Conquest of the year!

My dear diary, I have lots to tell you! I just went through the biggest adventure of my life! As you know, Dad and I are royalty and we live in Barish Land. Two days ago, Papa went to visit our neighbor, King Krab, to talk to him about combining our two kingdoms. But of course, he would not agree. However, you know Papa, he is not one who takes no for an answer! So, he made a proposition to King Krab. He would offer my hand in marriage to King Krab’s son in exchange for the two kingdoms to be united. Papa gets to rule the Empire for the first ten years. After that, he said the Empire will belong to Prince Teriachi and me. Can you believe it? I mean, Papa traded me off just so he can rule the Kingdom? That was so unfair! On top of that, he is trading me off to someone named Terichi! I mean, what kind of a name is that?

When Papa came home to tell me about it, I was absolutely furious! I mean, how can he do this to me? I totally understand why Papa is doing this, but he doesn’t know what is best for me! Only I do! He thinks he knows best! Sigh… I tried my best to change Papa's mind because he doesn’t look like someone I could live with. But you know Papa, he did not listen to me, and so I decided to run away. Can you believe it? I ran away! I am free!

And that is when my adventure begins...

I decided to board the plane to Europe for a quick shopping spree in Europe and at the same time to make my father worry for me. How dare my father asked me to marry that man? I decided to run away to Europe to have a quick shopping trip and at the same time to experience the culture and learn the history. However, just I was about to board a cab to the airport, a group of men in dark suit (Goodness! Look like they have seriously bad sense of fashion! Dark suits with bright red pants! I think I have to introduce them some fashion magazines!) dragged me into a van ( I think the brand is Mojojojo. What kind of brand is that?). And I was kidnapped. Initially I was afraid that they would harm me, however, I realized that they were not exactly brilliant. They treated me with respect and some of the kidnappers even offered to play cards with me to kill the boredom I was feeling then.

Leong San See Temple

Dear Diary!

They brought me to this temple that had an old Chinese gate called the Leong San See Gate (also known as the Mountain Gate) that was situated at the front of this private road that was originally built for the students of the Mee Toh School that was established by the Abbot of the temple in 1925.



I was not sure why my kidnappers kept telling me all these information but it was interesting anyway. Maybe they were trying not to scare me.

Anyway, from what they told me, the temple's name actually means Dragon Mountain Temple and was established in 1926 by Abbot Chun Wu. He brought with him only a Guan Yin (Goddess of Mercy) from China to Singapore and bought a plot of land in Race Course Road. I really admire him for his dedication to his religion! The temple was dedicated to Guan Yin. However when I entered the temple, I saw other statues as well as other interesting features of this temple:

The roof had dragons, chimeras, phoenix and flowers. There was this blazing pearl where two of the dragons positioned in a way in which both of them were facing it. The central roof has this ancient vase called the "Hu Hu", and instead of dragons, they are replaced by fishes in the same position. But the roof over the main altar in which the Guan Yin and the Sakyamuni Buddha, there is a five-tiered pagoda with dancing dragons on each side, representing happiness and longevity.

There was a Stone Bell and a White Tiger that displayed the suppression of the beast who bites people with a large stone bell according to legend. It was placed there for the Feng Shui of the temple and to protect its devotees from the White Tiger.

The Coming Buddha (Wei Lai Fo), also known as the Mattreya Bodhisattva had a smiling face that symbolises happiness. Who embodies carries the message that happiness resides within. He is the first deity we see when we enter the temple. According to my kidnappers, higher deities are placed inside so that it will be like a spiritual journey for the devotees who enter the temple.

The Guardian of Faith (Wei Tuo) is the statue that is placed facing into the temple, behind the Coming Buddha as it signifies how he guards the temple and protect its finances and the people going in and out of the temple.

What was so interesting was that there was a deity called the Goddess of Fertility that I saw on the left hand side. She was placed in a kind of shrine with little figurines, small and medium-sized in front and by her side. She was wearing this grand headdress and I was actually awed. She is the goddess that helps young couples who want to have children!

There was another shrine that had 2 statues, with Confucius on the left and the City Gods (Cheng Huang) on the right. To the Chinese, Confucius is a very wise and significant philosopher and hence, many students pray to him for good grades. He is also linked with ancestor worship as he advocated respect for elders and each other. The City God is the spiritual official of a city. In the same shrine, at the base of the statue, there are more of these City Gods and they are called altogether the ‘Ministry of Justice’ led by a ‘Cheng-Huang-in-chief’. They are worshipped for peace, prosperity or wealth and health.

There is a 100-year-old statue which is another Guardian of Faith between the two other statues in the shrine. It has been there since the temple was first established.

I think I have never come across such cute statues. They are called the ‘He He’ or the ‘Box of Harmony’ who are the patrons of marital bliss and family harmony. The two statues sit above the small donation box placed there. They are prayed to when people had fights, or who quarreled with their loved ones and wants to resolve the problem. They are really small and cute! They are like two little people in these two red bags and are smiling. When I went there, there were offerings of sweets and small tangerines.

How interesting!

There were also this Bell and Drum placed on the opposite sides of the inside of the temple. In the morning, there is a routine to ring the bell 108 times and then followed by beating the drum 3000 times. The routine is reversed in the night. The numbers are symbolic. 108 represents the 18 klesa (elements that lead to negative karma – eg. Disturbing passions, distresses, etc.) which are significant to the immoral state of all living beings. The bell and the drum had been in the temple ever since it was first built and is said to have been brought from China.

The Lamp of Seven Lights (Qi Xing Deng) are lighted for those praying for good health. It will be lighted on the first and the fifteenth of each month and for a week each time. The lamp is very interesting. It was not like anything I have seen before. The seven lamps seemed to what seems to be resting on lotus flowers and I see this common sight where the Goddess of Mercy is seen standing on a lotus flower. Lotus flowers seemed to be really symbolic to Buddhism!

On the left and right walls are the disciples and saints of Sakyamuni Buddha. They are called the 18 Arhats (Luo Han). They were initially followers of Brahmanism before their conversion to Buddhism. After that they went through the stages of the ‘Noble Path’ and overcome all temptation to become enlightened and attain Nirvana.

On the main altar is the statue of Goddess of Mercy, the deity that the temple is dedicated to, as well as Sakyumuni Buddha. The statue of Buddha is made out of white marble and it was crafted by an Italian sculptor! Wow! One would not expect that it would be a foreigner who would sculpt a Buddha. There are also 3 of shiny sacred relics about 15g that was encased within a glass shrine on the main altar. These relics were said to rise from the ground after 3 monks, Rev Tai Xu, Rev Hui Quan and Rev Zhuan Feng, from the same temple who went on a pilgrimage journey to India at Sakyamuni Buddha’s death site, prayed for several hours.

Western Paradise (Xi Fang Ji Le Shi Jie) is a shrine that is facing the Ancestral Worship Hall. It represents the rising of the ancestors to Paradise and placed there to comfort and gives hope and comfort to those who come to visit their loved ones who had moved on.

I was quite surprised to see a Four-Faced Buddha sitting at the top on the second level. It had a very strong image that gave off a very powerful feeling, as it sits on a ‘mountain’ that is mounted above ‘hell’. It had the symbolization of Heaven, Earth and Hell, as well as the suppression of evil. It was placed there to ward off evil forces.

As I stepped into the Ancestral Worship Hall, I felt very obligated to be respectful and also the atmosphere was rather solemn. There were all these tablets that belonged to the ancestors of the devotees as well as main altar houses tablets for deceased monks. One can purchase a place or public altars for a fee and it will go to the cost of the temple. There will be chanting every first and fifteenth day of the lunar month for the deceased monks and on the seventeenth day of the second, seventh and twelfth month for the others. On the tenth day of every month, there will be a prayer session and free vegetarian food will be served to the devotees.

(Information taken from: Leong San Buddhist Temple Infocard)

Outside of the temple.

Inside of the temple.

After exploring the temple for a while, I tried to approach the nuns that I saw in the temple to save me but I was held back and dragged to another location that was relatively nearby.

Sakya Muni Buddha Gaya Temple

Dear Diary!

I ended up in another temple. I guess these kidnappers were trying to delay time or something. Or maybe it is to redeem their sins for kidnapping me. HAHA!

Anyway, this temple was built in 1927 and the founder is a Thai Monk, Vutthisasara. The outer appearance of the temple is very unique compared to the previous temple we went. It has Chinese and Indian influences, with huge statues of tigers and so on. It also has strong Thai influences in architecture and décor.

On the inside, there is the 15 meter high statue of the seated Sakya Muni Buddha that weighed 300 tons, surrounded by many lights. These lights will be lit up in the evening, hence the temple acquired the name, the Temple of Thousand Lights. Other than the 15 meter Sakya Muni Buddha, there are other smaller Buddha images and murals depicting the life of Sakya Muni Buddha. The reclining Buddha is placed in a small room beneath the altar reflecting the end of his life under the Yellow Seraka. A huge replica of the Buddha’s footprint that was said to be the footprint of the Buddha himself was brought to this temple here from Sri Lanka. There is also a practice of the devotees to donate money to the temple to exchange for a golden leaf to place it on a small statue of the Reclining Buddha. It was also here that many people sought refuge during the Japanese Occupation as religious institutions were seldom attacked.

The inside of the temple did not seem really big as compared to the Leong San See temple. The most amazing thing is the 15 meter high statue that was placed there. The temple has something like a dome-shaped roof to accommodate this huge statue. From the design of the statue itself, I can tell that it has the influence of other cultures other than just the Chinese. If you compare a Chinese-styled Buddha and the one in this temple, they are rather different. But before I could really go in to explore, my kidnappers received a call and they dragged me to another place.

Sri Srinivasa Perumal Temple

Dear Diary!

I was brought to the Sri Srinivasa Perumal Temple where they met more people in dark suits. They seemed really excited to see the temple and I could see why. The outside of the temple, especially the Rajagopuram that laid on the top of the roof was spectacular. And when you go inside the temple, the statues and architecture were really exquisite. The kind of architectural style was more of a South Indian style, with all the deities and the colours, statues and the Rajagopuram itself.

This temple was originally known as Narasinga Perumal Temple and it was founded by Mr Arunachala Pillay, Mr Cootaperumal Pillay, Mr Ramasamy Pillay, Mr Appasamy Pillay, Mr Chockalingam Pillay, Mr Ramasamy Jamidar whom they worked closely with the East India Company and bought land to build the temple for Vaishnavite worship. The temple was established in 1885.

In 1894, Mr Moona Sithumbaram Pillay & Mr Vinasithamby Murugesu donated 25,792sq of land that they purchased to the temple. Then in 1912, Mohammedan Hindu Endowments Board (MHEB) added on 3422 sq ft. The temple was officially opened by President Yusof Bin Ishak in 1965.

At this point of time, many of the elders felt that the main deity of the temple should be changed from Sri Narashimha (Vishnu) to Sri Srinivasa Perumal, hence, the name of the temple was changed to Sri Srinivasa Perumal Temple.

The construction of the Rajagopuram was funded by the donation from the well-known philanthropist P Govindasamy Pillai and it was erected in 1979. The temple was finally declared a national monument in 1978.

Other than the majestic Rajagopuram, another part of the architecture, that I found was quite interesting, was this ceiling that had the carvings of the 12 horoscopes – Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, Virgo, Libra, Scorpio, Sagittarius, Capricorn, Aquarius and Pisces. I would not expect to see this in a Temple and let alone a Hindu temple. The horoscopes came from the Greeks so it was quite a sight when I saw it here in this temple.

But before I could figure out why the architect included this in, the kidnapper's phone rang again and after speaking a while to it, I was given the phone. A man in a deep voice answered, "I will meet you soon, my dear princess..."

I panicked and dropped the phone. Later, they brought me to the final destination where I will meet the mastermind.

Sri Veeramakaliamman Temple

Dear Diary!

The kidnappers told me I am going to Sri Veeramakaliamman Temple! They decided to tell me a bit about the history of the temple.

For instance, this temple was built by Indian pioneers who first came to work and live here. It was built in 1881. The design of this temple is a mixture of the North Indian design as well as the South Indian design. This is because many of the workers building this temple were the Hindus and the Bengalis! Fascinating isn’t it? And more interestingly, this temple is actually dedicated to a goddess, Sri Veeramakaliamman, the goddess of triumph over evil! There are so many things I didn’t know about this place! One more thing, the temple’s original name was Soonambu Kambam Kovil, temple at the lime village. This was because many Indians who attended the temple worked in lime kilns in the area.

Upon entering the temple, I saw a man dressed in royal attire. The mastermind behind my kidnapping was actually the prince of Little India that I was engaged to!

I struggled to set myself free but I was held on too tightly. "Bam!" Suddenly, my friends burst into the temple and fought with all the kidnappers. The prince was scared away by their vehemence and escaped from the temple. When all was over, I decided upon myself to get rid of the tyrannical prince for Little India. And hence that started my conquest of Little India.

Kerbau Road

We decided to start with Kerbau Road. “Kerbau”, which means buffalo in Malay, reflects that the main activity in the past on this road is related to cattle and buffalo trade. As buffalo is a scared animal for the Indians, the people who work in these slaughterhouses and stayed in Kerbau Road are Indian-Muslims. As cattle trade & slaughterhouses are along this street, the products on sale are mainly cattle and buffalo.

Imagine cattles and buffalos on the street walking alongside you. Isn't that cool?

Anyway, we found a note that says "Dear Princess, I know you're trying to take over Little India. Think it is so easy? Think again. First, you need to find my man at the House of Tan Teng Niah."

Oh no! Look like there is going to be a big fight!

Chinese Villa - House of Tan Teng Niah

When we reached, we saw the Prince’s Chinese Commander – Lee X Long outside a Chinese Villa situated at Number 37 Kerbau Road. He looked at us and exclaimed, "What! Women? I am a man of integrity! I don't fight with women! You are to go to Shree Lakshmi Narayan Temple!"

With that, he puffed angrily and stomped away!

That was easy! Great job, girls!

After Lee X Long went away, we had time to admire the beauty of the place.

Surprisingly, this Chinese villa is situated in the heart of little India. It is one of the area's last surviving Chinese villas. The villa was built in 1900 by Tan Teng Niah for his wife. Isn’t that sweet of him? Diary, how I wish I could marry someone like Tan who loves his wife so much! Tan was a Chinese businessman who owned a confectionery business and several sweet-making factories along Serangoon Road as well as a rubber smokehouse in Kerbau Road.

However, to our dismay, the House of Tan Teng Niah was under renovation when we were there. Therefore, we could not go inside The House of Tan Teng Niah.

The House of Tan Teng Niah is sealed for renovation purposes.

Still, from the outside of the villa, we managed to grasp a few of the elaborated patterns.

We noticed that the house is mainly decorated with floral patterns.

Even though the eight-room villa is newly coated with new bright colourful print, the villa still conserved its elaborate decorative features such as the carved swinging door ("pintu pagar")

Bamboo tiled roof

The courtyard

The gilded name plate with the calligraphic inscription “siew song” or Elegant Pine.

All these interesting features are hallmarks of a wealthy settler's abode.

Shree Lakshmi Narayan Temple

Dear Diary!

Our next destination was the Shree Lakshmi Narayan temple and there was nobody there! Apparently the bad guys heard of our coming and ran away! However, this temple is really unique in terms of architecture as compared to the other Hindu temples that we went.

It was in a red and pale pink coloured, rectangular building with a beehive-shaped tower called the Shikhara. This kind of architecture style is most commonly found in North Indian Hindu temples. Their gates as well is very different from the South Indian Hindu temples as they have the word “Oum” on it. The South Indian temples had a pathway into the main temple. However this North Indian temple does not have a pathway into the main temple where there were huge doors. The gate immediately leads into the temple. Unlike the South Indian temple, the inside of this temple was in an enclosed place. Hence, I think the North Indian styled temple like this one is more simple compared to the more elaborated South Indian Temples.

Before the 1960s, Indian immigrants from the North States of Uttar, Pradesh, Bihar, Punjab, Bengal and Gujarat arrived in Singapore. They started settling on the banks of Rochor Canal, Serangoon and the vicinity. Before the temple was built, these immigrants used to worship at the North Indian Hindu Association at Cuff Road. With the arrival of the 1960s came the establishment of the temple. The Indian community bought several residential units and converted it into the place of worship. It was declared open on the 24th April 1969. It hence became a sanctuary of the spiritual values and culture of Sanatan Darm and Vedic Hindu tradition until now.


Race Course Road

Dear Diary!

After the battle at the Shree Lakshmi Narayan Temple, we, four happy ladies, continued our journey to the Race Course Road.

I would say nothing much of the history is left after the development of the city. It is interesting to know that horse racing competitions actually took place in this small part of Little India. I never know that the people in the past can be so hippy! I mean racing! I wonder was there any cute, handsome racer like my beloved eye candy – Lewis Hamilton.

Check out the narrow roads.

It was said that in the early 1840s, Little India became a residential area for the Europeans as a result of the completion of the Race Course. Then, Race Course was a focal point for the community. Since the first 2-day race on 23 and 25 February 1842, the Europeans, dressed to their finest, would turn up at what is now Farrer Park. They would watch their countrymen compete on horses they had trained themselves. Oh, so after all, some practices could never change. Racing, be it cars or horses, is always a sports for the rich. That is so unfair! If I were to rule this Little India, I will open the race to all instead of only the rich!

While waiting for the road to be cleared, Shi Qin and Amanda decided to 'race'.

At the end of the road, there stood another man wearing the enemy's uniform. He was looking very scared, mumbled to Shi Qin and Amanda, "Go to Buffalo Road", and ran away.

Weird. Are we THAT scary?

Buffalo Road

Dear Diary!

So, we continue with our conquest at Buffalo Road.

A road called Buffalo! Amazing. Never have I thought that a road could name after an animal! But you know what? I think the stupid prince is after all, perhaps a clever one. I mean, do you know that there is a history behind this particular road?

Since the early 1840s, cattle trading were the main activity in this Buffalo Road area. As swamp is a must to rear cattle, cattle trading began to blossom due to its geographical location along the Serangoon River. In addition, the booming cattle trade also led to the rise of related economic activities. Other than just being sources of meat and milk, do you know that cattle used to serve as power sources for transportation and driving simple machines?

How I wish we could hop onto the cattle crates and travel down the road instead of walking and running under the burning hot sun! Cattle crates? Where are you?To my horror, I realize that in the early 20th century, the cattle trade began to die out as swamps which are essential to the rearing of cattle were drained to facilitate the building of roads and structures. No wonder I do not see any cattle at all. There go my tired feet. More walking and running…and fighting ahead!

Other than cattle trading, Buffalo Road used to have snake charmers, from Poona (near Bombay) performing along the road too! But again, I am disappointed. There isn’t any performance left now.


What I see now in Buffalo Road are just Chinese pawn shops, beauty salons offering facial threading, nail polishing, and massages. Even though much history was lost due to the development, the traditional Indian eyebrow threading – using just a yarn of string is conserved.

Dunlop Street

Dear Diary!

Seeing that no one was there to stop us, we walked on and found a street that was named after a Colonel! Originally, the name of the street was actually Rangasamy Road, before it was changed. Why was it changed, you may ask, but I don’t think I can answer that. What I can tell you is that as of the moment, it is still unsure as to whether the street was named after Colonel Samuel Dunlop, who served in Singapore as the Inspector-General of Police of the Straits Settlements in 1875 and as a member of the Municipal Commission in 1887, or A.E. Dunlop, Secretary of the Race Course Committee of the Serangoon area. Either way, the name of the street is now Dunlop Street.

As we were admiring the fresh vegetables that were on sale and discussing what we should have for dinner, someone tapped me on my shoulder. I turned around and saw this old wise man who said to me, "Princess, this is a challenge of the intellect. You now have to find a church, a church which name guides you when you are in the dark. Good Luck."

With that, he turned his back and walked away.

Church of True Light

Dear Diary!

With the hint that the old wise man gave, Wei Ting wipped out her trusty handphone, went online, and searched for the church!

The first hit was "Church of True Light".

So, off we went to the church!

This church has a story behind it. It was buit in 1952 at 25-G Perak Road for the Heng-Hua speaking Chinese in Singapore!

The church is quite helpful for the teenagers. They have helplines for pregnant women, services in Chinese and English.

As we were leaving the church, we saw the old wise man again.

"Very good, Princess. Your second clue is to find another place of worship, with the acronym AGM."

Abdul Gafoor Mosque

Dear Diary!

AGM! As I was still cracking my brain, thinking what AGM could be, Amanda shouted "its Abdul Gafoor Mosque! I know where the place is! Follow me!"

I am so lucky to have friends like this!

The mosque is at 41 Dunlop Street, S209369.

The name is quite unique. It was named after one of the men of the trustees of this mosque, Shaik Abdul Gafoor. So, the mosque’s name is Abdul Gafoor Mosque.

Can you believe that the construction started in 1907 and only part of it was completed in 1910 and it was only fully completed in 1927! Then the re-construction began in 2000 and was completed in 2003.

The two trustrees of the mosque, who were men, Ismail Mansor and Shaik Abdul Gafoor started the construction of the mosque. But Ismail Mansor died before the completion and so the mosque was named after the living founder.

The thing about this mosque that is so unique is its design. Did you know that architecturally, it has many different designs! Firstly, it has Moorish details. Secondly, it is modelled after Saracenic and Roman designs. Thirdly, many Western classical motifs are also used in the architectural decoration of the mosque. Fourthly, a number of pilasters and columns of Doric and Corinthian designs can be found at both the interior and exterior parts of the building.

And this mosque was made especially for the community consisting of Tamil-speaking Indian Muslims! Isn’t that interesting?

A little boy ran to us while we were deeply entranced with the design of the mosque.

I took the note, and it reads "My dear Princess. I am impressed. If you can find the information board on "The Shop of P. Govindasamy Pillai", I will let you have Little India. Signed, Your future husband."

Campbell Lane

Dear Diary!

With new vigour, we went down to Campbell Lane to find the information board.
There was a controversy as to who Campbell Lane was named after. Some said that it was named after a British military personality, Sir Colin Campbell (1792-1863). A Scottish field marshal, he was involved in several successful British military campaigns in the Far East, such as the Indian Mutiny and the Crimean War.

The second person who Campbell Lane could be named after was Robert Campbell, a member of the managing committee of the Public Library and Museum in Singapore in 1874.

During Hindu religious festivals, Campbell Lane will be bustling with activities. There was this one time that I visited Campbell Lane to buy Indian garments, jeweler, food, art, handicrafts, spices and carpets for Deepavali. The whole street was like a festival village!
There are so much things that one can buy here!

Interestingly, flower garland making is the oldest surviving trade on Campbell Lane today. The significance behind flower garland is one of showing respect to an individual or deity. Garlands are also given to the chief-guest or guests during functions, and placed on statues of deities as prayer offerings. Flowers also play an important role in the Indian way of life because it symbolizes prosperity. Flowers that were commonly used are jasmine, marigolds and roses to represent purity, peace and love respectively.

Look at the beautiful colourful garlands!

Moving on with our conquest, we had to find the information board on the "Shop of P. Govindasamy Pillai" because he was such a famous man!

Trouble trouble. We went around many times, but still failed to find the information board!

But luckily we found our savior!

This super nice uncle directed us in the correct direction!

After getting our directions, we proceed further down Campbell Lane to the side of Little India Arcade and finally found the information board!

The following text was found on the board.

“Affectionately known as PGP, P. Govindasamy Pillai epitomized the Singapore dream. He began his life in Singapore as a lowly immigrant but went to become the king of the textile industry, a social reformer and the philanthropist, and is now a local legend.

His rags-to-riches story began in 1905, when he arrived in Singapore with only 13 rupees in his hands. Unable to find a home, he lived off the charity of a generous Indian family. It took him a long time to find work, but he was eventually employed as an assistant in a sundry shop at 50 Serangoon Road. Finally, in 1929, he had got the opportunity to buy over the shop upon the owner’s death. With the aid of a bank loan, PGP embarked on a new retail career. Shortly after, he expanded the sundry business to include quality textiles and sarees, and soon became very successful. Not forgetting his humble beginnings, he always extended a generous hand to others. PGP helped out in many worthy causes, such as the establishment of the University of Malaya, the Gandhi Memorial Fund, the Ramakrishna Mission, Mount Alvernia Hospital and Sri Perumal Temple.”

PGP is indeed a legend! This is a great example of a man who has is humble even after he became rich and successful. He was a man who preserved through hardships and with good business mindset, made his money. Even when he became rich, he did not forget his humble beginnings, which could be the reason behind why he became a philanthropist. Perhaps, he thought of the kindness that he had received once, and therefore, extends his kindness in other in need like him in the past.

Other than the famous PGP, there is also the famous five-foot-way outside the shops in Campbell Lane! Is it really five-foot? Let us find out!




Hastings Road

Dear Diary!

Next on, we moved on to Hastings Road to continue with our conquest. Do you know that Hastings Road is named after Warren Hastings (1732 – 1818).

Now who was Warren Hastings?

I remember the story that Daddy told me. He came from a humble family and at age 24, began his career in East India Company as a writer. In 1761, he was appointed as an assistant to the President of the Council. Later on, he was nominated into the council and became a Governor of Bengal in 1772. He served as the Governor-General of British India. Popular with the Indians, he was fluent in Persian, Arabic and Bengali languages.

In 1818, Hastings appointed Sir Stamford Raffles as Agent and commissioned him to secure an agreement for British trade with Aceh. He also approved Raffles to establish a British trading post in Riau, Johore or some other point south of Malacca, so long as it will not bring EIC into conflict with the Dutch. This led to the founding of Singapore later on in 1819.

Anyway, we arrived here and it seems that the enemy had already abandoned this place!

Look at our happy faces!

That was easy. Hastings Road is conquered too!

Look, it is my hand!

Little India Arcade

Dear Diary!

Tired from the conquest, we decided to give ourselves a break at Little India Arcade.

Located at 48 Serangoon Road (S) 217959, the buildings here dates back to the 1913. That’s about 97 years!

Look! It even won an award by Urban Redevelopment Authority in 1996!

All the shop listings! Seems like you can find a large variety of items here! Check these out!

You can find anything Indian here!

We were hungry so we decided to satisfy our sweet tooth by trying out some Indian desserts!

Shi Qin and Amanda doing Henna tattoo. Pretty!

You can never put girls and shopping together.

On the building’s pillars, we found 2 interesting plaques. Written in Tamil, this plaque refers to our forefathers from Kerala and Tamil Nadu, who came here to work. On the plaque is an animal head representing a cow or buffalo, which is symbolizes the cattle trade activities in this area. This plaque dates back to 1826 to 1827! It implies that people who lived here in the past are mostly from Kerala and Tamil Nadu.

Located on the pillar between Campbell Lane and Serangoon Road, the second plaque dates back to 1828. Referring to the “burning ground” for the Hindu people of Madras and Singapore, it can be inferred that this place was once a burial or cremation ground for the Indians.

As we walked on, we saw this mysterious door that said "Office" on it. An Office in the middle of Little India Arcade? Sounds suspicious. So, we put on our adventure spirt and push open the door...

Lo and behold, these were what we saw!

Equipment used in the past by our forefathers.

Exhibits and explanations on items commonly used by the Indians.

Instruments that was played.

Yes, what was hidden behind those closed doors was actually the Cultural Corner! There were exhibits and explanation of some traditional Indian items, as well as photos depicting the past activities and lifestyle that people had in the past. What an insight!

I was so excited that we finally defeated our enemy at this historical place! There is no better place than this to end this whole conquest! Little India is now mine!

Tekka Market

Dear Diary!

Wan Ting with the Tekka Market.

We made our way to our last stop - Tekka Market.

Local Indian sweet desserts. They are sweet indeed!

While waiting for our food to arrive, we tried the local Indian sweet dessert...yummy!!!!!

Standing outside Tekka Market. VICTORY!!

Victory Celebration!! After numerous battles, we felt tired and hungry. Hence we went to the nearest food centre – Tekka Market to have our stomach filled and energy restored. It is a marvelous place. A food paradise I would say. The food ranged from Chinese food to Indian food.

A wide variety of food choices were available.

We were spoilt with choices. In the end, we decided to try out the Nasi Briyani. It tastes marvelous!

Nasi Briyani!

Amanda and Shi Qin with the Nasi Briyani.

Any idea what does 'Tekka' mean? ‘Tekka’ means Bamboo Clumps in Hokkien. Bamboo was once grown abundantly on the banks of Rochor Canal. Hence, when a market was built there in 1915, people named the market after this plant. The market was originally located across the street between Hastings Road and Sungei Road. It was torn down in 1982 and relocated across the street to its present site. It was renamed ZhuJiao Market. However, the residents felt strongly about the old name and felt that Tekka reflected the history of the place. Hence, in November 2000, the market was renamed as Tekka Market.

Even though we took one whole entire day to conquer Little India, we are happy that we won the battle and at the same time, I am proud to declare that we have a better understanding of the history of our new little state!