7 minute read
Singapore: City of Lights
A small island with a big history, Singapore is a city, and a country, that blends cultures, religions and languages; fierce independence with a colonial past; and the very old with the very new. The various juxtapositions at the heart of Singapore, mean it bubbles with an energy and colour all its very own. Known food-lovers, Singaporeans pride themselves on their cuisine scene, which ranges across countries and traditions. They also aren’t afraid of anything that sparkles — you won’t be able to go anywhere in Singapore without seeing bright lights and loads of colour.
During the period of Chinese New Year, Singapore lights up more than ever. Parades and festivals, light displays and firecrackers, ensure the already bright and bubbling neighbourhoods shine even brighter. But whether you find yourself visiting during Chinese New Year or at any other time of year, it doesn’t matter. There is never a shortage of things to do, see and eat.
Chinatown’s Hustle and Bustle On any given day, Chinatown is a riot of noise and colour, stuffed full of restaurants and food stalls and shops. It is also where you’ll find Buddhist and Hindu temples almost side by side. Pick your way down New Bridge Road, where people queue for flat squares of bak kwa (barbecued meat) and you can buy bags of surprising treats like salted, dried olives. Pop down the so-called Food Street for lunch, a long stretch of hawker stalls and old shophouses turned restaurants. After a lunch of Singapore’s famous chilli crab, and a cold Tiger beer, wander through the alleys, and try not to get lost in a sea of trinkets, or swept away by a tropical afternoon downpour.
Nearby, and still part of Chinatown, is a neighbourhood with a completely different feel. The über cool Club Street, with rooftop bars and restaurants lining the sloping roads, is destination number one among the city’s young professionals and expats.
During Chinese New Year celebrations, Chinatown is the obvious place to take it all in. New Bridge Road hosts a light installation designed around the year’s animal. This coming year is the year of the monkey, and a beautiful big peach tree with climbing monkeys currently dominates the intersection of New Bridge Road and Eu Song Ten Road. Other main streets surrounding the heart of Chinatown are strung with bright red and gold discs of light that make Chinatown by night a spectacle around Chinese New Year.
The Sights and Smells of Little India
The MRT (Singapore’s outstanding metro system) station spits you out at a huge, loud, jostling food hall. If you’re hungry and after some seriously good Indian food, stop here and queue up. Otherwise wind your way through the crowded tables, and forge your way into the market stalls and kiosks and incense-perfumed air of Little India.
Fresh fruit and vegetable markets abound in Little India, rivalling restaurants in number. Pushing down the streets of colourful, long-faded buildings, there are colours and scents to be found in every crevice, from fresh flowers and spices, to vibrant fabrics. While most of the food is to be found in the food hall, there are several hidden places you can find while walking around that will give you a spicy hit. Be sure to cool down with a mango lassi or three — the curries are for real.
Festivals take place year round in Little India, ensuring this neighbourhood continually pulsates with its own unique blend of culture, history and life.
A Slice of Quiet in the Singapore Botanic Gardens
For respite from the sights and sounds of Singapore’s bustling neighbourhoods, slip into the quiet green of the Botanic Gardens.
These 156 year-old gardens were listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site in 2015 and are home to 74 acres of lush tropical greenery, including the National Orchid Garden, a six hectare rainforest and a ginger garden. Palm Valley offers sloping lawns perfect for picnicking, and often a spot to catch some live music, and Symphony Lake is a pocket of perfect quiet. In the gardens, you’ll find colour and light in natural abundance.
Old and New in Downtown Singapore
Few places are as luminous as Marina Bay and the restaurantlined esplanade by night. But before you get to this very modern piece of Singapore, take a stroll around the nearby Padang area. Named for the Padang Cricket Ground, this area is home to key historical and cultural landmarks like St Andrew’s Cathedral, City Hall, the Supreme Court Building, the brand new Singapore National Gallery and the Asian Civilisation Museum. From the Asian Civilisation Museum, look across the river at the skyscrapers looming above the old shophouses, the perfect picture of the juxtaposition between old and new that lies at the heart of Singapore. Take in the stately Fullerton Hotel, which began life as a post office and is grand enough to have its own square. Cross a little bridge, and there you’ll see it; sparkling Singapore. The big white Merlion, the symbol of Singapore, looks onto the architecturally mind-boggling Marina Bay Sands Hotel and ArtScience Museum. Crouched nearby is The Esplanade, a concert hall and theatre, known colloquially as the Durian for its likeness to the fruit. A drink at the top of Marina Bay Sands, or at a bar on the top of the Singapore National Gallery, will give you a brilliant view of the lights and colour of downtown Singapore.
During Chinese New Year, Marina Bay and the esplanade that curves around it, absolutely lights up. A floating platform hosts a light display, complete with tightrope walkers and music, and a fireworks display lights up the bay. The slick, bright modernity of Singapore is more visible than ever.
Luminescent Luxury on Orchard Road
It is easy to get lost in the tangle of malls that call Orchard Road home. On Singapore’s 2.2km boulevard of retail paradise, the only business is shopping, coffee drinking or brunching. A seemingly vast number of smaller courts and plazas jostle shoulder to shoulder, filled with boutiques and food courts, but the standouts are the shiny monolith malls. ION, Paragon, Japanese department stores Takashimaya and Isetan are announced by water features, huge screens and luxurious window displays. It is a constant sensory bombardment, exciting, global and likely rather hard on the wallet.
Text & Pictures: Liv Hambrett
