Church of Our Lady of Lourdes,

The Church of Our Lady Lourdes is located at 50 Mount Ophir Road and it is the first Tamil Catholic Church in Singapore and was officially opened in 1888. It is a Neo-Gothic building with good proportions of the fine details and it said to be modelled on it the building namesake in the town of Lourdes in France. For some time it was in need of care and Maintainanceand the church was somewhat eclipsed by the addition of a new school building, Our Lady of Lourdes English School. Its brightly coloured redecoration of reds grey and yellow in late 1982 was considered as unfortunate, however, in early 1986 a renovation was carried out on the building which was decorated with a coating of white paint and the doors was highlighted with two shades of blue.

In 2009 the church underwent restoration works to resemble the original church and was completed in

October 2010.

Tales of two Sim Lim

Construction of the Sim Lim Square started in 1983 and completed in 1987.  The six-storey building offers a wide range of electronic items such as  DVD's, cameras, video camera, computers and parts and also servicing. Located at 1, Rochor Canal Road it had its share of bad press of frauds faced by tourist and the culprit booked and sentence. In its early years, it is famous for pirated software

On the opposite of Sim Lim Square along Jalan Besar you can find Sim Lim Tower is a commercial property consisting of 15 floors of office and shopping complex which open business in 1980.

Unlike Sim Lim Square the traders are mostly dealing electronic components, resistors, capacitors and also video and audio gears, Sim Lim Towers is a heaven of electronic of different sizes, make and prices range and they are readily available there and been patronized by both local and foreigners.

Going Places around Bugis

Waterloo Pedestrian Mall during the new Mellinimum we don't see this view anymore with the disappearance of the colourful flats in the distance.

Fu Lu Shou Complex is located at the corner of Queen Street and Rochor Road incorporated part of the Waterloo Pedestrian Mall. The shopping is specialised with religious paraphernalia for the  Buddhists and Taoist worshippers. Inside the building, there are also shop selling dried foods products.

Singapore - Johor Bus Terminal can be found along Queen Street and Arab Street and Rochor Canal Road to run cross border travel to our neighbour country of Malaysia. There had been talks that the government will like the stakeholder to find a suitable location for them to run, until such time it business as usual at this location.

Working Life around Bugis

Although Fortune Center had it address at Middle Road, it is just beside Sri Krishnan Temple and also the Kwan Im Thong Hood Cho Temple.  A Office-cum-retail building with parking facilities and foods to whet your appetite ranging from vegetarian and non-vegetarian and walking distance to most shopping mall, and hotels such as Bugis Junction, Intercontinental, Bras Basah Complex, Raffles Hotel and Raffles City.

In the 1980s, existing old schools were merged to form bigger units for greater efficiency and effectiveness. Stamford Girls’ School thus combined with Waterloo Girls’ School to form Stamford Primary School.  The school then went on to absorb Selegie Primary School and reopened in 1988. It moved to its current premises in Victoria Lane in 1986.

Set on Waterloos Street within the civic and cultural district in South East Asia Hotel which had been around for 40 years and it offers convenient, comfortable and very affordable price for whether you're a businessman, tourist or backpacker.  It also had a cosy cafe and Kwan Im Vegetarian Restaurant which serves the best Chinese and Thai vegetarian food in town.   

Albert Street

Today we are going to talk about Albert Complex developed from the site once stood the Nightsoil Cleaning Centre had its address at 60, Albert Street it is a mall complete with offices which today refer to OG Albert a departmental store. I was working back then at 43 Albert Street in the early 60s which Albert Street is known for a lot of transport companies operating there and also odd job labourers mostly got to be associated with them within the premises of the Singapore Harbour Board.

Waterloo Street

Kwan Im Thong Hood Cho Temple

Temple is a traditional Chinese temple situated at 178 Waterloo Street in Singapore. The temple is of significance to the Chinese in Singapore and is believed to bring worshippers good luck after praying to the Kuan Yin, or Avalokiteśvara, the Goddess of Mercy.

It was build in 1884 and reconstructed in 1879 that was before I was born while working career around the Bugis area bring back some nostalgia with peoples and vehicles filling the street but now part of it had turned into a pedestrian mall and filled with high rise building all around, by looking at the photo of then and now the new temple had undergone changes too.

Waterloo Street is bound by Bras Brash Road, Victoria Street, Middle Road, Noordin Lane, Albert Street and end at Rochor Canal Road.  Today the temple only allows Joss sticks only no burning of paper materials (Kim Chua).

Sri Krishnan Temple

Sri Krishnan Temple is a South Hindu Indian temple adjacent to the Kwan ImThong Hood Cho Temple. It is located on 155, Waterloo Street, Singapore. Sri Krishnan Temple was built in 1870. It is dedicated to Sri Krishna and his consort Rukmini, many Chinese devotees also light Joss sticks at this temple and there is also a Kuan Yin (Goddess of Mercy) alter built inside the temple ground. Constructed in 1933, the temple main shrine is made of manually grounded Chinese pebbles and granite and located above the main shrine is a dome which forms the tallest point adorned with deities as well as copper and golds plating with intricate design.

Today Waterloo Street is also known as the Racial Harmony Street.

Where Albert Centre starts

Albert Centre bound by Queen Street with Albert Street and Waterloo Street where a small petrol station was  I would rather call it a kiosk which serves all transport company around there and also rows of old shophouses where a bar once call National (国家) serving all the lorries drivers entertainment during their payday every Saturday.  We have our breakfast every morning either in the coffee shop around the corner of Noordin Lane which had disappeared altogether or corner of Queen Street where now Fu Lu Shou now stand.  There is an  Indian man selling  Nasi Lemak with freshly frying fish outside the perimeter of the Nightsoil cleaning centre where it developed into Albert Complex was now OG  Departmental Store. Today Albert Street is gone and part of Waterloo Street closed to traffic and turn into a pedestrian mall with high rise buildings all around. Thank you Albert Centre you are part of my life journey.