The end of an era

Singaporean woke up to the news that Robinson Department Store is closing down and peoples from all walks of life flock to seek for bargain sales others are there to redeem whatever points or coupon they might have. A British man by the name of Phillip Robinson joint hand with James Gaborian Spicer set up Spicer & Robinson in 1858 and after two years James Spicer left and in 1859 the company was known as Robinson & Co with a new partner George Rappa Jr,  Commercial square was later named as Raffles Place and Robinson & Co moved to North Bridge Road and Coleman Street. When Robinson died his son Stamford Raffles Robinson took over the business in 1886 and in 1891 it moved back to a bigger store in Raffles Place, soon they acquired John Little and held the franchising of Mark & Spencer in 1958  Then in 1941 they moved to a new and bigger store Raffles Chambers and later the Japanese invaded Singapore and in  1972 a huge fire at the department store claimed the lives of nine people and after it moved again to Specialists Shopping Centre and in 1983 it moved to Centerpoint. In 2006 OCBC sold its shares to Indonesian Lippo Group but in 2008 Al Futtaim Group bought over Robinson & Co and in 2018 the store celebrated 160 years of retailing in Singapore and in 2020 all fell whether to blame on the Covid19 pandemic or the emergence of e-commerce well life has to go on.

The Flower Dome

The Flower Dome is one of the two conservatories found in Garden by the Bay it is the largest greenhouse in the world and was verified by Guinness Book of World Records in 2015 standing at 1.2 hectares.  There are altogether 8 gardens comprising of Flower field, Baobabs, Succulents, Australian, South Africa, South American, California, Mediterranean and Olive Grove, you could find exotic flowers and plants here. 

Pancur Larangan

 A freshwater spring used to flow from the face of Fort Canning Hill at this location. In ancient times, it was known as Pancur Larangan or the ‘Forbidden Spring’ as it was used as a bathing place by the noble ladies of the royal court of Singapura. This ancient bath, which would have been an important part of the palace, has been re-created in the 14th-century Javanese style.  This garden features a commissioned mural wall handcrafted in natural volcanic rock which details life in Fort Canning Park from 14th century to the 19th century, as well as the socio-cultural influence of water in different eras

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Reminiscing of Joo Chiat Police Station

As I was growing up in the Joo Chiat/Katong district there was the Joo Chiat Police Station which was established in 1928 way before I was born and as you know by now that the Joo Chiat is full of conservation houses, especially in Koon Seng Road the famous Peranakan Theme Houses it was been named Singapore First Heritage Town, going back to Joo Chiat Police Station a sale tender for this site to be developed into a hotel and also for commercial use with offices and retail spaces sadly we will miss the old Joo Chiat Police Station where we use to watch the free movie there and policing the needs of the communities.

Chinese Garden Singapore

Formerly called the Jurong Garden which comprises of the Japanese and Chinese Garden built by the  Jurong Town Corporation in 1975 by a Taiwan architect its concept is based on the Northern Chinese Imperial style architecture and landscaping and features a White Rainbow Bridge, Main Arch Building, Stone Boat and Tea House, Pagoda, Pavilion, Bonsai Garden, Live Turtle and Tortoises Museum, and Garden of Abduance. At present,  both the gardens are closed for renovation with the addition of the newly created Jurong Lake Garden in conjunction with the Jurong Lake District which included a High-Speed Rail project to link with our neighbour Malaysia. At present we are served by our very own Mass Rapid Transit, the future looks promising for both locals and tourist alike to visit. 

Singapore National Museum

Yesterday evening went back to the Singapore National Museum to photograph the cartoon character Doraemon which was displayed in the front lawn of the museum. The museum had a long history starting in 1849 it is the oldest museum in Singapore and focuses on the history of Singapore, in all, there is 3 other museum such as the Asian Civilisation Museum, Singapore Art Museum and the Perananak Museum,  the museum embarked on a three and a half years for the restoration project and was reopened in December 2006 by the President the late Mr S R Nathan

Pilgrimage

Kusu Island meaning Turtle Island in Chinese and Pulau Tembukul in Malay is the site of the annual pilgrimage drawing Chinese and Malay devotees to the island there is a Chinese Temple and three Malay Keramat. During the Chinese Lunar calendar of the 9th Month is considered as scared as well as the deity of Tua Pek Kong birthday it is also seen as a Prosperity & Merchant God and protector of the seafarers.