Oh, Singapore, where art thou?

To kick off my blog, here is an article that I wrote for insing.com. It is based on a trip that I had made to Singapore in 2006 so some of the facts like the 'loin cloth guy' may no longer be applicable!! 

 

My wife and I were in a taxi stuck in a traffic jam along Stamford Road.
I said to her with great conviction: “I’m been on this road a thousand times and I’m sure this is the way to Selegie Road.”

My family and I have been living away from Singapore for the past 15 years, returning for about two to three weeks every two years to visit family and friends.

Whenever we are back, we always make it a point to visit Komala Vilas in Little India, and that was where we were heading. The Indian vegetarian restaurant has always been one of our regular food haunts when we were living in Singapore.

On that particular day, the heavens poured out and we could not see more than 10-20m ahead of us. I lost my bearings and I could not, for the life of me, recognise this gargantuan building we saw when we drove past.

I found out later that it was the Singapore Management University (SMU) that stood on what once used to be the open fields of Dhoby Ghaut.

My street-smart ability of being able to feel my way through the roads of Singapore is something that has been slowly diminishing over the years.

Previously, even when I was slightly intoxicated - after a few rounds of drinks with the boys - I was still able to find my way around, thanks to certain timeless landmarks that gave me my sense of direction.

In the case of SMU, it flatly obscured my view of the Cathay cinema, which is to me a timeless landmark.

MEMORIES OF STAMFORD ROAD

This area and its history are especially close to my heart.

I’ve always enjoyed travelling along Stamford Road as a child, because it was a pleasure to see the majestic-looking Capitol cinema at the start of the road and at its end, the YMCA (Young Men's Christian Association) and the Orchard Road Presbyterian Church.

In between lay some “turn of the century” (19th century, that is) shophouses that are now occupied by boutique shops. Then, there was the MPH Building (Malaysia Publishing House) where a visit there was like going into a fantasy world with a multitude of toys and board games on offer.

A stone’s throw away was the old National Library where I have fond memories borrowing “fairytale” books in the early 1970s. I can also never forget the sumptuous mee rebus (noodles with peanut gravy) at the hawker stalls just outside the library.

Sadly, many of these buildings are no longer there.

The National Library has been replaced by a small green knoll, with a path that leads to nowhere. Next to it, a completely unrecognisable tunnel (the Fort Canning Tunnel) intended for easier traffic flow.

Elsewhere, my childhood kampung (village) in Kembangan was demolished to make way for the MRT station. The original building of my primary school — St Stephen’s School — has now been replaced by a modern-looking building that has not much character at all.

A PLACE I NO LONGER RECOGNISE

I have seen Singapore change over these past 15 years, and increasingly, the landmarks that have been dear to me are no longer there.

With it, gone are the attachments I have for Singapore.

I used to have a strong desire to return home when I first went overseas in those first few years, but now, that desire is gone.

Yes, there are still the cravings for prata and teh tarik (pulled tea), and I do miss my childhood buddies from St Stephen’s and St Patrick’s schools, but my heart is no longer with this country.

When someone asks me, “What does Singapore mean to you now?”, my response comes only after a bit of prolonged thinking.
 
The expression, “Singapore is my home”, no longer rolls out automatically from my tongue.

Once in a while, I manage a response such as, “Well, I was born in Singapore”, or I simply say, “It’s now a place where I go to visit some of my family and friends and to visit old 'makan' (eating) places”.

Don’t get me wrong. I am happy to see how Singapore has prospered over the years. But in its desire to attain a “First World city” status, it has stuck a dagger deep into the flesh of its historical heritage.

The pace of development has moved at a Formula One pace, and there has been no mercy.

After living in three or four major European cities around the world, I have come to the conclusion that people there — whether local or foreigner — are generally not interested in seeing shiny skyscrapers that dominate our skyline today.

The interest has been always to visit the old monuments, the architectural treasures of days gone by.

Sadly, few of such architectural relics remain in Singapore. And many of those standing today are poor imitations of what they used to be. They have been whitewashed and repainted to the point where they now look artificial and cold.

True, this could be just a European view of how the world works, but it doesn’t hurt for Singapore to learn a thing or two from Europe.

A FACEBOOK PAGE

The gradual loss of old Singapore prompted me to set up the ‘Nostalgic Singapore’ Facebook group in 2008, so that Singaporeans like me could “relive the good old days” and through that, put some meaning back into what we see in our city today.

When I began, it was just to share photos of old Singapore and some old videos from YouTube.

I wasn’t sure if there would be many people like me who pined for the old Singapore, but the response I received from Facebook friends overwhelmed me. We now have more than 9,000 members and that number is growing by the day.

I realised that there were so many others who also feel saddened by the relentless pace of development in Singapore at the expense of many old heritage treasures.

They are a mix of Singaporeans living in Singapore, or those who have now settled overseas. There are also expatriates who used to live here and those whose children spent their childhood years in Singapore.

The consensus among almost all of them is that they prefer the Singapore of old with its roadside food stalls, classic neo-colonial cinemas and its pasar malams (night markets).

For this group of people at least, the Singapore of today lacks vibrancy and character. Yes, we may have the most modern of high-rise buildings, the swankiest of shopping centres and the snazziest of sports cars on our roads, but do we have the soul to match the current wealth and modernity of this city?

Thankfully, there are still a few things that haven’t changed.

My wife and I eventually made it to Komala Vilas. The food was as great as it has always been and we were still served by elderly men wearing dhotis (loincloth worn by some older generation Indians).

Well, at least some things haven’t changed!