Party Time on Armenian Street

The Peranakan Museum, subject of numerous posts on this blog (check them out here), has closed for a revamp eleven years after it opened in April 2008.

But before it closed, it threw a party!  The Armenian Street party, held 15-16 March 2019, was an opportunity for all to visit the museum (for free) before it closed its doors for renovation on 1 Apr 2019.

The event was held on Armenian Street itself, just outside the museum.  The street itself has been recently pedestrianised and so was the perfect venue for a little night market, selling food (like laksa), snacks and knick-knacks, so there was a really nice buzz in the air.

The Groom's beautifully embroidered jacket

I have to say that it was a busy day and so I turned up a little late for the party.   I didn't know (or didn't read) that it would start off with a wedding procession!!! The Peranakan wedding procession is just one part of the very elaborate rituals that make up the traditional Peranakan wedding.  Of course, the wedding is a perfect opportunity to showcase the wealth of the two families which are being joined together.  So it is a lot of pagentry and bling-bling, great fun for all concerned!

Whilst I was a little late for the start of the event, I was certainly rather well positioned at the end of it to take photos of the wedding procession as they made their way back to the museum from the outdoor stage located just outside the museum.  Of course, this was definitely the photo opp moment for the event - as can be seen by the numerous photographers in action.

I was on the groom's side - would have preferred to get a close-up of the bride's outfit but at least it was an opportunity to admire the beautifully decorated jacket the groom was wearing, with the phoenix spread across the front, with flowers all around.  A much more inclusive photograph can be seen in this ST article and you can see the gorgeously dressed bride, with all her necklaces, kro-sang and elaborate headgear.  I am fortunately not to be seen in this photo.

Baba and Nonya Fashion Parade!

The procession was followed by a fashion show.  Not models, but Babas and Nonyas themselves wearing their traditional outfits.

My friends and I too had decided to dress up - at least, to wear our kebaya tops even if these were worn over pants instead of the sarong.  Sadly, we were in the minority.

We left soon after the fashion parade ended after doing a spot of shopping at the little night market.

Looking forward to the reopening of the Museum!  In the meantime, my older photos of the museum are here.

The Peranakan Museum in Party Mode

Sinpopo at Joo Chiat Road

In Singapore's highly competitive restaurant scene, it is quite difficult to write about food because somehow they get outdated quite fast!

Fortunately, unlike some other establishments I've written about, Sinpopo is still going strong.  Although, it looks as though they expanded the menu since I went...

Sinpopo is run by the folks behind Awfully Chocolate but this is completely different in concept, serving "old style" Singaporean food with a twist.  I came here with two lady friends and we had a good gossip, over luncheon meat crisps (terribly unhealthy), deep fried wantons  (scarcely less so), the crab meat bee hoon (my fave) and for dessert, gula melaka cake and brown butter sugee cake.  Washed down with Katong Jelly drink (red agar agar jelly in a 7-Up and soda mix).

Whilst I did feel that the gula melaka cake really brought out that gula melaka flavour, I was not sure that the brown butter flavour was really that prominent in the sugee cake.  Rather, the brown butter flavour was more obvious in the thin layer of butter cream icing the cake.  I was intrigued however by the whole idea of "updating" sugee cake using brown butter and so I was inspired to make my own version of brown butter sugee cake!

First of all, I had to learn how to brown butter.  Fortunately there's a pretty good guide here on Serious Eats.  Briefly, butter is melted and then boiled over the stove till the water evaporates.  As the melted butter continues to boil, tiny little particles of milk solids emerge and as these brown, they impart a nutty, caramel flavour to the butter.  However, you need to watch it carefully to make sure that the little flecks of milk solids don't burn!

My Brown Butter Sugee Cake

Having browned the butter, I then went on to make my sugee cake, which I've written about here.  I soaked my semolina in the browned butter and then made my sugee cake as per normal.  As usual, I did not put any icing or butter cream on the cake which enabled me to taste the "natural" flavours of the cake.

The verdict?  The colour of my sugee cake was a little darker than in the past - not so much a bright sunny yellow but a slightly browner shade.  As for flavour - well, I enjoyed the buttery flavour of the cake, but again the brown butter flavour did't really emerge.  I suspect that with the traditional marzipan and royal icing, the buttery flavour would be overpowered by the strong almond flavour.  It's probably better to take it to a different flavour profile altogether, add brown sugar in place of some of the white, and top with buttercream made with browned butter.. hmmm, seems to be what Sinpopo has done :-)

Celebrating the 100th Anniversary of Fatima at Ss Peter & Paul

For some reason, it's a positive avalanche of church posts recently!  Purely coincidental :-)

13th May 2017 is the 100th Anniversary of the first apparition of our Lady at Fatima, to three shepherd children.  Pope Francis is marking the event by canonising two of the three children, Jacinta and Francisco (they passed away, victims of the Spanish Flu of 1918).  The third child, Lucia, passed away only in 2005 and is still undergoing the sainthood process.  This website has more on the apparitions at Fatima.

Churches in Singapore are celebrating this event, whether through screening movies, or holding special masses.  St Peter and Paul held a candlelit procession after their evening mass on 6 May.

I just happened to be visiting St Peter & Paul, and so was able to view the procession.  One of the oldest parishes in Singapore, it serves largely the Chinese community and many, including those who have moved out of the area, still return to the church regularly for mass, and there's a vibrant community here.  (It was a 96-year old lady, daughter of the former Sacristan of the church, who put the Crown on Our Lady's statue before the procession).  What's impressive is that besides the Mandarin mass every Sunday, there's even a Cantonese Mass!  The Carmelites are now administering the parish on behalf of the Diocese.  I wonder who the Cantonese-speaking priest is!  The church underwent a massive restoration programme last year and it is so lovely to see it restored to its splendour.

At the back of the church, facing Waterloo St

The Altar

The candlelight procession itself took place after the Saturday evening mass.  The congregation processed out of the church behind the statue of Our Lady, and said the rosary as they walked around the church and back in again.  It was a joyful event, with the little children walking in front of the statue, throwing flowers into the air (and on / at the bystanders).

Leaving the church

And back again

By the Altar

More photos here on my Flickr page.

Indeed, it was an evening well spent.  Following my visit to the Cathedral and also after the Holy Family 80th Anniversary celebrations, it is indeed a walk through the history and heritage of the Catholic church here in Singapore.  It is up to us, living stones indeed, to take this into the years ahead.

Cathedral of the Good Shepherd

Good Shepherd Cathedral

On Sunday 19 Feb, I was at the Cathedral of the Good Shepherd for the Social Mission Day celebration, to mark the Re-dedication of the Cathedral.  The Cathedral had been closed for about three years, as it was undergoing a massive renovation and restoration programme.  It was re-dedicated on 14 Feb 2017, the 120th Anniversary of its Consecration (the original church was completed in 1847).  Over the following 12 days, Catholics in Singapore celebrated the dedication with a series of events ending with the closing mass on 26 Feb 2017.

Social Mission Day was the day when all the Church's social mission organisations (mine included) shared their work with the Catholic Community.  It is a platform for raising awareness and outreach to the Community (aka getting volunteers).  Of course (let's not kid ourselves) most people were there for the Food Fair.  There were also souvenirs on sale - the bricks from the old pillar which collapsed, a praying lamb (it IS the Good Shepherd Cathedral after all) and commemorative books (I got one, a lovely hardback book with chapters written by ST journalists).

I was there primarily to man the booth but I went for mass first.  The church was packed and I had to stand throughout but it was worth it.  The Cathedral Choir of the Risen Christ sings at the 10.30am mass, and it was truly uplifting and inspiring to hear their voices lifted up in song throughout the mass.  Mgsr Philip Heng's sermon at mass can be found here. After mass, he also made a short presentation telling the congregation about the gardens and facilities of the newly reopened Cathedral and invited us to pay them a visit.

Homeless Mission

Which, of course, is what I did.   I managed to spend some time walking around the gardens of the Cathedral.  In particular, I really liked the Garden of the Resurrection - which featured the statue of the Homeless Jesus.  This is a replica of a statue by Canadian sculptor Timothy Schwartz.  Christ, covered almost completely by a blanket, is lying on a park bench.  Only his exposed feet, market by the nails of the cross, reveal his identity.  One with the homeless, one with the poor, he reminds us that "so long as you do it for the least of my brethren, you do it for me".

Within the Cathedral itself, I was moved by the little memorial to St Laurent Imbert who was said to be the first MEP priest who said mass here.  He was subsequently martyred in Korea, during a time of persecution, giving himself up so that the young congregation of believers could be spared.  Fr Imbert wrote to his fellow priests, reminding them of Christ's words that he is the Good Shepherd who gives up his life for his flock.  And it is in reference to that letter, that the Cathedral of the Good Shepherd was named.

Old coins and trading markers found in the time capsule

Beside the Cathedral is a new building containing a small Heritage Centre.  Here, you can see the original foundation stone of the building, and a time capsule containing items put there when the foundation stone was laid.

I read a little more about the history of the Cathedral (from the commemorative book I had purchased) when I got back.  It was a compelling, fascinating story of how the Church first set up in Singapore and how the French priests from the Mission Estrangers de Paris (MEP) contributed to building the Catholic community here.  In particular, I read about Fr Jean-Marie Beurel who not only raised funds for and built the Cathedral, but also brought in the La Salle brothers and IJ sisters to start up Catholic Schools in Singapore.  Of course, the first IJ convent was set up directly opposite the Cathedral (and SJI nearby).  So, my family including myself are indebted to him for our education.  Through reading the book I was better able to appreciate why the Cathedral is truly the "Mother Church" of all the Catholic Churches in Singapore.  And why the Cathedral also sees it as its mission to celebrate the rich heritage of the Catholic Church in Singapore.  From this Church sprung all the parishes in Singapore, now over 30 in number.  It brought in the teaching orders into Singapore, and helped provide nurses to the "Sepoy Lines"  Hospital, and later set up Mount Alvernia Hospital.  If so much can spring from the efforts and faith of just a few pioneers, imagine what all of us can do!

The banners representing all the Parishes in Singapore

For more photos, check out my Flickr page.

St Joseph's Church - the Portuguese Mission at Victoria Street

St Joseph's Church

St Joseph's Church at Victoria Street has played a rather unique role in the history of the Catholic Church in Singapore.  For many years, it was known as the "Portuguese Mission", where the Portuguese missionaries (headquartered then in Macau) had their base.  It served the "Portuguese" community - or the Eurasians of Portuguese origin in Singapore.  My friend and her family, for example, used to go there every Sunday for mass.  Not me and mine, though.  Being more of Scots origin, we did not have this tradition and so, as good Katong-ites, we went to Holy Family.

This being the season of Lent, Catholics normally go for Confession and the various parishes in Singapore will hold Penitential services to facilitate individual confessions for those who seek it.  I managed to miss the two sessions in the two churches nearest my home.  So I checked up the dates for the other sessions and noticed that the St Joseph's session was rather conveniently timed.  So, I decided that it was about time I stopped being so parochial about going to my home parish and instead take a trip to Waterloo Street and go to one of Singapore's historical churches for a change.

The Roll of Missionaries

I'd been to the church most recently about a year previously, soon after the famed stained glass windows were restored, and spent a quiet hour there, praying and (ahem) taking photos.  The old high alter, the ornate carved lectern, the statues of the saints around the church, old wooden pews, the tiled floor, the high vaulted ceiling - it is truly a beautiful, historical church reminiscent of European Churches.  A plaque near the entrance lists all the priests who have served in this community church, starting from Fr Francisco Maia in 1825, just 6 years after Sir Stamford Raffles founded modern Singapore.

But the windows were truly breath-taking, with their beautiful jewel colours, the workmanship and artistry which just shone through, inspired a feeling of awe within me.  

But when I went there for the Penitential service, it was night and so there was no light streaming through the stained glass, the statues of the saints were all shrouded in purple cloth.  I had therefore no distractions as I examined my conscience and prepared for Confession.

St Joseph's Church was completed in 1912, replacing an older building on the site.  It has been gazetted as a National Monument and as such, the National Library website has a most informative page  on it.  But to really experience the beauty, and rich history of this church, only a visit will serve.  

Baptism of Jesus

Stained Glass Window above the Altar

It's almost Easter!  So to all Catholics, may you have a holy Holy Week ahead!  Happy Easter!

(Note: St Joseph's church is the only one in Singapore which has a Latin Mass, every Sunday at 3pm. It's on my to-do list, so maybe another post is in the wings. :-) )

Singapore food heritage - Shashlik

Shashlik's interior.  That's our empty table.

Fans of Singapore's food heritage were saddened when Shashlik restaurant announced its closure, at the end of the year. (ST, 17 Jul 2015).  To be honest, I'd never gone to Shashlik before - it was always one of those things I would get to at some point in time.

But with the restaurant's impending closure, I had run out of time.  My kind cousin kindly took me there for my birthday treat, so I trotted down to Far East Shopping Centre (on a day which recorded one of the highest PSI readings of the year) to sample the food.  Indeed, despite the hazy conditions, many people had the same idea because there was a queue!  The restaurant was packed and we were told that we may need to wait for our food. Typical Singaporeans - nothing can keep us from our makan.

Lamb and vegetables

In a way going to Shashlik was stepping back in time.  It had an old fashioned charm - no fancy plating here -  but with good, simply presented food.  We ordered (obviously) the food that made the restaurant famous - the borscht (that was me) and the shashlik meat skewers.  I ordered lamb, which came with the vegetables and chips on the side.  My cousin had a beef skewer which came with a Russian salad on the side (looked to me like a normal garden salad though).

Baked Alaska

For dessert, we shared a Baked Alaska.  Now that's one dessert I've not had for years!  I used to enjoy this as a child - watching the flames lick the meringue and then breaking it open to get to the ice cream within.  And I must admit that the thrill hasn't completely disappeared, all these years. Unfortunately I couldn't quite capture the Baked Alaska when the flames were licking around the sides.

Hmm.... I wonder if there is time to squeeze in another visit before the closure (braving the queues?).  But then, Shashlik's owners say that they are prepared to sell the business, recipes and all, to interested parties.  So is there the chance that the restaurant will stay after all ....

The Little Bookshop at the Corner

 BooksActually is a small independent bookshop on Yong Siak Street in Tiong Bahru.  A  little way from my usual haunts here in the east coast, you might have noticed.  It is a niche bookshop selling both new and second hand books - I once saw a nice collection of those old Nancy Drew hardbacks - copies of which once stood on my own bookshelves, many many years ago.  Aside from selling books, there's a selection of vintage bric brac - old crockery, glasses, bottles, etc.  Last but not least, the bookshop is presided over by a friendly pair of cats.

So back to the books. This little bookshop sells a variety of books about Singapore - about the different areas of Singapore, Singapore history etc.  My copy of the 4th Edition of Ellice Handy's "My Favourite Recipes" was bought here.  But it also has its own printing press and as such its real niche is in commissioning and printing the works of Singapore writers and poets.  I was especially taken by a series, Balik Kampung, which is a collection of short stories by different authors, each writing a story about a part of Singapore which they had stayed in for a number of years.  "Balik Kampung" is a Malay phrase, which means to go back to the home village.  [Note: It is sometimes used in a derogatory sense, to get rid of someone incompetent. It is particularly used in football matches, and applied to the referee after a particularly disappointing decision.]   The book was so popular that it inspired two more books, Balik Kampung 2A and Balik Kampung 2B.  There's another charming book, From the Belly of the Cat.  Same concept, except of course this time the short stories are about cats.  Particularly apt in a shop featuring these handsome animals.

It's a pleasant place to spend a rainy afternoon :-)

Irish Eyes

I wrote a few years back about the Katong Convent School building, and a little about my school days. This post prompted the most comments from readers who took the time to reminesce about their school days, too.  Indeed, there was something special about our school days.  Maybe it was the fun and laughter we shared with our friends, in the process of growing up together.  Maybe it was the warmth and wit of our teachers.  And for some, maybe it was the lilt of the Irish brogue coming from the Irish nuns, in particular Sister Josephine Healy.

I should say that I did not go to Katong Convent Primary and so did not interact with Sister Jo as many others did.  But, her presence was still so prevalent even in the secondary school.  We sang hymns once a week led by Sister.  We would assemble in the hall, and Sister would be on stage leading us in song.  "From the Rising of the Sun", "Fill my Cup", "Give me Oil in my Lamp", and many more.   Her energy, and her infectious joie de vie (if I've spelt that correctly) were inspiring.  When I was in Sec 4, my principal Mrs Marie Bong decided to stage "The Merchant of Venice" and got Sister Jo and Sister Dolores (her sister) to help out.  They had a fine time indeed, correcting our phrasing, diction and emphasis as we stumbled through our lines.

Sadly, both Sisters Josephine and Dolores have passed away, Sister Dolores a year or two ago and Sister Josephine, in December last year. The IJ sisters held a memorial service for her in Holy Family church on 17 March, St Patrick's Day.  Father Michael Arro, who was at  Holy Family and Perpetual Succour for many years, was the celebrant.  Father shared his many memories of Sister Jo, remembering her compassion and kindness, but also how her Irish eyes could become fire-ry and how his French temper and her Irish temper went head to head.  Other speakers - her students - gave eulogies.  One speaker (my former teacher) told of how Sister inspired her to be a teacher too.  Others read poems.  The characteristic crisp, clear diction of the KC girl characterised each speaker.  That, too, is indeed Sister's legacy.  

The Kim Choo story

Ayam Buah Keluak, a photo by Taking5 on Flickr.

There was a rather nice story in today's Sunday Times about Mdm Lee Kim Choo, of Kim Choo Kueh Chang fame.  Mdm Lee is a true pioneer of Singapore, who struggled to bring up her family by making and selling Bak Chang.  Today, her small little stall is a two-unit shop house on East Coast Road, selling an expanded range of nonya delicacies, a restaurant, and a small heritage centre cum shop selling nonya wares and clothing.  Mdm Lee has retired, and her family members are running the business today.

My family frequently go to the restaurant, Rumah Kim Choo - in fact we bring our visitors to Singapore here.  Rumah is Malay for house, so it's translated as Kim Choo's House.  The food is nonya homecooking, so that means it is pretty tasty, unpretentious and generally good value.

The ayam buah keluak here is one of our favourites.  For those who do not know, buah keluak is a nut with a dark, oily slightly bitter meat within. This is a tough dish to make as the nuts must be cut open so that the flavour of the buah keluak flavours the gravy and the spices of the gravy flavour the buah keluak. This dish is truly a Singapore peranakan classic.

The next-door shop sells sauces, pastes, and other peranakan cooking essentials. Their ready-made belacan is firey - so be warned!

Hidden Gem of Singapore - Bukit Brown Cemetery

Hidden Peacock, a photo by Taking5 on Flickr.

In my last post, I told the story of a nameless ancestor who may or may not be buried in Bukit Brown cemetery and promised an update on my visit to BB cemetery itself.

Anyway, Bukit Brown cemetery is a Chinese cemetery in Singapore, which was in active use from 1922 to 1973. "Bukit" means "hill" in Malay, and "Brown" is after an earlier owner of the land, George Henry Brown, a ship-owner who arrived in Singapore in the 1840s. A name reflecting indeed the melting pot of cultures, peoples, that Singapore was then.

The cemetery is the burial place for many pioneers of the Singapore Chinese community. Others have written about the cemetery (see this nice post by oceanskies), and of the controversy surrounding it - this quiet peaceful place has to make way for an expressway in the near future. So, I will not go into it here but instead reflect on my own visit.

It was indeed a place of contrasts. Some graves were well kept, some even with fresh paint ensuring that the names and words on the gravestones remained legible. Others were overgrown - the gravestones falling over and the grass growing halfway up the stones.

Some graves were decorated with beautiful peranakan tiles, reflecting the culture and tradition of the times, or with charming little scenes carved on the stones. One was guarded by a pair of Sikh guards, assisted by their own little guard dogs.  Others were simple solitary stones.

Some plots were large (although we were unable to find the huge plot which was apparently 10 3-room HDB flats in size, surely a difficult grave to overlook?). One near the entrance, for example, had a large area demarcated in front for mourners to gather, with two stone benches on each side for the weary to rest a while. In one corner, we saw what must have been the paupers' graves - a series of small gravestones clustered tightly together.

We did not go out of our way to look for "famous" graves. But there were little direction signs indicating where these graves are and when we came across them, we did take the opportunity to look at them. So we saw the grave of Tan Seah Imm (Seah Imm Street fame), Tan Ean Kiam (Ean Kiam Place, in Katong!), the grave of Lee Kuan Yew's grandfather, the grave of a descendent of Confucius,and so on.  But there are many other graves, of less famous people, but each one a part of the Singapore story.   This useful and educational site captures their stories.

Needless to say, I was unable to find the grave of my ancestor during my visit to BB. I had asked my aunts and father if they had any clues which would help me find the grave. But, "we walked a long way in" and "there was this big round circle" are not useful tips (see adjoining photo; many graves are demarcated by "big round circles").  They did tell me that the descendents' names were written in English on the graves, so we would have been able to identify the correct grave once we found it (if we found it, that is). 

 I did have a prime suspect as to the name of my ancestor. We managed to locate the relevant sector but alas, the sector itself was somewhat large and overgrown. It was not feasible to search it for a single grave. Instead, we spent our time just absorbing the peace and tranquility of the cemetery.  It was a morning well spent. 

How do I feel about the prospect of a road going through the cemetery, destroying my great-great-grandfather's grave?  Well, I did not know of the grave in the first place so it is hard for me to feel very much about it.  I do feel sorry that this serene place has to make way for further development, but hope that some part of it can be conserved in some way.  Also, whilst the cemetery is not in active use (as in welcoming new inhabitants, that is), it is quite clear that many still come here to pay their respects to their ancestors.

If you are planning a visit to Bukit Brown cemetery, the API website provides interesting links, including a useful map (which for some reason I discovered only after my visit). 

For more photos, do check out my Flickr set.

Food Bites Old and New

It's been a while since I featured any Katong eateries on this blog.  Partly because I lost my old Sony Ericsson K500i with its really excellent camera phone (nothing has been the same since) and partly because the food scene in Katong tends to shift so fast; all very well when new restaurants come in but then the old ones depart and my blog becomes out-of-date :-(  Anyway, thought I'd restart this again, with one old favourite and one newcomer on the scene. 

The time-tested favourite is Glory Catering, on East Coast Road (near the junction with Joo Chiat Road).  It's a small shop, distinguished by all the kueh kueh in front, and the jars of pineapple tarts and other goodies in the crowded entranceway.   Glory prides itself on its pineapple tarts, which are indeed pretty good (for bought rather than homemade tarts that is), and there are a number of newspaper reviews on the walls of the restaurant which serve as an endorsement of their prowess.

The cooking is pretty good - the tasty, lemak chicken curries (chicken rendang,  masak merah are my favourites), sambal squid and sambal goreng. It's amazing how fast the turnover is - food is served quickly (but don't expect beautiful presentation) and people eat and leave in a jiffy.  I also enjoy their soft drinks -- they serve Bundaberg ginger ale, root beer and others.

The new kid on the block is Makan Peranakan, also on East Coast Road (Telok Kurau Road junction).  Situated in "Food R Us", the corner coffee shop of the Peranakan Hotel, it is a little stall which sells selected peranakan dishes - old favourites like mee siam, laksa, and kueh pie tee and more unusual dishes like nasi kunyit, nasi ulam.  My favourites are the mee siam (savoury, with decent sized prawns) and the pie tee (tasty filling in a nice crisp pie tee shell).  It's a pretty new outlet and if you fancy the mee siam, go early because it runs out fast. The nasi kunyit (glutinous rice, coloured with golden tumeric) is served with a really tasty chicken curry, prawns and some omelette.  The most unusual dish here - the nasi ulam, full of herbs and (strangely) little bits of fish, is pretty tasty but tends to get a little dry. 

In general, however, the zhi cha at Food R Us is  pretty solid.  Good, tasty fare and friendly staff (who remember our preferences) make it the place we go to again and again (that and being right on our doorstep).  So if you happen to be around the East Coast Road area and looking for a bite to eat in the evening, give this a try.

Singapore Food Festival

Singapore Food Festival - Making Popiah
Originally uploaded by Taking5

This year the Singapore Food Festival was held from 17-26 July, with a Peranakan theme. I went to the Clarke Quay Food Street on 18 Jul and also to the Spices Cafe (at Concorde Hotel, the former Le Meridien) for a peranakan lunch by veteran (82-year old!)chef Baba Jolly Wee.

I must say that I was not too impressed with the Food Street. It's not so much the food- the food was ok. But after all, if I want to eat Hokkien Mee, Poh Piah, Kim Choo kueh chang or Nonya food I can just walk down East Coast Road (my personal food street). And there is Prawn Noodle, Katong Laksa some more. So why fight with the crowds on Read Bridge, queueing up for ages for a bite of pohpiah or looking for a small table to stand at to eat?

On the positive side, after the Food Street, we went to One Fullerton where we had a great view of the fireworks being set off after the National Day Parade rehearsal.

I much preferred the Spices Cafe buffet, with a good range of dishes including certain Singapore specialties such as chilli crab, satay. The desserts were good - there was some nice apom but unfortunately by then there was not much spare capacity left in my stomach! My only gripe is that the satay was so popular that every time I went it seemed to be out. I only ate 2 sticks! But I had no camera with me so for photos and a much better review, ck out this blog.

Dining at the Paramount

My family went to Paramount Hotel recently for dinner at the Tung Luk restaurant there. We'd not been there for some time but the a la carte buffet menu had certainly made an impact on us. My sister and I both had happy memories of the salmon sashimi and the ice cream puffs!

Paramount Hotel has been around for a number of years (maybe around 20+ years or so. Like other properties in the Katong area, such as Katong Mall, there was talk of an en bloc sale some two years ago when the property market was at its height. En bloc activity has since quietened down quite considerably, of course. But I thought I had better put this down on my blog in case I am overtaken by events (as I have been in the past).

Paramount Hotel benefits from its very convenient location, near the airport and also the city centre. It is surrounded by yummy food and Parkway Parade is just across the road. The building itself stands out on Marine Parade Road, especially at night. It is thus a little bit of a pity to see that the shopping centre is not vibrant, except for a few pubs.

Tung Luk, however, is busy and bustling. (And it has its separate entrance from the Marine Parade Road side of the hotel.) Good thing we made a reservation. The a la carte buffet was as yummy as we remembered. There's a choice of soups, meats, seafood etc. The prawns, Peking duck and Buddha Jumps over the Wall/Shark's Fin soups are rationed but everything else is unlimited. Of course the dish my family ordered more than one of (aside from the sashimi and ice cream puffs) was a simple veggie dish - beans and minced pork!

Aside from the food, I like the restaurant interior. Somehow, it has a certain colonial elegance, with its columns and plastered cornices, the European-style display cupboards along the sides. Maybe it is the influence of the colonial/peranakan shophouses on East Coast Road! And the combination of European interior and Chinese food brings to mind Shanghai's Bund area, where I'll be next week.

URA to conserve 100 buildings in Joo Chiat/Katong area

Here's a more positive post to balance off the previous depressing post.

URA has decided to conserve about 100 more buildings in the Joo Chiat/Katong area, as announced in this news release.

Hopefully the preservation of more of this lovely part of Singapore will also increase awareness of the history and heritage of the area.

Deepavali at the Sri Senpaga Vinayagar Temple

I took a morning walk around East Coast Road this morning and spotted the crowds around the well-known Sri Senpaga Vinayagar Temple in Ceylon Road. Hindus were starting off their Deepavali with a morning visit to the temple.

The temple is of course quite a well-known building on Ceylon Road - a temple building was first built on the site in about 1850. The site was chosen because a statue of the god Vinayagar had washed up under a Chempaka tree by a pond in this area. Devotees were largely from the Ceylon or Sri Lankan Tamil community (hence the name of the road). The temple has been rebuilt a few times and underwent major renovation and re-consecration a few years ago. It is a true landmark of Katong, and indeed of Singapore.

I'd walked inside the temple on a previous excursion. As it was not then a festive occasion, the temple compound was quiet and peaceful. The columned hall within had a brightly painted ceiling, telling stories of Lord Vinayagar (after whom the temple is named) from the time of his birth till marriage.

Today, the temple was indeed a busy place with people coming and going all the time. Cars and taxis dropped off their passengers, people walked to and from East Coast Road. The devotees seemed to be mainly men - likely, from the foreign worker community. They stood in groups here and there outside the temple dressed neatly in well-ironed shirts.

There were also a number of family groups - the women in colourful saris and punjabi suits, and children in their best clothing too. It was amusing to see one family come in their best clothes - all except their footwear, which appeared to be old slippers and sandals. Of course, I guess I would have done the same. I've never liked putting my shoes outside the temple where anyone could get at them.

The website has the history of the temple, and more photos. Reading the website, I found out that of the $6m required to renovate/rebuild the temple, some $500,000 was donated by Singaporeans from other faiths. What a precious treasure is religious harmony - and how sad that in Ceylon itself, this religious harmony has been shattered.

Here's wishing our Hindu brothers and sisters a Happy Deepavali!

P.S. More photos of the temple here.

Conservation and Destruction

En Bloc fever is raging in the small little corner of Singapore around Amber Road, Katong. New condominiums are replacing old (20-40 year old?)properties. "Seaview" has replaced the old Seaview hotel. "One Amber" and "Esta" replaced the old Maryland Park. Amberville too is being torn down. Rose Garden, Paramount Hotel, are on offer; Amber Park has the 80% required for the site to be offered for sale. King's Mansion is said to be on the way out. And 2 more smaller sites are being built up now. Thus we will see the transformation of Amber Road. It used to be a charming place to live, but it is certainly not too pleasant now with all the construction going on.


Now most of the buildings being torn down are fundamentally sound. So it is ironic that some near ruins are being "preserved" for posterity. The former Grand Hotel on Still Road is a conservation building. Built in 1917, it was indeed a beautiful, stately building (see the URA walking guide link for more information). There are two main buildings, one on either side of Still Road. The first was operating as a hotel for many years, it has only recently been turned into what I understand is a storage area. The second is deserted and has been for years. It is practically a ruin. I really can't see anyone investing the money needed to make it habitable, far less restoring it to its former glory. The only way would be for the adjoining plot to be sold off together with this building for a condominium development and then some of the profits could be used to restore the house.

Makciks Rock

Picture this: A Makcik, sunglasses perched firmly on her nose, legs astride her supersize tricycle, shopping baskets fore and aft, cycling between the row of shops in Marine Parade Central. I whipped out my cameraphone to take a shot. But thanks to the glaring sunshine, and the bike movement, this was all I got:

But Marine Parade Central is a veritable makcik paradise (and here I mean makciks of all races). My dear mother, for example, loves to explore the sundry shops here. All sorts of things are on sale here - containers of all shapes and sizes, plants, clothing and footwear (including these fun flip-flops) and even mahjong tables (guess where I got mine?). There is a small supermarket which is surprisingly busy considering that NTUC, its big competitor, is just 5 minutes walk away. I've patronised a pet shop here which has a good range of kitty litter. If you need kitty litter which clumps well and has odour control, by all means choose Fussie Cat.

The food is good too. There's a pretty decent hawker centre here (with stalls selling "Pontian" wantan noodles and one of my favourite comfort foods, beef noodles). But at the coffeeshop just at the end of the promenade is "Penang Delights", a little shop selling Penang hawker fare like Penang Kway Teow, Assam Laksa, Lor Mee etc. My father finds it great value for great Penang food. He once ate both the Kway Teow and Assam Laksa at one go (which he admitted was a little much) which just shows what a fan he is.

I'd eaten the Penang laksa before and enjoyed the assam stock and the generous flaked fish. The scent of the laksa broth was scenting the air when I came by today, tempting me to have another bowl. But I had decided to try out the Penang Kway Teow. And it was good - two fresh, nicely cooked prawns, well-fried noodles, but not exceptional.

What I really enjoyed, however, were the minced pork and chive dumplings! Not really a Penang specialty. But the skin was soft and transluscent, so we could see the juicy, meaty dumplings inside. They were served with a tasty chilli-garlic-vinegary sauce. I'll definitely come back for this and the Penang Laksa.

p.s. Now I have mentioned before that strictly speaking, Marine Parade is not Katong. I still stand by that. But sometimes its good to be flexible :-)

Katong Convent

Sigh. What does it mean when a fairly new school building (I believe it was completed around 1990 or so) is demolished so it can be built up bigger and higher? Way back in 1930, Katong Convent started in an old house by the sea, on this very spot. Taking students from kindergarten all the way up to 'O' levels, many generations of school girls passed through its doors, played in its fields and prayed by the little grotto in the corner of the garden. The sea by the fence went when the land was reclaimed and the new Marine Parade town was built. My mother spent her schooldays here. The school expanded, new wings were erected. I spent four years - my secondary school years here. Well do I remember standing beneath those flagpoles and singing the National Anthem and School Song. Well do I also remember the times when I had to run around the field preparing for my 2.4km physical fitness test. As for my classrooms, these were generally placed around the quadrangle in the middle of the school. The few steps leading down to the quadrangle from the classrooms were depressed in the middle because of the many years girls had stood or sat on them. At the beginning of each year, we would walk to the Holy Family church for mass to mark the start of school. But enough of these happy schoolgirl memories.


In 1987 much of the building was torn down. Both the primary and secondary sections moved to a new building meant to house the secondary school. My sister started her primary school there. This lovely new school was then built for the primary school. I think it a beautiful building. Much of the architecture of this front block reflects the old house the school started off in. The details of the architecture reflect the peranakan culture so prevalent in Katong.

Today, our education system is taking new directions. Smaller class sizes, more IT in the classroom. Although the school building is still so new, it is not enough to accomodate these changes. So go it must. And as an Aided School, the community must raise the money to pay our 5% (or is it 10%?) of the building costs. So the school shifted out at the beginning of the year to an old school building in Bedok. Today, I saw that the demolition team has started its work. I can only think what a waste of a beautiful building it is.

Unfortunately, the building of the new school has been affected by the Indonesian ban on sand exports to Singapore. So it will be a while more before the merry sounds of girls laughing and calling to each other float through the air in this little corner of Katong.

Tay Buan Guan

When I was a child, Tay Buan Guan was the one and only supermarket in Katong and it was here my family went to do our supermarket shopping (in addition to going to the old Siglap wet market). The selection of items was good, and the ready access to the ample carparking nearby was also very convenient.

Tay Buan Guan (also called TBG) was situated just behind the row of shophouses on East Coast Road which continues into Joo Chiat Road; it could be reached through three of the shophouses. One of these shophouses was a confectionary. My mother used to order my birthday cake there, plus other pastries to serve at the family party. The other two shophouses had different uses - can't remember exactly what but I do recall that for some years one was used as a thoroughfare into the main East Coast Road. Near the entrance to this particular building was a games arcade. The first games arcade I'd ever been to. I remember driving around the circuit and shooting some sea monster, under the supervision of my father.

Unfortunately for Tay Buan Guan, new players came onto the Katong supermarket scene - Cold Storage off Amber Road (in the old Seaview Hotel compound - it has now shifted to Katong Mall), Emporium departmental store and supermarket in Katong Shopping Centre (now closed down), and finally, the building of Parkway Parade which was and still remains the dominant player on the retail scene in Marine Parade. My family did continue going, off-and-on, to Tay Buan Guan over the years, particularly when my sister was very young. But we were often the only ones going down the aisles. Finally Tay Buan Guan closed its doors. Today, a condominium development is on the old supermarket site.

As for the shophouses? Well, these too were sold off, I believe. One is now Rumah Bebe, a retail shop selling Peranakan beaded shoes, kebayas, porcelain and other knick-knacks. The faded Tay Buan Guan sign can still be found on the pillar outside the shop, though partially hidden by a trishaw.

Where is Katong exactly?

So the question came up yesterday, where exactly is Katong? Aside from Tanjong Katong Rd, I don't recall any roads being called "Katong" road. There are a number of buildings (like Katong Shopping Centre, Katong Mall, Katong Convent!) but nothing very specific. Then there is Katong CC which is way out by Fort Road! Not really Katong at all - more like Mountbatten, or even in Kallang!

Katong, as I define it, is roughly bordered by the following roads:

• In the South, by Marine Parade Road. Now, I think this is debatable. Marine Parade has got a slightly different character to Katong. It is also far newer and built on reclaimed land (old time Katong residents can recall the days when their homes were by the sea). But anyone staying in Marine Parade would be eating, shopping or passing through Katong all the time and vice versa. So in practice it is hard to de-link the two (e.g. my last post was all about Marine Parade!).
• In the North, by Changi Road. Again, a little debatable. But Ceylon Road, Joo Chiat Road, Still Road are definitely in Katong. So it seems logical that where these roads end, that's roughly where Katong should end too.
• In the East, by Frankel Avenue (beyond that it is already Siglap)
• In the West, by Tanjong Katong Road (or possibly by Haig Road, but at least Tanjong Katong Road has the right name).

The heart of Katong is probably the East Coast Road area and the shops and buildings around it. Of course, others may disagree with these boundaries. But I think that my borders are no less arbitrary than the one that has Marine Parade extending all the way up to Serangoon.