Istana Woodneuk

With the kind permission of one of our Nostalgic Singapore members, Divij Sood, I have reproduced this wonderful article about one of the hidden treasures in Singapore, the Istana Woodneuk. You can find Divij's other interesting blogs at Singapore Sundays.

 

Smack in the centre of Singapore, nestled in groves of tropical forest lies an abandoned building. The imposing entrance, the large tiled awnings, the regal balcony balustrades, the floral stone screened windows, all tell a tale of a royal past. And Istana Woodneuk was just that. Home to Sultana Khadija, the fourth wife of Sultan Abu Bakar of Johor, the mansion was, in its glory days, considered one of the most beautiful private houses in Singapore. With its blue tiled roof and its location on top of a hill, the mansion commanded a dominating position on the landscape.

Istana Woodneuk in 1986

 Istana Woodneuk in 2015

Today I led Ayush to Istana Woodneuk as a surprise. He had no idea that such a palace existed and that too at such an unlikely location. We started of around 7AM and made our way to Woodneuk. Here is a photo-essay of our trip today.

Woodneuk is not marked on the map. On Google maps, the entire compound is shown as a plain blurb with nothing inside. The reason for it being unmarked is probably that the land on which Woodneuk stands is still owned by the descendants of the Sultan.

The pin marks the point where the ruins exists

What the map also doesn't show is that there is no direct entrance to the ruins. A couple of years ago, I tried finding the entrance. I couldn't. A while after that, in 2013, I went again and by sheer luck and a willingness to step into the grove, I found the entrance! So when we reached the entrance today, Ayush was pretty taken aback. Honestly, if you're not paying attention it is extremely easy to miss the entry from the footpath.

The left turn into the grove appears suddenly and is very very easy to miss

The undergrowth and the trees are so thick in places that you have to carry your bike on your shoulders to get through. The forest floor is also strewn with logs and boulders that make it impossible to cycle on this stretch.

 

Push, carry and repeat

The forest path is rather short though, only about 300m in from the road. But by the time we reached to the top of the slope, we were sweating profusely. It took us about ten minutes to cover that stretch. Once you make it to the top of the hill, you're greeted by the welcome sight of a four wheel track; probably remnants of the old driveway that led to the Istana.

The ‘driveway’ to the Istana. If you look closely, you can spot a number of wild banana trees along the path

A five minute ride along the really bumpy driveway we finally set our eyes upon Istana Woodneuk.

First view of the ruins

With the tropical growth almost engulfing the entrance, the Istana looked like a mere shadow of its former self. Knee tall grass and shrubs now reigned where once tea parties were probably held. The floor where the Malaysian royals once walked on gleaming Italian marble was cluttered with trash. With these poignant thoughts we parked our bikes and entered.

March 2013

February 2015

The entrance hall seemed to have deteriorated in the last two years. Now it is stacked with metal and wooden cabinets under tarpaulins and the tarps under a thick coat of dust.

By 8AM, the sun was streaming through the gaps where gilded windows probably stood and drapes made of Egyptian cotton hid the ladies from the eyes of the servants. The sunlight gave the entire place a sepia-ish look. Its not too hard to imagine the twin staircase in its prime; polished wood gleaming under a red carpet while the chandelier above cast a million diamonds on the plush red velvet. Or even the ballroom which entertained the high and mighty of the royal house.

The ballroom

Staircase to the second floor

The roof of the entire building collapsed after a fire in the 1990's. Since then, the dilapidated walls, after years of organic and elemental damage, have become a canvas for the few visitors to the place. While some of the graffiti is creative…

 … other drawings are a tad bit ominous!

666? The devil?

The all seeing eye? 

A lost poet...

Parts of the compound are so overgrown with trees and bushes that they have started to resemble the old temples in Cambodia!

Bayon Temple, Cambodia

 

Istana Woodneuk, Singapore

Trees now grow out of cracks in the walls. The hallways are covered with leaves and branches. Spider webs adorn window frames. Lizards scurry along on the ceilings.

The ruins of Woodneuk, with the dark corridors, the collapsed ceiling, an eerily clean kitchen stove, all inspired slight trepidation in me. And of course the whole environment of the place inspired Ayush to act like a zombie and pose for a photograph in one of the alcoves on the wall. And of course he also wanted to take a picture with a door that had 'No Entry' spray painted on it in blood red paint…

One thing I observed today was that Man's attempt to tame Nature will go on. But Nature is a silent warrior. No matter what we build or what we destroy, Nature will always be the victor. Throughout Woodneuk, I could see Nature taking over. From small mosses to tall trees, everything growing on the structure and converting what was once dust, to dust again.

It's the dance of the moss on the wooden ballroom floor now

We concluded our trip to Woodneuk at about 845AM. After making our way through the forest grove, we cycled back to NUS. Today was a short trip, only about 2 hours. That's all for Singapore Sundays 5. I'll leave you with the route map and some pictures, as always.

The photo of Woodneuk from 1986 was taken from here.

All other photos were from today or my previous trip.

More info about Istana Woodneuk can be found here, here and here.