Chinatown

Chinatown

Chinatown is a must-see for your stay in Singapore. While the area carries the distinct feeling of Singapore after years of upgrading and reconstruction, you can still get an experience of the Chinatown of old. The area is best seen during the Chinese New Year period (January-February) but year-round it is considered one of the few places a tourist needs to experience before moving on from Singapore. The area around Pagoda and Temple streets is the place to start. Here you’ll find shops with Chinese antiques, electronics, tailors and souvenirs for you to take home. If you look hard enough you can find that special keepsake that you’ll not find easily elsewhere, like Little Red Mao books from Nepal, or old Chinese advertising posters. Then when you need to stop and refresh, try any one of the many restaurants or roadside stalls for a cold drink or full meal. You’ll find mostly Chinese food here, but you can also get plenty of other food from around South East Asia here as well. For a dash of history, try the Chinatown Heritage Museum on Pagoda Street. Inside is are exhibits showing life how it used to be in Chinatown – well worth a look. One of the biggest attractions in Chinatown, funnily enough, is an Indian temple! The Sri Marriamman temple is located on the corner of Pagoda Street and South Bridge Road. Once you’re finished for the day, Chinatown is also located near two areas which boast some of the best restaurants and bars in Singapore. Far East Square and Club Street have become known in Singapore for producing some of the best bars and restaurants in the city. If you want to eat and drink in comfort and style, without losing that casual feel of someone on holiday, try either of the streets, which are within walking distance of Chinatown and each other. Getting there: Chinatown MRT, exit A. Bus: 2, 12, 33, 51, 61, 62, 63, 81, 84, 103, 124, 143, 145, 147, 166, 174, 190, 197, 520, 851. (back to top)

Chinatown Heritage Centre

If you are interested in Singapore’s history, then you really need to visit the Chinatown Heritage Centre. Housed in an three old shophouses, the Centre has a series of galleries describing the history of the Chinatown area as well as the stories of the immigrants who came here from coolies and rickshaw pullers to samsui women and other migrants. The real highlight of the Centre however are the cramped and dark rooms, corridors, stairs and kitchens that have been reconstructed as they were when people lived in the building. Painstaking attention to detail has ensured that you will get a real insight into the lives of those who settled in Singapore. Address: 48 Pagoda Street. Tel: +65 6325 2878. Prices: $8 adults, $4.80 children. Opening hours: 10am-7pm daily. Getting there: Chinatown MRT, exit A. (back to top)

Fuk Tak Chi Museum

Built by Chinese immigrants to Singapore as thanksgiving for a safe voyage to their new home, the Fuk Tak Chi Museum on Telok Ayer Street is a fascinating place to learn about the immigrant past of Singapore. In the days when Chinese immigrants settled here, Telok Ayer Street ran along the shoreline of a bay that has long since been reclaimed from the sea. The area was where many Hakka and Cantonese immigrants settled as it was also the area where a lot of coolie agents had their offices. The Museum was originally a temple, built over the years from 1824 onwards, and dedicated to the God Tua Pek Kong, also known as Dai Bak Kong. Inside today you’ll see an interesting array of exhibits telling of the lives of the people who settled here, while outside onteh streets around Far East Square and Pekin Street you can still see the shophouses that where lived in by the very same immigrants. Today the shophouses are home to restaurants, bars and offices, but they still maintain a charm of yesteryear. Address: 80 Telok Ayer Street. Getting there: Raffles Place MRT, exit G. 5 minutes walk to: Boat Quay. (back to top)

Sri Mariamman Temple

The oldest Hindu Temple in Singapore, the Sri Mariamman temple was originally built in 1827 by one of the city’s first Indian businessmen. Although the temple you see today is vastly different from the first one built – the first one was made of wood – it still remains in the same place and attracts thousands of visitors every year. The temple is dedicated to the goddess Mariamman who has the power to cure smallpox and cholera and today is a favourite place for Hindu couples to have their wedding. While it is also one of Singapore’s top tourist attractions, it is important to remember it is also a place of worship and treated accordingly. Tel: 6223 4064 Getting there: Chinatown MRT, exit A. Bus: 61, 103, 166, 197. Prices: Free of charge, but if you’d like to use a camera inside, it will cost you a $6 donation to the temple. 5 minutes walk to: Chinatown Heritage Centre. (back to top)

Telok Ayer Street

Tracing a line from Boat Quay, down along the southern end of Chinatown, Telok Ayer Street runs along the original waterfront of Singapore’s coast. Land reclamation in 1887 swallowed up the bay, but some of Singapore’s oldest temples and buildings still survive as a legacy of the area’s waterfront location in the city’s early years. Get there by taking the MRT to Raffles Place (exit G), then walk down Philip and Telok Ayer Streets for a history lesson in Singapore’s earliest settlers.

1: Yueh Hai Ching Temple

Singapore’s oldest Taoist temple, Yueh Hai Ching was built in 1826 for sailors and immigrants to give thanks to the Gods for their safe passage from China. It was, and still is, a meeting place for the Teowchew community.

2: Pekin Street

Today, this area is filled with restaurants, bars and offices. It was however, in Singapore’s early years, the centre for the coolie trade and its agents. The buildings have been refurbished now, reminding the area of its past.

3: Fuk Tak Chi Temple

Built by Chinese immigrants to Singapore as thanksgiving for a safe voyage to their new home, the Fuk Tak Chi temple has now been turned into a small museum showing the area’s history.

4: Ying Fo Fui Kun Clan Association

When Chinese immigrants arrived in Singapore, many joined clan associations that represented the area they were from in China. This is one of those that survives today, representing the Hakka community.

5: Nagore Durgha Shrine

Built in 1828, this Islamic Shrine was built by the Chulia settlers from southern India. The most interesting thing about this building is the creative mix of western and eastern architecture.

6: Telok Ayer Green

Commemorating the Malay, Indian and Chinese communities that settled in this area, Telok Ayer Green is a quaint little park filled with sculptures of the street’s former inhabitants as well as various signboards detailing its history.

7: Thian Hock Keng Temple

Built in 1821, this is the oldest Hokkien temple in Singapore. Dedicated to the Goddess of the Sea, Ma Cho Po, this was the first stop for many new immigrants to Singapore.

8: Al Abrar Mosque

Originally built in 1827 as a thatched hut, the Al Abrar Mosque has grown into a building spanning the width of three shophouses. Like the Nagore Durgha Shrine, this was also built by the Chulia settlers of southern India.