Track back your footsteps at the newly revamped Chinatown Heritage Centre. Experiencing the early year of Chinatown in a three-storey exhibition that takes you to a different time in history, filled with interactive technology, insightful videos and descriptions of Singapore’s heritage.
Thank you Singapore Tourism Board for the invitation to the opening of the revamped Chinatown Heritage Centre in last February. Hence in this article, all photographed were shot using the SONY A7Rii, a perfect and lightweight Mirrorless camera for low-light condition.
The opening kicks off with the two brilliant hosts “travelled” from the 1950s. The proper traditional way of shop opening was carried out whereby the onsite audiences have to roll a pineapple into the shop to bring in good fortune and prosperity.
New visitor guide was introduced at the Chinatown Heritage Centre whereby visitors can now navigate the interior with the help of this little gadget that provides more-in-depth stories about life in the 1950s shophouse as well as the people who contributed stories to shape the gallery. Without further ado, let’s check out the 25 valuable things you can see at the revamped Chinatown Heritage Centre.
1. Tailor Shop
visitors begins their journey with the story of the Tailor and his interactions with his apprentices and family. Visitors are completely immersed in an authentic recreation of a tailor shop, typical of those that used to line Pagoda Street during the 1950s – 1980s.
2. Living Cubicles
Ambient soundscapes and audio conversations offer a glimpse of the neighbourly goodwill, and also of the occasional skirmish that might ensue in such overcrowded living conditions.
Visitors can now step into selected living cubicles and experience first-hand what cramped living conditions were like, gaining a deeper appreciation for the resourcefulness, resilience, and sense of community that came with communal living.
3. The Olden Days Toilet
Well, you have ever wondered how people do their daily business in this small filthy toilet during the olden days. I guess Chinatown Heritage Centre will give you an unforgettable experience. Good luck!
4. Experience the Family of Eight
The former Painter’s Cubicle that gave a glimpse of a typical family life in the shophouse is updated to feature a different family – the Kong family who used to live at 48 Pagoda Street, the exact shophouse in which part of the Centre is now housed in.
5. Clog Maker
The Clog Maker’s Cubicle is refreshed based on archival accounts to focus on life of a typical family involved with the trade – the father sold clogs, customised to occasion, whilst his wife sought to make ends meet through other means, such as harvesting tobacco remnants from discarded cigarette butts, to be rolled into new cigarettes.
6. Rats in the House!
In the past, the living space is very limited. Either a room of 4 or 8, some living creatures we cannot stop them from coming in. This is a good scenario example showing the rat running around the house searching for foods. Luckily life changes nowadays ~!
7. Retro Chinese Chess
This is something retro and interesting found in Chinatown Heritage Centre. I believe this game is very hot in the past especially among the elderly.
8. Physician’s Family
Formerly known as the Seamstress Cubicle, the cubicle is renamed the Physician’s Family Cubicle, focusing on the story inspired by writer Wu Si Jing’s father. Si Jing lived in a shophouse at the junction of Pagoda and Trengganu Streets between the early 1940s to 1950s, and documented her Chinatown experience in books Lotus from the mud: I was a majie’s foster daughter and Down Memory Lane In Clogs – Growing Up In Chinatown.
9. The Clifford Pier
This gallery chronicles the journey of Chinese immigrants and capture some of the defining stories and moments in the long and perilous journey to Singapore. Through an immersive multimedia show featuring animations and sound and lighting effects, visitors are momentarily taken through the hellish journey these passengers endured in hopes of a brighter future. The rest of this gallery explores the different world these early immigrants soon found themselves in upon arrival.
10. The Salve Work
Life was tough in the past. People work hard to earn money for family. Chinatown Heritage Centre will allow you to experience the “amount of work load” that you need to carry.
11. Singapore One Dollar Note
I believe most of the youngster had never seen the past Singapore One Dollar Note before. Chinatown Heritage Centre is a good opportunity for you to explore the past and present valuable items produce and found in Singapore.
12. Tay Koh Yat Bus Tickets
Have you seen the Singapore first bus tickets before? Well, this was my first time seeing it too!
13. Drugs in the Early Days
Having survived the hellish journey to Singapore, not all was rosy as many had hoped. In this gallery, visitors will get to explore where the migrants settled in different parts of Chinatown, the customs they brought along, and the often harsh conditions in which they eked out a living. Today, let’s have a closer look at the opium addictions happened in the olden days.
14. Search of Fortune
Visitors will also be treated to a multi-sensory and interactive experience as they peek into the hidden world of old Chinatown to discover how poor migrants impoverished themselves further through gambling and opium addictions, and the vice industries associated with secret societies.
15. Retro Tiger Beer Poster
Something you definitely won’t miss along the gallery walk way at level 3!
16. The Library
This gallery showcase a series of past heritage shop and living cultures at the heart of Chinatown street market held in the 1960s. I am glad that I am explored and learn the Singapore culture along the way in the Chinatown Heritage Centre. Thus, this photo represents the library in the street market of Chinatown.
17. Famous Tong Heng Egg Tarts
Chinatown favourite had its beginning in a pushcart selling coffee and toast, by its founder, Fong Chee Heng, who arrived in Singapore from Guangdong in the early 1900s. As years passed, Fong saved up enough to start a coffee shop at Smith Street in the 1930s. He created and improvised traditional recipes to turn out delectable pastries and desserts. The business, which later move to south bridge road, was aptly named Tong Heng, or ‘Prosperity of the East’.
18. Nightlife of Chinatown
Attention will shift from the hustle and bustle of a busy street market scene to the evening glow and night time entertainment, featuring prolific entertainment venues of the past, such as Tai Thong Restaurant, Southern Hotel, and Lai Chun Yuen. Visitors will be immersed in a multimedia projection show offering a glimpse of how the various iconic festivals to Chinatown, such as the Seven Sisters Festival and Theemithi, were typically celebrated.
19. Barber shop
20. Cartoon Machine
From the price range of 5 cents to 20 cents, kids in the past share their money to watch the animated cartoon through the coin machine.
21. The Calligraphy
Come and learn how to write a perfect calligraphy. Oh wait! You can’t really learn how to write but the Chinatown Heritage Centre will tell you why calligraphy skills are famous in the past. Good photography opportunity for everyone here!
22. Singapore Living Culture in the 1960s
In the Chinatown Heritage Centre, it will show you the change of living lifestyle from 1950s to 1960s in Singapore.
23. Death House
Ending off on a sombre note, the final section of the gallery talks about Sago Lane and the death houses, once commonly associated with Chinatown before they were banned in 1961. Here, visitors explore the subjects of funeral parlours, processions, and paraphernalia, while immersed in a haunting and contemplative environment.
24. Tracing the transformation of Chinatown
In this new gallery, visitors trace the physical transformation of Chinatown and the personal memories and tales behind the modern façade. In a separate section featuring 6 personalities whose lives are entwined with the evolution of Chinatown, visitors catch a glimpse of how these individuals draw upon their families’ heritage in Chinatown in forging a new future.
25. Curry Times by Old Chang Kee
After visiting the Chinatown Heritage Centre, you may be feeling hungry! No to worry, simply hop onto the Curry Times café (just right beside Chinatown Heritage Centre) for some delectable meal! You may try the Singapore’s multi-ethnic cuisine such as Singapore curry and the famous “Old Chang Kee” curry puff at Curry Times by Old Chang Kee, the new F&B outlet at the Chinatown Heritage Centre.
In terms of interior decoration, visitors will find that the café is decked with furniture and ornaments that are found in a typical Singapore shophouse in a palette that is reflective of the Chinatown spirit. Familiar items such as bird cages, louvered windows and traditional seats are also found in the restaurant.
The Chinatown Heritage Centre general admission fee cost at S$15 and S$11 for adult and child respectively. FREE admission for seniors Citizen and PR aged 60 above from today till 31st July 2016. You may click here for more information about the Chinatown Heritage Centre.
Chinatown Heritage Centre Location Address:
48 Pagoda Street, Singapore 059207
Opening hours:
– 9am to 8pm Daily
– Closed every 1st Monday of the month
Tel: 6224 3928
Email: enquiry@chinatownhc.com.sg
Note: All admission tickets include a Multimedia Guide.
