We had an information packed 3 hour session with Citizen Adventures (Wanying) and Geylang Adventures (Jo). Fun fact: Jo also guided me back in 2016 as part of the Singaplural walk "Transient Geylang".
In this short time, I was re-introduced to this part of my hometown that is not part of my usual commute and given a glimpse of the life stories of those currently staying or used to stay as well as those helping in this area like those from:
- Healthserve (who meets the needs of the migrant workers through medical care, counseling, case work, social assistance etc)
- BackAlleyBarbers (who give out free haircuts to migrant workers & elderly in nursing homes)
- Singapore Migrant Friends (community made up of families of migrants from different countries (Bangladesh, Indonesia, Philippines, Myanmar))
- Citizen Adventures, an organisation that advocates that doing good starts from an individual level - loving thy neighbour and looking out for one another
As what Ronald Reagan said "We cannot help everyone but everyone can help someone." and these organisations show the various ways any one can help someone....
So what is special about Geylang..... and some info
For those unfamiliar with my part of the world, Singapore is well known to be a largely sanitized country, clean and green and basically Utopia when compared to other big cities in the world. This is a place where anyone can walk in the night without much concern and where the term 'streetwalker' might be unknown to someone from the younger demographic group.
Against that backdrop, it is often surprising for visitors (and some Singaporeans) to find out that we have an area where vices like prostitution (legalized to boot), contraband drugs are openly sold on the streets with gambling in the open. Well, Geylang has the reputation to be that area in my lovely island city, where even locals fear to tread due to its "reputation".
Against that backdrop, it is often surprising for visitors (and some Singaporeans) to find out that we have an area where vices like prostitution (legalized to boot), contraband drugs are openly sold on the streets with gambling in the open. Well, Geylang has the reputation to be that area in my lovely island city, where even locals fear to tread due to its "reputation".
Geylang is translated from kelang (factory) in Malay as this area is well known for processing of lemongrass and coconut back in the 19th century. In Feng Shui terms, the image of Geylang lanes are like that of a Centipede which feeds the Chickens (aka prostitutes) in the area.
Composed of north and south sections, Geylang Road stretches for some 3km with lanes (or "lorongs" in the local Malay language) extending from the main road. The lanes in the north are given odd numbered names (i.e. Lorong 1, Lorong 3, Lorong 5 and so on), and the lanes in the south are given even numbered names (i.e. Lorong 2, Lorong 4, Lorong 6 and so on). According to our guides, the red light district are in some of the even numbered lorongs.
Composed of north and south sections, Geylang Road stretches for some 3km with lanes (or "lorongs" in the local Malay language) extending from the main road. The lanes in the north are given odd numbered names (i.e. Lorong 1, Lorong 3, Lorong 5 and so on), and the lanes in the south are given even numbered names (i.e. Lorong 2, Lorong 4, Lorong 6 and so on). According to our guides, the red light district are in some of the even numbered lorongs.
The Geylang Adventures: Lorongs of Wisdom walk
Wanying and Jo captured the attention of the participants that came from varied age groups (university level individuals to more matured persons like myself). They also provided inclusive information about the area and Singapore in general that engaged both locals and foreigners alike (our group had foreigners from Japan, Germany and US).
The walk was entertaining as various mediums were used such as playing cards to introduce history and the beginnings of the area and life stories using card games, board games, messages on cards hung from a wishing tree and of course, maps and old photographs.
Wanying and Jo captured the attention of the participants that came from varied age groups (university level individuals to more matured persons like myself). They also provided inclusive information about the area and Singapore in general that engaged both locals and foreigners alike (our group had foreigners from Japan, Germany and US).
The walk was entertaining as various mediums were used such as playing cards to introduce history and the beginnings of the area and life stories using card games, board games, messages on cards hung from a wishing tree and of course, maps and old photographs.
Jo is a long time resident of the area and shared with us snippets of what he sees in Geylang over the many years growing up here. Wanying and Jo shared that much has changed in Geylang especially after the Little India riot in Dec 2013 (1st riot in Singapore in 40 years). With 30% more crime occurring in Geylang than in Little India, the government introduced many changes which include the imposition of special liquor control zones with limited timings and some 300+ additional surveillance cameras (with visual, audio (various languages and dialects) and facial recognition capabilities).
As this area has the highest concentration of religious institutions in Singapore, it was only fitting that we visited the Chong Tuck Tong Temple with over 100+ years history where both Taoism and Buddhism faiths/ deities were represented. The temple started as villa and was used as private temple and a 1989 fire allowed it to be rebuilt to include both Buddhists and Taoist aspects. The fire was seen as positive as Chinese folk belief that fire has to happen every 100 years (part of the 4 elements). We were fortunate to be allowed to visit the temple in the night with the temple nicely decked out in their festive preparations.
We ended our walk in a back alley (much like the one below) where we were introduced to the nice folks from Singapore Migrant Friends. We had a chat over some watermelon provided by the organisers. This was definitely a new experience for me and immediately brought to mind a quote that goes something like "The world will be better if we talked to each other instead of about each other."
For anyone interested to find out more about Geylang and its ongoings, do go for a walk with Geylang Adventures or read from these links:
- http://weehingthong.org/2014/03/30/geylang-red-light-district-in-squeaky-clean-singapore
- http://geylang.iamsingapore.com/
Till the next time....keep exploring your own backyard!
