Telok Ayer Street

Telok Ayer Street used to face the original seafront and served as docking bay for the boats and sampans of early immigrants. Grateful for a safe journey, many set up altars and worship houses to give thanks to their gods.

The Meaning behind Telok Ayer:
In Malay: telok means "bay" and ayer means "water".

From the Chinese point of view: The Hokkien name for Telok Ayer Street is Gwan Sun Koi, where "koi" means street and Gwan Sun refers to the name of a shop along Telok Ayer Street. Telok Ayer Bay was also known as nan wan or "southern bay" by the Chinese.

Heng Fatt Yong Kee Pawnshop, 255 South Bridge Road

Despite trying our very best to find out more information about this mysterious Heng Fatt Yong Kee Pawnshop (see below picture for evidence), we still could not find out anything about the older pawnshop. The current pawnshop has no direct links to the pawnshop we were looking for. Even research did not yield us any information.

Top Left: Asking the Shopkeepers; Top Right: Peering deep into the shop; Bottom Left: Reading the Board; Bottom Right: No relevant information on the board

Eu Yan Sang

Eu Yan Sang Medical Hall is one of the most famous Chinese medicine centres in Singapore, which has spawned branches across the country. It traces its history to a person named Eu Kong Pai who started a medical shop in Gopeng, Perak, Malaysia in the 1870s. At that time, Gopeng was in the midst of a tin-mining boom. Eu Kong noticed the harsh living condition of the tin-mining labourers, and used his knowledge of traditional Chinese medicine to help them. His first Chinese medicine shop was opened in Gopeng in 1879. He called it "Yan Sang", which in Cantonese means "caring for mankind".

The business was taken over by Eu Kong's eldest son, Eu Tong Sen, born in Penang in 1877. Eu Tong Sen rose to become successful in the tin-mining industry. His prospecting for tin led him to Kampar, where he opened his second medicine shop. From tin mining, he also branched into rubber and properties. He also set up Lee Wah Bank, which eventually merged with United Overseas Bank. Eu Tong Sen was one of the richest man in Malaya and Singapore. Eu Tong Sen Street in Singapore is named after him.

Today the Eu Yan Sang medicine shops can be found not only in Malaysia and Singapore but also in Hong Kong, Macau and Guangzhou. The main premises of Eu Yan Sang in Singapore is located at South Bridge Road, near to the Buddha Tooth Relic Templeand Sri Mariamman Temple.

Contact:
Eu Yan Sang International Ltd
269A South Bridge Road
Singapore 058818
Tel: (65) 6225 3211
Fax: (65) 6225 8276
Email: info.hq@euyansang.com
Getting there:
Take the Singapore MRT North East Line to the Chinatown MRT Station (NE4) and walk from there to South Bridge Road.

Ann Siang Hill

Ann Siang Hill is a small hill in Singapore's Chinatown. It is one of the hills collectively known as Telok Ayer Hills because it was once located beside the Telok Ayer Bay. Other hills within Telok Ayer Hills include Mount Wallich and Mount Erskine. However, Mount Wallich and Mount Erskine were no longer around. They were levelled in the 1890s and the land used as landfill to reclaim Telok Ayer Basin. As a result, Telok Ayer Street is now located on dry land, and only Ann Siang Hill was left standing.

Ann Siang Hill had changed name twice. It was originally called Scott's Hill, after Charles Scott who owned a clove and nutmeg plantation there. Ownership passed to John Gemmill, and the hill was renamed Gemmill Hill. In 1894, it was sold to Chia Ann Siang, a wealthy Malacca-born landowner, and once again the name changed, to Ann Siang Hill. It remains Ann Siang Hill to this day.

The shophouses on Ann Siang Hill, the tallest geographic point in Chinatown, are today home to fashion boutiques, trendy bars, and posh restaurants, but before ownership of the hill passed into the hands (and namesake) of Chia Ann Siang, the hill had two prior owners who also named the hill after themselves.

Targeting tourists and Singaporeans alike, today you will find hidden parks and fascinating alleyways full of beautifully conserved shophouses. Ann Siang Hill remains true to its heritage while at the same time is hip and happening.

Ann Siang Hill Park

This charming pocket park, completed in 2004, is wedged behind two rows of shophouses and the Urban Redevelopment Authority building.

Location: Ann Siang Hill. Enter via Amoy Street, next to Siang Cho Keong temple.
If you enter the 0.3-ha park from Club Street, a winding path will take you up to a timber deck with a bird's eye view of the undulating landscape.

At mid-day, office workers gather to unwind with a smoke or gossip over packed lunches within its shady nooks. Map-toting tourists drop by regularly to admire the way the heliconia are planted right up against a wall.

From time to time, you may meet a strolling street performer. For example, there was a street magician from India who would ask you for your name and date of birth, and pronounce you "lucky" for that year; he would then make you tear up a piece of paper, then make the sheet whole again. Notwithstanding, there is a cost to some of such entertainment - around S$5.
Only grouse for this park, the winding staircases can be a bit trying for those with weak knees.

Getting There:
The nearest MRT stations are the Chinatown Station (NE4) and Tanjong Pagar Station (EW15).

64 Club Street

(photo credit to Timothy Tye)

To date, the Pondok Peranakan Gelam Club is the sole survivor of the many Indonesian Malay communal houses or Pondoks that were found on Club Street. Now located at Telok Ayer Hong Lim Green Community Centre, the club continues to organise religious ,welfare, social sports , educational and recreational activities.

Originally located at 64 Club Street, the Pondok registered on 4 April 1932 and operated on a system of social hierarchy with married couples occupying the upper floor while children and singles living downstairs. The pondok or lodge organised educational, social, sports and recreational activities. Membership was extended to all Singapore residents in 1969. By the 1970s, the club had nearly 700 members.


In the 1830s, the Boyanese, started migrating to the florishing British port in search of work. As those from the Malay Archipelago saw Singapore as part ofthe Malay Seas, they saw themselves as "Perantau" which meant People who travle within their region. Hence, the Pondok Peranakan Gelam Club was set up in Singapore by the Boyanese to provide accommodation and cater to the welfare needs of their community.

Thian Hock Keng Temple

Thian Hock Keng Temple which means Temple of Heavenly Happiness is one of the oldest and most important Hokkien temple in Singapore. It started out, between 1821 and 1822 as a prayer house located along the shoreline of the Telok Ayer Basin for the immigrants from China. It was dedicated to the goddess Ma Zu (or Tian Hou), protector of seafarers and navigators. It was customary for Chinese voyagers who had just completed their journey across the turbulent South China Sea to make offerings of money and joss-sticks as thanksgiving.

Due to the funding from wealthy merchants such as Tan Tock Seng, the temple went through an extensive reconstruction between 1839 and 1842 to transform the prayer house into the building it is now. As it was designed and built according to Chinese temple architectural traditions by skilled craftsmen from China, Thian Hock Keng Temple is the most traditionally authentic Chinese temple in Singapore. Not a single nail was used in the original structure.

The doors into the temple are embellished with ornate paintings of door gods, tigers, lions and dragons. These are intended to keep evil spirits at bay. The details of the temple’s history are recorded in granite tablets on the way inside the Entrance Hall. In 1907, as a symbol of the temple’s stature, Qing Dynasty Emperor Guang Xu presented a plaque inscribed with the words Bo Jing Nan Ming (Gentle Waves over the South Sea).

The main shrine is dedicated to Ma Zu, while secondary shrines and pagodas on both sides are dedicated to various immortalised personalities, including Confucious, the Bodhisattva Sangharama, Governor Kai Zheng, Great Generals Da Er Ye Bai, and City Gods.

Even during the early days, because Hokkiens formed the majority dialect group, the temple’s influence went beyond the Hokkiens to include the whole Chinese community. For example, the temple and its leaders from the Hokkien Huay Kuan often played mediator when disputes between rival Chinese dialect groups occurred.

Since 1973, Thian Hock Keng Temple has been a national monument. Due to its massive conservation and restoration efforts, the temple received an honourable mention at the Unesco Asia-Pacific Heritage Awards for cultural heritage conservation in 2001. Presently, Thian Hock Keng is managed by Singapore Hokkien Huay Kuan and sees up to 500 visitors a day who worship, admire the rich architecture or appreciate the rich history left behind by the ancestors.

Website: http://www.thianhockkeng.com.sg/home.html
Location: 158 Telok Ayer Street Singapore 068613
Getting there: Nearest MRT are Tanjong Pagar and Raffles Place

Nagore Durgha Shrine

Nagore Durgha Shrine (was also known as Masjid Moulana Mohammad Ally) was built between 1828 and 1830 by brothers Mohammed and Haja Mohideen as a memorial to a holy man, Shahul Hamid of Nagore in Southern India. The brothers were part of an Indian Muslim minority known as Chulias from South India. They migrated to Singapore in large numbers from the early 1820s. The shrine is one of the earliest places of worship in Singapore for the Indian Muslims. Presently, it is under the care of Majulis Ugama Islam Singapura (MUIS) and had undergone major restoration works in 2007. However, it has been closed to the public since the 1990s and based on recent news, Nagore Durgha Shrine is due to reopen in May 2011 as a Heritage Centre instead. It will feature exhibits and artefacts of the Indian Muslim community and consists of a halal eatery as well.

It is a small structure standing at the corner of Telok Ayer Street and Boon Tat Street. It shares the same street as Thian Hock Keng Temple (Singapore’s oldest Hokkien Temple) and Al Abrar Mosque. This reflects the religious and cultural mix of early Singapore. The architecture of the shrine features both East and West influences. Since 19 November 1974, Nagore Durgha Shrine has been gazetted as a national monument.

Address: 140 Telok Ayer Street Singapore 068604
Getting there: Nearest MRT are Tanjong Pagar and Raffles Place

Sian Chor Kang Temple

Sian Chor Kang Temple is a Chinese temple dedicated to Tua Pek Kong, the Hokkien deity of prosperity. It was first established in 1867 by the Abbot Da Ming and completed in 1889. Besides the Hokkien community, the temple is popular among the Teochew community too and enjoys a steam stream of worshippers.

Address: 66 Amoy Street, Singapore 069886
Getting there: The nearest MRT station is Tanjong Pagar MRT Station (EW15) on the East West Line.

Al-Abrar Mosque

Al-Abrar Mosque is located at a historical Chinatown area. It is also known as Masjid Chulias which meant Chulias Mosque. The mosque was founded in 1827 and it was being built by one of the earliest immigrants in Singapore, they are the Tamil Muslims minority community and they are also known as the Chulias. Most of them are from Southern India. The mosque was given lease to Hadjee Puckery Mohamed Katib bin Shaik Mydinas during the early year of their establishment. The mosque was built with mainly designs of the Islamic characters which was craved along the facade with its latticed, vent-style balustrade. The mosque was also repainted in 1850s by Percy Wallace of the view from Mount Wallich. The mosque was originally a single levelled building and was later developed into a double storey building and now, the mosque is able to accommodate 900 people which is five times the original number of people it used to be able to accommodate. The shop houses nearby are changed into Madrasa, where people attend religious classes and prayer room where people go to for “solat” which meant prayers.

The interesting fact about the mosque architecture is that it has a structure of kuchu which meant “hut” and palli which meant “mosque”. The mosque has a combination of both Islamic and Western design being fused together. Al-Abrar mosque was recognized as an official monument in Singapore on 19 November 1947.

Address: 192 Telok Ayer Street Singapore 068635

Location : Al-abrar mosque, Singapore
Nearest MRT: Raffles Place (EW14/NS26)
By bus: 598,402,569

Telok Ayer Chinese Methodist Church

Telok Ayer Chinese Methodist Church is among the oldest Methodist Chinese speaking churches.

In the early 1889 the church was a mere shop house which was being used by Dr Benjamin West to practice medicine. Later on, he then started preaching in the shop houses to small groups consisting 30 people. The church later collapse in 1905 and it the church was conducted on a temporary tentage in 1913 which was then replaced by zinc hut near Neil Road whose architect was Swan and Maclaren. The reconstruction of the church was fully completed in 1925. In 1930s onwards, the church was used as a place to organize meets ups amongst the Chinese evangelist from China.

The architecture of the church is such that it has an open pavilion on the roof which was carved in a traditional Chinese manner. It is a two storey building where the second storey has a sanctuary. The church was design in such a way because it was more practical to have the sanctuary built on the second level according to the Western context. This is similar to that of a European City churches and Telok Ayer Chinese Methodist Church is the first church in Singapore to adopt such design.

For many decades, many believers worship the church. The forefathers from China visit the church to receive the baton of gospel, evangelizing to their own friends and relatives. It is also known that during World War 2, the church was used to house over 300 refugees mainly Chinese since Chinese was the ethnic group that was being harshly dealt by the Japanese.

Since Telok Ayer Methodist Church has a unique building structure and has a history to be remembered, it was chosen to be preserved as Singapore's official national monument on 23 March 1989.

Getting there:

Address: 235 Telok Ayer Street Singapore 068656
Location:Telok Ayer Chinese Methodist Church, Singapore
Nearest MRT: Tanjong Pagar (EW15)
By bus: Bukit Merah bus interchange, bus 167

Maxwell Food Centre

You want to sample local food in Singapore. You only have time to go to one place. Just where do you go? The Maxwell Road Food Centre, of course.

Don't be fooled by the unattractive, almost non-descript look of this place. There's a reason why so many tour buses stop over here. Of all the hawker centres in Singapore, this is my favourite by a mile.

Allow me to tell you why the Maxwell Road Food Centre is worth every minute of your time:
It is located in the heart of Chinatown. It is near to all the major sights. And it can easily be a fuel stop on any Chinatown walking tour. You don't have to travel very far to enjoy great food.

It offers one of the widest ranges of local Singapore food at one place.In fact, there are over 100 stalls here. I walked around and tried to see if there were many stalls selling the same thing. I found great variety instead - each stall, it seemed, was different from the next.

It's not only the variety that's amazing. The food is also disgustingly delicious. Competition is keen and the vendors have really upped the quality of their food. It's unfair to list one stall and leave out the next. But you basically cannot go wrong with the following:

• Stall 99, Guangdong Wan Ton Mee - Noodles with dumplings and roast pork, dumpling soup, etc.
• Stall 64, China Stree Fritters - Deep fried prawn fritters, fish cakes, ngoh hiang (local sausages), etc.
• Stall 54, Zhen Zhen Porridge - Congee with a selection of ingredients: pork, century eggs, fish slices, etc.
• Stall 48, Lau Pa Sat Bak Kut Teh - Pork rib soup with rice, other innards on request.
• Stall 35, Marina South Delicious Food - Char Kway Teow (fried noodles in soya sauce with cockles and eggs).

Apart from these 'filling' dishes, there are also numerous other stalls selling what may loosely be called 'finger food' - oyster fritters, radish cakes, sesame-coated red bean balls, etc.

You could go to one stall, pick up whatever you fancy, munch on it and move on to the next stall, and then the next. Isn't this fascinating?

Unlike the highly over-rated Newton Food Centre, the Maxwell Road Food Centre offers true value. When I last visited in late October 2008, I was pleasantly surprised that most of the stalls have not raised prices. And they have not cut down on the portions either. This is in spite of all the rising costs we see swirling around us.

The drink stalls, for example, are charging between 10 to 30 cents less than some hawker centres and coffee shops in the outlying areas. But the figures are immaterial. What I'm basically saying is this: in an age of profiteering, there is still a sanctum like the Maxwell Road Food Centre where hawkers over-deliver on the prices they charge.

So these folks have earned my affection. Please patronise their stalls. Make them successful. Let them be the beacons of what's good about Singapore.

Getting There:
Location: Maxwell Road, Singapore
Nearest MRT: Tanjong Pagar MRT Station/Chinatown MRT Station
By Bus: SBS: 80, 145; TIBS: NR5

Former Eng Aun Tong, 89 Neil Road

Former Eng Aun Tong was actually the factory of the famous ointment brand Tiger Balm. It was built in 1926 by the owner of Tiger Balm, Aw Boon Haw. Mr Aw had wanted the top of the building to resemble the cap of the Tiger Balm bottle but the architect persuaded otherwise.

Presently, the building stands mostly vacant. On a side note, Mr Aw and his brother Mr Aw Boon Par had also set up Haw Par Villa.

Address: 89 Neil Road, Singapore 088859
Getting there: The nearest MRT station is Tanjong Pagar MRT Station (EW15) or Outram Park MRT Station (EW16) on the East West Line.

Former Jinricksha Station

The former Jinricksha Station sits on a unique triangular plot of land at the junction of Neil Road and Tanjong Pagar Road. It was constructed in 1903 to serve as the registration centre for rickshaws, the most common form of transport during colonial times.

The rickshaw was first imported to Singapore from Shanghai in 1880. It is a small, light-weight 2-seater carts with springs and large wheels. By 1888, the Jinricksha Department was set up to register and license each rickshaw. By the end of the 19th century, there were about 1,000 rickshaw owners in Singapore. By 1919, there were 9,000 rickshaws manned by 20,000 rickshaw pullers working in shifts.

As time passed, rickshaws were gradually replaced by other means of transport such as the trishaw, electric tram, bus and car. Rickshaws were finally phased out by the government after World War II.

A quick trivia: Hong Kong movie superstar Jackie Chan bought the Former Jinricksha Station for S$11 million in 2007 and the building now houses eateries, pubs, restaurants and offices.

Address: 1 Neil Road, Singapore 088804
Getting there: The nearest MRT station is Tanjong Pagar MRT Station (EW15) on the East West Line.