Our Asian Adventure: Singapore, Part 2 - prime real estate, a bit of history, some joyful statues and why that Hainanese coffee is so addictive

After spending two days riding Singapore's hop on/hop off Big Bus and visiting some key quarters of this great city (civic centre, marina, Gardens By The Bay, Little India/Kampong Glam, and Chinatown - if you'd like, see my blog 'Singapore, Part 1 - don't chew gum, maybe try the durian, and do drink lots of that amazing Hainanese coffee'), we used our last two days in Singapore exploring by foot.

As I mentioned in 'Singapore, Part 1', Singapore is an expensive city to live in, and our hotel, the Royal Plaza on Scotts, was right in the heart of much Singapore wealth, just off Orchard Road. We didn't plan it this way, this hotel just happened to have what we were looking for at a somewhat more reasonable price. Orchard Road is a 2.2 kilometre long road, once covered with orchards and plantations. Today, it is lined with designer malls, department stores, and boutiques. This is ION Orchard, just one of the many designer malls on Orchard Road:

Tucked away on a discreet side lane off Orchard Road is Emerald Hill Road. We just had to have a look. Emerald Hill is a conservation area, the former 'place to live' in Singapore for wealthy Chinese. It has an interesting history dating to the mid-1800's when the area was developed as three single-home estates by orchard owners. In 1901, two Chinese businessmen purchased the land, subdivided the property into 38 plots and sold them to individual owners who built the first shophouses, shaped liked our townhouses. The style is a combination of Georgian, Regency, and Chinese Baroque. A good article on the history of Emerald Hill is "Emerald Hill - A Gem at Orchard" by Remember Singapore (remembersingapore.org). Today, there are some 150 shophouses in the Emerald Hill neighbourhood. I just had to check the prices. General information on line shows that each townhouse is marketed as a one-of-a-kind art masterpiece that cannot be demolished or changed unless abiding by conservation restrictions. Prices range from about $2.5 million to $20 million Canadian, give or take a million - or you can rent for as much as 'only' $18,000 (or more) Canadian per month. Here's a glimpse of what that money could buy:

Walking around Emerald Hill and the neighbourhood behind our hotel got us thinking about real estate prices (just out of curiosity) in Singapore. What are the most expensive residential properties? It turns out that Emerald Hill is a deal, relatively speaking. Just up Orchard Road towards the Botanic Garden is Nassim Road where $100,000,000 might buy you a house - one sold for $230,000,000 (the most expensive house in Singapore). Yes, you counted all those zeros correctly. It's the most expensive street in Singapore. While I don't have any pictures (apparently many of the properties are hidden from view, in any event), here's some Singapore highrises which speak to the opulence of this city:

But back to reality. Not everyone can, or wants to, afford that lifestyle.

One of the highly-suggested activities in Singapore is to pay a visit to the National Museum, just off Orchard Road, for a timeline of Singapore's history from when it was a port in the early 14th century to the present when it is a glamourous city. It was an educational and detailed visit, and it was here that I partially answered the question I posed in my blog 'Singapore, Part 1' about how the high cost of living in Singapore can be sustained by all residents. I have to admit that history has never been my strength, but I do love learning about how different societies handle basic social needs such as food and lodging and how they manage their social issues such as poverty, addictions, and criminal behaviour. So, my favourite part of the National Museum was the exhibit about Singapore's housing program, one of its efforts dating to the 1960's to bring about a good standard of living for all residents. On our way in from the airport, our driver had pointed out all the very nice high rise apartment blocks (row after row) with large numbers on the side, stating that those were government housing. A bit of research reveals that Singapore has one million public 'flats' or apartments through the HDB (Housing and Development Board) that lead to ownership for the middle class and aim for a good quality of life for all Singaporians. About 90% of people in HDB housing are in the process of buying their flats which appear to start at about $100,000 for the smallest, with the median price being around $600,000 Canadian with grants available to help funding. An insightful article is "A home for everyone: Singapore's public housing" by the Government of Singapore (www.gov.sg). I am sure there are some issues, as with any program, but this appears to be a good way to help all citizens live in a costly society. Apparently, about 80% of Singapore residents live in HDB housing, so it is a valuable social program.

The National Museum:

The HDB exhbit:

HDB housing example.

There are numerous other museums that a person might like to check out, a few being The Art Science Museum by the Bay, the Asian Civilization Museum, and the Children's Museum.

The Peranakan Museum, a short walk from the National Museum, specializes in Peranakan culture, the only of it's kind in the world. Peranakan refers to mixed heritage people, often desdendents of Chinese immigrants who married Malay-Indonesion women, blending two cultures' food, language, and traditions. The museum has a beatiful facade and is on lovely pedestrian-only Armenian Street.

Next to the National Museum is the small Istana Park on Orchard Road across from the Istana Presidential Palace Grounds which are well-guarded and not open to the public. The centre of the park is the 26 metre high Festival Arch which resembles the gateposts and entrance to the Istana Palace and which is reflected in the pool below. It is also considered the 'gateway' to the downtown civic districrt. The park is a nice little stroll with over 150 plant types, a cafe, and an art gallery.

While we are in the neighbourhood, the historic Fort Canning Park is just behind the National Museum and Istana Park. It is the highest point in this part of Singapore at 48 metres. It has ancient history dating to the 14th century (it was possibly the commerce centre of ancient Singapore) with some old folklore attached. For instance, it was believed to be haunted. Before Fort Canning was bult in 1861, Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles, the founder of modern Singapore, and other leaders lived on the hill. Currently, the only remains of the old fort are the gateway and two cannons. The park also contains a water reservoir, theatre, several gardens, a former graveyard, a lighthouse, an arts centre, a large green area, and the Hotel Fort Canning. The park is massive and a local meeting place on a Sunday afternoon.

The Singapore River winds itself crosswise through Singapore to Marina Bay and the Singapore Strait. It is said that the river was what attracted the founder of modern Singapore, Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles, to the area. There is a good walking route along the river or you can catch a ride on a 'bumboat'. Bumboats were traditionally used to bring supplies to ships that were not docked directly at a pier or to transport goods from warehouses to cargo ships. The Singapore River flows past several comercial areas such as Boat Quay, Clark Quay, and Robertson Quay, all lined with restaurants and bars. There are several significant bridges to visit, one of the most interesting being the Alkaff Bridge painted by a Filipino artist in bright colours to make it look like a 'tongkang', a light boat traditionally used to transport goods on the river. It is a pleasant stroll, indeed.

The Anderson Bridge:

The Cavanaugh Bridge has a Victorian sign forbidding the passage of livestock:

The Elgin Bridge, the oldest river crossing, was originally a wooden drawbridge. The current bridge dates to 1929:

The Alkaff Bridge, painted in vivid colours by a Filipino artist:

One of our favourite instalments on the Singapore River was the cluster of People of the River Sculptures depicting early Singapore life. They tell the story of merchants, financiers, traders and playful children. The adorable cat and her kittens are tucked on a post behind a pillar of the Cavanaugh Bridge. The statues are clustered around the historic Fullerton Hotel area, but there are many more bronze statues in Singapore to discover.

This historic Fullerton Hotel is a 5-star luxury hotel with a history as a post office, a hospital, and goverment offices. Between 1997 and 2000, the building was converted into the current hotel and commercial space at a cost of almost $320,000,000 Canadian.

Each of the People of the River Sculptures tells a story:

I promised more about that amazing Hainanese coffee, or "kopi". Hainanese coffee is named after the Chinese province, Hainan, and was introduced to Singapore by Chinese immigrants in the late 1800's. The coffee is made from roasting Robusta beans (which grow better in the climate) with margarine/butter, sugar, and a dash of salt. More sugar is added at the end of roasting to take away a bitter taste. It is then brewed in small batches, poured through a 'sock', transferred back and forth between two large kettles, and poured from a height greater than a normal pour. The result is a cup of rich, fragant coffee with, wouldn't you know it, twice the caffeine and sugar (not counting what you add) than regular coffee. No wonder it is delicious - and addicting.

After discovering Hainanese coffee at Nanyang Old Coffee in Chinatown, we came to realize that there are numerous outlets for Hainanese coffee in Singapore at cafes and hawker markets. By chance, we happened upon Killiney Kopitiam, the oldest cafe for Hainanese coffee in Singapore, established in 1919, now with over 30 outlets in the city. We stopped at a location in a mall on Orchard Road, right aross the mall aisle from a modern coffee shop, probably selling coffee for at least twice the price. It was at Killiney Kopitiam that we discovered that Hainanese Coffee is often sold with toast - delicious little thin pieces with butter or a type of custard or peanut butter. So good. We paid about $8.00 Canadian for two cups of coffee and toast. Our next 'find' was along the river in a shopping mall where we discovered Ya Kun which dates to 1926 when a young Chinese immigrant's first. job, at age 15, was at a Hainanese coffee stall where he quickly learned the trade and opened up his own shop. The current site is now totally managed by his children. Finally, we came upon Hainanese coffee at the Satay By The Bay hawker stall at Gardens By The Bay and, surprise, even at a fake 'old town' in the Singapore Changi Airport.

Killiney Kopitiam, from start to present:

Ya Kun, and the philosophy behind their coffee:

Finally, speaking of airports and to end our delightful experience in Singapore, Changi Airport is a destination in itself, or a good place to use up those three hours waiting for your flight. The airport's website even has a list of attractions that include art, nature, a waterfall, play areas, gardens, statues, a butterfly garden, a climbing wall, a cactus garden, high end shopping, etc. In our departing terminal, we enjoyed the Heritage Zone, a replication of an old Singapore Street complete with store fronts, a movie screen playing old time scenes and, of course, Hainanese coffee. There was also a children's slide from one floor to the floor below and a 16 metre tall climbing structure. The usual long airport wait 'flies by' at Changi with so much to see and do.

The Heritage Zone:

The Heavenly Wang cafe was founded in 1953 on Bugis Sreet in Singapore. It now has several locations including at Changi Airport in a cafe reminiscent of long ago. The Hainanese Coffee is delicious.

That slide - what a great way to get kids moving!

Some other delights from the Changi Airport:

That ended our four days in glamourous, green Singapore, the city in a park. I hope my two blog posts have given you an overview. There is so much to see between green spaces and museums and culture and heritage and modern or historic buildings - and, of course, shopping if you wish. Yes, it might be an expensive city to live in, but we found that you can visit there affordably with a few 'tricks'. Find a hotel that suits your needs and then use public transport, eat in hawker courts, and hunt down traditional Hainanese coffee to save some bucks. You don't have to buy all that designer stuff.

Our final stop in our Asian adventure is Tokyo. That's one big city with an amazing transport system!

Thanks for reading.

Here's some final photos: