The Little India Stroll

It was a clear, blue sky type of day when I decided I wanted to take a bit of a walk around the enclave of Little India.  

For context, the enclave that Singapore calls Little India begins from the iconic HDB block above Tekka Market at Serangoon Road and continues down all the way until somewhere around where the junction hits Lavender Street. 

On either side, the enclave stretches towards Race Course Road on the northwest side and Jalan Besar on the southeast side. 

So, yes, like how Google Maps tells me, it is a big enclave. 

Coming here this afternoon, I had hoped to be able to visit the Indian Heritage Center, and maybe walk a bit down Serangoon Road towards the Mustafa side. 

But time is a thing that one has limit of, so I decided it a better idea to wander along the streets and lanes of the enclave instead.

At first I had not known where to begin, but then Campbell Lane, with her bazaar-style stalls and culture-rich shops, beckoned, so in from the main thoroughfare from Serangoon Road I went. 

Going past one of the first few stalls, I suddenly thought of a friend who had, about a decade ago, brought me to one of the shops here before. A person familiar with the prayer rituals of the Hindu faith, she had happily shown me the many sizes of clay pots, the many scents of incense sticks that anybody could buy and burn at home, and those little cone-shaped scent pieces that you put on a burner and lit for your chosen scent. 

I didn't get to go into the shops today. 

Maybe I was shy. 

Instead I just wandered along Campbell Lane itself, going past (perhaps) Dhana's Arts & Flowers and Jothi Flower Shop on the other side.

The first thing about this stretch that struck me were the aesthetics and the colors. This street is very, very colorful. 

I don't just mean the trinkets, hanging decorative items, prayer items, fabric decor, or the little everyday woven items that speak of India's canvas of fabrics and colors. 

I also mean the beautiful array of floral blooms, enhanced by the delicate fragrance of fresh jasmine flowers strung into garlands wafting through the air. 

These flowers make a unique, distinctive presence here in Little India. 

I don't think there are that many enclaves here in this country that have fresh flowers or fresh fruits at the front looking out to pedestrians and passers-by. 

On the same stretch too there were stalls offering batik-style clothes in the form of skirts, tops, pants, scarves, even relaxed shorts. 

The colors were gorgeous, full of vibrancy and life, a definite attraction to visitors looking to splash bright, cheerful colors into their lives. At one time I would most certainly have gone in to browse, but not today. There were roads I wanted to walk on, things I felt I wanted to see. 

Out from Campbell Lane now and onto Clive Street I went.

Directly opposite me was Chola Cafe (Google Maps tells me it serves briyani), and to my left was Madras Bakery. 

Special mention must be made about Madras Bakery. 

At first glance they don't seem like a bakery anyone would take notice of, but they have at least two outlets I've seen- one here, one on the main road close to the junction of Rochor and Jalan Besar, and may I say, they carry some of the most specialized bakes I have seen this side of town. 

I mean, we are all familiar with bread and pastries and everything, yes, but this one has a strong South Indian touch. I wish I could tell you exactly what it is they offer, but Google seems to be lacking in reference, I don't want to go to Tiktok or other, and so, based on my memory, besides all kinds of tea, chai and masala teas, there were puffs, pastries, cookies, sweets, and cakes. 

For the sweets, there was a huge variety of Laddu. Little balls of dough with a variety of flavors sat neatly arranged on their respective trays. There was also gulab jamun on the menu. If I'm not wrong, on one tray there were pieces of bright vermillion jelebi stacked up one upon each other, and then there were other sweets also all neatly arranged for you to choose and buy.

I don't remember much of the pastries. 

They were quite big- that's the only impression I have of them. 

But the cakes at Madras Bakery- that's another different story. It is so seldom, I tell you, that I see cakes sliced so thick, with so much filling between the sponge, and a generous spread of cream on top. 

Gave me a very homely feeling just looking at them. 

Also had me wondering if this were how the bakeries and cafes over in Madras (now Chennai) were; if this place had been designed to have a genuine touch of home. 

From this junction of Clive and Campbell, I went ahead to the same Campbell Lane on the other side of the road. 

I wasn't looking for anything in particular.

Whatever there was, there would be. 

As it turned out there was quite a fair bit to look at. 

You know how there are some places that appear to be chaotic at first look but somehow get straightened out after a while? 

That's how it was here. 

At first glance the five foot way seemed messy, haphazard, but after a moment, I bean to realize that it wasn't either. 

It was used.

Yes, there might be flattened cardboard boxes trampled all over the road close to the drain, but it meant that there were products and fresh produce on the shelves of the grocery store. It meant that someone had unpacked them from inventory, sorted them, counted them, arranged them, and made them ready for customers to buy. 

I didn't stop to see how the products and produce of this shop looked like. 

But the shop opposite was a different matter.

So bright, fresh, colorful, and enticing were all these veggies arranged that I asked permission to take a picture. 

We always celebrate the mom-and-pop grocery stores in county towns and villages in this place and that.

Why should they be any different here?

No doubt, there are the spices of masala, star anise, cardamom, curry, saffron, and a host of other spices which no one else can easily replicate, but a tomato is a tomato, isn't it? In the same way, is not an eggplant an eggplant? Is not a red onion a red onion the same way a long bean is a long bean? Is a lime sold here in the basket by the side of Campbell Lane any different from a lime sold in a stall at the wet market elsewhere? 

No. 

It doesn't mean that just because you can't taste the flavor of an onion means that there is no onion. 

It just means you learn to appreciate all the other flavors that life gives you as well. 

By this time I had walked past the Aarya Pure Vegetarian Restaurant and taken another picture of the Madras Bakery (with the Indian Heritage Center in the background). 

From here on though, the route becomes somewhat blurry. 

If I'm not wrong I went on to the junction of Campbell and Madras Street, where at this spot I took a lovely picture of The Daulat (hotel) with the Tekka Place multi-storey carpark standing tall at the end of the road. 

Here, I think I walked back on Madras Street, where, on a whim, I decided to take a picture of The Great Madras Hotel. 

The architecture of both hotels was beautiful. 

I don't have the expertise to properly describe the design and architecture of both hotels but The Daulat had two beautiful balconies on their upper floors. I was especially charmed by the architecture. It made me think of apartments in Europe. 

Then there was The Great Madras Hotel with her Art Deco balconies, the likes of which we don't see a lot around town anymore, save for the neighborhoods of Tiong Bahru and a few others here and there. 

I sometimes wonder if the rooms in these hotels actually do open out to the road, and if guests come out to look down onto the road below them. 

I stayed on this road a little while, then made my way onto Dunlop Street. 

This side of Little India I know literally nothing. 

So imagine my surprise when the not-so-new building of Singapore Aftercare Association turned up right in front of me. Apparently this building, and this association had been here for quite a good while. 

I kept on walking straight down Dunlop Street until I got to Perak Road. 

Here I managed to get a picture of this very colorful row of shop houses where Bismillah Briyani marked the first, Mehfill Mitra Di Bar and Restaurant, then Bhai Briyani slightly further down. 

You didn't notice so much how colorful this entire row was when you stood there at the junction, but a little while more and you saw how some of the window shutters had been painted yellow whilst others stayed their shades of blue and red. What's more, there was a bit of a whimsical art mural painted this side wall of the shop house. 

From here I decided to walk a bit further down Perak Road, going towards Upper Weld Road, and the HDB blocks of Veerasamy Road. 

I had, after all, not come here before- and I wanted to see what structures and establishments there were here. 

A short walk away from Bismillah Briyani stood the Church of the True Light- with a lorry belonging to a Construction & Engineering company parked right in front of it. By the way, this church building has a design that I know I have seen in pictures somewhere (I'm not sure where) but definitely there is a bit of resemblance to other church sanctuaries elsewhere in the world. 

I didn't walk down the entire length of Perak Road (I am familiar with the HDB blocks) so I turned right onto Dickson Road instead. 

Here there was a capsule hotel, the Thirumana Biryani restaurant on one side, and a hotel on the other side. On the surface, this side of Dickson Road looks like there isn't much to see, but there is a weight-loss center here, a few rooftop bars, and right at the junction with Jalan Besar, a coffee shop offering chicken rice and prawn noodles. 

Onto Jalan Besar I went, then turned back down into Dunlop Street where my feet passed by The Malayan Council, Masjid Abdul Gafoor mosque diagonally opposite, then Al Hussain Restaurant back on the same side as Bhai Briyani- on the opposite side of the mosque's gates. 

From here I made a left back onto Perak Road, where the whitewashed building of the former Perak Hotel beckoned me. The name of the hotel stands proud, but I think the property is undergoing some kind of renovation, so it's closed. 

Pity, I had hoped to go into the lobby and appreciate the interiors. 

If you're wondering why I am curious, well, we don't see such architecture very much anymore here on the island anymore, do we? There is a bit of a classic old-town vibe about this building, actually, although I can't quite pinpoint just where. 

Maybe it is in the neatly painted walls with the little spaced out neat windows opening out onto the road. 

Maybe it is in the peacock blue of the window shutters. 

I can't tell.

Perhaps the hotel will be refurbished the next time I come back to Little India for a stroll. I'm quite sure I'll be back. There are some other areas I am curious about and wish to see. 

Hopefully it will be soon. 

Bus Ride Sights: Marine Parade-Bedok

It is kind of interesting, but I have a surprisingly large number of pictures for what is actually a relatively short bus ride. 

Guess Chonkycam decided to work a bit overtime today. 

Maybe she was charmed by the daytime light, which for today was exceptionally good. 

The bus ride began from the bus stop opposite Parkway Parade. 

Here the bus first went along Marine Parade Road, going past the first junction that separates Marine Parade Central and Joo Chiat Road. Here the blocks of 72/74 always stand out- not so much for their corridors- but for their brightness of sea blue. 

The bus went onto the next stretch, going past the 4-room flat point blocks of 72 and 71, then what will be the new Marine Parade Community Library.

The junction of Still Road comes up after, diagonally opposite which is Tao Nan School. I am glad to have gotten a rather good shot of the school. It isn't every day that the bus stops in a spot at a traffic light where I can. 

Further on came Marine Crescent, and Blk 47. At another season of life, this block would have been just another block that the bus passed by, no significance whatsoever. But there is a 24 hour laundromat at the void deck of this block, where, in this season, we have been doing 20kg worth of laundry. 

The bus now made a right into Marine Crescent, going past the main gate of Tao Nan School, then a left past the blocks of 34 and 45, and turning onto Marine Terrace. 

I don't have much pictures of the blocks here. 

I also don't know which block stands at where.

But the bus made a right out onto Marine Parade Road, where from the window I got a view of what I think is Block 57, with an exit of Marine Terrace MRT Station in front. 

Here the bus went on, going past CHIJ Katong Convent and Victoria College before approaching Neptune Court. Up till now I had not noticed that this particular HUDC had an exterior painted of earthy red brick and bright off-white yellow, contrasting sharply with the light blue and white condominium of Mandarin Gardens just in front. 

Another school came up ahead- the Victoria School this time- which I took no pictures- and then the bus went past the other blue and white painted HUDC property of Laguna Park. 

I had come to this condominium many years ago, so I have a somewhat vague memory of how their apartments look like. 

I can't say if those memories are pleasant. 

I can only say that they existed sometime in my life, and that is not going to change. 

Back then I had not known that Laguna Park sat right next to the waterway canal leading up to East Coast Park, or that one of the blocks here houses the Bedok Lighthouse- the only working lighthouse serving the Eastern waters this side of the island. 

But I know now. 

Google Maps tells me. 

Google Maps also tells me that this junction marks the easternmost end of Marine Parade Road. 

From here on, the bus departs the Marine Parade side of territory and enters into the Bedok heartland. 

Before that, however, there is Bayshore, with her walls painted a shade of creamy off-white yellow and her windows a dark tint of black. 

On Bedok South Avenue 1, the bus passed by the condominiums of Laguna Green, then Eastern Lagoon I, and Casafina. 

At first feel, the presence of these condos don't seem much, but it is somewhere around here that the atmosphere between Marine Parade and East Coast changes where it slowly guides you into the distinctive rustic, kampong-like feels of Bedok, Tanah Merah and Changi beyond. 

The feel of Tanah Merah and Changi doesn't actually begin from this spot here, but the hints are there, and the hints begin to come off strong. 

From here, after trundling down almost the whole length of Bedok South Avenue 1, the bus made a left onto Bedok South Road, going past a host of industrial factories housing the Japanese companies of NCS, Fujitec, Yokogawa, and Panasonic. 

The bus ride ended not too long after here. 

Right in front of the Panasonic factory stood the huge complex of Bedok Mall, with her apartments rising above her. The bus first went up a small stretch of Bedok North Avenue 1, then made a right, straight into the Bus interchange.