Friday, January 28, 2011


衔接新马的铁路穿梭着百年记忆。1903年登路（Tank Road）-兀兰（Woodlands）铁路通车，1923年长堤落成，铁路衔接登路与槟城，开创新马交通新纪元。

（Tank Road 火车总站，River Valley Road 背景， c.1903）

（Tank Road 火车总站， c.1910）

1932年FMSR以靠近海港(Keppel Harbour)的新落成的丹戎百葛火车站（Tanjong Pagar）取代穿梭于市区的登路火车总站，火车旅馆设在火车站内，就像怀旧影片中的情节一样。原建的从登路转换站到武吉知马的火车道在七年后拆除。


1885: Taiping- Port Weld
1886: Kuala Lumpur - Klang
1891: Seremban - Port Dickson
1893：Teluk Anson - Tapah Road
1909：Prai （Penang state）- Johor Bahru
1931： Tumpat - Gemas



(Tanjong Pagar Railway Station, 2010)

2003年10月16日，外交部长贾古玛（Professor S Jayakumar）向国会解释丹戎巴葛总站乔迁事件：

The POA （Points of Agreement）is a Government-to-Government agreement between Malaysia and Singapore concerning railway lands in Singapore. It was signed on 27 November 1990 between then Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew on behalf of Singapore and then Minister of Finance Tun Daim Zainuddin on behalf of Malaysia. Under the POA, the KTM railway station would be vacated and moved from Tanjong Pagar to Bukit Timah in the first instance. The land at Tanjong Pagar would then be vested in a limited company for joint development (60% for Malaysia and 40% for Singapore). All railway lands south of Bukit Timah other than Tanjong Pagar would revert to Singapore. When the MRT station reached Woodlands, and that took place on 10 February 1996, KTM may within five years, move its station from Bukit Timah to a site in Woodlands adjacent or close to the Woodlands MRT station. In that event, two additional pieces of land in Kranji and Woodlands would be vested in the limited company also for joint development. All other railway lands south of Woodlands other than Tanjong Pagar, Woodlands and Kranji sites would revert to Singapore. ....

后来新马双方就POA的实行日期与当时的马国首相马哈迪推翻新马谈判配套而陷入低谷。丹戎巴葛火车总站先迁移到Bukit Timah (Blackmore Drive) 和Woodlands 的计划并没有落实。其中个人成见似乎超过律法。

(Bukit Timah 火车站，c.1905)

(Bukit Timah 火车站，2011)


1.1.11，我们延续2010年9月10日乘火车过长堤的心情，走一趟火车道(Railway Mall - Bukit Timah Railway Station)，以另一类方式迎接新的一年。

（Railway Mall旁，2011）

（跨越Bukit Timah Road的铁桥）

(Bukit Timah Raliway Station的轨道转驳器，2011)

KTM铁路让我在十六岁青涩的一刻在社会染缸认识一群联邦工友，轰隆隆声中带来也送走了联邦同学。在Gombak Hill工作的时期，碰到火车时间，管理员关上闸门，车子停放在闸门前，形成一条车龙。火车走过，闸门重新开放，车子越过共用的铁轨，是铁路的风情画。

铁路穿过时空，铁路走过的Bukit Timah已从早年的工业区如以绿宝汽水挂帅的 Amoy Canning Factory都已发展成公寓，提供两万民宅给中上阶层，就只剩铁轨两旁还保留着盎盎绿意。

（Upper Bukit Timah Road 的绿宝汽水厂，c.1960s）


(Bukit Timah Hill 旁，2011)









周渔的火车是否出现过？仙湖是梦境还是真实？ 火车是不是让心灵歇息的地方？周渔是否得到最后的解脱？


Friday, January 21, 2011

Who would you see in year 2046?

During a dialogue session with SM Goh in NTU on 29 october 2010, 23-year-old MAE final year student Lim Zi Rui asked if the Minister was aware that many young people no longer felt a sense of ownership in Singapore.

“When I was younger, I was very proud of being a Singaporean,” said Lim as reported in The Straits Times.

“But that was about five, ten years ago. Five years later, with all the changes in policies and the influx of foreign talent, I really don’t know what I’m defending any more.”
He said this was a view that many of the men he served with during National Service also held.

While Lim's view is representative enough among the younger Singaporeans remains a question mark, foreign workers and their impact on the heart landers have triggered some debates in Singapore. It would probably be politicised and become a hot topic for another general election to be held before February 2012.

Not sure if you had seen the film '2046'. It was a Hong Kong production played by Liang Chao Wei （梁朝伟）and Maggie Zhang（张曼玉）. 2046 is a year of the future, it is also a room number. For those people who went to 2046, their wishes were quite simple. They wanted to find memories. They wanted to search for eternity.

By 2046, would the city that we so used to live in today still be familiar to us again?

I grew up from a community made up of Chinese, Malay and Indian, and a small group of other origins such as Arab and Eurasian. My primary school days spanned between 1968 and 1973 which provided me a refreshing exposure to foreign talents. In P2, P5 and P6, a Hong Konger, a Vietnamese and a Cambodian joined my class, respectively.

While foreign students studying in neighbourhood schools are common nowadays, it was considered rare at that time. The Hong Konger wrote very beautiful Chinese calligraphy at the age of nine while I was still struggling to pick up this piece of traditional art. The Vietnamese was multi-talented in academic and sport, and the Cambodian was extremely hard working in his study. Within 8 months, he passed the PSLE and together, we went to the affiliated secondary school.

(Only the Vietnamese appeared in this class graduation photo. 1973.)

In that era, Malaysian made up of the majority of the 100,000 foreign workforce. They travelled across the causeway and contributed to the development of the newly industrialised nation. Many of them stayed in Singapore for years, some subscribed to PR and citizenship, some preferred to follow the traditional Chinese route, as falling leaves shall return to their own roots (落叶归根). Apart from Malaysia, India remained as a steady manpower supply source. Together with the smaller population who came from Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Thailand, they built a contemporary city called Singapore.

In the 1980s, it was estimated that the nation's ideal population should be between 4.5 and 5 million. The aggressive internet technology defined a new world economy in the early 2000s. It had transcended the traditional boundaries and generated a group of international citizens. Knowledge workers were prepared to move out from their native roots in order to reap new opportunities. This unprecedented trend had led our planners to make a bolder estimate in 2006 for a long-term population of 6.5 million. Of those 6.5 million population, easily a third or more will be people who were born and socialised elsewhere.

This demography shift has sparked more changes among the resident community. The percentage of Chinese and Malay are dropping while Indian and other groups are growing. Singapore also accepted large numbers of newcomers whose socialisation did not include national experiences such as national service and the education system.

(Change of Singapore population 1990-2009)

With each passing year, the percentage of people who are citizens continues to decline as the new residents outnumber the birth of citizens by more than 2:1. By 2009 even the Malay community had dropped below its replacement level, with the overall figure at 1.22 children per family for the entire society.

In 2009, about 40% of the population in Singapore are foreigners who work and study here. Foreign workers make up 50% of the service sector. As more and different foreigners are absorbed into the population, Singapore's present multiracial model will be affected by these new groups and their new interests. For example, the new Indian and Chinese immigrants are not quite assimilating with the respective citizen groups and the conventional clans. They are creating new social communities.

In some ways such immigrations are a return to Singapore's roots. Singapore has a long history of immigration. The immigrant work ethic, willingness to take risks and adaptability are the key attributes to inspire the economy and society.

How about rewinding the time machine by 60 years to take a look at the “traditional demography” of Singapore population in 1950:

(Singapore population 1950)

Friday, January 14, 2011

"Bersanding" at HDB void deck

I witnessed another joyous Malay wedding near my house.

The Malay wedding is known as Bersanding, which means the sitting together of the bride and bridegroom. According to the customs, both the bride and the groom are treated as king and queen for the Bersanding day.

Although the Malay community in Singapore lives in a contemporary city, weddings still remain big, community affairs. This dates back from the kampung days when all the neighbours and relatives pitched in to help with the preparations and celebrations. Relatives from Malaysia, and sometimes Indonesia, also made the trip over to spend a few days with their relatives on the island.

In the old kampung days, tents were set up in the front yard for the wedding celebrations. Today, to accommodate the number of guests, the spacious void deck is utilized as the wedding venue.

(Oil painting - Old kampung days, c.1960s)

Usually, the reception is held for 2 days. Dinner on Saturday nights and the main reception on Sunday afternoon stretch into the evening. Dinners are usually for close relative and friends to attend. Singapore Malay weddings are usually long afternoon lunches that stretch into the night. No set timing for the arrival or departure of guests. Friends and relatives come to greet the couples and enjoy the warm welcome, fabulous food, music and dance.

The arrival of the bride and groom is accompanied by a “kompang” troupe. They play the traditional Malay hand drum according to a distinctive rhythm and usually accompanied by songs praising God and Prophet Muhammad to shower blessings for the married couple. The groom is led by dancers to greet his bride. Malay martial arts “Silat” is played in front of the couple as it is believed that this would ensure that the “spirits” would show respect and would not disturb the couple throughout the day.

(Kompang troupe, 2010)

(Silat in front of the couple, 2010)

(Received blessing from the elderly, 2010)

There’s more to the Malay wedding than just the bersanding, which is really the height of the celebration. 3 days before the bersanding, the bride would take part in a henna-staining ceremony, where the couple’s fingertips would be stained yellow by henna oil to symbolise their upcoming nuptials. The day before, the couple would have a nikah ceremony to solemnise and legalise the marriage under Islamic and civil law.

Bersanding at HDB void deck is an unique Singapore feature. Since the inception of HDB in 1960 and introduced the void deck design for HDB flats since 1970, the HDB void deck has taken on a life that goes far beyond what was originally intended. Originally designed as a common space for social activities and shelter, void decks have since been used as valuable external social space for residence to meet, talk and possibly gossip.

(Typical Bersanding's setting at void deck)

HDB void deck is a place that we pass through, a space that we sit and wait, an external area where we meet people for a brief chat. It contains most of our daily activities. Interestingly, it is also a symbol of the 'circle of life'. The same void deck could be dolled up overnight for a happy Malay wedding and covered up the next day for a sad Chinese funeral. In between, it has also played host to teenage boys practising street soccer, and the odd toddler trying out his new tricycle.

It reminded me about Varanasi city on the Ganges River, a melting pot where people live, play and conduct their funeral rites by the same river.

Friday, January 07, 2011

Go Dutch

大国崛起，各领风骚数百年。英国在海洋舰队掩护下，主导世界经济两个世纪（18与19世纪）。日不落帝国在20世纪走下坡，把强国的霸主地位拱手让给美国。21世纪2010年一场圣诞风雪，再度使Heathrow Airport瘫痪下来；2000年代末一场金融风暴，使英国从净债权国摇身成为负债国，完美的帝国神话走向现实。

英国海军舰队从战后1960年的9艘航空母舰，145艘战舰和48艘潜艇逐年递减，1990年代初冷战结束，我在UCL学战舰设计，教授群十分自豪地为我们这群国际学生介绍4艘航空母舰，49艘战舰和31艘潜艇的设计风格与作战性能。其中Invincible这艘航空母舰1982年建成便立刻投入Falkland War，千里迢迢去到南美洲，与阿根廷为争取Falkland 这个小岛的主权开战。


15世纪末的地理大发现，给欧洲带来了前所未有的商业繁荣，也为荷兰人提供了成就商业帝国的历史性机遇。通过海洋发迹的国家除了英国之外，葡萄牙和西班牙都是15与16世纪的佼佼者。荷兰面向北海（North Sea），内靠欧洲大陆，欧洲主要水道莱茵河（Rhine River）经鹿特丹（Rotterdam）入海，活水带来生命力，于是荷兰挖掘了许多运河，发展成当时欧洲最发达的水上交通网。

荷兰紧随葡萄牙开拓（还是强夺？）东印度的岛屿，开辟了荷兰与印度的海事贸易航线，并于1602年组建了荷兰东印度公司（Dutch East India Company），分别在鹿特丹（Rotterdam）和阿姆斯特丹(Amsterdam)设立造船厂，制造商船，崛起成为17世纪的主宰。在1602至1796年约两百年间，荷兰东印度公司拥有4785艘商船，在亚洲运载250万吨货物到欧洲，其中最大的收入来自香料。

（荷兰东印度公司（Dutch East India Company）版图）


在东亚，荷兰占据了台湾，直至郑成功收复宝岛（1624-1664），荷兰也垄断日本的对外贸易；在东南亚，荷兰把印度尼西亚变成了自己的殖民地；在非洲，荷兰从葡萄牙人手中夺取了好望角；在大洋洲，荷兰用国内一个省的名字命名了一个国家叫新西兰；在南美洲，荷兰占领了巴西北部；在北美大陆，荷兰建立了新阿姆斯特丹城（New Amsterdam City），这个城市发展为今天的纽约市。



此外，朋友聚餐，为了维护男女平等（真的吗？），我们不也去荷兰吗（On Dutch）?




荷兰水、荷兰牌、荷兰豆与荷兰薯我都吃过喝过玩过也乐过，20多年前也曾经在大巴窑一巷的荷兰厂工作过。当年的Philips电视是新加坡的No.1品牌，行销总监自豪地介绍Philips电视时，说Philips是新加坡第一家跨国电器生产企业，1951年设厂。虽然电视只给一年保证，但产品耐用，可用上十年，是信誉保证的老字号。相比之下，其他产品包括排行第二和第三的Panasonic和Sony都给两年保用期，但销量还是比不上根深蒂固的飞利浦。当年上司也说荷兰厂有人情味，不像美国佬Hire and Fire，所以我可以放心好好干，总有一天像其他员工一样，成为飞利浦的元老。

（Philips Factory, Lorong 1 Toa Payoh）