Shereen's reflections

Comparing this trip to Kampong Glam to the one I had when I was in primary school... It was... Wait, actually I can't remember the previous trip at all. This trip's actually pretty interesting as I got to find out new things and explore places I previously would never have bothered going.

The obsidian layer beneath the dome at the Sultan Mosque is an example. I never knew that it comprises of bottles.


One thing which really made an impression is how the area had become a tourist attraction. Kampong Glam, despite the government's efforts of preserving the area as it is originally, inevitably had changes. Gone are the traditional shops and in its place, modern shops selling trinkets and souvenirs to tourists at inflated prices. It's kind of sad seeing the traditional shops gone and have shops which try to appear traditional instead. I almost got fooled by one particular shop along Bussorah Street that appeared to be traditional until See Ming and Hema went to talk to the shop owners and well, the seemingly authentic traditional shop has been there for a grand total of... four months!

All these are unavoidable I suppose, seeing how it's the tourists who are keeping the place alive.

Think field trips and it's usually boring which comes to my mind but this trip was very different. We were on our own and had to look for places by ourselves, which became an adventure... somewhat. Especially while looking for the Lee Loy Hin blacksmith shop, I was wondering if Dr Lim had put that location in as a joke since no matter how many time we walked past the area indicated in the map, we couldn't find the blacksmith shop!

Behind the Lee Loy Hin blacksmith shop

We finally found the shop which was burnt down and it's definitely one of the highlights of the trail. I doubt we'd have visited this if it were a primary school field trip especially since a group of primary school students on a field trip walked past this area without a second glance at the shop (other than staring and probably wondering why we were taking pictures in that manner).

Of course, we had our own fun during the trip too! We made detours and went to places which were not on the planned list. Some of us went shopping at second-hand shops and of course, a place for the child in us...

Costume shop!

We spent quite a while in the costume shop. It's huge and the costumes they have are amazing. We had fun exploring the place and trying on some of the less suspicious items. Interesting how one little area can have such a wide variety of shops!

Overall, I'm really glad that we went on this trail where we discovered much more than just history. (:

I feel like a primary school kid....

...except the primary school kid wouldn't be required to post on a blog after completing the trail.

I'm just kidding, of course. :p (no, no, don't murder me)

I blame the kids we saw along the trail. Poor fellows in their school uniforms walking two by two obediently on the pavement, hand in hand. Coupled with the teachers screaming at the top of their lungs, the scene reminded me too much of my trip here as a primary (or was it secondary?) school student. That is how this reflection will be written I suppose; Kampong Glam in the eyes of a primary school student vs Kampong Glam from the perspective of a whiny NIE student.

So what did I learn this time around Kampong Glam? Lots, apparently. 1st thingie learnt: don't expect your primary/secondary students to know what's going on when you bring them around on a heritage trail. Or at least, don't expect them to remember much more than a decade later.

The next difference between this trip and the last (well, yeah, I don't visit this area much :( ) is the research that we have to do before the trip. All the primary school student has to do is to get a consent form signed. After that, he is ferried to the area from the school, led around the place by a teacher and brought back to school after enjoying the sights. Poor NIE student has to read up before visiting the place and figure out where exactly to head to.

The pre-visit research answered several questions I had about the area, the first of which being the grant paid to desendants of the Sultan. Are they still being paid today? A Straits Times report in 2004 seems to suggest so. The 79 descendants of Sultan Hussein Shah are being paid $350,000 per year (up from $29,200/year before) over 30 years from 1999.

Other questions such as why Kampong Glam was so named and the difference and relations between the Malays and the Arabs during 1820s were also answered during the pre-visit research. More questions were also raised during the journey itself, questions which probably would not occur to a primary school student. But let's deal with that later.

The trip itself started excellently - I was only 5 minutes late. The perplexing question of where to begin the trail was answered by looking for the place with available parking. The Malay Heritage Centre provided very helpful signposts and information boards that had the answers to our questions. "Hah! Dr Lim must have lifted the questions from these information boards. Hopefully, the rest of the trail will be as straightforward." Primary school students would probably have to copy answers from these boards to answer their worksheets.

Primary school students, however, would probably just walk past the restaurant at 73 Sultan Gate without batting an eyelid. As they continue, they would go past the fenced grasspatch that was Pondok Java and probably ignore the burnt shophouse that used to house one of the oldest blacksmith shop in Singapore. So would I actually, had we not been made to look for them. Shazleen had known the location of Pondok Java, thankfully. Lee Loy Hin blacksmith shop took abit of looking for as the map marked its location wrongly. We went around the block a couple of times and even asked the innocent coffeeshop helpers (such poor things, set upon by history students) for help. Luckily, an old man in the Sultan Arts Centre speculated that the blacksmith shop might be the burnt shophouse at the junction.

That is quite worrying, to be honest. What would happen to our history when people who have been through it are no longer around? We were rather close to giving up on the question just before we found the old man. Even more worrying is the earlier point about students walking past our heritage. Exactly what is the value of history to the common man? So what if Pondok Java has been demolished and Lee Loy Hin blacksmith shop burned down and relocated?

I did feel glad to find out about these things although I'm not sure why. Is it because I'm a history student? Maybe it's because I get to answer Dr Lim's questions and complete the assignment. Perhaps it's because I just like knowing things no one else knows or cares about. Or is it because I'm Singaporean and this is part of my heritage? I really hope it's because of the last reason (but I suspect it's the third). How then can the common man or the primary school students be inspired to a) care about our heritage and b) accept that this is an important part of our heritage?

Setting the questions aside for the moment, our trail continued with a walk down several streets while pondering their significance. None of us had any clue why a city in Afganistan would be named as a street in Singapore and the street itself yielded no clue. Along Arab Street, I had a sudden thought. Seeing how the Arab community is being representated in present day Singapore, do Singaporeans see much difference between the Arab community and Malay community? They are obviously different but there seems to be significant overlap within the Singapore context.

Between the streets, we also visited Sultan Mosque. I cannot imagine what would happen if they allowed 40 loud, mischievous kids into the place. First, you would have 40 pairs of white shoes outside the venue. Then, you would probably have kids wandering into the main prayer hall and getting shoo-ed out, like a caucasian couple we saw. I had set out wanting to see the irregularity in road design that had to be made in order to accomodate the mosque within town planning. No luck.

After lunch, we went cemetries hunting. See, if we were primary school students, we would be "visiting" cemetries. However, since we are NIE students and supposed to be able to read maps, we had to "hunt" for the cemetries. We had doubts about Kubor Muslim Cemetry as there were 2 cemetries along Jln Kubor. The one that fit the map was really run-down. Considering it was supposed to be the Tombs of the Malayan Princes, it was quite shocking to find it in such a state. I wondered about the ownership of that piece of land. If it's owned by the government, it would be a shame to leave it in such a state. Makes one wonder when exactly should a government intervene in preserving heritage. Only when it is useful as a tourist attraction? For shame.

Our next stop, the Malabar Muslim Mosque, is yet another destination that is easily glossed over by the primary school students. Afterall, mosques are aplenty in Singapore. That there are different groups of muslims and muslims with different origins would probably be lost on them.

I wonder if there were special relations or links between this community and the royalty back in 1820s. Why was the great grand-daughter of Sultan Hussein buried in the cemetry of this mosque? Brief online research gave no answer. Time to hit the libraries....feh

All in all, the trail was an eye-opener. Finding the answers to the questions gave me a warm fuzzy feeling within but also raised more questions to be answered. Going back to the question of getting students and the common man to be interested in our heritage to accept these small pieces of history as important parts of our heritage, I have to confess I don't have a clear idea on how to do so. However, I do think that letting the average joe see the relevance of individual pieces of history is important. Given that even cynical me can see how Kampong Glam played a part in Singapore's heritage (as compared to me totally not getting the relevance of pre-1819 history), I think there might be hope yet.

I think I've written too much...bleah

See Ming Reflecting!!

Well, the Heritage Trail is interesting!! And along the way, I found out a lot of "old" things that I thought have already vanished in this part of the world!! For example, the old barber shop that we passed by while walking along a backstreet. I thought this can only be found in movies!!Also, some of the shophouses that we walked pass have the old world charm to them. However, some are pretty rundown. To me, it is a pity that nobody cares to maintain it, because in the future, children would not be able to view and understand this part of our Singapore history. The shophouses would be too dilapidated to recognise the features or it may be demolished because it is deemed too dangerous to live or operate business in them. Also, it is interesting to know that there are shops that sell unusual things in this area, such as the big costume shop with the Batman car, that is hard to find in Singapore.

Also, I have learnt new things such as that females can also become religious teachers!!All along I thought that only males are allowed to be religious teachers. What amazed me is that the Chinese community was the tomb carvers for the Malayan princes. The Arabic words were so intricately carved out that it was surprising that they were done by someone who did not understand Arabian.

By going to places that are not indicated on the map, we had our own fun too!!For example, we ate a sumptous meal at a Nasi Padang store. It is a two-storey shophouse, where the upper floor's ambience is very comfortable!!Very different from the first floor shopfront. We took a lot of funny pictures, many of which show wht we felt during the time. One of which is the picture where me and Erjin "patiently" waited for Shazleen and Shereen to finish their shopping. Another is where we think that this is what the people during that time would be doing outside the shophouses. All in all, I enjoyed this heritage trail!!

Shazleen's thoughts

This is an edit of my reflection because I realised that I wrote very little compared to Erjin, See Ming and Hema...heh . My apologies. This entry is still very short though... hahaha


So yes,the Heritage Trail turned out to be pretty fun --learnt stuff we never knew, took funny pictures and even squeezed in some shopping! What Erjin said in his reflection is true.. there are many places and details on the trail that we would have just dismissed or not bothered with if we were any other regular primary/secondary sch student on an excursion. I doubt that we would have searched for the blacksmith shop or stepped into the cemetery if we were on a regular excursion. Somehow I liked the fact that the blacksmith shop had burnt down and the Pondok Java had been demolished. It added a sense of adventure to our trail. We had to sorta put ourselves in detective mode and go on like a scavenger hunt to search for these places.Kinda cool.. hahaha...Anyway by going on the trail ourselves (rather than as a class) gave us the freedom to further explore the area. We were able to enjoy ourselves and discover stuff that weren't necessarily related to history. Personally, the present can be as interesting as the past. We were pretty psyched to browse through the costume shop along Aliwal Street. I am now very tempted to have a costume party for my 21st birthady... heh :P


However, it's pretty sad to see that certain parts of Kampong Glam had become 'tourist-y'. For example, Bussorah street was filled with shops that obviously catered solely to the tourists. Hardly any authentic traditional stores remained. So anyway, here are some of the pics we took that day. :)

Pseudo bengs and emos... hahahaha


Hema and her best imitation of a health inspector.


Old-fashioned barber


See Ming & Hema


One last group shot in the car...

#13 Hajjah Fatimah Mosque

Our last stop was the Hajjah Fatimah Mosque located near Beach Road.

• When was the mosque built?Who built the mosque?

The mosque was in 1845/1846 by a wealthy Malaccan businesswoman, Hajjah Fatimah.

• What can you find out about the person?

Hajjah Fatimah was an intrepid businesswoman who married a Bugis prince form Celebes that ran a trading post in Singapore. Her husband died early into their marriage but Hajjah Fatimah singlehandedly carried on his business, acquiring numerous vessels and prows which she used to amass a large fortune.

• What other name is the mosque known as?

The mosque probably also known as the “leaning tower” of Singapore. The minaret is actually tilted 6 degrees. However, when we tried to see it, it only seemed tilted when we saw it at a certain angle. We thought it might just be our illusion!! We tried to take a picture of the “leaning minaret”, but somehow it refused to be captured on the camera. If you want to feel for yourself the leaning minaret, make a trip down to witness it!

• What kind of architectural styles can you find in the building?

The mosque differs from other mosques in its architecture. While the main feature of most mosques is the dome, for the Hajjah Fatimah mosque,the minaret is the one that takes centrestage. The minaret boasts some form of French influence. The windows however seemed to be of Chinese influence while the prayer hall was of standard Islamic origin. The hybrid of different architectural styles is what makes this mosque special.

#12 Alsagoff Arab School

When we arrived at the school, it seemed that the primary school girls were having their breaktime. The girls were traditionally dressed and donned Islamic headresses. There were no boys around because the Alsagoff school is a madrasah for girls only.

• When was this school founded and by whom?

The school was founded in 1912 by a wealthy Arab trading family, the Alsagoffs.

• What kind of education did it provide for the Malay children?

The school provided Malay children with Islamic education in addition to subjects taught in mainstream school. It is rumoured that students that attend madrasahs take up to 13 subjects at a time!

• What did graduates of this school went on to become?

The graduates of the Alsagoff school as well as other madrasahs tend to become Islamic religious teachers or leaders.

#11 Malabar Muslim Jama-ath Mosque

• What is the address of the mosque?

The mosque is located at 471 Victoria Street, near the junction of Jalan Sultan.

• What is the Malabar community?

The Malabar community are people who originate from the Southwestern coast of India (Malabar coast) and Kerala. They generally speak Malayalam. The Malabar Muslims settled down in Singapore from the early 19th century and were mainly traders dealing in textiles and jewellery. In 1927, these immigrants formed an association, the Malabar Muslim Jama'ath, to look into the affairs of their small community. The association's first office was located in a humble shophouse on Changi Road. It later shifted to Bussorah Street and finally settled on Victoria Street.

• When was the mosque first opened and by whom?

A stone laying ceremony was held on 10th April 1956 by the Mufti of Johor, Tuan Syed Alwi Adnan. However, building was slowed down due to a lack of funds. The mosque was finally completed and then declared open on 24th January 1963 by the Yang di-pertuan Negara Encik Yusof Bin Ishak.

• What is it also known as?

The mosque is also known as the Golden Dome Mosque.

• Do you know there is a Malabar cemetery that dates back to the 1819 on the grounds?

Yup.. we found a cemetery loacted just behind the mosque. It is called the Malabar Muslim Cemetry. We think that some members of the royal family may be buried there as seen by the yellow cloth on some of the tombstones.

#10 Kubor Muslim Cemetry

The Kubor Muslim Cemetery!! When we arrived there, what struck us was that the cemetery is really run-down and neglected. The wild grass is growing everywhere, and the tombstones are placed haphazardly and in a topsy-turvy manner. Some of the tombstones are even half-sunken into the ground!!

• What was this cemetry labelled as in a 1836 map?

We were so surprised when we found out that this cemetery was labelled as the “Tombs of the Malayan Princes” in an 1836 map. It is really hard to imagine that these tombs were really meant for the aristocracy in the condition that they are in now. Interestingly, the tombstones are shaped in three different designs, and some even have an area marked out.

• Which community do you think the stonemasons and tomb-carvers belonged to?

It is amazing to find out that the stonemasons and tomb-carvers were actually from the Chinese community. The Chinese had been carving the Arabic words on the tombstones for the Malayan princes.

Lunch!!!!

We were practically starving by the time we took a break to eat at like 1pm...haha. At my recommendation, we decided to go to a restaurant serving Nasi Padang called Rumah Makan Minang located at the corner of Kandahar Street and Muscat Street. The restaurant is very simple but the food was delicious!! We highly recommend the Gulai Ayam Lemak. Très bien :)

#9 North Bridge Road

North Bridge Road was one of the earliest roads in Singapore that is outlined and named in the 1822 Town Plan.

• What is so interesting about the shop at no. 718?

No. 718 is Haji V. Syed Abu Thahir Trading.It has been in existence since 1924. Not only can one find all Muslim-related items here, one will also be able to find some Hindu-related items such as incense and incense holders, and cosmetics such as Henna hair dye.

As mentioned earlier, the shop sells an assortment of stuff.

Hema and the incense sticks.

Ok I just have to say it here. This kind of scarf is actually used by Arab men as part of their headress (think Yasser Arafat). Anyway, somehow, it has now become some sort of 'in' fashion accessory that's sold in places like Topman, River Island etc. FYI it costs $10 only at this shop whereas those high street fashion stores sell them for $30 plus!!!
(refer to image below..hahah)

The piece of wood/stick that Erjin is holding here is used by traditional Muslims as a toothbrush and is highly effective.The act of using such a stick for one's oral hygiene is referred to by Muslims as 'bersiwak'. It is encouraged among Muslims because it is said that it was one of the common practices of the Prophet Muhammad.

Haji Lane

Ok Haji Lane isn't specified as a stop on our Heritage Trail but we checked it out because it was just behind Arab Street and Shereen and I were in the mood for a little shopping... hahah :P.

House of Japan

Boredom while waiting for Shereen and I to finish shopping.
FYI: We bought 4 vests for $50 altogether. :D

Haji Lane has transformed into a hangout for the uber-cool ever since the Comme Des Garcons guerilla store opened there in 2005. The shop has since relocated elsewhere but Haji Lane remains a favourite the young indie-crazed generation. Haji Lane boasts an assortment of "so-hip-it-hurts" shops that stock everything from designer labels to vintage finds. Visit Pluck for vintage fabrics, wallpaper, ice-cream and other kitschy finds,Salad for an emporium of black and white merchandise ranging from fashion accessories to décor items for the home, COLLAGE for hip fashion finds and House of Japan for rack after rack of 2nd hand clothing.

Cool window displays along Haji Lane.

#8 Arab Street

• Why was Arab Street named so?

Arab Street was probably named to honour the Arab community who although small in number had a significant place in history. The Arab community produced well known individuals and merchants like Syed Ali Bin Mohamed Aljunied.

• Who was the owner of the whole area?

Unfortunately, we were unable to find out who was the owner of the area. Do you know?

• What do the street names in this area reflect?

The streets in this area are mainly named after Arabian cities. This reflects the Arab influence in the area.

• What kinds of shops are common along Arab Street?

The most common types of shops found along Arab Street has got to be the textile or fabric shops. There are so many fabric stores lining both sides of Arab Street.

Aside from such shops, there are also shops selling fragrance, jewellery, carpets, curio, rattan and other basketware, preserved food and other delicacies; spices, flower-shops, Muslim restaurants,travel agents and money-changers too. The travel agents here specialise in the travel needs of Muslim pilgrims heading for Mecca.

Shereen, the new textile auntie.

#7 Bussorah Street

• What influence is reflected in Bussorah Street?

The architecture along Bussorah street have some form of Arabaian and French influence.

• What do most of the trades here traditionally cater to?

They mainly cater to sandal-making, copper craftswork, food and tourists.

• What traditional shops can you still find here?

There are not that many traditional shops left along this street. We only managed to find a shop selling traditional instruments and toys and another selling textiles. Most of the shops along this street seem new. We found a backpackers' hostel, a few spas, a camera shop and a hair salon.

A shop selling traditional instruments and toys.