Accidental Tourist @ Raffles Place, Singapore's Commercial Hub

Who would have thought that a walk around Raffles Place is actually a walk down Singapore’s history?

I got a local history lesson from the online research carried out on Raffles Place.Some trivia to wet your appetite: 

1. Raffles Place was formerly called Commercial Square and was designated for commercial activities by Sir Stamford Raffles himself back in 1822 as part of his Raffles Town Plan. The rectangular centre of Raffles Place was often referred to as Raffles Square. 
2. It was the first reclamation project in Singapore as it was swampy land next to the Singapore River. An old photograph of this place is available at http://pictures.nl.sg/ece740d4-2c9d-4e22-b90b-2526482e0b0c.aspx.
3. Part of the history of this place resulted in the naming of the streets such as Market Street and Chulia Street (know earlier as Kling Street) were named after Dr Jose D'Almeida, the surgeon, who had his dispensary and his business firm of Jose D'Ameida and Sons in Commercial Square.” 
4. Singapore’s very own (and oldest department store) John Little started their operations here in Commercial Square back in 1845. An old 1890s photograph of John Little in Raffles Square can be seen from http://pictures.nl.sg/8b573ddb-a7f7-43a8-8acf-24babe88ebd8.aspx 
5. In 1858, Commercial Square was renamed Raffles Place. The sea came right up to the buildings on the south side of the square then, many of which were godowns with jetties that allowed cargo to be loaded and unloaded directly from boats. From 1857 to 1865, the land by the south side was reclaimed for commercial use. This new land became Collyer Quay. 

During World War II, and on 8 December 1941, Japanese planes made Raffles Place one of their targets of destruction. 

On 12 December 1987, Raffles Place Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) Station was opened with accesses from each end of Raffles Square. The station's entrance has detailing reminiscent of the John Little Building's facade dated 1911 which was fashioned in a Spanish style.

More trivia can be found at the following websites:

• ·        On the history of Raffles Place: http://infopedia.nl.sg/articles/SIP_864_2004-12-30.html
• ·        on the WWII bombings: http://infopedia.nl.sg/articles/SIP_7_2005-01-25.html& http://sgfilmhunter.wordpress.com/2012/09/13/location-scouting-in-british-newsreels-made-before-the-japanese-occupation-of-singapore-1938-42-part-4/

Trivia on the buildings that you will see once you step out of the Spanish style main entrances/ exit points that face Raffles Gardens aka Raffles Square aka Commercial Square:

• The 60-storey One Raffles Place (formerly known as Overseas Union Bank Centre and OUB Centre was officially declared open on 8 August 1988 (the auspicious triple 8 number thought to bring good luck in Chinese belief) by  Singapore's then Prime Minister Lee Kuan Ye.It was the world's tallest building then, outside of the USA. (more info http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/OUB_Centre). 
• A few interesting facts about 67 floor skyscraper, UOB Plaza One is that it shares the same architect,KenzoTange Associates with its co-tallest building title holder, One Raffles Place (more info http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UOB_Plaza).It also houses Masjid Moulana Mohd Ali Mosque which is unique as first, it is located underground in basement one of the UOB Plaza – controversial as to some Muslims, this is not good as it is located “in the bowels” of the earth and second, it is the first mosque that was built to serve people who lived and worked around Raffles Place (more info http://web.archive.org/web/20070312202636/http://www.nhb.gov.sg/PE/FOF_2003/sites_moulana.html 
• Republic Plaza is the newest kid on the threesome block of tallest skyscrapers in Singapore, having only been built back in 1995. Located at the southern end of Raffles Place in the Downtown Core, the central business district of Singapore. At 280 metres (919 feet) tall, it incorporates earthquake proof features despite Singapore being relatively far from earthquake zones. More info at "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Republic_Plaza_(Singapore)">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Republic_Plaza_(Singapore).

These and many more buildings surround the Raffles Garden – for the whole list, hop over to http://www.smrt.com.sg/Trains/NetworkMap/RafflesPlace.aspx.The place constantly rejuvenates itself as the new Ocean Towers is undergoing reconstruction as I pen down these thoughts and will only add on to the exciting new skyscrapers that I see springing up almost overnight at this location.

Till the next time, onto theworld and beyond! 

Accidental Tourist @ Ann Siang

Had a nice romp around Ann Siang Hill with my very first Photography teacher or Lao Shi last weekend and I simply had a BLAST! Just back to basics and a whole lot of fun! 

Many thanks to my Lao Shi, Steven Yee (Photovivo; www.photovivo.com) for continuing to share your knowledge about the beautiful art of photography! 

Simple yet Impactful 

can't fail with Reflections!

Simple yet Effective

Can't wait for my next Architecture guided tour with him on this Saturday! http://www.photovivo.com/forum/showthread.php?t=3919  Am sure that it is going to be just as fun! 

Some brick and mortar facts: 

• Ann Siang Hill, located off South Bridge Road, was the site of the house and estate of Chia Ann Siang (谢安祥; 1832–1892), a wealthy Malacca-born Hokkien Chinese sawmiller. 
• Located beside the former Telok Ayer Bay, it was one of 3 hills (the others being Mount Wallich and Mount Erskine which were eventually leveled) collectively known as Telok Ayer Hills.
• The Chinese used to call this area qing shan ting. The early Chinese immigrants visited Ann Siang Hill when they wanted to send money home to their families in China, as it was the traditional site of remittance houses.
• Letter writers and calligraphers also had their businesses at the five-foot way of the shophouses to help the illiterate immigrants write letters home. 
• Most of the houses in Ann Siang Hill and along Ann Siang Road were built between 1903 and 1941. 
• Ann Siang Road, which has elegantly restored shophouses today, was once the traditional home of clan associations and exclusive social clubs.

Incidentally, his 120 year-old tomb was only recently discovered in the greater Bukit Brown area by the good people at Bukit Brown.com (http://bukitbrown.com/main/?p=5085 and http://www.asiaone.com/News/Latest+News/Singapore/Story/A1Story20120923-373261.html) 

If you are keen to explore about this area, NParks has a beautiful walking trail map downloadable at http://www.nparks.gov.sg/cms/docs/ann_siang_hill_park_final_lr.pdf

Directions to Ann Siang
By MRT: 
Walk down Temple Street from Chinatown MRT (Exit A) Station - after you see Sri Mariamman Temple, you can walk towards the opposite road called Ann Siang Road

By Car: 
Won't recommend driving as parking spaces are limited and the traffic police lady is quite active in the area

By Public Bus:
Via South Bridge Road Nos. 61, 166, 197
Alight opposite Sri Mariamman Temple and walk up towards Ann Siang Road

Till the next time, onto the world and beyond!