Not too long ago I went on a bus route which, despite my frequent bus rides, I had never gone on before.
It wasn't that I hadn't seen these views before but that I hadn't seen them in such a way, such a mood, and such a time.
It isn't every day that I get to make a trip from Serangoon to Orchard via Stevens, see, but there was somewhere we needed to be at over at Serangoon this particular afternoon, so, yep, I got the opportunity.
Bus 105 from Serangoon begins at the bus interchange.
From its berth the bus makes a right onto what I think is Serangoon Avenue 3 and then, after going past Zhonghua Secondary School and Nanyang JC, it turns up at this stretch I like to refer to as Lorong Chuan.
Some people refer to the area as Braddell Heights.
For some reason I've always thought of it as Lorong Chuan.
This area is one of those places that people (generally) may not know very well. It's one of those areas that you either know, or you don't.
And you will, if you study at any of the schools here- St. Gabriel's and Australian International School included- or if you live in some of the houses/condominiums here.
The bus took me along the stretch, then turned out to the junction that leads to Braddell Road, the Comfort Delgro Depot, and the Central CTE Expressway.
After this junction the bus entered the estate of Toa Payoh, going down all the way before making a left, a right, then another left, after which you came upon this side of Toa Payoh.
It's a housing estate, yes- there are flats and shops and coffee shops, but there used to be some sort of a police department housed around here, and even now, whilst they've recently gone, a couple of office buildings and a self-storage space still remains.
The bus heads towards Toa Payoh Central after this, but not before going past what I think has to be one of the last few remaining one/two-room flats from Toa Payoh's earliest days here.
Bus 105 doesn't stop here, however.
Instead it heads towards a flyover- don't ask me its name- going past a couple of public housing blocks that overlook Balestier on the other side of the canal, then turns into Whitley.
It's a sort of a whirl here- I'm really not familiar with this entire section other than it being the area of Catholic Junior College- but right after that the bus enters the area most of us call Mount Pleasant.
Here I was in for a little surprise.
One that I have felt for quite some time, but have never really figured out why.
For us who don't know, Mount Pleasant is a zone that sits somewhat comfortably between the areas of Thomson, Toa Payoh, and Whitley. It is an area I've always felt to be a sort of connecting point between the Central part of Singapore (Toa Payoh) to the north (via the PIE) and to the South (through Stevens, and Thomson).
Offhand I don't remember the route very well, but there's a turn that leads you to the PIE (and to the countryside areas of the north), there's a turn that brings you to Stevens Road and Orchard Road, and if I'm not wrong, there's a turn that heads you off towards Upper Bukit Timah Road and the western part of Singapore.
There's something rather serene about this place.
Something that warrants interested persons a quiet look.
The funny thing is that I can't quite define it.
And I'm not sure if many of us can, either.
From here the bus made a turn- I don't know where- I stoned off- and all of a sudden I found myself traveling on Stevens Road going towards Orchard.
It would've been lovely if I were able to write stuff about Stevens Road, but I'm rather lost here.
Other than Singapore Chinese Girls' School, the former Raffles Girls' School, the new Mercure Hotel that sits near the junction of Balmoral, the Metropolitan YMCA (which has been around for the longest time), and all the condominiums, I know literally nothing about Stevens Road, and I won't go on further.
Maybe one day I'll know more about this road and its vibe- how it comes out (suddenly) onto Scotts Road near Claymore and the Goodwood Park Hotel, but I'll hold it back for now, and just say that I got down at Far East Plaza, and went towards Orchard where I intended to be.