Singapore Expats

nice location photos of Singapore, then and now.....

http://www.thesmartlocal.com/read/15-be ... -singapore#

Nice.

Geylang looked so much better in the 60s.

I got to shop in the old CK Tangs. In fact, it's where I bought most of my initial start up kitchenwares when I arrived here. They tore it down about 8 or 9 months after I arrived though. Reminded me a lot of Mustapha's as they had everything in the world in there. Good prices, though. Not like CK Tang's of today!

Slightly deviating... I am kind of fascinated with old cemeteries. How do the locals see an Angmoh going there? The mentioned in the article Bukit Brown is abandoned already so probably not an issue but still I am curious how sensitive this may be to go in such places and take some photos.

x9200 wrote:Slightly deviating... I am kind of fascinated with old cemeteries. How do the locals see an Angmoh going there? The mentioned in the article Bukit Brown is abandoned already so probably not an issue but still I am curious how sensitive this may be to go in such places and take some photos.

It is alright. Not many people visit there. It is an excellent place for hiking around the jungle trails along the sides of the cemetery. So you shouldn't worry about taking photographs of the scenery with few tombs in it (can't be avoided) as long as you're not specifically taking a photo of a particular tomb.

the lynx wrote:

x9200 wrote:Slightly deviating... I am kind of fascinated with old cemeteries. How do the locals see an Angmoh going there? The mentioned in the article Bukit Brown is abandoned already so probably not an issue but still I am curious how sensitive this may be to go in such places and take some photos.

It is alright. Not many people visit there. It is an excellent place for hiking around the jungle trails along the sides of the cemetery. So you shouldn't worry about taking photographs of the scenery with few tombs in it (can't be avoided) as long as you're not specifically taking a photo of a particular tomb.

And if I do, what sort of cultural violation this may fall under? I can see google is full of such photos.

In fact, I was wandering around the Cemetery out at Chua Chu Kang this past Sunday. Took my wife out to clean up the gravesite of my wife's grandmother who I buried back in May, 1983. Most are getting ready to be disinterred and consigned to the concrete mixers to pave the roads. In fact, we've known about it for a while now. Was a bit of traffic out there as they were getting ready for the Qing Ming (?) festival so some activity. Usually deserted though.

We went out to try to locate the Gravesite of her grandfather who was buried many, many years ago in Bidari just before all were exhumed, just to see if there was anything left in the way of a marker on the plot. I don't guess anybody care, really unless you are traipsing across the graves themselves rather than walking between the rows.

Nice photos.

That's great!

Gotta say I think I prefer the original Orchard Rd. And Keppel Bay...and Marina Bay. Oh well. Progress!

I thought that some local groups had successfully lobbied to stall the bulldozing of the old bukit brown cemetary? Guess not?

Wow.. love the pics.. especially the ones on the bay sands and the river

I miss the old Singapore from the mid to late 80's (but then I miss the 'ol US from the 80's too, as well as several other countries).

The restaurants were better, and shopping malls weren't all clones with virtually the same chain stores throughout. If you wanted electronics the only place that actually displayed prices was a store called 'Cost Plus'.

When a taxi exceeded a certain speed this chiming sound would kick in. And they had these great stickers inside like "Speak Mandarin."

There was definitely something more magical and less corporate about Singapore back then. And when a presenter appeared on tv they would speak immaculate English, something that has changed veeeeery much looking at today's media standards.

aster wrote:When a taxi exceeded a certain speed this chiming sound would kick in. And they had these great stickers inside like "Speak Mandarin."

I think they still do that, or maybe I'm getting a flashback. That 'bing-bong, bing-bong' alert. Maybe it's something related to the old Japanese Toyota Crown taxis? I'm pretty sure I've heard it coming down the ECP even recently ??

I remember there used to be a Japanese supermarket in the basement of Raffles City. IIRC is was Meidi-Ya? It was pretty good, not Isetan or even Taka/CS, but still good, esp after having relo'd down from Tokyo. Back then for a long while I was on a daily T+E. Don't know but quite generous. And each day was 'use or lose it'. So, on the way home most nights I'd pop in buy a 6-pack, dinner, 6 cedarwood hangers (I still have maybe 20 of them!) and what else looked useful. And the beauty of it was the receipt didn't ring up with product names. Rather it would be ...

Item: 1235685 * 1 = $10.95
Item : 553846 * 3 = $45.60

And so on. So accounts payable had no way of gauging if the expenditure was legitimate (i.e. F+B) or not. I think I half equipped my later home through the judicious use of those very anonymous receipts....

p.s. Aster. Yes tend to agree it did seem more easy-going, but that I think was largely as I was unaware of the passive control going on.

Back then you didn't discuss politics in a public place, as it was very much believed that 'walls have ears'. There was a kind of tangible public paranoia, as I recall. And yet here now, look at us, laughing along with those Demon-cratic cartoons. 20 years ago I wouldn't have dared say this.