Singapore 

History

Way back in the 19th Century, Sir Stamford Raffles had a vision for a multicultural Singapore, integrating diverse immigrant communities into one economy while creating separate ethnic neighbourhoods within which they all live. The Historic District was the centre of the colonial administration, Chinatown was the heart of the sea trade, Little India was the home of the Indian commercial activities, and Kampong Glam was the focus of Islam and Malay royalty. These neighbourhoods were made official in his Town Plan of 1822, and amazingly enough,  still stand today.

Raffles Chose Singapore because:-

How Singapore Came Under British Rule

  1. 1    On the 28th of Jan 1819, Raffles with his British fleet reached St. John�s Island.
  2. 2    On the 29th of Jan 1819, Raffles and Farquhar reached Singapore. They went to see the Temenggong, the chief of this island. Raffles asked permission from the Temenggong to setup a British settlement here.
  3. 3    The Temenggong was willing to do that but he did not have the power to give Raffles Sultan of Johor (Malaya), Tengku Hussein, permission. Raffles then seek the Sultan for help.
  4. 4    On the 6th of Feb 1819, Raffles set up a tent at the Padang and made Tengku Hussein the new Sultan of Johor. The Sultan and Temenggong signed a treaty with British, which allowed British to setup a settlement on the island, and in return, both Sultan and Temenggong would receive a big sum of money from the British every year.

The short flag-raising ceremony marked the founding of the modern Singapore. Raffles left Singapore after signing the treaty.

He put William Farquhar in charge of the development of the settlement. Farquhar had to start everything from scratch.

Here are some of the problems that Farquhar encountered and the solutions for them:

Problem: Not many people knew about the settlement in Singapore. Farquhar had to get the traders from the places nearby to come to Singapore and trade.

Solution: He invited the immigrants from Malacca to come and trade and stationed an office at St. John�s Island to inform the trading ships passing by about the settlement in Singapore

Problem: The island was short of building materials, food, tools and other necessities

Solution: Farquhar ordered his men to go to Malacca and bring some food back. The traders in Singapore also brought some of the necessities here

Problem: There were pests like centipedes and rats all over the island. These pests hurt some people. The rats also destroyed the food supplies. Tigers were also a threat to the               people here.

Solution: Rewards were given to those people who killed these pests.

Problem: Crimes like robbing and fighting often occurred.

Merlion

The Merlion is Singapore's half-lion, half-fish national symbol. The lion represents Singapore's roots as the "Lion City", while the fish represents Singapore's close ties to the sea

 

Concorde Hotel

The hotel was a little out of the way maybe, but everything can be reached by taxis and they really are not that expensive. The hotel boasts a fine restaurant, swimming pool and a fitness centre. You have everything in this hotel to make your stay very pleasant and the staff were always helpful towards us. We were impressed with the lifts, they were a joy to ride, they gave views of inside the hotel.

 

 

Clarke Quay

This is the largest waterfront development, Clarke Quay was originally named for the second governor of Singapore, Sir Andrew Clarke. In the 1880's, a pineapple cannery, iron foundry and numerous warehouses made this area bustle. Today with most of the warehouses restored it is a major tourist attraction, offering restaurants with a wide variety, shopping is made easy here with its vast array of shops.

Sentosa

You have two ways to travel to Sentosa one is by car or taxi and the other is the way we visited Sentosa and that was by cable car.  The view going across the river to Sentosa is wonderful and definitely the best way to visit this island.

We purchased a ticket that gave us entry into Sentosa via cable car, and also  to visit the exhibition called 'Images of Singapore'  This was without a doubt one of the main reasons to visit Sentosa. Images of Singapore uses life-sized figures, rare artifacts and state-of-art technology to bring you a combination of realistic sights, sounds and smells of the Singapore of the past. 

You walk into the world of immigrants and run into Sir Stamford Raffles. You will witness the fall of Singapore and even find yourself in the midst of a Peranakan wedding! haha! A lot  has gone into this exhibition so I would highly recommend it.

There are three parts to the museum/exhibit, the Pioneers of Singapore,  the Surrender Chambers, and the Festivals of Singapore. Pioneers of Singapore is an exhibit showing the pioneers of Singapore, Sir Stamford Raffles, Tan Tock Seng, and Naraina Pillai and others  and depicts scenes from the daily routines of the different cultures as they lived during colonial times. It's a great stroll that brings history to life with commentaries and life-size figures.

Orchard Road is a must for the shoppers, here  you will find shopping malls, restaurants and pubs.

IF you would like to see some more of our photos of Singapore click here

 

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