[Singapore Parks] Punggol Point: Watching the Sunrise

A Refurbished Punggol Point

Sunrise at 7:08am

Sunrise at 7:11am

Punngol Point Jetty

Interesting rock formation found along the beach

Puggol Beach taken from the look-out

The Look-Out Point

Fish Ponds Along the Promenade

Playground for the Kids

[Singapore Islands] Pulau Semakau: An Island in the Sun?

Marine Transfer Station

The Singapore government recently launched the Phase II development of Pulau Semakau on July 11, 2015. This increases Singapore's capacity to "meet waste disposal needs" for the next 20 years. (1) Refuse was previously dumped at Lorong Halus just off Old Tampines Road till 1999. (2)

Visiting Pulau Semakau

I visited Pulau Semakau in 2013 as part of an organised trip. By then, the island was already a landfill. The guide shared much about the biodiversity in and around the island, but nothing about the island's history. It was a talk by Anthropologists Dr Vivienne Wee, Dr Geoffrey Benjamin, and Ms Normala Manap that opened my eyes to the value of these southern islands.

Pre-Raffles? 

The island was believed to be rich in history. In 1991, a group of explorers found pottery that were probably more than 200 years old. Dr John Maksic opined that part of a clay jar found could have even been from the 12th century.  (3) 

Resettlement

In 1977, more than 600 villagers were ordered to move to mainland Singapore. From thereon, the island laid uninhabited, though not totally. When Dr John Maksic visited Pulau Semakau in 1991, a Malay couple - Mr Rani bin Omar and Mdm Minah bte Gap was seen living on the deserted island. (4)

They shared that:-

a. The villagers of Pulau Semakau and Pulau Seking were closely related. They attended each others' weddings
b. They collect fresh water from the larger island of Pulau Bukom

In a more recent article, Mdm Minah shared about how both she and her husband fought off Indonesian interlopers when they were staying on the island alone. Mdm Minah's son shared his pain of losing the island. He thought that the new government led by the late Mr Lee Kuan Yew would continue to allow them to live peacefully on the island. The late Mr Lee had also visited the Pulau Semakau and had promised the islanders modern facilities such as "police post, community clinic and Malay school". Instead by the 1970s, the islanders lost their entire island when they were asked to move. (5)

Interestingly, Former Senior Minister of State Mr Sidek Saniff had previously taught in the Island's school in 1958. (6) There was only one school - the Pulau Semakau Malay School and it was said that the school had been in existence since before World War 2. (26) 

Here're some highlights of Pulau Semakau over the years.

1923
Police were alerted to a fight between Malays and the Chinese. The Chinese coolies were working in the lime kiln there (7) 

1948
The British government issued identity cards to the islanders (8)

1950
The islanders, consisting of Malay fishermen and Chinese traders, built themselves a school for 30 Malay students. But no teachers were available to teach these students (9)

1951
The Pulau Semakau school was finally opened. The Pulau Semakau Malay school started with five Chinese and 25 Malay students, all learning the Malay language. The Chinese residents of Pasir Panjang contributed $700 to buy timber, attap and cement to build the school while the Malays helped in the building. (11) (12) (16)

With the school up and running, other islanders from Pulau Sudong, Pulau Sebarok and Pulau Senang had asked if the school could also take in their children (10)

1952
The population of the island was at about 350 islands. It was also listed that in 1940, The Singapore Rural Board thought that the island was uninhabited (13) As the island was inhabited, the Board had thus agreed to buy a water boat and build water storage tanks for the islanders. (14)

1954
A floating medical dispensary coupled with a nurse would provide medical service for the people every Wednesday (15)

1955
The Mobile Film Unit would show their films on the islands to provide the islanders with some entertainment (16)

1957
The government had decided to build Quarters for teachers, Postman and Postal Agency and Sundry shops.

1958
Costing $10,000, the islanders welcomed their first postal agency. (18) 

1959
The Ministry planned to build a water tank to arrest the acute water shortage issue during the dry season. (19)

1960
The Yang di-Pertuan Negara Inche Yusoff Ishak visited the island, and planted a coconut tree to commemorate this event. The Penghulu of the island, Inche Abdul Jalil bin Kerip pledged the island's loyalty to Singapore's government. (20) (21)

1963
A new Community Centre was built. (22)

1965
The Penghulu receives a Public Service Star medal. (23)

1969
The Singapore Armed Forces started to use the island for its live firing exercises. (24)

1972
Indonesians were still allowed to move freely amongst Singapore islands. (25)

1973
The population of Pulau Semakau was said to be 1,826 residents. (26)

1975
It was reported that the island was to be developed to house a petrol chemical complex. Swamp, foreshore and seabed would be reclaimed. (27)

1976
More talks about developing the island. Now the reports state that it would be used for shipbuilding and other marine-oriented industries. (28)

Old graves were exhumed and moved to Mount Vernon Crematorium. (29)

1977
Villagers were required to move away from their island. (4)

1978
The island was deemed by the newspaper as a 'relatively undisturbed' island with coconut tree and fishing villages. (30)

1980
By now, the villagers of Pulau Semakau have been moved to the mainland and the island has become a dumping ground of waste materials dredged up from the sea. (31)

1982
A decision was made to join both Pulau Semakau and Pulau Seking. At this point, the newspaper report had still mentioned that it was done to house a international petroleum centre. (32)

1988
First mention of Pulau Semakau being a offshore refuse dump. (33) 

At this point, community centres are still bringing their residents to the southern islands (Including Pulau Semakau) for tours. (34)

1989
The newspapers mentioned that the island is now uninhabited "with only one watchman living there". It was also reported by a NUS professor that corals lying around the island have already been damaged since the early 1960s due to reclamation work done on the island. Soil dug up from the building of the Central Expressway, and earth spoils from Pulau Seraya Power Station were also dumped into the sea off Pulau Semakau. (35)

If things did not seemed bad enough with the island being used for waste disposal, the government shared about their plans to build a toxic waste plant on the island itself. (36)

Still on its environment, it was reported that marine life was thriving in and around the water of Pulau Semakau and that the artificial reef that was built using old tyres and cement was a success. (37)

1991
Adventurers claimed that they have found artefacts of more than 200 years old along the beach and also other parts of the island. (3)

1993
Then Environment Minister Mah Bow Tan said that the offshore landfill will see Singapore through to 2045. (38)

1994
Parliament agrees to the reclamation project of the island. (39)

2006
Former Environment and Water Resources Minister Yaacob Ibrahim announced that Pulau Semakau would be ready for anglers and nature lovers to visit. (40)

2015
Pulau Semakau has been further expanded to meet the demands of Singapore's waste disposal. (41)










References

1. Chan, L. E. July 11, 2015. Singapore's waste disposal needs get a boost. Channel News Asia.
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/singapore-s-waste/1976976.html (Accessed on July 11, 2015)
2. Raffles Museum of Biodiversity Research. The DNA of Singapore. http://lkcnhm.nus.edu.sg/dna/places/details/19 (Accessed on November 24, 2014)
3. The Straits Times. October 4, 1991. Adventurers find ancient artifacts on Semakau. P26.
4. The Straits Times. October 6, 1991. Deserted Island is Home to Rani and his Wife. P12.
5. Marsh, J. May 24, 2015. Forgotten Singapore: evicted islanders grieve for lost paradise. http://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/post-magazine-may-24 Accessed on July 11, 2015.
6. The Straits Times. March 31, 1993. Just when you thought it's safe to step into the water.
7. The Straits Times. March 26, 1923. Affray at Pulau Semakau. P8.
8. The Straits Times. November 14, 1948. Mobile teams help register. P1.
9. The Straits Times. July 24, 1950. They Built a School. P7.
10. The Straits Times. March 6, 1951. They have to go by boat to School. P10.
11. The Straits Times. January 9, 1951. 5 Chinese boys to learn Malay. P15.
12. The Straits Times. January 3, 1951. 5 Islanders get own school and unity. P7.
13. The Straits Times. August 22, 1952. Island that's not in the book. P9.
14. The Straits Times. June 20, 1952. Now they can have water.  P9.
15. The Straits Times. March 1, 1954. A Battle Begins in Singapore Today.  P8.
16. The Straits Times. March 7, 1955. Advertisement. P9.
17. The Straits Times. February 2, 1955. Advertisement. P5.
18. The Straits Times. September 7, 1957. Advertisement. P10.
19. The Straits Times. August, 1959. Better Condition for 3,000 Islanders. P11.
20. The Straits Times. February 1, 1960. Tree to mark visit. P1.
21. The Straits Times. February 1, 1960. Inche Ishak to islanders: We have plans to help you. P4.
22. The Straits Times. September 10, 1963. New Community Centre. P4.
23. The Straits Times. May 1, 1965. List of main Singapore awards. P9.
24. The Straits Times. February 29, 1969. Artillery firing. P8.
25. The Straits Times. August 21, 1972. Indonesian islanders join in joy of sea carnival. P27.
26. Sidhu, K. S. June 3, 1973. The island folks and men who guard them. The Straits Times. P10.
27. The Straits Times. July 30, 1975. Go-ahead for reclaimed land in Changi. P9.
28. The Straits Times. April 27, 1976. Semakau to be turned into big marine base. P5.
29. The Straits Times. April 26, 1976. Advertisement. P24.

30. Byramji, N. October 1, 1978. The unspoilt islands for walks in the wild. The Straits Times. P1.

31. Chee, L. September 9, 1980. Marco Polo removing 'high spots' in Singapore. P13.

32. Lim, J. September 21, 1982. $600m reclamation to join two islands. The Straits Times. P1.
33. The Business Times. March 23, 1988. Plan to use Semakau for offshore refuse dumping. P2.
34. The New Paper. August 1, 1988. Southern islands picnic. P38.
35. Liu, M. February 26, 1989. Govt will prevent dump site from polluting sea. The Straits Times. P14.
36. de Silva, G. October 7, 1989. Singapore looks at setting up of an offshore toxic waste plant. P44.
37. Goh, J. October 17, 1989. Man-made reef lures marine life. The Straits Times. P22.

38. Nathan, D. September 23, 1993. Another $1b landfill if rubbish keeps piling up, says Mah. The Straits Times. P3.

39. The Straits Times. July 27, 1994. 350 ha reclamation off Pulau Semakau gets nod. P.20.

40. Hooi, A. March 9, 2005. Fancy a nature trek at Pulau landfill? The Straits Times. P5.
41. Wee, C. F. July 12, 2015. Biggest rubbish dump grows bigger. The Straits Times. 

Elgin Bridge: The Bridge That Separated The Malays From The Chinese

Elgin Bridge looking towards South Bridge Road

The site where Elgin Bridge sits was already a known crossing point before Sir Stamford Raffles landed in 1819. The locals had built themselves a wooden bridge that spanned over the Singapore river. (1) This bridge was significant as it was the only crossing to where the Chinese community lived. (2) The bridge also separated the Chinese (China town) from the Malays (Kampong Glam). (6)


Former Bridges before the construction of the Elgin Bridge

A closer view of the Elgin Bridge

The Elgin Bridge, named after Lord James Bruce Elgin, Governor-General of India was completed in May 30, 1929. (3) This is the fifth bridge that was built on this site. From the first locally-built wooden bridge, a new draw bridge was built by Lt. Philip Jackson in 1822. It was called the Presentment Bridge or Monkey Bridge. Workers were able to draw up the bridges whenever ships with tall sails made their way upstream towards the ports and godowns. (2)

In 1844, a wooden footbridge then replaced the old drawbridge. This new bridge was called Thomson Bridge, named after it's architect John Turnbull Thomson. The bridge was then replaced by an iron bridge in 1862 and it was then named Elgin Bridge. It was built at a cost of $13,000. When the old bridges were taken down in order to build the new bridges, it posed to the community great inconveniences as they would then have to use boats to move themselves and their goods to the other side of the river. (4)


Bridge lighting and emblem

Lights and plaques designed by Cavaliere Rudolfo Nolli

The bridge is not the only historically rich architecture. The cast iron orb lighting was designed by an Italian sculptor Cavaliere Rudolfo Nolli. (3) Other works by Nolli include sculptures in the former Supreme Court building, Raffles Hotel and King Edward VII College of medicine building.

Nolli also helped to design six bronze plaques - a lion standing in front of the palm tree - that welcome any visitors using the bridge on either side.


Looking down at the river 

It was such a throwback into time walking along the bridge. In those yesteryears, this pathway would be where people use it to get to the other side. No one would really stand along the walkway to watch the tongkangs go by. You see, Singapore River was no where near its current level of cleanliness. The water was filthy and sanitation was non-existent. Thus, the river became a filth pit of human excrement and waste. The river was deemed a "irreversible environmental disaster" by an UN expert. (6)

A tongkang bearing tourists moving towards Elgin Bridge

In the late 70s, the government pulled together the different ministries to look at how they could revitalise this polluted river. It took the inter-ministry team 10 years to change this environmental disaster to a miraculous success.

With such a transformation, both locals and tourists alike can now stop along Elgin Bridge to take in the history, watch the sunset and wave at people on board the electric-run tongkangs for tourists.   

Updated: February 10, 2016


References

1. History at four more places. June 29, 1985. The Straits Times. P13.

2. Keys, P. July 5, 1981. Spanning the river of life. The Straits Times. P24.

3. Cornellus-Takahama, V. Elgin Bridge. Accessed on April 26, 2015. http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_921_2004-12-10.html

4. Untitled. October 5, 1861. The Straits Times. P15.

5. The Elgin Bridge is the fourth. December 7, 1954. The Singapore Free Press. P7.

6. Song, O. S. (1984). One Hundred Years' History of the Chinese in Singapore. London: Oxford University Press. P.8, 11.

[Singapore Parks] The Obelisk of Labrador Park

The Obelisk stands silently in the background of Labrador Park

Mention the word Singapore's obelisk and Singaporeans might either point you to Egypt or for the more knowledgeable, they will throw up the name "Dalhousie Obelisk".

So what about the obelisk at Labrador Park? Well, Labrador Park sees many historical structures - Fort Pasir Panjang, a machine gun pillbox and the replica of the Berlayer Rock (Batu Berlayer, 龙牙门, Long Ya Men, or Lot's Wife) can all be found in and around the vicinity. The original Batu Berlayer acted as a marker for seafarers from the 1500s onwards.

Anyway, I've digressed. The Obelisk seems to be one of the least maintained structures amongst all the other colonial structures. It is said that it was erected by the British to mark the western harbour limit and was also a marker that suggests that where the obelisk stood was the most southern tip of the Asian continent.The Obelisks were painted white so that sailors could have a clear visual sight of these monolith. (4)

These Obelisks were used to mark out the limits of the Port of Singapore. (3)  Obelisks were seen in Singapore as early as the 1879, one of which was located at Tanjong Katong. (6) Foreign warships had to take reference from these Obelisks and wait for the Port Officer's permission to anchor or proceed into the inner harbour. (5)

From this 1935 map, one can see the port limits and where the different types of ships have been designated to anchor. (7)

The Eastern and Western Harbour Limits (7)

In 1941 when the threat of war was upon Singapore, seafarers were able to move around the minefields set up by the British by once again using the obelisks as guides. (4)

The last mention of the Obelisks in the newspaper was in 1956. (9)

From a 1966 map, the Siglap Obelisk seemed to be located quite close to St Patricks School.

So how many maritime obelisk were there?

Siglap Obelisk (1) or Tanjong Katong Obelisk (2) (From around 1877)

Peak Island (Kusu Island or Pulau Tembakul) Obelisk (3) (4) (From around 1879)

Batu Blayer marker (8) (The obelisk might have been built at a later date)

Questions about this obelisk.

1. Where were the bricks from and who were the builders?

2. When were these Obelisks erected? 

3. Where were the Siglap and Peak Island's Obelisks located?

References

1. Notice to mariners. December 13, 1932. The Singapore Free Press and Mercantile Advertiser (1884-1942). Page 13.

2. Singapore Port Rules. March 14, 1931. The Singapore Free Press and Mercantile Advertiser (1884-1942). Page 16.

3. The port of Singapore. February 11, 1922. The Straits Times. Page 9

4. Extension of minefields. February 28, 1941. The Straits Times. Page 11

5. Untitled. Straits Times Weekly Issue. June 3, 1890. Page 1

6. Government Gazette. December 6, 1879. Straits Times Overland Journal. Page 1

7. A Coal Hulk. June 8, 1935. The Straits Times. Page 16

8. The Government Gazette. June 30, 1877. The Straits Times, Page 4

9. Advertisement. 21 June 1956 The Straits Times. Page 12

10. Untitled. July 7, 1877. Straits Times Overland Journal. Page 11

First Written: 2 September 2012

Singapura: 700 Years

The National Museum has recently taken some flak for typo errors seen on their exhibition boards. (1) The new exhibition - Singapura: 700 Years brings together archeological finds from as early as the 1920s till recent. 

A large number of historical findings in Singapore can be found in this definitive book - Early Singapore 1300s - 1819. Published in 2004, the book brings together papers written by Singapore history scholars. It goes out to prove that Singapore was not a sleepy village before pre-Raffles.

Through various excavations, gold ornaments, glass sheds and vessels, and Chinese bowls have been found. All these are shown in this book and the current exhibition is based largely on the findings.

As early as 1320, it was said that a prominent place in Singapore was mentioned in the Yuan Dynasty's record, the "Yuan-Shih". The unique stone feature that  was then known as "Long ya-men" Or Dragon's tooth gate.

In 1349, a Chinese businessman named Wang Da Yuan was said to have visited Singapore. So with all these factors coming into play, Singapore was not just an island.

There were also maps to show that Singapore was a known island before Sir Stamford Raffles. The map above was taken from a section of Captain J. Lindsey's 1798 "The South part of the Straits of Malacca". (2)

Interestingly, the map also shows other nearby island such as Salat Booro (Pulau Ubin?), Tooly (Pulau Blakang Mati), and Pedra Branca.

Reference:

1. Zaccheus, M. December 1, 2014. Showcase of S'pore marred by typo, errors. The Straits Times. http://www.straitstimes.com/news/singapore/more-singapore-stories/story/showcase-spore-history-marred-typos-errors-20141201

2. Miksic, J. & Low, C. M. G. 2004. Early Singapore 1300s - 1819. Singapore History Museum: Singapore. P96.

East Coast Park: Amber Beacon (Part 2 of 2)

A lovely stretch of cycling path along East Coast Beach

Continuing from Bedok Jetty, I cycled towards Fort Road. From as distance, I saw this yellow tower. I remember swimming at the beach close to the yellow tower and had never asked about its purpose nor its actual name.

Amber Beacon Tower

Well, there is indeed a name for this tower - Amber Beacon. It was given the name Amber as it lies pretty close to Amber Road. 

"The name and the roads were named after the Amber Trust Fund established by Serena Elias to enable poor Jewish youth to further their education...the name Amber Road was originally given in 1921." P.17 (1)

As I looked through past newspapers, what appeared was a murder of a 21-year old lady in 1990. (2)

More than 20 years has past and this unsolved mystery was brought to the fore once again. The male victim was interviewed by The Straits Times in 2015 and he's still haunted by that turn of event. The murderers have yet to be caught. (3)

I've also found Marine and Port Authorities of Singapore (MPA) listing Amber Beacon as the "East Control" reporting station for ships to report their arrival if they are coming from the eastern shore. (2)

How do I get there

To visit the Amber Beacon, you will need to head towards East Coast Car Park C1.

Updated on July 19, 2015.

References

1. Savage, V. R. & Yeoh, B. 2013. Singapore Street Names: A study of Toponomics. Marshall Cavendish Editions: Singapore. 

2. Marine and Port Authorities of Singapore. March 11, 2009. Amendment to reporting procedures for vessels manoeuvring in port. http://www.mpa.gov.sg/sites/circulars_and_notices/pdfs/port_marine_circulars/pc09-04.pdf  

3. Hoe, P. S. July 19, 2015. Haunted by unsolved murder of girlfriend 25 years ago. The Straits Times. Accessed on July 19, 2015. http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/courts-crime/haunted-by-unsolved-murder-of-girlfriend-25-years-ago

[Park] Sembawang Park: A view of Sembawang Shipyard

I had intended to start my round of cycling at Sembawang Park and head south. But I ended up cycling all around the park instead. 

Hand to heart, I was totally mesmerised by the place. I arrived at the park pretty close to dusk and was in two minds whether to continue with my cycling expedition as it was drizzling. I was thankful that I proceeded as planned as I rediscovered the charms of Sembawang. I'd spent part of my life in this area as I was from the Boys' Brigade and their campsite was just around the corner. That's another story for another day. The park itself is not well visited and thus totally serene.

On top of that, the after-rain air was refreshing. I even tried to take in an extra breath or two to shake my lungs to life! Located in that area are barbecue pits and rest shelters. There is also a jetty where anglers launched their line in hope of catching substantial amount of fish. Others were social anglers who were there to socialise with their other angler friends.

Just to the left of the jetty sits Sembawang Shipyard which was formerly the mighty Sembawang Naval Base - a crown jewel to "The Gibaltar of the East".