Less than 24 hours
Merlion, the symbol of Singapore
I love Singapore and have been using it as a stopover on the way to Europe for many years. Going to Europe the stopover tends to be less than 24 hours, my flight arrives in the afternoon and then I leave the next morning. On some stopovers I have stayed near the airport, others I go into central Singapore.
This stopover I had managed to get a great deal on staying at the Fullerton Hotel down by the Singapore river. It was the perfect location for a quick visit to Singapore. The location was the original trading area of Singapore and to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Singaporean independence a Jubilee Trail has been established. It's a walkway along the river with different statues displaying parts of Singaporean history.
Cavenagh Bridge
Right outside the hotel is the pedestrian Cavenagh Bridge, it's the only suspension bridge in Singapore and one of the oldest. The bridge was built in Glasgow in 1868 and then opened in Singapore in 1870. It linked the northern administrative area of Singapore to the southern commercial area of the river. There are tourist boats that take people along the river for a cruise, they begin upriver at Clarke Quay.
Just outside the Fullerton Hotel was the first of the history statues that I came across. This one showing traders bringing their goods to the river.
Anderson Bridge
Just up from the Cavenagh Bridge is another old bridge called Anderson Bridge, named (just like the Cavenagh Bridge) for a colonial governor. Trade flourished along the Singapore river and by the 1880s it was obvious that the Cavenagh Bridge couldn't cope with the cross river traffic and plans were put into place for a new vehicular bridge. The Anderson Bridge opened in 1910 and the Cavenagh Bridge was pedestrianised. Interesting little historical note I found was that during the Japanese occupation of Singapore in World War II, the hung the severed heads of criminals on the bridge to discourage crime! The Anderson Bridge is still used by vehicles but a new bridge that carries most of the traffic was built in the 1990s, two arches of the Esplanade Bridge can be seen in the background.
Fullerton Waterboat House
This interesting artdeco building was completed in 1919, it was built as a water house, to supply ships coming into Singapore with fresh water. It continued to supply fresh water to ships until 1990, it's been preserved as an historic building and houses bars and restaurants. The ground floor has a large Starbucks with a great view over to Marina Bay.
Marina Bay view from the Merlion
I was fortunate with the timing of my visit as the Merlion had been under restoration but the area had opened up before my visit and so there it was in all its glory. (Along with crowds of people, many trying to get that picture of them open mouthed to make it look like the merlion was spraying water into their mouths!)
The Merlion was used as an advertising ploy for Singapore and it's worked, the merlion is the mascot for Singapore. It's been moved a few times as its original position at the mouth of the Singapore river the merlion was obscured by the new Esplanade Bridge.This current location seems to be its new home and it has a promenade opposite (for that all important water sprouting photo!) and a great view over to Marina Bay.
I crossed over to the northern side of the river which was the administrative side of Singapore.
I saw this obelix shaped monument and thought that maybe it was a war memorial. Found the sign in English (also had ones in Chinese and Malay) that explained what it commemorated. According to the sign, the monument was erected by the European, Chinese and Native inhabitants in 1850 to commemorate the visit by the Marquis of Dalhousie, the Governor-General of India, who 'liberated' trade from all restraints. It opened up the settlement of Singapore to more wealth and opportunity.
Victoria Theatre and Concert Hall, with a clock that chimes the time.
The oldest part was built as a town hall in 1868, the newer Victoria Memorial Hall was built in 1901 to commemorate Queen Victoria who had just died. The central part with the clocktower was built later to join the two buildings together. Infront of the building is a statue of Sir Stanford Raffles, the founder of the Singapore settlement.
Another statue tableau illustrating life on the river with the Fullerton Hotel in the background. Originally known as the Fullerton building it housed the General Post Office and the Singapore Club. An exclusive club for European tycoons and British Civil servants, two floors had accomodation for the members.
The Singapore river area is a lovely one to explore, further upriver is the Clarke Quay restaurant and entertainment area. I recommend it to anyone who has a short stopover in Singapore and wants to do a bit of exploring on foot. There are various cafes and eateries down by the merlion if you want to take a break from walking around.
I love Singapore and have been using it as a stopover on the way to Europe for many years. Going to Europe the stopover tends to be less than 24 hours, my flight arrives in the afternoon and then I leave the next morning. On some stopovers I have stayed near the airport, others I go into central Singapore.
This stopover I had managed to get a great deal on staying at the Fullerton Hotel down by the Singapore river. It was the perfect location for a quick visit to Singapore. The location was the original trading area of Singapore and to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Singaporean independence a Jubilee Trail has been established. It's a walkway along the river with different statues displaying parts of Singaporean history.
Right outside the hotel is the pedestrian Cavenagh Bridge, it's the only suspension bridge in Singapore and one of the oldest. The bridge was built in Glasgow in 1868 and then opened in Singapore in 1870. It linked the northern administrative area of Singapore to the southern commercial area of the river. There are tourist boats that take people along the river for a cruise, they begin upriver at Clarke Quay.
Just outside the Fullerton Hotel was the first of the history statues that I came across. This one showing traders bringing their goods to the river.
Just up from the Cavenagh Bridge is another old bridge called Anderson Bridge, named (just like the Cavenagh Bridge) for a colonial governor. Trade flourished along the Singapore river and by the 1880s it was obvious that the Cavenagh Bridge couldn't cope with the cross river traffic and plans were put into place for a new vehicular bridge. The Anderson Bridge opened in 1910 and the Cavenagh Bridge was pedestrianised. Interesting little historical note I found was that during the Japanese occupation of Singapore in World War II, the hung the severed heads of criminals on the bridge to discourage crime! The Anderson Bridge is still used by vehicles but a new bridge that carries most of the traffic was built in the 1990s, two arches of the Esplanade Bridge can be seen in the background.
This interesting artdeco building was completed in 1919, it was built as a water house, to supply ships coming into Singapore with fresh water. It continued to supply fresh water to ships until 1990, it's been preserved as an historic building and houses bars and restaurants. The ground floor has a large Starbucks with a great view over to Marina Bay.
I was fortunate with the timing of my visit as the Merlion had been under restoration but the area had opened up before my visit and so there it was in all its glory. (Along with crowds of people, many trying to get that picture of them open mouthed to make it look like the merlion was spraying water into their mouths!)
The Merlion was used as an advertising ploy for Singapore and it's worked, the merlion is the mascot for Singapore. It's been moved a few times as its original position at the mouth of the Singapore river the merlion was obscured by the new Esplanade Bridge.This current location seems to be its new home and it has a promenade opposite (for that all important water sprouting photo!) and a great view over to Marina Bay.
I crossed over to the northern side of the river which was the administrative side of Singapore.
I saw this obelix shaped monument and thought that maybe it was a war memorial. Found the sign in English (also had ones in Chinese and Malay) that explained what it commemorated. According to the sign, the monument was erected by the European, Chinese and Native inhabitants in 1850 to commemorate the visit by the Marquis of Dalhousie, the Governor-General of India, who 'liberated' trade from all restraints. It opened up the settlement of Singapore to more wealth and opportunity.
The oldest part was built as a town hall in 1868, the newer Victoria Memorial Hall was built in 1901 to commemorate Queen Victoria who had just died. The central part with the clocktower was built later to join the two buildings together. Infront of the building is a statue of Sir Stanford Raffles, the founder of the Singapore settlement.
Another statue tableau illustrating life on the river with the Fullerton Hotel in the background. Originally known as the Fullerton building it housed the General Post Office and the Singapore Club. An exclusive club for European tycoons and British Civil servants, two floors had accomodation for the members.
The Singapore river area is a lovely one to explore, further upriver is the Clarke Quay restaurant and entertainment area. I recommend it to anyone who has a short stopover in Singapore and wants to do a bit of exploring on foot. There are various cafes and eateries down by the merlion if you want to take a break from walking around.
Comments
Post a Comment