On Saturday we met at 10am to go on a whole day tour to visit
Chinatown, Little India and Kampong Glam, the Malay-Muslim quarter. This
time we had a tour guide, Dawn, a third generation Chinese-Singaporean.
She regaled us with facts and stories about Singapore on the way to our
first destination, Chinatown. Singapore measures 42kms (East-West) by
23kms (North-South) (according to Wikipedia, 49kmx25km), its area is 714
square kms. With 5.4m people, it is the third most densely
populated area in the world after Monaco and Macao (I had to check
because I actually understood Cannes!?). 1 out of 3 people is not local
(i.e. only 2 out of 3 are residents). 85% of the population buys their first
apartment from the government after an average waiting period of 3
years. And 95% of the population lives in high rises (so NTU students
living on campus are lucky!). The origins of Singapore, go back to 1400,then called
Temasek (sea town), when a Malay prince came to
the island and saw a lion. Because lions are very auspicious (sokat ígérő, kedvező, szerencsés [előjel]), he named the area Singapura (lion city).
With
Dawn we have started at the true origins of the city: we first stopped in Telok Ayer
street (bay water, for the original shoreline) at Thian Hock Keng Temple
(Temple of Heavenly Happiness), the oldest Fukien temple,
dedicated to Mazu, the Taoist goddess of the sea by the first Chinese immigrants who survived the perilous journey (no photo allowed, but the one I have borrowed from David has the altar in the background, although only in the shade).
It was built in 1859 without a single nail.
The temple also has an altar dedicated to (the Confucian) Confucius,
and to the Buddhist Kuan Yin, the bodhisattva of mercy.
Dawn
has explained that the original location of the temple was very
auspicious as far as Feng Shui is concerned, because there was a
mountain/hill behind the temple and water, the sea in front. Because the
bay was filled in, and the hill was leveled (to fill in the bay), they have replaced the hill with a tall building behind the temple
and replaced/replicated the sea with water features in front of the temple, both on the building
and in front of the building
There are some other auspicious signs, the eyes of a bat or a dragon overseeing the temple,
two lion statues guarding the temple on the outside and a dragon on the temple's door
This
protective charm is very strong because the seven signs of seven
animals make the dragon powerful: it has the scales of fish,
talons of an eagle, antlers of a deer, body? of a snake, and something
of a lion, a tiger, a tortoise, and a bat (perhaps eyes).
After visiting the temple we have walked around in Chinatown, and I have finally managed to take some pictures of the Buddha Tooth Relic Temple
Then we had lunch at the Chinese Complex I mentioned last time. Dawn has given us ideas where to and what to eat. I had xiao long bao (small dumplings), 10 pieces, served in two steaming baskets. The fish inside becomes very juicy as they steam it. Delicious! But not very filling: I was ravenous in about 3 hours :)
The others played a safer bet and had beef noodles (my observation: Chinese noodles always come in the form of a soup).
The food was prepared right there in front of us
We had fun (again borrowed from David, with Laetitia, Amit, Dawn, David, Julia and Zuyuan).
Then we went over to Little India, and Kampong Glam. By then I was very tired from the heat and humidity and air conditioning and walking and etc. So I share some pictures, and promise to write a detailed account of my visit when I go back, sometime soon.
The Masjid Sultan Mosque in the distance, at the end of Bussorah street in Kamplong Glam.
Dawn explains local customs and costumes, and David wears a sarong (in Little India Laetitia was dressed in a sari).
And the last borrowed picture (with Ruta, Christian, David, Amit, Julia, and Zuyuan).
