at Clementi Park, but their small size and agility made it diffcult to photograph. The author managed to spot the following bird species in the area: a white heron swal- lowing a fsh in Ulu Pandan and fying over the grass patch in the Ulu Pandan area; a pair of zebra doves at Ulu Pandan, and an elusive water- hen at the water’s edge. Waterhens are commonly seen in the Singapore Botanical Gardens (please refer to Chap. 3 for more information on the Singapore Botanical Gardens). On 10 June 2015, the author also spotted a black naped oriole hiding in the shade of a tree, its nest located nearby, a wild kampong chicken crept through a bamboo grove in search of food, a blue collared kingfsher waiting for its prey by the side of the Ulu Pandan river. Another pair of blue collared kingfshers resided in the Clementi Park and dominated the area by calling out loudly to declare their territorial ownership of a section of the Park. A red-necked green pigeon near the Clementi Park next to Ulu Pandan was spotted on 28 May 2015. After the wet and rainy April 2015 season, the author saw a number of insect species on 7 May 2015 at Clementi Road and Ulu Pandan. A red dragonfy (trithemis aurora, the crimson dropwing dragonfy) was perched on top of a stick near the entrance of a tertiary institution. Dragonfies tend to congregate around areas that have clean or pristine environments. These red dragonfies are attracted to streams and they are known to be voracious predators that consume mosquitos, thereby limiting their numbers.7 The author also saw a wasp stationed on a young simpur leaf on 10 June 2015. Another dragonfy, drab in color, was resting at the Ulu Pandan trail on 10 June 2015, oblivious

7 Khew, Carolyn, “An oasis of nature”, 8 June 2015, The Straits Times (Singapore: Singapore Press Holdings), 2015, p. B5. 240 T.W. Lim to all movements around it, staying completely stationary. Dragonfies are known to be picky when it comes to selecting their living habitat; they will only live in a clean environment. A fruit fy was attracted to the fruit trees in the area while ants inhabited a curled up leaf. A wasp landed on a mango’s skin, drawn to its fragrance and sap, and a large ant pushed an organic object that resembled a stalk many times its weight while a spider hid in the petal of a fower waiting for its prey. An ant or termite nest was found near a bus stop along Clementi Road on 9 June 2015 and worker ants were at work on the ground at Ulu Pandan on 10 June 2015. The author spotted another ant or termite nest on the same day at Ulu Pandan, near the former farmland. On 21 May 2015, the author also spotted several species of moths and butterfies on the Ulu Pandan nature trail and Park Corridor. Two common garden snails were crawling along the Clementi Road near a tertiary institution campus on 10 June 2015. One reason why it is pleasant to walk through Ulu Pandan is the trees and the shade they provide along the canal. On his walk on 10 June 2015, the author came across idyllic scenes of coconut trees by the side of the waterway in Ulu Pandan, spotting a coconut that had fallen onto decomposing leaves and which was sprouting a young sapling. Aquatic plants can be found on the Ulu Pandan trail, including sedges growing by the side of the pond and elephant grasses growing on the banks of the Ulu Pandan river. Located nearby were the knotted roots of an old banyan tree which was removed in 2016 for a road widening project. The move helped to alleviate traffc jams in the direction of Clementi to the Bukit Timah intersection. A clump of wild Japanese bamboo, likely to be a cultivated plant that was abandoned by the residents, a morning glory creeper and a peacock plant were spotted here. Edible plants were also located along the trail; for example, the Ulu Pandan trail featured a number of banana groves and one of the plants was fowering when the author walked there on 10 June 2015. Another edible plant spotted by the author was the tapioca, which used to be a major food source for Singaporeans during the Pacifc War period when food was scarce. The trail featured a species of cultivated white jasmine fower (shuimeis), a common plant used for bonsai cultivation in Singapore. On 10 June 2015, the fowers were blooming and gave off a fragrant smell. Nearby, an exploded fg fruit looked like a false fower and the fg fruits attracted birds that few to the bushes for a quick meal of the succulent seeds in 8 JOURNEY TO THE WEST: HIKING ALONG THE PERIPHERAL SPACES … 241 the exploded seed pods. Ants were visible trying to extract the juice and sugar from the seed pods. A parasitic creeper grew on the tree trunk located just outside a tertiary institution’s campus along Clementi Road. The bougainvillaea fowers that grew along the same road added color to the landscape. The Ulu Pandan track ran perpendicular to the Clementi Forest area (please refer to Chap. 5, for more details of this forest). This Forest is bordered by the Ulu Pandan road that runs through Pandan Valley, down Moonbeam Walk and into Holland Village. To visualise the Clementi Forest environment spatially, it was necessary to venture into the interior of the forest through the Green Rail Corridor trail. (Readers may wish to refer to Chap. 4 on the Green Rail Corridor for more details on this trail.) Another green space near Ulu Pandan is the Clementi Neighbourhood Park. Near Clementi Neighbourhood Park, an urban gardening and farming facility can be found. Here, a local member of Parliament planted a tree that produced rambutans for the stakeholders of the community garden. On 28 May 2015, the author came across a sunfower at the community garden whose seeds can be harvested as edible food. Chilli cultivation can also be found at the community garden near Clementi Neighbourhood Park. A hairy spider hid under a corner of the Clementi Park staircase, waiting for prey. A parasol mushroom, its gills visible, and wild fungus were spotted on 28 May 2015. If one decides to head west from Ulu Pandan instead of heading south towards Bukit Timah, the Ulu Pandan trail reaches the Jurong, Pioneer and Jalan Bahar areas. Jurong used to be freshwater primary forest swamp land but it was developed into an industrial estate at the start of Singapore’s industrialisation. A beautiful Chinese and Japanese garden lies in between Jurong East and Pioneer. It is here that the author spotted a variety wild creatures. At the point of this writing, the gardens are undergoing a major revamp. Rustling sounds in the bushes revealed a monitor lizard lying incognito in the grass. They could also be found in the drainage areas in the gardens. Beautiful landscaping characterised the gardens. For example, a bridge with a classical Chinese design imitating the Qing dynasty imperial style connected different parts of the Chinese garden and it was also near an access point to the Japanese garden. In the Japanese garden, one could see a large traditional red parasol of the type often used in the Japanese tea ceremony, a Shinto Torii gate and a bridge designed in the traditional Japanese style. 242 T.W. Lim

As the author walked northwestwards from the Chinese and Japanese gardens, he reached the beautiful Jalan Bahar/Pioneer campus of Nanyang Technological University (NTU). NTU’s surroundings also feature a forested area. In the frst 100 years after the founding of modern Singapore from 1819 to 1900, primary forests in Singapore were mainly cleared for gambier cultivation with, typically, 50% of the land cleared to provide natural nutrients for cultivation and the other half for supplying timber for boiling gambier leaves.8 Secondary forests now symbolise the natural heritage of Singapore since primary forests can only be found in limited and isolated locations, such as the Nee Soon Swamps. Therefore, the natural environment of the campus becomes an asset for the university, given its proximity to hostels and its potential to enhance the aesthetics and comfort of the residents living there. Hall Residence 15 is the residential facility nearest to the secondary forests next to the NTU campus. The offcial website for the Hall reads: “Hall of Residence 15 is located in the western sector of NTU’s 200 hectare campus. Amid the lush greenery of the secondary forest nearby, we enjoy a tranquil yet accessible location.”9 The lush green secondary forest also hosts an amazing biodiversity of wildlife, ranging from wild boars, to packs of wild dogs and pangolins. In 2015, there was even an epic battle between a king cobra and a python, which was videoed and broadcast on Youtube by onlookers and which made it to the social and traditional media spheres. The author is acquainted with friends who resided in NTU and who had to call in snake catchers to remove large pythons from their residences. Other than such isolated incidents, natural green assets quickly became part of the charm of NTU’s campus. In fact, from its corporate information, dating from at least 2012, NTU started identifying itself as the “Yunnan Garden Campus” and other facilities, such as residences, classrooms and laboratories, are located inside this large green space.

8 Corlett, Richard T., “The Vegetation in the Nature Reserves of Singapore”, 1997, Proceedings of the Nature Reserves Survey Seminar Gardens’ Bulletin Singapore 49 (Singapore), 1997, p. 147. 9 Nanyang Technological University (NTU) Residence Hall 15, “About us”, NTU website [downloaded 28 October 2016], available at http://webx.ntu.edu.sg/hall15/About_ Locateus.html. 8 JOURNEY TO THE WEST: HIKING ALONG THE PERIPHERAL SPACES … 243

NTU’s main 200-ha garden campus – houses Singapore’s largest on-campus residence infrastructure including 16 halls of residence for undergrad- uates and a graduate hall at the Youth Olympic Village of the inaugural Youth Olympic Games in August 2010.10

Because of its pristine natural environment, NTU residents, staff and students on campus come into contact with exotic creatures; for example, endangered species are sometimes found on campus and they are identifed by nature enthusiasts. For example, a “keel-bellied whip snake, dryophiops rubescens (Reptilia: Serpentes: Colubridae)” was spotted at the NTU’s Jurong Campus off Jalan Bahar, Hall of Residence 10 (adjacent to the Western Catchment Area) on 3 November 2013 (at 3.00 pm) in the urban structures next to the secondary forest.11 This sighting of a critically endangered snake is said to be the frst for this species of snake in the western sector of Singapore.12 The campus integrates both natural forested areas and landscaped gardens, such as Yunnan Garden. In other words, the campus had two types of green assets: natural forested landscape and crafted gardens. Attempts have been made in the recent past to design and craft the campus landscape carefully so as to enhance its green quality. The most recent major attempt before the 2016 announcement for a major overhaul is probably traceable back to 2010, with the Yunnan Garden Master Plan. In 2010, Edmund Cheng, Chairman of the Campus Planning Committee NTU Board of Trustees, noted several ways in which the campus greenery is carefully managed and restored in the NTU campus. He cited the “restoration of

10 Nanyang Technological University (NTU), “Corporate Information About NTU Introduction to NTU”, 2012, NTU website [downloaded on 1 January 2016], available at http://www.ntu.edu.sg/AboutNTU/CorporateInfo/Pages/Intro.aspx. 11 Singapore Biodiversity Records 2014, “Keel-bellied whip snake at NTU Jurong Campus”, 28 February 2014, Lee Kong Chian Natural Heritage Museum website [downloaded on 1 October 2016], available at http://www.google.com.sg/url?sa t&rct j& = = q &esrc s&source web&cd 20&ved 0ahUKEwjiovWxsvzPAhVGNY8KHcu7AH = = = = = w4ChAWCEgwCQ&url http%3A%2F%2Flkcnhm.nus.edu.sg%2Fnis%2Fsbr2014%2F = sbr2014-060.pdf&usg AFQjCNEH-3yHmuCxPBAonCaG14W9oBU_9A. = 12 Singapore Biodiversity Records 2014, “Keel-bellied whip snake at NTU Jurong Campus”, 28 February 2014, Lee Kong Chian Natural Heritage Museum website [downloaded on 1 October 2016], available at http://www.google.com.sg/url?sa t&rct j& = = q &esrc s&source web&cd 20&ved 0ahUKEwjiovWxsvzPAhVGNY8KHcu7AH = = = = = w4ChAWCEgwCQ&url http%3A%2F%2Flkcnhm.nus.edu.sg%2Fnis%2Fsbr2014%2F = sbr2014-060.pdf&usg AFQjCNEH-3yHmuCxPBAonCaG14W9oBU_9A. = 244 T.W. Lim the campus’ endemic vegetation … through the reinvigoration of local biodiversity” and “a system of natural water management able to closely link the campus’ ecosystem with that of the surrounding environment” as visible ways through which environmental sustainability is enhanced.13 A news release in 2015 reported that:

… the sports hall and residential building are designed to take advantage of their natural surroundings. Using computer modelling of the sun and wind patterns on-site, the buildings’ designers aim to harness natural winds so students will enjoy good ventilation with average wind speeds calculated at about 0.5 metres per second.14

Given that NTU is an excellent technological university, it comes as no surprise that the institution will protect and conserve green assets found within the natural landscape of the campus using advanced technologies. Harnessing renewable energies can help to maintain the integrity of the natural environment within the campus and re-design the eco-system to make energy use and land use more sustainable, interfering less with the remaining forested areas and park areas (such as Yunnan Garden). The NTU campus Yunnan Garden Master Plan was not just about a simple campus restoration or gentrifcation in 2010 but, rather, about re-shaping an entire eco-system found in the NTU campus to facilitate the construction of “outdoor landscape and water corridors accessible by pedestrian walkways and cycle paths”.15 The 2016 declaration of intention to make the Garden publicly accessible can be contextualised as the continuation of this Master Plan. It was a vision to involve more stakeholders in the future use and planning for the Garden. The author

13 Nanyang Technological University (NTU), “The Principal Ideas Yunnan Garden Campus Master Plan August, 2010”, August 2010, NTU website [downloaded on 1 October 2016], available at https://www.ntu.edu.sg/odfm/campusmasterplan/Documents/Campus MasterPlanPrincipalIdeas.pdf, p. 6. 14 Nanyang Technological University (NTU), “Media News Releases: NTU campus, a living lab for sustainability, gets greener”, 12 May 2015, NTU website [downloaded on 1 January 2016], available at http://media.ntu.edu.sg/NewsReleases/Pages/newsdetail. aspx?news 9e4d83d5-7f9a-475d-8293-5ebc075f808b. = 15 Nanyang Technological University (NTU), “The Principal Ideas Yunnan Garden Campus Master Plan August, 2010”, August 2010, NTU website [downloaded on 1 October 2016], available at https://www.ntu.edu.sg/odfm/campusmasterplan/Documents/Campus MasterPlanPrincipalIdeas.pdf, p. 9. 8 JOURNEY TO THE WEST: HIKING ALONG THE PERIPHERAL SPACES … 245 visited the campus on several occasions, both on foot and in vehicles as a passenger, to observe the natural ecology in the campus area. He visited the Yunnan Garden and Nanyang Lake located on NTU’s campus. The author spotted changeable lizards in the midst of changing colors to adapt to their surroundings and the conditions. Banana trees acted as thick foliage to block out the heat of the sun while giant red weaver ants were hard at work on a rhododendron plant’s budding fowers. Hanging yellow pea plants are also grown in the Nanyang Lake area. On the petal of what appears to be white rhododendron fowers, one can spot the ants (probably red weaver ants) busy with their activities. The author also came across a fre tree fower in the Nanyang Lake area. In the aquatic environment of the Nanyang Lake, one could fnd schools of cichlids swimming in the lake. Some of these cichlids were hiding in the shade underneath the leaves of the aquatic plants, protected from the hot sun. The author also saw bright vermillion double bladed dragonfies dart- ing about at the Nanyang pond. Betel nuts by the side of Nanyang Lake were ripening and maturing with a beautiful red color. At the water’s edge, the author saw morning glory creepers crawling along the concrete path. He also took a walk around the Nanyang Lake and spotted some Sumatran red bamboo by the side of the lake. Nanyang Lake was decorated and planted with beautiful aquatic plants (Echinodorus palae- folius, Family: Alismataceae) with their fowers in bloom. In addition to the area around Nanyang Lake, during a hiking trip on 25 March 2015, the author walked through Nanyang Valley and spotted a wide variety of fowers in the Valley section of the NTU campus, including the beautiful frangipani and its distinct fragrance, bright red hibiscus, bougainvillaea fowers, Singapore rhododendrons, red and yellow heliconia psittacorum in bloom, the yellow allamanda cathartica (also known as golden trum- pet), the red heliconia crab claw fower, the silhouette of a coconut tree standing tall and proud in the Yunnan Garden. In March 2016, NTU decided to convert the university-owned Yunnan Gardens into an open access park for members of the public to enjoy leisurely activities and for groups to organise larger-scale activities in the space formed by integrating sections of the road in front of the Chinese Heritage Centre, Yunnan Garden and the Nanyang Lake.16 Yunnan Garden is historically the former campus of NTU and

16 Davie, Sandra, “NTU to turn part of lush campus into a public park”, 4 March 2016, The Straits Times [downloaded on 27 October 2016], available at http://www.straitstimes. com/singapore/ntu-to-turn-part-of-lush-campus-into-a-public-park. 246 T.W. Lim the archway that leads to the garden indicates the founding year of the Gardens as 1955. The Nanyang University Arch at the entrance of Yunnan Garden was gazetted as a national monument in 1998 by the National Heritage Board. The current replica archway, constructed to resemble the original 1954 version, was unveiled by former Minister of Information, Communication and the Arts Brigadier General George Yeo in 1995. According to The Straits Times, the university has inked future plans to construct a herbal garden in the Yunnan Garden compound connected with ongoing research in the University.17 In effect- ing changes, the authorities are taking great care not to damage relics of historical value within the confnes of Yunnan Garden, and the National Parks Board has worked with the University to identify the right botanical plants for the planned herbal medicinal garden.18 The University is already in the global rankings for having one of the most beautiful campuses in the world. The 2016 ranking news was welcomed by the University’s top administrators, who stressed the need for more green spaces in addition to residential space, and by the NTU alumni who have fond nostalgic memories of the area.19 All these developments, including the Yunnan Garden park plans, have the intention of attaining a major goal within the university community “to become the greenest eco-campus in the world, with its aim to have a 35% reduction in energy, water and waste by 2020”.20 Having hiked northwards all the way to Pioneer and Jalan Bahar, the author decided to travel down south along the western sector at night for a comparative perspective on how the same trails appeared at nighttime. On 14 May 2015, the author went on a night walk from Clementi

17 Davie, Sandra, “NTU to turn part of lush campus into a public park”, 4 March 2016, The Straits Times [downloaded on 27 Oct 2016], available at http://www.straitstimes. com/singapore/ntu-to-turn-part-of-lush-campus-into-a-public-park. 18 Davie, Sandra, “NTU to turn part of lush campus into a public park”, 4 March 2016, The Straits Times [downloaded on 27 October 2016], available at http://www.straitstimes. com/singapore/ntu-to-turn-part-of-lush-campus-into-a-public-park. 19 Davie, Sandra, “NTU to turn part of lush campus into a public park”, 4 March 2016, The Straits Times [downloaded on 27 October 2016], available at http://www.straitstimes. com/singapore/ntu-to-turn-part-of-lush-campus-into-a-public-park. 20 Nanyang Technological University (NTU), “Media News Releases: NTU campus, a living lab for sustainability, gets greener”, 12 May 2015, NTU website [downloaded on 1 January 2016], available at http://media.ntu.edu.sg/NewsReleases/Pages/newsdetail. aspx?news 9e4d83d5-7f9a-475d-8293-5ebc075f808b. = 8 JOURNEY TO THE WEST: HIKING ALONG THE PERIPHERAL SPACES … 247

Road to Buona Vista MRT station and spotted the well-lit plants of Ulu Pandan near the plaque of the residential area, including lalang grasses that still had rain drops on it. On 2 June 2015, the author went on a night trek from Clementi Road to Tiong Bahru. Experiencing the trails in the daytime and at night provides a more comprehensive portrait of the green spaces between Clementi Road and Tiong Bahru. During the night hike on 2 June 2015, the author met with strong rain immediately upon reaching the residential neighborhood at Clementi Ave 2. The journey covered a total of 9.33 kilometers, the gain in elevation was 106 meters and burnt up 791 calories. Allowing for the fact that the author took shelter along the way to avoid the heavy downpour for about 20 minutes, the whole journey took 2 hours 33 minutes and 52 seconds. On 19 April 2016, the author decided to do another night trek to avoid the daytime weather of a hot April—and also to season his new pair of hiking boots. Moving southwards from Ulu Pandan to Commonwealth, one comes to the Singapore Polytechnic campus along the east–west MRT lines. The author often walked this stretch of road in the evenings. Nighttime treks around the perimeter of Singapore Polytechnic yielded some sightings of fora and fauna, including a bird-of-paradise fower outside the Singapore Polytechnic’s Dover campus. Gourami fsh can be seen swimming in the pond outside the Polytechnic alongside cultivated garden plots in Dover. Highlights of this trail are the urban gardening and farming plots maintained by the Dover residents on the public housing estate. Beyond Dover and reaching Redhill, the author spotted a young red bamboo shoot emerging from the ground on 2 June 2015 and a large banana fower at Tiong Bahru Park. Urban gardening spaces can also be found along Redhill, including the cultivation of rice plants in styrofoam boxes. During the author’s night hikes along the stretch from Clementi Road to upper Dover Road, he came across puffball and parasol mushrooms proliferating in the humid weather and growing quickly during the wet season in April or November. On 20 May 2015, the author hiked the same trail at night and discovered mushrooms growing in the late May weather and spotted parasol or puffball mushroom colonies. Some of them are so close to each other that it seemed like their gills had fused together. They grew out of the damp soil at the kerb-side near the Singapore Polytechnic campus. Roadside kerbs flled with soil that stretches from Clementi Road to Singapore Polytechnic at Dover are often populated by puffball and parasol mushrooms. The soil in the roadside kerb along this stretch covered with cow grass must be moist and therefore suitable for the proliferation 248 T.W. Lim of mushrooms. Wildlife spotted during the nighttime Clementi Road trek included garden snails such as the African snails which are an foreign species introduced into Singapore. The author spotted the snail moving along the concrete surface in Clementi Road. He also came across the rarely seen brown snail that has a thick lip and is probably another introduced species. The author also spotted a large African snail (about 7 centimeters in length) feeding on rotting plant matter and a wild stray cat wandering along Clementi Road on 15 June 2015. On 13 June 2015, the author went on a night trek along the western line of the subway station from Buona Vista to Tiong Bahru. He encountered interesting contemporary architectural designs along the way, including the St. John’s-St. Margaret’s Church located at Dover. At the Holland Village wet market, an altar featuring a local deity is available for worship and probably blessed the devotees and believers working in the wet market. On 16 June 2015, during the author’s research trip to Commonwealth and Holland Village, he came across foats and decorations to commemorate the birthdays of Taoist deities in a Taoist festival. The celebrations featured mobile displays of colorful foats stationed by the roadside on 15 June 2015. Both foat cars had a large Chinese character “fu” displayed on the back denoting “prosperity”. The Taoist deity’s birthday celebrations also display spears and other replicas of traditional bladed weaponry. The colorful foat car was ornate with fowers and other colorful decorations. Located between the Buona Vista and Commonwealth MRT subway stations is an unusually rich heritage site—a large Hakka cemetery (accommodating almost 3000 tombstones). On 15 June 2015, the author visited the Ying Fo Fui Kun memorial hall (built in the 1980s) and the Shuang Long Shan cemetery built in 1965 at Holland Close to house the bones of exhumed graves in the area, and the historic ancestral hall (built in 1887) with traditional Chinese design accompanied by a half-crescent shaped pond. Owned by the Hakka Clan Association, there are 65 standardised rows of tombstones in the cemetery sitting on a 1.8 hectare plot of land that is on a 99-year Housing Board lease (at the point of writing, half of the lease remains).21 The Ying Fo Fui Kun once had 40 hectares of land in the area before the necessary public housing

21 Zaccheus, Melody, “Hakka tombstones may have to go”, 8 June 2014, The Straits Times [downloaded on 1 January 2016], available at http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/hakka-tombstones-may-have-to-go. 8 JOURNEY TO THE WEST: HIKING ALONG THE PERIPHERAL SPACES … 249 development for a growing population oversaw the acquisition of this plot in the 1960s.22 In 2014, the Hakka Association announced mooted plans to relocate the graves to a pagoda and to construct a cultural and social hall for the Hakka Association’s 2000 members, as well as for residents of the local community.23 A red-colored burner is found in the facility for the ancestral worship practiced by family members that involves making offerings to their ancestors. Chinese ancestral worshippers burn papers and other paper objects resembling material possessions to family members who have passed away so that they may use those objects in the other world. An aisle runs through the middle section of the cemetery. It is effectively a dividing line between the left and right sections of the cemetery. The tombstones at the cemetery co-exist with a mature public housing estate. The larger and more prominent tombstones stand at the front of the cemetery, while the largest tombstone in the cemetery is guarded by two stone lions. A tombstone decorated with fancy tiles stood out from the rest of the tombstones. Local mango trees lined the back of the cemetery and there was a small patch of greenery in front of the ancestral hall in the cemetery with blue glazed terracotta roof tiles. Stones or bricks are left on the tombstones as evidence of visitation by descendants or family members. The cemetery is located near the Buona Vista section of the Green Rail Corridor that runs through the back of the Shell Building and Ministry of Education in Singapore (please refer to Chap. 4 on the Green Rail Corridor, for further details). The author passed by the Green Rail Corridor at night and the trail was still visible from the street lamps. On the evening of 15 June 2015, the author spotted some people using torchlight to view the offcially sanctioned graffti art at the underpass here. Walking further south, the stretch between Commonwealth to Tiong Bahru is an urban trail and the only signs of fora and fauna were landscaped gardens. This trail runs parallel to the Green Rail Corridor. Along the main road of Jalan Bukit Merah, an old industrial building

22 Zaccheus, Melody, “Hakka tombstones may have to go”, 8 June 2014, The Straits Times [downloaded on 1 January 2016], available at http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/hakka-tombstones-may-have-to-go. 23 Zaccheus, Melody, “Hakka tombstones may have to go”, 8 June 2014, The Straits Times [downloaded on 1 January 2016], available at http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/hakka-tombstones-may-have-to-go. 250 T.W. Lim with retro designs survives in the industrial/commercial zone between Redhill and Alexandra Road. Along the Jalan Bukit Merah stretch, the author spotted an anthill mound on the ground and a stray cat on his walk on 2 June 2015. There is a canal system running along the Bukit Merah and Commonwealth Roads and landscaped gardens can be found along the Redhill stretch perpendicular to Alexandra Road. This sector of Redhill has a sizable conglomeration of car dealerships. Beyond Redhill, Tiong Bahru featured green spaces in its Tiong Bahru Park as well as Henderson Park connector (which is connected to the Singapore Botanical Gardens through Tanglin Road). Walking further south along the Henderson Park connector and its canal system, one reaches Zion Road. At the well-known Zion Road Food Centre, slender bamboo plants and dwarf bananas can be found next to the canal system. (For a more detailed treatment of the Tiong Bahru green space, please refer Chap. 3 on Tiong Bahru). Compared with the Green Rail Corridor, the Central Catchment Area and the Civic District, the Southern Ridges trails have an almost continuous elevated ridge-like terrain for hikers. These elevated ridge platforms enable hikers to enjoy spectacular views of the west coast of Singapore; for example, panoramic views of Jurong Island from the Henderson Waves Bridge. Meticulous protection of the park and secondary forested areas of the Southern Ridges enable Singaporeans and visitors to enjoy views of them above treetop level. The authorities specially designed an environmentally friendly treetop-level elevated footpath structure that poses minimal disruption to the forest foor. Its hilly terrain complements the author’s interest in discovering green peripheral spaces in Singapore, nostalgic grand bungalows such as Alkaff Mansion, and a view of Singapore’s urban landscape from a bird’s eye view. Appreciation of green spaces, nostalgia for heritage buildings and a panoramic view of Singapore’s urbanisation are all possible when one stands on the elevated platform of Henderson Waves Bridge and looks down on the downtown areas of Singapore from Mount Faber and Telok Blangah Hill. Rich in heritage, Mount Faber and Telok Blangah Hill differ from Fort Canning in the sense that their elevated spaces were mostly historical resettlement areas for the orang laut and the site of some colonial bungalows. It did not have the same military background or aristocratic roots as Fort Canning, which had been the historical palatial grounds for Malay royalty, military camps for the British and even the Far East 8 JOURNEY TO THE WEST: HIKING ALONG THE PERIPHERAL SPACES … 251

Command Centre right up to the time of World War II. Sections of the Southern Ridges that used to host military installations of the British Empire are Labrador Park and Fort Pasir Panjang, where defensive bat- teries can be found. In the most prominent British naval base east of Eden, Fort Pasir Panjang and Labrador Park probably have the closest resemblance to Fort Canning in terms of military history and applica- tion. The Southern Ridges trails also exhibit features that symbolise nature and green spaces. For example, even man-made objects such as the Henderson Waves Bridge are constructed using natural hardwood that blends in with the secondary forest and park environments of Telok Blangah and Mount Faber. Nostalgic reconstruction of natural areas can be found in Ulu Pandan, where current residents tend to the community gardens that were converted from former squatter farms and railway spaces. In the Ulu Pandan area, some squatter farms that made way for residential areas were converted into community gardens. Community gardens in this way satisfed the residents’ yearnings for green spaces, along with neighborhood parks and park corridors. The former peripheral spaces of squatter farms are converted into aesthetically pleasing community gardens in residential areas that serve the functional needs of housing the population of a densely populated city. Besides public housing, as with the Clementi Forest at the Green Rail Corridor, the area that stretches from Ulu Pandan to Jurong was also the site of a functional railway system and effectively served the Jurong Industrial Park before it became a peripheral space when the railway fell into disuse. When community gardens were set up and wild plants and animals reclaimed those spaces, a productive industrial space became valued for its natural settings which fed the residents’ fetishisms for green spaces. It is another example of how spatial use by humans does not remain static and goes through cycles of intense urbanisation and industrialisation before decline and abandonment, then being regenerated as natural spaces when plants and wildlife reclaim their spaces. Fetishisms for such natural spaces may sometimes re-introduce human activities such as gentrifcation, landscaping and urban redevelopment in an attempt to strike a balance between infrastructure development and regeneration of the natural environment. Chap. 9 is the last case study related to north–south hiking exploration of spatial use in Singapore. It focuses on the eastern sector of Singapore. Some comparative perspectives with its western counterpart and the Central Catchment Area may be possible. 252 T.W. Lim

References Chan, Peter, “Ulu Pandan Heritage Trail (1) – Pine Grove Vicinity (by Peter Chan)”, 24 April 2008, Good Morning Yesteryear Website [Downloaded on 29 May 2015], Available at http://goodmorningyesterday.blogspot. sg/2008/04/ulu-pandan-heritage-trail-1-pine-grove.html. Chan, Peter, “Ulu Pandan Heritage Trail (10) – The Lost Railway Line: Part 2 (by Peter Chan)”, 25 May 2008, Good Morning Yesterday Website [Downloaded on 29 May 2015], Available at http://goodmorningyesterday. blogspot.sg/2008/05/ulu-pandan-heritage-trail-10-lost.html. Corlett, Richard T., “The Vegetation in the Nature Reserves of Singapore”, 1997, Proceedings of the Nature Reserves Survey Seminar Gardens’ Bulletin Singapore 49 (Singapore), 1997, pp. 147–159. Davie, Sandra, “NTU to Turn Part of Lush Campus into a Public Park”, 4 March 2016, The Straits Times [Downloaded on 27 October 2016], Available at http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/ntu-to-turn-part-of-lush-campus- into-a-public-park. Galstaun, Arshak C., “Pasir Panjang, Singapore”, 1911, National Archives of Singapore (NAS) Website [Downloaded on 1 January 2016], Available at http://www.nas.gov.sg/archivesonline/photographs/record-details/ae1e5db4- 1161-11e3-83d5-0050568939ad. Kamil, Asyraf and Louisa Tang, “Lease Extended, but Fate of Alkaff Mansion Restaurant Still Uncertain”, 4 March 2016, Today (Singapore: Mediacorps), 2016, p. 12. Khew, Carolyn, “An Oasis of Nature”, 8 June 2015, The Straits Times (Singapore: Singapore Press Holdings), 2015, p. B5. Lim, Jerome, “Let the Bananas Grow on State Land”, 14 March 2012, Long and Winding Road [Downloaded on 29 May 2015], Available at https:// thelongnwindingroad.wordpress.com/2012/03/page/2/. Nanyang Technological University (NTU), “Corporate Information About NTU Introduction to NTU”, 2012, NTU Website [Downloaded on 1 January 2016], Available at http://www.ntu.edu.sg/AboutNTU/CorporateInfo/ Pages/Intro.aspx. Nanyang Technological University (NTU), Residence Hall 15, “About us”, NTU Website [Downloaded 28 October 2016], Available at http://webx. ntu.edu.sg/hall15/About_Locateus.html. Nanyang Technological University (NTU), “Media News Releases: NTU Campus, a Living Lab for Sustainability, Gets Greener”, 12 May 2015, NTU Website [Downloaded on 1 January 2016], Available at http://media.ntu. edu.sg/NewsReleases/Pages/newsdetail.aspx?news 9e4d83d5-7f9a-475d- = 8293-5ebc075f808b. 8 JOURNEY TO THE WEST: HIKING ALONG THE PERIPHERAL SPACES … 253

Nanyang Technological University (NTU), “The Principal Ideas Yunnan Garden Campus Master Plan August, 2010”, August 2010, NTU Website [Downloaded on 1 October 2016], Available at https://www.ntu.edu.sg/ odfm/campusmasterplan/Documents/CampusMasterPlanPrincipalIdeas.pdf. Nature Society of Singapore, “Events Birdwatching at Jurong Eco Garden”, 2015, Nature Society of Singapore Website [Downloaded on 1 January 2016], Available at https://www.nss.org.sg/events.aspx?id = XOpHkHLVUA8 &group_id yclleUod3WM . = = = Singapore Biodiversity Records 2014, “Keel-Bellied Whip Snake at NTU Jurong Campus”, 28 February 2014, Lee Kong Chian Natural Heritage Museum Website [Downloaded on 1 October 2016], Available at http:// www.google.com.sg/url?sa t&rct j&q &esrc s&source web&cd 20 ======&ved 0ahUKEwjiovWxsvzPAhVGNY8KHcu7AHw4ChAWCEgwCQ&ur = l http%3A%2F%2Flkcnhm.nus.edu.sg%2Fnis%2Fsbr2014%2Fsbr2014-060. = pdf&usg AFQjCNEH-3yHmuCxPBAonCaG14W9oBU_9A. = Wong, Heng, “Kranji Memorials”, 2002, Singapore Infopedia [Downloaded on 29 May 2015], (Singapore: National Library Board), 2010, Available at http:// eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_183_2004-12-27.html?v = 1&utm_expid 85360850-6.qNOOYF40RhKK6gXsQEaAJA.1&utm_ = referrer http%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com.sg%2Furl%3Fsa%3Dt%26rct%3Dj = %26q%3D%26esrc%3Ds%26frm%3D1%26source%3Dweb%26cd%3D1%26ved %3D0CBwQFjAA%26url%3Dhttp%253A%252F%252Feresources.nlb.gov.sg% 252Finfopedia%252Farticles%252FSIP_183_2004-12-27.html%26ei%3DsR5o VeavGMO1uQSYnIGIBg%26usg%3DAFQjCNF86w99IeJINKnnHdCl_iCtS- uZyQ%26bvm%3Dbv.94455598%2Cd.c2E. Yeo, Nick, “The Hakka Cemetery”, 18 March 2014, Lion Raw Website [Downloaded on 15 June 2015], Available at http://lionraw.com/2014/ 03/18/the-hakka-cemetery/. Zaccheus, Melody, “Hakka Tombstones may have to Go”, 8 June 2014, The Straits Times [Downloaded on 1 January 2016], Available at http://www. straitstimes.com/singapore/hakka-tombstones-may-have-to-go. Zeye, “Ulu Pandan Water Reclamation Plant Waste Sludge Incineration”, 29 May 2015, Page Nation Website [Downloaded on 29 May 2015], Available at http://sg.pagenation.com/sin/Ulu%20Pandan%20Water%20Reclamation%20 Plant_103.7543_1.3315.map. CHAPTER 9

Hiking the East Coast of Singapore

The author’s frst exploration of Singapore’s east coast for this writing took place in 2014 with a cycling trip along the coastline. The cycling track in this area began from Marina Bay in southern Singapore and ended near the northeastern end of Changi. During his hikes and cycling activities, the author focused on the East Coast Parkway section to understand its popular- ity as a continuous trail for trekkers and cyclists while keeping an eye out for heritage neighborhoods such as Katong and Joo Chiat. For a more comprehensive study of the peripheral areas of the east coast of Singapore, the author also hiked the east coast areas from Tanah Merah to Lavender on 16 April 2016, covering 20 kilometers of community life, park corridors and heritage sites during this expedition. The hiking trip stopped at points to observe peripheral spaces, gentrifed areas, conserved spaces and green corridors. The author briefy surveyed the east coast area and collected textual information printed on plaques erected by Singapore’s National Heritage Board. A major stop in the author’s east coast hike on 16 April 2016 was the Bedok Reservoir Park. Building the 88 hectare Bedok Reservoir to meet eastern Singapore’s increased needs for potable fresh water by collecting storm water from urban catchments started in 1983 and the project, costing S$277 million, was fnished by 1986 (the Reservoir pumped its frst output of treated water to households on 15 August 1986).1

1 De Rozario, Regina, “Bedok Reservoir”, (2009), National Library Board (NLB) Singapore Infopedia website [downloaded on 1 January 2016], available at http:// eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_1482_2009-03-06.html.

Before construction, the enlightened and far-sighted planners formu- lated regulatory guidelines to isolate the catchment area from potentially polluting human activities such as agriculture. They also transformed a major sand quarry belonging to the Housing and Development Board into the Bedok Reservoir to store storm water accumulated from nine catchment areas in Bedok, Tampines and Yan Kit (using pumping mechanisms that transferred water through a pipeline for eight of these catchment areas and the use of a gravity-fow diversion channel for the ninth).2 Bedok Reservoir was a pioneering reservoir chosen for the Public Utilities Board’s Active, Beautiful and Clean Waters program, which maintains the cleanliness and pristine natural external appearances of Singapore’s water sources. In turn, the authorities hoped that this would attract more stakeholders to use the reservoir facilities for fshing, kayaking, boating, hiking, watersports, skating, picnicking and cycling activities.3 Today, multiple stakeholders and users of the Bedok Reservoir Park have made it a site where small circles of individuals engage in a variety of activities, such as dragon-boating, kayaking, canoeing, and so forth. At least two tertiary institutions use this area for training, including the Singapore Institute of Technology and Temasek Polytechnic. The large inland lake at Bedok Reservoir Park has become a recreational training space for multiple stakeholders. There are sand depositories near Bedok Reservoir Park to provide storage space for the basic ingredient of reclamation work. The author met European travelers backpacking along the same route during his hike on sandy terrain at a section of Bedok Reservoir Park. The author spotted barnacles that proliferated along the columns supporting the highways in the Bedok Reservoir Park corridor on 16 April 2016. This is a good example of nature co-existing with urban infrastructure in Singapore. Nature fnds her way to co-exist with the structures of human habitation. In terms of institutional spaces for major religious practices, the author came across a Lutheran church (the Bedok Lutheran Church),

2 De Rozario, Regina, “Bedok Reservoir”, (2009), National Library Board (NLB) Singapore Infopedia website [downloaded on 1 January 2016], available at http:// eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_1482_2009-03-06.html. 3 De Rozario, Regina, “Bedok Reservoir”, (2009), National Library Board (NLB) Singapore Infopedia website [downloaded on 1 January 2016], available at http:// eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_1482_2009-03-06.html. 9 HIKING THE EAST COAST OF SINGAPORE 257 spotting modern architectural styles in the southern area of Bedok (485 Bedok South Ave 2, Singapore 469315) on 16 April 2016. Another major place of worship on the author’s Bedok trail was the Taoist temple (Chong Teck Siang Tng) near Bedok Reservoir Park (32 Bedok Reservoir Rd, Singapore 479231), whose rooftop features a dragon chasing the faming pearl. During his hike on 16 April 2017, the author also came across evidence of animistic practices in this area. Someone had embedded a Thai silk elephant charm into the bark of what may be a divine tree in the southern area of Bedok. Other traditional forms of worship included ancestral worship altars placed outside commercial shopfronts for blessings, Taoist devotees offering decorated Cantonese fa gao (steamed sponge cakes, also known as “fortune cakes”) to pay respect to their ancestors. The author also came across an abandoned ancestral tablet left at a tree along with electric candle equipment on 16 April 2016. Much of the local history of Singapore’s east coast areas is related to its coastal boat people. The east coast of Singapore was inhabited by indigenous Malay people even before the arrival of the British in 1819. Much of the coastline was inhabited by the boat people, including the Orang Laut, Orang Biduanda Kallang and other sea people. The nomadic Orang Laut resided on Singapore’s coastlines in long boats (sampan panjang) at the time of the founding of Singapore. They consisted of the sub-ethnic or tribal groups of the Orang Laut in the Riau- Lingga archipelago such as the Orang Galang, Orang Gelam, Orang Selatar, Orang Biduanda Kallang and the Orang Selat, all headed by a village elder known as the batin (chieftain) who was the intermediary person between the Temenggong and Viceroy of Riau.4 The Orang Laut worked as boatmen, rowers, pirate mercenaries under the protection of the Temenggong of Johore and the Viceroy of Riau.5 When the British arrived in 1819, another group—the quiet and reserved Biduangda (also spelt Biduandan) Orang Kallang river people whose ancestors originated

4 Hwang, Joycelyn, “Orang Laut”, (2010), Singapore Infopedia National Library Board [downloaded on 1 April 2016], available at http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/ articles/SIP_551_2005-01-09.html. 5 Hwang, Joycelyn, “Orang Laut”, (2010), Singapore Infopedia National Library Board [downloaded on 1 April 2016], available at http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/ articles/SIP_551_2005-01-09.html. 258 T.W. Lim from Java—made up half of the local residents in Singapore and their descendants still live in the Kallang area.6 Some of them were subsequently relocated to the Pulai River in Johore by Temenggong Abdul Rahman. After relocating, small pox killed most of them, leaving only eight families behind7 and, eventually, 40 tribesmen had survived by the mid-twentieth century.8 Other boat people were resettled to landed areas such as Telok Blangah (please refer to Chap. 8, for more details on the history of Telok Blangah Hill). By the early nineteenth century, about 1000 Orang Laut co-existed in Singapore with some 500 Orang Biduandan Kallang.9 Archeological discoveries date the trading region in this area to the seventeenth century and a harbor master (spelt “Shahbandar” or “Shabandar”, in the Malay language) was appointed to take charge of the trade. This fact was corroborated by evidence in the form of a map dated 1604 which confrmed the presence of a “Xabrandaria”, probably a European spelling of the Shahbandar. Eventually, under colonial rule, the trading outpost at Kallang expanded into the Bugis and Kampong Glam areas. Much of the areas were no longer inhabited by Orang Biduanda Kallang but, instead, by denizens of a fearsome warrior tribe and ethnic group, the Bugis people from Sulawesi (currently part of Indonesia) co-existing with Orang Laut. They were joined by more Indonesian tribes and ethnic groups later on. The trading area became a conurbation of villages in the southeastern region of Singapore comprising Kampong Bugis, Kampong Soo Poo and Kallang kampong villages such as Kampong Kallang Pasir, Kallang Pokok, Kallang Laut, Kallang Batin, Kallang Rokok, Kallang Darat, Kallang Puding and Kallang Kopet.

6 Cornelius, Vernon, “Kallang”, (1999), National Library Board (NLB) website [downloaded on 1 April 2016], available at http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/ articles/SIP_220__2008-12-02.html. 7 Cornelius, Vernon, “Kallang”, (1999), National Library Board (NLB) website [downloaded on 1 April 2016], available at http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/ articles/SIP_220__2008-12-02.html. 8 Hwang, Joycelyn, “Orang Laut”, (2010), Singapore Infopedia National Library Board [downloaded on 1 April 2016], available at http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/ articles/SIP_551_2005-01-09.html. 9 Hwang, Joycelyn, “Orang Laut”, (2010), Singapore Infopedia National Library Board [downloaded on 1 April 2016], available at http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/ articles/SIP_551_2005-01-09.html. 9 HIKING THE EAST COAST OF SINGAPORE 259

As trading activities intensifed, light maritime maintenance activities started on the east coast of Singapore with shipbuilding, maintenance and repairs. Maritime retail activities also boomed with ship and boat rentals, and logistical transportation. Other business activities included the production of cigarettes by rolling up tobacco in nipah palm leaves. The east coast of Singapore was connected from the Upper East Coast to Bedok, Joo Chiat, Geylang and, fnally, Katong by the East Coast Road in 1828.10 By the beginning of the 1930s, the remaining Orang Laut still residing in Kallang River were moved to Kampong Melayu and they became sedentary, land-based villagers.11 Consequently, the eastern coast of Singapore ceased to be a habitat for a nomadic society. In 1940, the remaining 450 Orang Laut nomads in Singapore, including their chief, were relocated to Tanjong Rhu, Telok Blangah, Selat Singkeh, Pasir Panjang, Geylang and Pulau Brani. They also became a sedentary society interacting with villagers on land, leaving only the Orang Seletar as the last holdout resisting a sedentary lifestyle and preferring to be a nomadic boat people.12 The area was thoroughly modernised in the 1930s to build the Kallang Airport (the frst airport in Singapore) while maritime trade, shipbuilding and other related industries were completely phased out in the 1960s. The area soon became a peaceful and serene basin that attracted Singaporeans to engage in leisurely activities, especially after the Kallang Basin was cleaned up in 1987.13 While human activities and use of the Kallang Basin may change, some natural ecological features remained. For example, during the hike, the author spotted sea poison plants in this location, which in the distant past were used by fshermen to produce toxins to stun and immobilise fsh to make them easier to catch.

10 Thulaja, Naidu, “East Coast Road”, (2003), National Library Board Singapore Infopedia website [downloaded on 1 April 2016], available at http://eresources.nlb.gov. sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_293_2004-12-13.html. 11 Hwang, Joycelyn, “Orang Laut”, (2010), Singapore Infopedia National Library Board [downloaded on 1 April 2016], available at http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/ articles/SIP_551_2005-01-09.html. 12 Hwang, Joycelyn, “Orang Laut”, (2010), Singapore Infopedia National Library Board [downloaded on 1 April 2016], available at http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/ articles/SIP_551_2005-01-09.html. 13 Cornelius, Vernon, “Kallang”, (1999), National Library Board (NLB) website [downloaded on 1 April 2016], available at http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/ articles/SIP_220__2008-12-02.html. 260 T.W. Lim

The author ended his hike at Lavender on 16 April 2016. Lavender Street was frst inhabited on 8 March 1858 and was home to Chinese farm gardens, before sugar plantations appeared in the 1840s and it entered the industrial age when a gas plant was built here.14 Part of the Lavender area suffered from fooding that originated from the Rochor River, occasionally damaging crops. The area also saw troubled times in the racial riots of the 1960s before it became a major logistical and transportation hub in the 1990s, when four major highways linking eastern and western Singapore were constructed.15 The area between Bugis and Lavender used to be the location of rows of low-priced backpackers’ hotels and has been gentrifed into an area of fne restaurants, pubs and retail spaces. Gentrifed shophouses for upscale retailing are located in the commercial space surrounded by Bugis, Beach Road and Arab Street. Formerly dilapidated shophouses located in the avenues from Seah Street to Bugis have been gentrifed, with meticulous attention paid to historical details to conserve original designs such as Corinthian columns, Greek revival pediments and bas reliefs. Shop proprietors also try to decorate their shopfronts with authentic Islamic objects; for example, an Iranian Iznik porcelain tiled table that the author encountered in the Kampong Glam area, refecting Arab Muslim heritage in that area. (For more discussion of the Arab Street and Kampong Glam areas, please refer to Chap. 2.) In eastern Singapore, one of the most signifcant areas for immersing oneself in and understanding Islamic cultures and religion is found in Arab Street (please refer to Chap. 2, for detailed treatment). The shophouses there have been gentrifed to host fne Muslim restaurant fare, textiles and cultural material goods and heritage galleries. From a distance, hiking towards Arab Street, one could see the tall Islamic spires of the Sultan Mosque and its characteristic golden onion-shaped dome (which is equally impressive when lit up at night). In the author’s opin- ion, this was one of the grandest mosques in the region of Arab Street, Kampong Glam and, perhaps, Singapore as a whole. The author noticed a devotee in a tunic and a headdress walking past the Sultan Mosque.

14 Thulaja, Naidu Ratnala, “Lavender Street”, (2005), National Library Board website [downloaded on 16 April 2016], available at http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/ articles/sip_380_2005-01-26.html. 15 Thulaja, Naidu Ratnala, “Lavender Street”, (2005), National Library Board website [downloaded on 16 April 2016], available at http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/ articles/sip_380_2005-01-26.html. 9 HIKING THE EAST COAST OF SINGAPORE 261

The author referred to the Mosque’s original website for information on its history. The history of the Sultan Mosque (Masjid Sultan) originates in 1824. In 1824, Hussain Shah, the Sultan of Singapore (then known by its old name of Temasek) had plans to construct a mosque and the British East India Company, represented by Sir Stamford Raffes, agreed to provide $3000 for this construction, which was completed two years later.16 The initial mosque was built of bricks and its size was designed to accommodate Muslim worshippers in Singapore making their prayers. In 1879, the aristocratic owners of the mosque, Sultan Alauddin Shah (grandson of Sultan Hussain Shah), who similarly ruled over Singapore, gave the management of the mosque to a Board of Trustees made up of fve heads of the Islamic religion.17 In 1924–1928, the Board of Trustees initiated plans for the reconstruction of a brand new S$200,000 mosque in the same location. Construction would take place in several stages so that religious activities could continue and this building was fnally designated as a preserved historical building under the patronage of the Preservation of Monuments Board Act in 1975.18 An extension was constructed by the government of Singapore with the Board of Trustees’ agreement in the form of a three-storey annex on a plot of land measur- ing 1184 square meters next to the mosque between 1987 and 1993.19 Its current prayer hall space can accept up to 5000 individuals at communal prayer and the current management of the mosque is made up of 12 individuals acting on behalf of six ethnic groups (Malays, Bugis, Javanese, Arabs, Tamils and Northern Indians) (Fig. 9.1).20

16 Sultan Mosque, “Sultan Mosque History”, (2016), Sultan Mosque Singapore website [downloaded on 1 January 2017], available at http://sultanmosque.sg/about-us/sultanmosque-history. 17 Sultan Mosque, “Sultan Mosque History”, (2016), Sultan Mosque Singapore website [downloaded on 1 January 2017], available at http://sultanmosque.sg/about-us/sultanmosque-history. 18 Sultan Mosque, “Sultan Mosque History”, (2016), Sultan Mosque Singapore website [downloaded on 1 January 2017], available at http://sultanmosque.sg/about-us/sultanmosque-history. 19 Sultan Mosque, “Sultan Mosque History”, (2016), Sultan Mosque Singapore website [downloaded on 1 January 2017], available at http://sultanmosque.sg/about-us/sultanmosque-history. 20 Sultan Mosque, “Sultan Mosque History”, (2016), Sultan Mosque Singapore website [downloaded on 1 January 2017], available at http://sultanmosque.sg/about-us/sultanmosque-history. 262 T.W. Lim

Fig. 9.1 The majestic Sultan Mosque with its golden onion dome, spires and a brown/beige color scheme. When this photo was taken, the Mosque had just gone through a round of renovation. Photo taken in August 2016

In addition to the Sultan Mosque, a number of other interesting heritage mosques could be seen here during the author’s hike; for example, the Malabar Muslim mosque that marks the intersection between the Bugis and Lavender sections of southeast Singapore. According to its offcial website, the Malabar Muslims, through their association the Malabar Muslim Jama-ath (founded in 1927 and registered two years later), built this mosque in the late 1950s as a place of worship after relocating from a shophouse at Changi Road to Bussorah Street and then to its current location in Victoria Street.21 The foundation stone for the

21 Malabar Muslim Jama’ath Mosque, “Malabar Mosque”, (2012), Malabar Mosque website [downloaded on 1 January 2017], available at http://www.malabar.org.sg/ about/. 9 HIKING THE EAST COAST OF SINGAPORE 263

Victoria Street building structure was laid on 10 April 1956 by the Mufti of Johore, Tuan Syed Alwi Adnan, on behalf of Sultan Ibrahim bin Abu Bakar of Johore.22 The mosque was offcially opened to its worshippers on 24 January 1963 by the Yang di-Pertuan Negara, President Yusof bin Ishak, the frst head of state of newly independent Singapore (in a merger with Malaysia). The exterior of the mosque has a striking decoration constructed with golden and blue tiles, drawing visitors to admire its design. The Malabar Muslim Jama-ath committee did not stop at the renovation of the exterior; it decided to use the same contractors to continue renovating the interior of the mosque, planning to complete the tiling by 1995.23 Another mosque on the heritage hiking trail in eastern Singapore also stands out as a heritage building with an interesting history. Located in the Kampong Glam area and one of the few mosques in Singapore to be named after a woman, the Hajjah Fatimah Mosque (circa 1845) was donated by a wealthy businesswoman; the design is a hybrid East– West fusion. Formerly known as the Java Road mosque, it was renamed as Java Road disappeared over time. The mosque, however, was eventually gazetted as a national monument on 28 June 1973 and continues to draw fans of architecture with its tilting minaret which resembles church spire, giving rise to its nickname of “The Leaning Tower of Singapore”.24 Hajjah Fatimah was a Malaccan married to Bugis royalty (a prince) from Celebes (Sulawesi). She inherited her husband’s fortune after his death and, expanding her husband’s trading business, she became a wealthy woman.25 The idea of constructing the mosque came about when Madam Hajjah Fatimah’s residence was robbed twice and subjected to acts of arson. However, she survived the ordeals and, subsequently, to

22 Malabar Muslim Jama’ath Mosque, “Malabar Mosque”, (2012), Malabar Mosque website [downloaded on 1 January 2017], available at http://www.malabar.org.sg/ about/. 23 Malabar Muslim Jama'ath Mosque, “Malabar Mosque”, (2012), Malabar Mosque website [downloaded on 1 January 2017], available at http://www.malabar.org.sg/ about/. 24 Azrah, Edian and Joanna Tan, “Hajjah Fatimah Mosque”, (2016), National Library Board website [downloaded on 1 January 2017], available at http://eresources.nlb.gov. sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_259_2005-01-06.html. 25 Azrah, Edian and Joanna Tan, “Hajjah Fatimah Mosque”, (2016), National Library Board website [downloaded on 1 January 2017], available at http://eresources.nlb.gov. sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_259_2005-01-06.html. 264 T.W. Lim show her piousness to her religion for protecting her from death, the mosque was constructed on the site of her residential property.26 Her body rests today in the grounds of the mosque’s backyard, accompanied by the graves of her daughter, Raja Siti, and her son-in-law, Syed Ahmed bin Abdul-Rahman Alsagoff. Having inherited Hajjah Fatimah’s fortune, her daughter and son-in-law and transferred it to the Alsagoff family before giving up ownership of the mosque property to the Majlis Ugama Islam Singapura.27 A further treat for hikers to look at are the former palatial grounds of Malay royalty in Singapore in Kampong Glam. In 1819, when the British arrived in Singapore, the original name for modern-day Kampong Glam was Seduyong; it was occupied by the Glam tribe Orang Laut (sea gypsies) who later gave the area the name “Kampong Glam”. The word “Glam” also comes from the bark of the cajeput tree (melaleuca cajuputi, known in Malay as the “gelam tree”) which was utilised as a raw material by the Orang Laut to make awnings and sails for their boats, while the tree trunks can be processed into timber for making a boat’hull or used as frewood. Many other parts of the cajeput tree are useful, too; for example, its fruit can be pounded into pepper (mercha bolong) and the leaves can be cooked to make cajeput oil (tea tree oil) for treating rheumatism, cramps28 and asthma.29 According to the National Parks Board of Singapore, the name “cajeput” is a hybrid word that combined the words “kayu” (which means “wood” in Malay) and “putih” (which means “white” in Malay). The association with colors arose from the tree’s white faky bark but, although it is a large evergreen tree that

26 Azrah, Edian and Joanna Tan, “Hajjah Fatimah Mosque”, (2016), National Library Board website [downloaded on 1 January 2017], available at http://eresources.nlb.gov. sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_259_2005-01-06.html. 27 Azrah, Edian and Joanna Tan, “Hajjah Fatimah Mosque”, (2016), National Library Board website [downloaded on 1 January 2017], available at http://eresources.nlb.gov. sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_259_2005-01-06.html. 28 Cornelius, Vernon, “Kampong Glam”, (2016), National Library Board Infopedia website [downloaded on 1 January 2017], available at http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/ infopedia/articles/SIP_249_2004-12-16.html. 29 National Parks Board, “Roads & Places named after Trees”, 25 February 2015, National Parks website [downloaded on 1 January 2016], available at https://www.nparks. gov.sg/activities/family-time-with-nature/recommended-activities/roads-and-places- named-after-trees. 9 HIKING THE EAST COAST OF SINGAPORE 265 can attain maximum heights of 40 meters, its white fowers are small and arranged close together in racemes.30 Kampong Glam (old name, circa 1830: Campong Gelam), with a land area of 56 acres, was provided to Sultan Hussein Mohamed Shah and his 600 family members in 1824, when he signed the agreement that ceded Singapore to the East India Company.31 When he constructed the palace, it was a large, attap leaf roofed Istana (Malay for “palace”) and housed other Malay groups such as the Bugis, Arabs, Javanese and Boyanese residents, in addition to the Sultan’s own family (ethnic Chinese residents gradually grew larger in number and, by 1824, a minimum of 33% of the residents were ethnic Chinese).32 New incoming Muslim settlers at Kampong Glam eventually congregated around their own ethnicities, resulting in the growth of small sub-villages (“mini-kampongs”) such as Kampong Bugis, Kampong Java and Kampong Malacca. In 1831, 200 convict laborers worked on Kampong Glam over a period of eight months, at a total cost of $500.33 On 7 July 1989, Kampong Glam was offcially gazetted as an area for conservation.34 Currently, the Istana has been gentrifed into a Malay heritage center. While it is no longer the seat of Malay royalty, the renovated palace is a stately reminder of the past (Fig. 9.2). Eastern Singapore has a combination of white sandy beaches along its coastline juxtaposed with heritage enclaves such as Joo Chiat. From

30 National Parks Board, “Roads & Places named after Trees”, 25 February 2015, National Parks website [downloaded on 1 January 2016], available at https://www.nparks. gov.sg/activities/family-time-with-nature/recommended-activities/roads-and-places- named-after-trees. 31 Cornelius, Vernon, “Kampong Glam”, (2016), National Library Board Infopedia website [downloaded on 1 January 2017], available at http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_249_2004-12-16.html. 32 Cornelius, Vernon, “Kampong Glam”, (2016), National Library Board Infopedia website [downloaded on 1 January 2017], available at http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/ infopedia/articles/SIP_249_2004-12-16.html. 33 Cornelius, Vernon, “Kampong Glam”, (2016), National Library Board Infopedia website [downloaded on 1 January 2017], available at http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/ infopedia/articles/SIP_249_2004-12-16.html. 34 National Parks Board, “Roads & Places named after Trees”, 25 February 2015, National Parks website [downloaded on 1 January 2016], available at https://www.nparks. gov.sg/activities/family-time-with-nature/recommended-activities/roads-and-places- named-after-trees . 266 T.W. Lim

Fig. 9.2 The former palace grounds of Kampong Glam, which used to be the residence of the former ruler/Sultan of Singapore. Photo taken on 24 May 2015 the near-downtown areas of Bugis, Lavender and Kampong Glam/Arab Street, walking further in the northeasterly direction and towards the coastal area, the author arrived at Kallang, which is currently a sports hub, before reaching the coastal areas of the East Coast Parkway. The east coast of Singapore used to be associated with busy waterways and shipping lanes but it has also been gentrifed with marine sports facilities, reclaimed white sandy beaches and fne restaurants to become a haven for maritime sports and leisure activities. The natural terrain of Kallang consisted of sand, mud, mangroves and swamplands. Kallang Basin is popular for canoeing and other water sports. The author crossed the old Lavender Bridge connecting Lavender with Kallang on 16 April 2016. British colonial era cast iron signage from the old Lavender Bridge are still embedded in concrete. Today, much of the east coast is covered with pristine sandy beaches. The white sandy beaches at East Coast Parkway include reclaimed land and the trees at 9 HIKING THE EAST COAST OF SINGAPORE 267 the parkway provide shade, making it a popular place for locals and visitors to rest and relax. East Coast Park, with a surface area of 185 hectares and more than 15 kilometers of coastal boundaries, links the Eastern Coastal Loop park connector with Changi Beach Park. It was built by means of land reclamation, the creation of sandy beaches, breakwaters and jetties for fshing, and freshwater ponds in the parkways.35 Because of its pristine environment, some forms of wildlife can be found here. The Lee Kong Chian Museum of Natural History’s Digital Nature Archive listed dragonfies (the black- tipped percher—diplacodes nebulosa and the dancing dropwing— trithemis pallidinervis); birds (the white-crested laughingthrush—garrulax leucolophus); snails (the button snail—umbonium vestiarium and the lined moon snail—tanea lineata); the painted sand star—Astropecten sp., cake sand dollar—Arachnoides placenta, sea cucumbers and sea anemo- nes, snails and crabs; and even turtles (hawksbill turtle—eretmochelys imbricata) as wild creatures venturing into the East Coast Park.36 According to the National Parks’ website, three common trees that provide shade on this beach parkway are coconut palms (cocos nucif- era), casuarinas (casuarina equisetifolia) and ketapangs (sea almonds— terminalia catappa).37 Of the three, casuarinas grow naturally in the park, according to the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum’s Digital Nature Archive.38 The ketapangs have characteristic buttress roots that feature prominently at the East Coast Park. The east coast of Singapore is also a popular spot for fshing. The elevated platforms of the jetties

35 Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum, “The Digital Nature Archive of Singapore East Coast Park”, (2017), Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum The DNA of Singapore website [downloaded on 1 February 2017], available at http://lkcnhm.nus.edu. sg/dna/places/details/53. 36 Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum, “The Digital Nature Archive of Singapore East Coast Park”, (2017), Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum The DNA of Singapore website [downloaded on 1 February 2017], available at http://lkcnhm.nus.edu. sg/dna/places/details/53. 37 National Parks Board, “East Coast Park”, 27 January 2017, National Parks website [downloaded on 27 January 2017], available at https://www.nparks.gov.sg/gardens-parks- and-nature/parks-and-nature-reserves/east-coast-park. 38 Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum, “The Digital Nature Archive of Singapore East Coast Park”, (2017), Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum The DNA of Singapore website [downloaded on 1 February 2017], available at http://lkcnhm.nus.edu. sg/dna/places/details/53. 268 T.W. Lim provide raised spaces for anglers to reach far into the sea beyond the coastal areas. Alternatively, they can spend modest sums of money to rent boats to go fshing in open water. Anglers at the East Coast jetties often try their luck at landing prize catches. The author spotted fsh and other aquatic species on the east coast of Singapore. According to the website of the National Parks, East Coast Park has a total area of 185 hectares, more than 15 kilometers of beautiful coastline and draws in more than seven million visitors annually.39 Community life can also be found on the beaches of Singapore’s east coast. It plays host to communities of weekend campers and leisure seekers in Singapore. The East Coast Park has become a favorite camping and barbecue ground (Figs. 9.3, 9.4 and 9.5). Besides walking the beach front parkway of Singapore’s east coast on 16 April 2016, the author started his hike at the boundary marker between Fengshan and Tanah Merah. The bird species that the author spotted on this hike thrived in the storm drain environment. Storms drains were originally functional spaces to prevent fooding. They are peripheral spaces in parks and park corridors, serving the utilitarian function of food control but not aesthetically pleasing or the main attractions of park spaces. However, the authorities are slowly introducing aquatic plants and weeds to create natural fltration systems for waterways. Exemplary instances can be found in the Bishan Park and Bedok Reservoir areas. Making storm drains appear more natural attracted wildlife to move into the storm drains, including species of birds. On 16 April 2016, the author spotted the scaly-breasted munia, a crow took shelter in the trees to get some reprieve from a hot April, a pigeon walked at the water’s edge at Bedok Reservoir Park’s storm drains and searched for mudfat worms, a cove pigeon scanned the cow grass for signs of worms, and an egret waded over the mudfats at a storm drain. The egret sometimes stood on one leg at the storm drain while looking down at its mirror image in the water. Standing on one leg apparently helps some birds cool down in the tropical heat (Figs. 9.6 and 9.7). Other forms of wildlife spotted on the 16 April 2016 hike included a changeable lizard in the midst of changing its camoufage color to blend in with the surroundings at Kallang Basin and a marbled-colored

39 National Parks Board, “East Coast Park”, 27 January 2017, National Parks website [downloaded on 27 January 2017], available at https://www.nparks.gov.sg/gardens-parks- and-nature/parks-and-nature-reserves/east-coast-park . 9 HIKING THE EAST COAST OF SINGAPORE 269

Fig. 9.3 Probably a tripod fsh that is not usually valued by anglers caught on the east coast of Singapore. The organic and laissez faire gatherings of the community of anglers have their own evaluation system of prized catches and “trash fsh”. Anglers who catch fsh such as the tripod fsh throw them back into the sea, sometimes without harming them by removing the hooks from their mouth. Another fsh that is usually thrown back into the sea is the pufferfsh, commonly found in the east coast marine areas. Pufferfsh contain highly toxic neurotoxins and have a nasty bite that can chew off chunks of human fesh. Photo taken on 14 December 2014

Singaporean stray cat resting peacefully on the cool concrete foor at Arab Street. Stray cats are welcomed and cared for by the residents of Arab Street who have developed a particular affnity for feline creatures. Besides wildlife creatures, the author also came across various fora and plant species, such as the vibrantly red betel nut palm near Beach Road, a morning glory creeper along the Bedok Reservoir Park Corridor, a betel nut palm tree with its fruit maturing near the Bedok Reservoir Park, the allamanda cathartica that grew alongside sections of the Bedok Park Corridor, the lepiota family mushroom proliferating in the humid months of April 2016. A dried-up coconut husk was left stranded in a 270 T.W. Lim dry storm drain in an unseasonally hot April. At the point of writing this chapter, Singapore’s neighbor Johore was facing a drought situa- tion. Besides plants found in the public areas, the quaint shophouses in the east coast neighborhoods such as Joo Chiat sported pots of indoor 9 HIKING THE EAST COAST OF SINGAPORE 271

▶ Fig. 9.4 Anglers at an east coast jetty string up fsh to dry them in the sun. Traditional ways of preserving food are carried out on the east coast jetties, creating small communities of food harvesters and preservers in the peripheral spaces along the coast. These anglers also help each other out by assisting newbies with the removal of fsh stings in certain species of catch, such as the catfsh. It also provides a subjective feel of nostalgia in terms of communal activities and spirit when communities used to live in the kampongs and mangrove areas along the east coast. Sometimes, local parlance labels such bonding between individuals amorphously as the “kampong spirit”. Photo taken on 14 December 2014

Fig. 9.5 When the author was at the East Coast Park on 16 April 2016, the anglers there were excited about a school of mirror fsh swimming near the shorelines and many of them caught this prized fsh, which is active in the waters between Australia and Southeast Asia. Photo taken on 14 December 2014 plants. A popular decorative plant amongst the residents and commercial property owners of Peranakan shophouses and gentrifed Nanyang- style shophouses in the Bugis area and Joo Chiat is the water lettuce, often grown in aquatic pots with mollies or goldfsh. Some of these pots 272 T.W. Lim

Fig. 9.6 The striated heron hunting for fsh in the storm drains of Bedok Reservoir Park. The striated heron is equally adept in inhabiting urban and suburban areas. The ecologically friendly areas of Bedok Reservoir Park provide an environment for these birds to thrive. Photo taken on 16 April 2016 are old, recycled urns previously used as fermentation jars to produce century eggs (Fig. 9.8). Further inland from the coastal area, east coast neighborhoods are a treasure trove of heritage buildings. Katong and Joo Chiat are the two most prominent heritage neighborhoods, particularly for the Chinese people (the Peranakans) from the Straits. The neighborhood of Katong, named after the Katong tree (cynometra ramifora), is syn- onymous with tasty local fare and culinary dishes (examples include katong laksa and other nonya delights). The area is served by the 3 kilo- meter Tanjong Katong Road that cuts across Katong.40 The Katong tree

40 National Parks Board, “Roads & Places named after Trees”, 25 February 2015, National Parks website [downloaded on 1 January 2016], available at https://www.nparks.gov.sg/activities/family-time-with-nature/recommended-activities/roads-and-places-named-after-trees. 9 HIKING THE EAST COAST OF SINGAPORE 273

Fig. 9.7 An egret hunting for fsh in a storm drain in Bedok Reservoir Park. Peripheral spaces such as storm drains are rich in ecological diversity and species, attracting a variety of birds, fsh and shellfsh. During the author’s walks, he spotted snakes and monitor lizards thriving in these environments. Photo taken on 16 April 2016

(maximum height 26 meters), like the Gelam tree, is a multipurpose hardwood that can be used for construction but is only utilised locally due to its limited numbers.41 Formerly the site of coconut plantations and a getaway for rich townsfolk and described as the “Home of the Peranakans” in the Singapore Tourism Board website, the area features heritage shophouses, retail shops, fne dining and affordable food outlets, enhanced by

41 National Parks Board, “Roads & Places named after Trees”, 25 February 2015, National Parks website [downloaded on 1 January 2016], available at https://www.nparks. gov.sg/activities/family-time-with-nature/recommended-activities/roads-and-places- named-after-trees. 274 T.W. Lim

Fig. 9.8 Spotted at the Kallang basin, this sea poison plant has toxins that fshermen used to extract to immobilise fsh. Photo taken on 16 April 2016. the richness of Peranakan culture.42 From being a getaway for the rich, Katong was increasingly occupied by an expanding English-educated middle class partly made up of Peranakans and Eurasians.43 Neighboring Joo Chiat is a namesake of Chew Joo Chiat, a rich Chinese property owner who lived in the early twentieth century and the area’s heritage lives on through its Peranakan shophouse architecture with Georgian and Corinthian columns, colorful, fve foot pathways and ornate ceramic tiles. In Joo Chiat, an area which is associated

42 Singapore Tourism Board, “Joo Chiat/Katong”, undated, YourSingapore website [downloaded on 1 January 2017], available at http://www.yoursingapore.com/see-do- singapore/places-to-see/joochiat-katong.html. 43 Singapore Tourism Board, “Joo Chiat/Katong”, undated, YourSingapore website [downloaded on 1 January 2017], available at http://www.yoursingapore.com/see-do- singapore/places-to-see/joochiat-katong.html. 9 HIKING THE EAST COAST OF SINGAPORE 275 with the Peranakan community in Singapore, the author came across a 1937 Nanyang shophouse refurbished and converted into a Peranakan inn. Small-time retailers ply their wares along the walkway; traditional Chinese medicine practitioners dried their rambutans in the sun to make Chinese medicines on the public walkway on 16 April 2016. Roadside vendors sold fresh fruit in the traditional manner, hanging up bananas on racks—a declining practice found mostly in old-school provision stores in Singapore today. Old-school vendors are also found in the form of the quintessential mamak provision shops located at the bottom of a Housing Development Board fat in Kampong Chai Chee, providing all the essential goods to the residents. It is a disappearing sight in Singapore with the advent of the well-stocked modern convenience stores. There are some well-known confectionaries in southeastern Singapore, including the iconic former Katong Bakery and Confectionary located at the intersection of Katong and Joo Chiat. The ownership of the Red House Bakery changed hands several times. The original owner of was Jim Baker, a Jewish individual who established the bakery and then sold it to a Hainanese sailor, Tan Siang Fuan, in 1931 who paid S$600 to take over the shop.44 Currently, the building housing the Red House Bakery is a wakaf property held in trust for the Islamic Religious Council of Singapore since 1957 by Sherrifa Zain Alsharoff Mohamed Alsagoff, a philanthropist as well as the great granddaughter of Hajjah Fatimah who constructed the Hajjah Fatimah Mosque at Beach Road mentioned earlier in this chapter.45 The Katong Bakery and Confectionery, founded in 1925, was well-known for its cakes and curry puffs served at breakfast time at 75 East Coast Road but was shut down on 23 March 2003 after its shophouse building was found to be a potential hazard.46 The bakery has closed but its building has since been gentrifed. According to a Strait Times report on 10 December 2015, the Red House building in

44 Mohd Nasir, Heirwin, “Red House Bakery”, (2016), National Library Board Singapore Infopedia website [downloaded on 1 January 2017], available at http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_611_2004-12-24.html. 45 Mohd Nasir, Heirwin, “Red House Bakery”, (2016), National Library Board Singapore Infopedia website [downloaded on 1 January 2017], available at http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_611_2004-12-24.html. 46 Mohd Nasir, Heirwin, “Red House Bakery”, (2016), National Library Board Singapore Infopedia website [downloaded on 1 January 2017], available at http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_611_2004-12-24.html. 276 T.W. Lim

Katong is re-opening with 42 apartments, fve commercial shops, a halal bakery and a heritage gallery displaying antique pieces drawn from the old bakery that was in business from 1925 to 2003.47 The Red House is a good example of the gentrifcation and restoration of former nostalgic icons to prevent further dilapidation into peripheral abandoned neighborhoods. The Red House is not alone when it comes to gentrifcation regenerating value for old heritage buildings. The author came across late-Art Deco style stand-alone shophouses at Cheow Seng Road. Rows of colorful shophouses at Koon Seng Road are one of the most well-preserved examples of Nanyang Peranakan-style shophouses in Singapore. The other area where one can fnd Peranakan shophouses in a state of pristine preservation is Blair Plains. Near the end of the author’s hike on 16 April 2016, he came across one of the last few blocks of the Singapore Improvement Trust fats still standing in the area. Built in 1958, these old public housing fats will make way for new developments in the Mountbatten renewal plan by the end of 2016 which promises to bring about exciting positive changes to the area. Near the public housing estate, the iconic Old Airport Road hawker center is one of the most well-known old-school hawker centers in Singapore. The retro nostalgic feel of the Mountbatten estate contrasts with the futuristic retractable dome in the Sports Hub Kallang area. At the point of writing this chapter, a Madonna concert was held here. Another high-tech infrastructure located in this area is the Singapore Indoor Stadium, serving as a community and commercial space in which people can gather at the Sports Hub. A beach volleyball court is located near the Sports Hub. For water sports enthusiasts, there is a Kallang basin launch pad for canoeists, kayakers and dragon-boaters. The author also came across an angler fshing at the Kallang Basin on 16 April 2016. In terms of heritage structures in the same area, an important structure is the 1956 Merdeka Bridge built to express Malaya’s aspirations for self-governance. Two stone lions used to guard the entrance to this bridge, from which they were moved to the SAFTI MI military training institute of the Singapore Armed Forces. The Merdeka Bridge,

47 Lin, Melissa, “Katong's iconic Red House to reopen by second quarter of 2016”, 10 December 2015, The Straits Times [downloaded on 1 January 2016], available at http:// www.straitstimes.com/singapore/housing/katongs-iconic-red-house-to-reopen-by- second-quarter-of-2016. 9 HIKING THE EAST COAST OF SINGAPORE 277 designated a historic site in 2002, is 2000 feet long and cost S$6.05 million. Conceptualised by R.J. Hollis-Bee of the British colonial era Public Works Department, it connects the Kallang Basin, Nicoll Highway and the city, linking the eastern and southern sectors of Singapore.48 The historical motivation for building Merdeka Bridge arose from congested traffc conditions in this area more than ffty years ago. Traffc jams at the cross-section of Kallang, Geylang and Mountbatten Roads occurred due to the high volume of traffc in the 1950s (over 2000 cars traveling hourly in each of the two-directional lanes). This prompted the creation of the Kallang Basin Development Committee, convened by the state to construct a coastal highway and a link between Kallang and Beach Road.49 The Merdeka Bridge made it possible for the author to hike southwards from the East Coast Parkway to Suntec City, Marina Bay and the City Hall downtown areas. The construction of the coastal road and bridge required a community of traders to move out of the Beach Road reclaimed area. Approximately 600 charcoal and timber fuel traders were relocated to Tanjong Rhu from October 1954 onwards and 400 illegal residents staying in attap-roofed houses were relocated to the Singapore Improvement Trust fats at Guillemard Road in early 1955.50 Underneath the Merdeka Bridge, a non-governmental organisation, the Waterways Watch Society, operates a secretariat and watches over the Kallang Basin body of water and other waterways in Singapore. Walking further south from Bedok to Kallang and Lavender, and then venturing into Beach Road, the author arrived in “Little Thailand”. Here, the author came across a popular place of worship, the Four-Faced Thai Buddha shrine, in Beach Road’s Golden Mile shopping center. Devotees at the Four-Faced Buddha shrine place large numbers of Thai dancing dolls to show reverence to the Thai Buddha. An unoffcial ethnic community space, many Thai workers and residents in Singapore

48 Tan, Joanna H.S., “Merdeka Bridge”, (2016), National Library Board (NLB) Singapore Infopedia website [downloaded on 1 January 2017], available at http:// eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_493_2005-01-19.html. 49 Tan, Joanna H.S., “Merdeka Bridge”, (2016), National Library Board (NLB) Singapore Infopedia website [downloaded on 1 January 2017], available at http:// eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_493_2005-01-19.html. 50 Tan, Joanna H.S., “Merdeka Bridge”, (2016), National Library Board (NLB) Singapore Infopedia website [downloaded on 1 January 2017], available at http:// eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_493_2005-01-19.html. 278 T.W. Lim as well as locals enjoy the facets of Thai culture in this area, which is a gathering place for authentic Thai food and cultural artifacts. An iconic building in this area is the Golden Mile Complex (formerly known as the Woh Hup Complex), which consists of apartments and commercial shops situated between Nicoll Highway and Beach Road. The Complex was a large-scale URA project which was started in the 1960s and completed in 1973, costing S$18 million; it is also an early example of large retail structures in Southeast Asia.51 Before the appearance of the Golden Mile Complex and the gentrifcation of the area in the 1960s to renovate and renew aging urban areas, Beach Road had rows of shophouses and traditional maritime vessels were located in the coastal area. Today, it is integrated as part of “Little Thailand” for Thai laborers and expatriates, offering a diversity of Thai- made goods.52 The Golden Mile Complex attracted acclamation from global commentators on architectural design in the 1970s and became an iconic symbol. However, the aging building has declined over the years and has been in the media spotlight due to fghts that broke out between foreign laborers and a fre in 1995.53 It has become a site for the Thai community to congregate through its entertainment outlets, restaurants, remittance shops and a Friends of Thai Workers Association in Singapore that takes care of Thai workers.54 From the Beach Road area, walking further south towards the central City Hall area, a Kwanyin idol (Guanyin in Hanyu pinyin, referring to the Goddess of Mercy) sits in a muddy pot in the gentrifed space near Seah Street. Residents and commercial property owners in that area continue to decorate their spaces in traditional ways. This marked the end of the author’s hike in the eastern sector of Singapore.

51 Zakaria, Faizah bte, “Golden Mile Complex”, (2011), National Library Board Singapore Infopedia [downloaded on 1 January 2017], available at http://eresources.nlb. gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_1833_2011-08-29.html. 52 Zakaria, Faizah bte, “Golden Mile Complex”, (2011), National Library Board Singapore Infopedia [downloaded on 1 January 2017], available at http://eresources.nlb. gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_1833_2011-08-29.html. 53 Zakaria, Faizah bte, “Golden Mile Complex”, (2011), National Library Board Singapore Infopedia [downloaded on 1 January 2017], available at http://eresources.nlb. gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_1833_2011-08-29.html. 54 Zakaria, Faizah bte, “Golden Mile Complex”, (2011), National Library Board Singapore Infopedia [downloaded on 1 January 2017], available at http://eresources.nlb. gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_1833_2011-08-29.html. 9 HIKING THE EAST COAST OF SINGAPORE 279

The eastern sector trail that the author took along the East Coast Parkway and through the neighborhoods of Katong, Lavender, Beach Road, Bugis, Kampong Glam, Joo Chiat and Kallang have visible Peranakan and Malay ethnic heritage, historical narratives of human habitation, including those of seaborne people, and past histories of Malay royalty in Singapore. Nostalgia for traditional Singaporean architecture, cuisine, and Malay and Peranakan culture remains strong in the southeastern sectors of Singapore covered in the author’s hikes. The Central Catchment Area is richer in terms of natural heritage, especially those areas close to the natural landscapes of secondary forests. By comparison, the East Coast Parkway is rich in marine life, coastal wildlife and trees that are drawn to coastal areas and mangrove environments. There are similarities between the two, as well. The Central Catchment Area and the East Coast Parkway function as sectors of natural greenery and diverse ecology surrounded by public housing estates, regional malls and the urban transportation system. A motivating factor for visitors to visit the Central Catchment Area and East Coast Parkway is to carry out activities such as long-distance cycling, skating along a coastal parkway, trekking through secondary forests, kayaking and canoeing—none of which can be done in the heart of densely populated housing estates. The far-sighted and meticulous planning of the authorities retains these green spaces for use by a large variety of stakeholders in the appreciation of nature, satisfying their yearning for pleasant, accessible green spaces and crafting their accessibility for members of the public through park corridors, hiking trails, footpaths, jogging tracks, neighborhood gardens and community farms. Green spaces, even “green lungs” like the Catchment Area, help mitigate the unlimited exploitation of spaces for urbanisation. In this arena, the authorities have made a positive contribution, in consultation with other stakeholders. There are also similarities and differences in the Southern Ridges trail in the western sector of Singapore where the author hiked. Instead of a narrative about boat people, the Southern Ridges, especially Telok Blangah Hill, represented a tale of resettlement of displaced people. The hilly terrain also differs from the mangrove and reclaimed sandy coastal terrain of the East Coast Parkway. The Southern Ridges offer elevated viewpoints (e.g. the Henderson Waves Bridge) that extend beyond the coastal areas to as far as Jurong Island and resort island of Sentosa. As with the Central Catchment Area, secondary forested environments co- exist with nature parks. Close to the Southern Ridges lies the west coast 280 T.W. Lim of Singapore, which bears similarities to the East Coast Parkway, although the west coast does not have the extensive ethnic heritage neighborhoods rich in traditional Malay and Peranakan cultures that can be found in the East Coast Parkway. The three trails offer options for individuals in Singapore who have a passion for green spaces and peripheral spaces near major public housing estates. They include a hilly terrain hike with elevated views of the coastal areas on the Southern Ridges trail, a walk along sandy terrain through the East Coast Parkway or a secondary forested catchment area trek through the Central Catchment Area. All three are peripheral spaces deliberately kept free from excessive urbanisation but with enough accessibility for members of the public through eco-friendly park corridors, treetop walks, gravel footpaths, bridges made of hardwood and well-situated fights of steps, and with enough secondary forested canopies or planted shrubs to satisfy a diverse array of stakeholders.

References Azrah, Edian and Joanna Tan, “Hajjah Fatimah Mosque”, 2016, National Library Board Website [Downloaded on 1 January 2017], Available at http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_259_2005-01-06.html. Cornelius, Vernon, “Kallang”, 1999, National Library Board (NLB) Website [Downloaded on 1 April 2016], Available at http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/ infopedia/articles/SIP_220__2008-12-02.html. Cornelius, Vernon, “Kampong Glam”, 2016, National Library Board Infopedia Website [Downloaded on 1 January 2017], Available at http://eresources. nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_249_2004-12-16.html. De Rozario, Regina, “Bedok Reservoir”, 2009, National Library Board (NLB) Singapore Infopedia Website [Downloaded on 1 January 2016], Available at http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_1482_2009-03-06.html. Hwang, Joycelyn, “Orang Laut”, 2010, Singapore Infopedia National Library Board [Downloaded on 1 April 2016], Available at http://eresources.nlb. gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_551_2005-01-09.html. Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum, “The Digital Nature Archive of Singapore East Coast Park”, 2017, Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum. The DNA of Singapore Website [Downloaded on 1 February 2017], Available at http://lkcnhm.nus.edu.sg/dna/places/details/53. Lin, Melissa, “Katong’s Iconic Red House to Reopen by Second Quarter of 2016”, 10 December 2015, The Straits Times [Downloaded on 1 January 2016], Available at http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/housing/katongs- iconic-red-house-to-reopen-by-second-quarter-of-2016. 9 HIKING THE EAST COAST OF SINGAPORE 281

Malabar Muslim Jama’ath Mosque, “Malabar Mosque”, 2012, Malabar Mosque Website [Downloaded on 1 January 2017], Available at http://www.malabar. org.sg/about/. Mohd Nasir, Heirwin, “Red House Bakery”, 2016, National Library Board Singapore Infopedia Website [Downloaded on 1 January 2017], Available at http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_611_2004-12-24.html. National Parks Board, “East Coast Park”, 27 January 2017, National Parks Website [Downloaded on 27 January 2017], Available at https://www. nparks.gov.sg/gardens-parks-and-nature/parks-and-nature-reserves/east- coast-park. National Parks Board, “Roads & Places Named After Trees”, 25 February 2015, National Parks Website [Downloaded on 1 January 2016], Available at https://www.nparks.gov.sg/activities/family-time-with-nature/recommended- activities/roads-and-places-named-after-trees. Singapore Tourism Board, “Joo Chiat/Katong”, Undated, Your Singapore Website [Downloaded on 1 January 2017], Available at http://www. yoursingapore.com/see-do-singapore/places-to-see/joochiat-katong.html. Sultan Mosque, “Sultan Mosque History”, 2016, Sultan Mosque Singapore Website [Downloaded on 1 January 2017], Available at http://sultanmosque. sg/about-us/sultan-mosque-history. Tan, Joanna H.S., “Merdeka Bridge”, 2016, National Library Board (NLB) Singapore Infopedia Website [Downloaded on 1 January 2017], Available at http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_493_2005-01-19.html. Textual Information on National Heritage Board Plaques at the Kallang Basin. Thulaja, Naidu, “East Coast Road”, 2003, National Library Board Singapore Infopedia Website [Downloaded on 1 April 2016], Available at http:// eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_293_2004-12-13.html. Thulaja, Naidu Ratnala, “Lavender Street”, 2005, National Library Board Website [Downloaded on 16 April 2016], Available at http://eresources.nlb. gov.sg/infopedia/articles/sip_380_2005-01-26.html. Zakaria, Faizah Bte, “Golden Mile Complex”, 2011, National Library Board Singapore Infopedia [Downloaded on 1 January 2017], Available at http:// eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_1833_2011-08-29.html. CHAPTER 10

Conclusion

In the Introduction and the subsequent chapters, the idea of “peripheral spaces” has been examined and contextualised. In its broadest defnition, it includes areas other than the economically productive locations, but the case studies in this volume indicate that spaces are continually evolving—abandoned spaces are reclaimed by nature, dilapidated spaces re-invigorated by gentrifcation are developed into accessible and user- friendly park corridors. In the case studies found in this volume, the idea of economic productivity was also mitigated. While some spaces made into park corridors may have lost their economic value when railway lines declined, or when plantations were abandoned, they have become aesthetically pleasing park corridors, or off-the-beaten-track secondary forest trails that serve local residents and visitors as green spaces for them to pursue their leisure and sports activities. If measured by other benchmarks besides economic productivity and value, the peripheral spaces continue to maintain their values as “green lungs”, leisure and entertainment facilities, wildlife preserves for biodiversity and community bonding (e.g. the community of anglers on Singapore’s East Coast Parkway’s jetties and breakwaters). These activities are sometimes coping mechanisms for residents of Singapore to manage, mitigate and escape from the urban environment and its fast-paced lifestyle. Relativity is a characteristic constantly visible throughout the case studies in this volume. There is no permanent peripheral or economically productive status for any location or site covered in the author’s hikes because they are subject to the dynamically changing needs of land use in

Singapore and the long-term visionary planning of the authorities. The evolving use of land is a result of mutually counterbalancing the forces of progress and urbanisation in relation to the human desire for nature and green environments once they become a rare commodity in highly urbanised areas. The Clementi Forest and Green Rail Corridor are good examples of the constant struggle between urbanization and the yearning for natural spaces (whether natural or man-made). Even in crafted and landscaped green spaces, visitors can still fnd some of nature’s greatest wonders; for example, one of the largest bees in the world (the carpenter bee in Tiong Bahru Park and Silat Walk), endangered or rarely seen species such as the fying lemur, one of the largest mudskippers in the world lives in Sungei Buloh, some of the most venomous snakes (such as the black spitting cobra that the author came across in the Green Rail Corridor), or species of trees with the world’s largest girth, such as the fcus tree. Nostalgia was another major element in the case studies. Nostalgia is closely tied to subjective personal memories. Recollections help to recreate old Singapore associated with the “kampong spirit”: an idyllic lifestyle, the simple rustic feel, images of secondary forests, memories of wild animals frolicking through plantations, strong community spirit and so on. At the same time, subjective memories juxtaposed idealised images with inconveniences of rural lifestyles, particularly in a tropical setting with mosquito-borne diseases, fimsy attap huts, leaking attap roofs, noisy neighbors, the inconvenience of drawing water and the absence of taps providing running water. In physical terms, nostalgia can range from sighting something as basic as a colonial-style cast iron park bench with faded green paint and a lion’s head design to the meticulous conservation of an entire neighborhood with late Art Deco pre-war public housing units such as in Tiong Bahru. In some of these spaces, nostalgia can be represented by the continuity of farming skills transplanted from former squatter farms to the cultivated vegetation of community gardens. Old-school farming methods are transferred to young gardening enthusiasts who use recycled materials such as PVC pipes for growing vegetables in community gardens. This contrasts with the high-tech approaches of aeroponics and hydroponics practiced in the Kranji farms. Gentrifcation can result in wider accessibility to peripheral, abandoned, heritage or green spaces for a greater section of the public. Gentrifcation resulting in park corridors may be a symbolic form of presenting nature but it democratises the enjoyment of natural landscapes 10 CONCLUSION 285 and sceneries when the gentrifed facilities or park areas are opened up to members of the public. Gentrifcation may also renew aging urban areas and welcome new residents to those areas. They may include visitors who want to relive their memories of old Singapore, or hipsters who consider old-world charm to be fashionable and trendy. Tiong Bahru is a good example of such gentrifed spaces attracting crowds to patronise its quaint shops, or to visit its well-preserved late-Art Deco Streamline Moderne neighborhood. Besides residential areas, gentrifcation can also contribute to the convenience of accessing park areas, as well. The wooden boardwalk that skirts part of the boundaries of the reservoir in MacRitchie is a good example of facilities constructed in an environmentally friendly manner to provide supported pathways for those interested in walking by the waterside of the Catchment Area in MacRitchie. In the case of Fort Canning, the authorities have improved the walkways; renovated the Battle Box that enables visitors to learn more about the Pacifc War during World War II; gentrifed the buildings to cater to different stakeholders including hotels, museums, a club, and a sculpture park. European architecture has been preserved in pristine condition to the delight of visitors, history buffs, architecture lovers, heritage lovers and other stakeholders. Adrian Kwek pointed out how spatial layout can contribute to learning by mirroring the conceptual relations between the contents, by controlling access to the material and by presenting the object that the information is about, giving the learner frst- hand experience of the object. He brought these considerations to bear on the vantage points and galleries offered by two walks in Singapore that were designed, at least partially, with pedagogical intention: the fourteenth Century Walk at Fort Canning and the Tiong Bahru Heritage Trail. Signage can also be considered a feature of gentrifcation to widen public access to heritage sites. In the case of pioneering districts such as Fort Canning in the Civic District and Tiong Bahru’s Singapore Improvement Trust-era public housing, signage and the spatial layout of those districts through heritage trails, gridded or sequential layouts and imposed spatial orders facilitate responsible conservation of heritage sites and satisfy interested stakeholders’ fascination for reminiscing and for reconstructions of local heritage and history. The grandeur of aristocratic and regal buildings is a visual treat for many visitors. Most of the buildings associated with royalty are found in the Civic District or downtown. While following the heritage trails, the author passed by a Malay royal tomb in Fort Canning and the former 286 T.W. Lim

Istana palace at Kampong Glam. Some private bungalows are almost equally palatial; for example, the Alkaff Mansion. Based on Tudor- inspired architecture and built in the year World War I ended, the Mansion has charmed many hikers as well as foodies who have dined at its fne restaurant. Besides regal buildings, the author and other history buffs are also attracted by other architectural designs; for example, the Nanyang shophouses, places of worship, commercial spaces such as the Red House Bakery in Katong, the onion dome and spires of the Sultan mosque, the East–West fusion design of the Hajjah Fatimah Mosque and its “Leaning Tower of Singapore”. The fetishism of green spaces is based on subjective individual preferences from desiring space for sports activities to exploring aesthetically pleasing green spaces that break the monotony and uniformity of urban structures, or to reviving fond memories of the rustic kampong lifestyle. The homogenous urban landscape is broken by sightings of monkeys, the sound of the fowing waters of a freshwater stream, the appearance of stunning bat lily plants by the side of the tracks, the sighting of a racket- tailed drongo in the secondary forest, or the appearance of late-Art Deco Streamline Moderne public housing designs. The authorities have done a wonderful job of preserving heritage structures, gentrifying old neighborhoods, maintaining park spaces and constructing park corridors in this respect. The park spaces are so pristinely naturalised, landscaped and crafted that they resemble large-scale living tokonomas as mentioned by Lefebvre (e.g. the natural fltration systems of the storm drains of Bedok Reservoir, the park spaces of Tiong Bahru, the hardwood walkway of the Henderson Waves Bridge, the treetop walk at the Southern Ridges and so on). In the case of the Woodlands Waterfront, the authorities replanted the original native species in that area to increase the decreasing number of plants species in order to encourage biodiversity and conservation. In making the facilities accessible, the authorities also resorted to technology to minimise the carbon footprint. For example, solar power lamps are features that the author came across on some of his walks; they provide useful lighting to enable members of the public to access trails such as those found near the reservoirs while using renewable energy. One of the greatest contributions made by the authorities to enhance the public’s accessibility to green natural spaces is the construction of the island-wide Park Connector Network that enables all Singaporeans to access natural spaces. Equitable access to heritage sites, green facilities 10 CONCLUSION 287 and gentrifed retail outlets encourages egalitarianism. The state provides a public good in gentrifcation projects and green spaces for members of the public. It is also a repository of knowledge about heritage sites and green peripheral spaces. An evidence of its importance in the curation of local heritage and history are the signboards put up at many sites along the hiking trails. Accumulated and curated knowledge are shared with all members of the public interested to curate their own personal memories of old Singapore sites with more accuracy, or to enhance their recollection of the “good old days” by accessing national archive fles or reading signboards at heritage sites and green spaces. Heritage signboards were one of the most important sources of information for the author’s trips. When makeshift shrines are relocated or when graves of important local people are conserved, the authorities facilitate continuity of historical memories and aid stakeholders’ recollection of those memories. Curating memories and historical materials sometimes contributes to heritage tourism. The idea of the commercial value of carefully curated nature is probably most applicable to the example set by the Singapore Botanical Gardens in this volume. The natural history and botanical specimens in this locale are so well-preserved that the site attained World Heritage site status, the frst for Singapore. The Mandai Forest is another example where the authorities have integrated a world-class zoo into the natural areas and managed the facility in a manner that is entertaining for visitors and tourists and yet cares for the environment and the animals in the facility. Secondary forests and other peripheral green spaces can be economically useful if they are managed in a sustainable and environmentally friendly way. Ultimately, visitors, tourists and locals who walk the streets, heritage spaces and green spaces and explore the off-the- beaten track areas of Singapore may spot or encounter material objects, relics, artifacts, botany or wildlife that are not easily seen from vehicles. Even though the state is an important stakeholder in the provision of green spaces, park corridors and conserved heritage spaces, there are organic developments beyond the planning projections of the authorities. For example, the entry of wildlife into park corridors, hipsters’ interest in conservation neighborhoods such as Tiong Bahru and sea otters’ visiting the Singapore Botanical Gardens are all random events that represent the ability of nature to adapt to man-made landscapes and the local community’s ability to shape the identity of a neighborhood organically. Singapore’s multiculturalism also means that different ethnicities, races and nationalities live in harmony in the same neighborhood, 288 T.W. Lim which facilitates the cross-fertilisation of cultures and encourages the co- existence of different religions in the same community. For example, in the Chinatown area, a mosque, an Indian temple, a Chinese Buddhist Temple and a church are located in close proximity to each other. In maintaining the multicultural character of Singapore, the state authorities are enlightened and consult regularly with all stakeholders, making planning decisions after calls for close consultation and having carefully negotiated and balanced the needs of the country, its local communities, stakeholder groups and individual needs. Organic communities exist on the trails that the author travelled along, including the angler’s community on the east coast where individuals shared their knowledge of fshing with each other and compared the value of their catch. They also exist along the Green Rail Corridor where the author was able to purchase food (semolina biscuits) and water supplies from small canteens in heritage sites of worship along the way. Community self-help features were also present in the Seletar Forest where hikers and cyclists placed terracotta pots and logs to help others get across puddles and water-logged terrain. Greeting each other and shouting early warnings to avoid clashes between bikers and hikers have also become important social rituals and conventions within this community when they are sharing the same green spaces. Another organic community that the author came across in his hikes was the high-tech farmers in Kranji who cultivated higher value-added agricultural products such as organic food, Taiwanese guavas, chili, tapioca, winter melons, lady’s fngers and so forth. Because farming is a disappearing industry in Singapore, the farming community in Kranji has grown closer and shares knowledge and resources. Together with state inputs and its hand in facilitating access to the green spaces such as secondary forests, the subjective perspectives of the stakeholders who use those spaces cumulatively give the local area its characteristics. Stakeholders interpret those spaces subjectively from their habitual use, their perceptions of the signifcance of those spaces, or from subjective recollections of using those spaces in the distant past. Economic development progressed in stages, with initial economic development arising from infrastructure development and initial investment, followed by a take-off stage with accelerated economic growth and the eventual achievement of a mature economy. Throughout this process, natural spaces remain important and serve the functions of green aesthetics for the landscape, spaces for recreational activities for 10 CONCLUSION 289 residents and even more crucial functions such as serving as the green lungs for Singapore (e.g. the Central Catchment Area). Globalisation of the urban can also be observed in different stages at the heritage spaces. Starting from undeveloped areas such as secondary forests and swamps, these areas were cultivated and developed into a variety of plantations: rubber (Clementi Forest), guava (Ulu Pandan), sugar (Lavender) and others. Industrialisation saw the advent of coal-powered and steam- powered transport such as railways, trams and ferries, which were subsequently replaced by motor vehicles, planes and other gasoline-powered and electrically powered applications. Singapore’s urbanisation cor- responded with the global mode of industrialisation in terms of energy use, increased effciency in mobility and increasing power and speed. Singapore’s globalisation is not unique but mirrors that of the urbanisation found in other industrialised economies. Many case studies of spaces covered in this volume have acquired multiple identities that are dynamically evolving with economic needs, population growth, technological changes, renewals and gentrifcation. They demonstrate how peripheral spaces are contextual and relative, depending on the historical time period and functional use of those spaces. For example, in very broad and reductionist outlines, the following spaces covered in the volume evolved chronologically with time and in context:

Tiong Bahru’s late-Art Deco Streamline Moderne public housing estate Swampy ground and cemetery Pre-war Art Deco public housing → estate Mature public housing estate Gentrifed hipster location → → Bugis Street and Bugis Junction Kampong villages Site of transvestite prostitution Gentrifed retail → → area and art district with park corridor linkup through Rochor

Arab Street, Kampong Glam and Jalan Sultan Kampong villages and the seat of Malay aristocracy Addition of grand → Sultan Mosque Gentrifed retail area and fne restaurants + heritage → galleries

Clementi Forest Forests Rubber plantation Abandoned rubber plantation → → → Singapore–Malaysia railway runs through it Green Rail Corridor runs → through it after the Singapore–Malaysia railway becomes defunct 290 T.W. Lim

Green Rail Corridor Singapore–Malaysia railway track Abandoned spaces when the railway → became defunct Green Rail Corridor Possible development into → → park corridors and with potential nearby sites for low density housing

Jurong Railway Jurong railway track to service Jurong industrial area with presence of squatter farms in some sections along the track Jurong railway track → stopped operation, becoming abandoned spaces Parts of the former → railway track become park corridor for public housing, cast iron bridge relic and community garden

Woodlands Waterfront Jetty and railway station Site of battles between Japan and Allied → forces Naval installations Gentrifed waterfront park with indig- → → enous replanted species and mangrove coast All these examples indicate dynamically evolving and contextually changing spatial use by heritage enthusiasts. The functional utility of these spaces to Singaporeans also evolved with time. There is a variety ofmotivations for modifying the use of these spaces; for example, public interest, an increased urgency for certain public needs, or the obso- lescence of industrial technologies. The spaces alternate between natural spaces, developed areas, abandoned spaces and gentrifed facilities. In typological terms, the spaces that the author encountered can be classifed into various categories (see Tables 10.1, 10.2), as mentioned by Henri Lefebvre: This volume agrees with and benefts from Lefebvre’s ideas about peripheral spaces and urbanisation in many ways. First, Lefebvre’s attempt to understand urbanism is different from this study of Singapore’s spaces. In contemporary Singapore, capitalism is highly developed and urban studies is already a well-established discipline. Urban lifestyles are already well-rooted ways of life in a city-state. What Lefebvre offers his readers is not a critique of capitalism but, rather, a window of opportunity to understand the idea of nostalgia or nostalgic imagination in reconstructing green spaces in highly developed urban areas. Lefebvre’s ideas of nostalgia for spaces of old are most visible in the Civic District and the Tiong Bahru areas. Visitors come to Tiong Bahru to relive the Singapore of the early post-war years. With its late-Art Deco buildings unchanged, a proliferation of fashionable 10 CONCLUSION 291 Gentrifcation and embourgeoisement State renewal efforts and initiatives by local organic communities make Tiong Bahru a hipster hangout Popular place for hikers, cyclists, nature lovers and other stakeholders; known as Green Rail Corridor Community garden and park corridor near housing estate Gentrifed Woodlands Park with re-Waterfront planted indigenous species → → → → → Aging Singapore Improvement Trust-era public housing Ceased operation Ceased operation Naval facilities shifted away Decline of industrial struc - tures and urban facilities, peripheralisation → → → → → Colonial-era Tiong Bahru Late-Art Deco Streamline Moderne public housing estate Singapore–Malaysia railway track laid out at uniform intervals and of standard track length/width Standardised Jurong rail - way track laid out Naval installations Industrialisation and imposed homogeneity → → → → → Stages in the gentrifcation of heritage spaces Examples Conceptualising affordable public housing standard units by colonial govern - ment Industrialisation and the need for Singapore– Malaysia railway Railway connection with Jurong Industrial Park; crucial for nation-building and industrialisation Jetty and rail - Woodlands way station Rapid urbanisation, mechanistic reproduction of space, uniformisation, hegemonic character 10.1 Table 292 T.W. Lim

Table 10.2 Examples of fetishism for natural spaces

Original state of Withdrawal of Isolation and Constructed → → → nature nature marginalisation symbolism of from nature nature and signs invokes fetishism of natural spaces Forested Rubber Abandonment of Planned park → → → plantation plantation due to corridor cultivation at World War II and urban Clementi Forest infrastructure

and bohemian cafes, restaurants and drinking holes, as well as the rustic feel in the gentrifed areas of Tiong Bahru, the area has much to give to individuals pining for the lifestyles and culture they lost in the pursuit of modernisation and progress. In this area, the Singaporean government, the URA and Singapore Heritage Board especially deserve accolades for their efforts to conserve the character of old Tiong Bahru, even going so far as to construct food centers and new public housing car parks in the surrounding areas to ft in with the Art Deco character of the original neighborhood. Second, in a small city-state space such as Singapore, changes are far more dynamic than in the scenario Lefebvre outlined. Besides discussing the socio-economic factor in this volume, one of the major arguments is continuity in use (somewhat correlated with Lefebvre’s ideas of “continuism” or “a sense of historical continuity or permanence associated with urban society”)1 and the relativity of the term “peripheral”. This volume argues that peripherality is relative because spaces undergo cyclical phases of use and disuse, productivity and abandonment, high- density human habitation and habitual use and the like. The speed of change is fast in a small city-state space such as Singapore. Therefore, renewal, gentrifcation, urban redevelopment and designing green spaces in consultation with stakeholders mitigates and prevents the “uniformisation” of spaces. In the era of modernisation theories, there was a tendency towards what Lefebvre calls “the complete urbanisation of the world”—a notion that does not equate with the complete disappearance

1 Lefebvre, Henri, The Urban Revolution (Minneapolis and London: University of Minnesota Press), 2003, p. 1. 10 CONCLUSION 293 of rural areas and the triumph of urban areas but, however, one that implies strong motivation or a tendency towards that eventual goal.2 Given Singapore’s rapid economic development, increase in population size and multiple pressures for urban infrastructure, the motivation for complete urbanisation would have been a possible reality but enlightened government policies also realise the value and effectiveness of environmental sustainability. There were concerted efforts by the authorities to construct a Garden City. Besides keeping green spaces that are aesthetically beautiful, the authorities and the scientifc community also strove to have a clean sustainable environment. Third, a crucial difference between Lefebvre’s ideas and the experiences related in this volume is that Lefebvre’s work was written during a nascent historical period when the concept of post-modernism had not appeared. But, in the contemporary context, Singapore’s gross domestic product per capita is the highest in East Asia, surpassing most other European and North American economies, and most of its citizens live in well-designed public housing. Singapore’s peripheral spaces and green spaces are class-neutral zones designed for universal access by Singapore. Fourth, good planning in certain cases transforms unsightly or unsanitary areas such as storm drains, canals and sewage areas into biologically correct, self-cleaning environments such as those found in the Ulu Pandan and Bishan Park spaces that were covered during hikes. There is therefore an attempt to re-introduce nature into man-made objects. The natural contours of such re-engineered spaces may be comparable to the example of the tokonoma cited by Lefebvre. (A tokonoma is a man-made alcove with a stylised fower arrangement carried out in such a way as to refect nature as closely as possible.) Great care is taken by the URA to recreate the ecology of the area. In some ways, this sensitive recreation of a wild environment based on local ecology refects Lefebvre’s concept of a tokonoma. In the case of the Woodlands Waterfront, the state’s redevelopment agency is responsible for the skilled crafting of the area and the botany is recreated based on a scientifcally rational reconstruction of a natural space.

2 Lefebvre, Henri, The Urban Revolution (Minneapolis and London: University of Minnesota Press), 2003, p. xxii. 294 T.W. Lim

An ecological argument can also be made here. Critics who criticise Lefebvre’s spatial concepts as overly romantic overlook the point that space is an “ideological construction”.3 They may be unaware that, besides human existence, other living creatures share the same urban space. These critics may be overly conceited and arrogant in assuming only humans master and use these spaces. Animals, too, are guided by rationality. If crafted green spaces such as parks, community gardens and green corridors are made to resemble natural spaces, they can also attract wildlife from the forest to live in them, provide food and shelter to these creatures. It can thus be implied that spaces are not merely “constructs”, since they can attract animals which do not have the same cognitive reasoning or ideological affliations as humans. It is not a form of constructed and imagined utopianism when animals migrate based on rational evolutionary needs and basic survival instincts. Fifth, Henri Lefebvre raises the urban problematic, questioning whether the urban city can be considered as a superstructure growing on the substrate of an economic structure and whether the city is a capitalist or socialist reality phenomenon or reality.4 The author does not conceptualise the Bayfront, Tanjong Pagar, Raffes Place, HarbourFront, Marina, Bayfront and the future Waterfront City areas in terms of a dichotomy of capitalist or socialist phenomena or realities. If those areas were defned ideologically, then it would become a natural argument against egalitarian community-building in these downtown areas. Reality indicates otherwise.Despite being an economically productive area and a consequence of scientifcally rational urban planning, with its zoned commercial spaces even during the British colonial era, Tanjong Pagar always had complex and ambiguous social and socio-economic relationships between different stakeholders and individual users of the urban space. This volume covers the historical and spatial aspects of Singapore’s natural spaces, hiking trails, park corridors and heritage areas. It examined these areas through observations, experiential learning, examination of archival and historical materials, public signage, secondary sources,

3 Lefebvre, Henri, The Urban Revolution (Minneapolis and London: University of Minnesota Press), 2003, p. xvi. 4 Lefebvre, Henri, The Urban Revolution (Minneapolis and London: University of Minnesota Press), 2003, p. 15. 10 CONCLUSION 295 informal conversations with stakeholders and theoretical ideas from a philosopher. There are cognitive and emotive elements to this writing. Ideas of nostalgia represent the emotive yearning for spaces that have vanished due to development. Cognitively, the writing also tries to understand the rationale for gentrifcation, renewal and the establishing of park corridors in some of these spaces for easier access, contemporary convenience, urban infrastructure development and meeting the needs of a growing population. The contestations of development needs, the emotive and cognitive responses by individuals living in dynamically changing spaces and the relative ideas of what consists of peripheral and productive spaces in this story is contextualised through a park corridor system that is almost nationwide in reach. A possible future direction for the project is to work with social scientists to understand the psychologi- cal aspects of such spatial use through surveys and statistical analysis of how individuals and stakeholders conceptualise the use of such spaces.

Reference Lefebvre, Henri, The Urban Revolution (Minneapolis and London: University of Minnesota Press), 2003. Index

A Embourgeosiement, 13 Aeroponics, 212 Arab street, 44, 45, 53–57 F Fort canning, 39, 40, 43, 44, 97, 106, B 107, 110, 112, 120, 135, 137 Bedok reservoir, 255, 256, 268, 272, 273 Bugis, 44, 51, 52, 55 Bukit Brown, 175, 184, 185, 186, 187 G Bukit Ho Swee, 67, 83 Gentrifcation, 13, 284, 291 Bukit Panjang, 181, 183, 188–191 Green Rail Corridor, 139, 148, 151, 155, 157, 158, 160, 161–164, 166–169 C Green space, 1, 14, 15, 283, 284, Central catchment, 173, 175, 286–288, 290, 292, 294 177–181, 183, 188, 191, 194 Gridded layout, 98, 99, 120 Chinatown, 80, 91, 92 Clementi forest, 139, 140, 142, 144–148, 150–154, 164, 165, H 168, 241, 251 Hajjah Fatimah Mosque, 263, 275 Coney Island, 219, 221, 222, 223 Heritage, 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 9, 14, 16, 18, 20, 21, 23–29, 31 Heritage sites, 122, 126, 127, 130, E 131 East coast, 255, 257, 259, 266, 267, Heritage tourism, 287 271, 275, 277, 279, 280 Hierarchical Layout, 101

Hong Lim Park, 92, 93 N Nanyang Technological University. See NTU I Nostalgia, 284 Iskandar Shah, 40–43 NParks, 179 NTU, 242, 243, 245

J Joo Chiat, 255, 259, 265, 270, 279 O Jurong railway, 142, 146 Orang Lauts, 257, 258, 259 Organic community, 288

K Kampong Glam, 47, 51–54, 258, 260, P 263–265, 279 Parameswara, 41, 43 Kranji, 199, 201, 202, 204–206, Park connector network, 286 208–210, 212, 222 Peripheral spaces, 4, 6, 14, 17, 19–21, 31, 61–63, 283, 287, 289, 290, 293 L Lavender, 255, 260, 262, 266, 277, 279 Lefebvre, 10–12, 15–19, 21, 22, 24, R 26, 31, 37, 38, 47, 49, 58, 62, Railway, 229, 236, 238, 251 286, 290, 292, 294 Rainforest trees, 184, 193 Lei Yin Temple, 68, 88, 89, 90 Lim Chu Kang, 201–203, 207, 208 Little India, 36, 44, 57, 58 S Little Thailand, 55, 57 Seletar, 173, 175, 191, 192, 194, 196, 197 Sequential Layout, 98, 99, 107 M Signboards, 106, 107, 109, 114, 116, MacRitchie reservoir, 175, 177–179, 119, 122, 127, 130 181, 184, 186, 193 Singapore, 1–17, 20–27, 29–31 Mandai, 191, 194–197 Singapore Botanical Gardens, 71–73, Marina Bay, 45, 46, 48, 51, 52 75, 79 Marsiling, 205, 212, 215, 217, 222 Southern Ridges, 227, 231, 250 Molly, 149, 151 Sultan Mosque, 260, 262 Mount Faber, 227–230, 232, 233, 250 Sungei Buloh, 199, 201, 203, 206, Museum spaces, 101 207, 209 Index 299

T URA, 35–37, 38, 39, 216 Tanjong Pagar, 35–37, 39, 46, 47, 50, Urbanism, 10–12 51, 57 Urbanization, 139, 140, 143, 154 Tanjong Pagar railway station, 81, Utilitarian, 19, 26, 27 85–87 Telok Blangah, 227–229, 231, 234, 250, 251 W Temasek, 41–43 Woodlands Waterfront, 213, 216, Temenggong, 258 224 Tiong Bahru, 61–65, 67–72, 76, 80–84, 88, 89, 91–93, 97, 120, 122, 126, 129–131, 133–137 Y Tiong Bahru Heritage Trail, 97, 120, Ying Fo Fui Kun, 248 135, 137 Yunnan Garden, 242, 244–246 Trekking, 1–4, 6, 8

Z U Zhenghua Park, 175, 189, 190 Ulu Pandan, 234, 235, 237–240, 247, 251