Pam's Reflection

What was your impression of Singapore history and cultural heritage before going on the trail?

I’ve been a history student since I was 13 and studying about Singapore’s history was always part of it. However, my impression of Singapore’s history did change over the years. Like many others, I started by memorising dates and events from the textbook. With that, I thought that I had a clear understanding of the journey of our young nation. As a historian-to-be, I realised that growing up, I have been exposed to only the dominant history. It emphasised a lot on the road the independence and our transformation from a “sleepy fishing village” to the modern city today.

On the other hand, cultural studies were not emphasised as much in school and I did not take it upon myself to read up more about my own culture, let alone other cultures in Singapore. With so many diverse cultural practices in Singapore, it can be quite overwhelming. Even though it is still a work in progress, I am glad that Singaporeans practice mutual-respect and tolerance towards one another.

How has your experience of the trail changed your perception of Singapore history and her cultural heritage?

Big roads, smaller streets and lanes along the trail diverged and brought us to places of worship, markets and more unassuming places of interests. We took our time to explore the area after planning our route. Individually watched the people around us and shared our observations. When we chanced upon any information boards, we would read them and they left us all in awe. Every road, every building, every temple had something waiting to be discovered by people like us. It is hard to believe that many still think that our young nation has no history. Moreover, Little India is only a small area of our country. Just by looking up on all the road names, it would already give us an insight to our past. Learning more about Singapore’s history should go beyond memorising facts from textbooks and our history is definitely more than being a “sleepy fishing village” or the road to independence.

Share some insights (if any) about Singapore’s past and the way it is represented (symbolically and physically) that you have gained from the trail.

During the trail, we read a lot about the conserved places of worship as they each came with an information board. It was definitely interesting to find out about their humble beginnings and the noble acts of some of their founders. Whether it was out of faith, education or healthcare, we learnt that many of what we take for granted today are what the pioneers fought for.

I was also intrigued by the various road or street names. Buffalo Road, Kerbau Road, Hastings Road, Campbell Lane, Dunlop Street, Race Course Road… Without information boards, these pushed us a little further as we had to find out more about them from other sources. While I can no longer imagine having buffaloes or horses on our roads, it gives us a clearer picture of the economic activities and forms of entertainment in the past. Some of these roads were also named after people of significance. It was also interesting to know that one particular road or street could have been named after two different people (Campbell Lane, Dunlop Street).

I feel that these stories from the past deserve more than that and more Singaporeans should be more aware of our surroundings. Perhaps probing questions like could be placed below these road signs to encourage locals to find out more, just like what this trail has done for us. 

Sometimes, history is really about the little things.

What does the presence of religious places of worship for different communities in an area usually associated with one ethnic community in Singapore suggest about life in the past and present?

Perhaps without a common language, communities in the past were a lot more segregated. The segregation of communities did allow certain degree of freedom as communities could therefore stand for what they believed in. I infer that most communities kept to themselves and fought for their own survival in their own ways. With regards to religion, the people in a community had to depend on one another to ensure that they had a place and time to practice their faith. For example, the Church of True Light started with a small group of Chinese students with common beliefs. Similarly, the Abdul Gafoor Mosque was built to serve one main community – Tamil Muslim immigrants who traded around the area.

Unlike the past, the various communities now integrate with one another as Singaporeans cross paths every day, whether within a housing estate or at work. Today, these places of worship continue to serve the communities that started them but are no longer exclusive. That is to say that a Tamil speaking Muslim need not travel all the way to Little India to pray at a specific mosque. Instead, he or she may pray at any mosque in Singapore. With the freedom to practice various religions in Singapore, more places of worship have been established all around the island to serve anyone from any community. Many of us take this for granted and like what our Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong recently said, it is indeed “dangerous if Singaporeans are lulled into thinking that racial and religious harmony come naturally”.

Look at the architectural styles. How different are the buildings and what do the styles suggest to you in terms of the ages of the buildings, the conservation process etc?

The architecture of the Chinese villa amongst the rows of shophouses really caught my eye. Even though I am aware that I was probably attracted to the colours, I was quite disappointed to know that it was originally painted white with a green roof. Perhaps the restoration efforts and conservation process took into account the need to create an aesthetically pleasing monument to gain attention. In my opinion, the unique roof, doors and tiny details along the wooden windows would have been enough and I wished that we conserved more of such old houses. Over the years, we removed many places that should have been conserved – the old national theatre, nation library, the new world amusement park and even Bukit Brown, just to name a few. It might sound like a romanticised idea but we might be quite unsympathetic about our past in some ways.

Along the trail, consider how significant, historically, are the sites that have been chosen for conservation? Do you think the sites serve their purpose of educating the general public about the history of Singapore?

We learnt this semester that history is about selection. The Urban Redevelopment Authority demarcates the heritage districts and has the power to decide what deserves to be conserved. As mentioned above, these places are conserved because they played a part in nation building. Information boards are available, in four different languages, to educate locals and tourists. On top of that, one can also discover more about the history of Singapore by going on a heritage trail provided by URA. There is just that much they can do and we should be responsible of our own learning.

At the end of the trail, did you come away with the feeling that you have learnt something or you just carried out a tourist jaunt around an area of no historical significance whatsoever?

Little India is a tourist attraction after all. For example, the Little India Arcade felt very “gimmicky”. We saw overpriced souvenirs and experienced touting. We even came across unfriendly shopkeepers who thought we were tourists just because we walked around with cameras. I was so annoyed that I deleted the footage I had recorded for our video immediately just to stop him from shouting at me.

However, as locals we dug deeper and ventured further. I was surprised to see more than Hindu temples within Little India. Beyond the trail, they were also Chinese provision stores, an art district and even a museum. Even if it seems superficial, it would be very strange to say that I left without feeling that I learnt anything.

Moving forward as a student-teacher…

Teaching children about the past can be tricky. I remember going on learning journeys as a child, but the only thing that I remember about my Kampong Glam trip was buying peacock feathers. During practicum, I found it very challenging to help pupils understand why the whole nation was grieving when Mr Lee Kuan Yew passed on. As teachers, the constant challenge will always be the inability to bridge the present and the past. 

I would love to work on a learning journey that encourages pupils to discover the stories behind the road names within Little India. However, I find that near impossible due to the nature of the area. Traffic is heavy even on weekdays with small pedestrian walkways. It will also be a challenge to lead a whole class of children to cross road after road or to walk through the lanes of shophouses that are usually cluttered with items for sale. 

I would instead incorporate collaborative strategies and conduct an engaging lesson in the classroom. Students can work in groups to find out the history behind various road names and share them with their classmates. They can also make use of online sources to compare the appearance of these roads. Finally, I would encourage them to visit Little India with their families during their own time and come back to school to share what they have observed.