January 2010 ~ Merlion Wayfarer's Walking Singapore

Thaipusam 2010 - The Depth & Width Of Devotion

12:08 PM Central, Festivals, Little India, Temples, Thaipusam

Serangoon Road to Tank Road
Little India, Singapore
30 January 2010

Thaipusam (Tamil: தைப்பூசம்) is a Hindu festival celebrated mostly by the Tamil community on the full moon in the Tamil month of Thai (Jan/Feb). It is also referred to as Thaipooyam or Thaippooyam in the Malayalam language. The word Thai-pusam is derived from the month name Thai and Pusam, which refers to a star that is at its highest point during the festival. The festival commemorates the occasion when Parvati gave Murugan a vel (spear) so he could vanquish the evil demon Soorapadman.

The full album is available at:
Thaipusam 2010 - The Preparation

Devotees prepare for the celebration by cleansing themselves through prayer and fasting. Kavadi-bearers have to perform elaborate ceremonies at the time of assuming the kavadi and at the time of offering it to Murugan. The kavadi-bearer observes celibacy and take only pure, Satvik food, once a day, while continuously thinking of God.

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Thaipusam 2010 - The Body Spiking

The full album is available at:
Thaipusam 2010 - The Facial Spiking

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Thaipusam 2010 - The Multi-Races

The full album is available at:
Thaipusam 2010 - The Supporters

The simplest kavadi is a semi circular decorated canopy supported by a wooden rod that is carried on the shoulders, to the temple. In addition, some have a small spear through their tongue, or a spear through the cheeks. The spear pierced through his tongue or cheeks reminds him constantly of Lord Murugan. It also prevents him from speaking and gives great power of endurance. Other types of kavadi involve hooks stuck into the back and either pulled by another walking behind or being hung from a decorated bullock cart or more recently a tractor, with the point of incisions of the hooks varying the level of pain. The greater the pain the more god-earned merit.

The full album is available at:
Thaipusam 2010 - The Bearers

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Thaipusam 2010 - The Unloading

Emily & Sophia - Away From The City Bustle

12:32 PM Architecture, Central, Dhoby Ghaut, History, Parks

Mount Emily and Mount Sophia

Dhoby Ghaut

Central, Singapore

January 2010

Mount Emily and Mount Sophia, the names of streets and a hill, are located in Rochore, just a short walk up from Dhoby Ghuat. Access is by Sophia Road.

A flea mart was in a warehouse held the very day we were there...

In early colonial times Mount Sophia was commonly referred to as Flint's Hill, after Captain William Flint, the first resident there since the end of 1823. Sophia was Raffles' second wife, and also the name of Flint's daughter, both believed to be the hill's namesake.

Somehow the place has a feel reminiscent of an era gone by...

Mount Sophia was one of the earliest middle-class residential districts. Besides Flint, it was home to prominent businessman Eu Tong Sen. Others include August Behn, V. Lorenz Meyer and F.A. Schreiber (of Behn, Meyer & Co.) who were listed as the hills residents in 1842. In the early 1880s, the hill boasted of grand houses. On 6 June 1885, the Children's Home opened in Sophia Road. Sophia Flats, built in the 1930s, stands at the entrance to Mount Sophia.

Interesting little nooks and crannies abound...

Sophia means "wisdom" in Greek and is an appropriate reference to the proliferation of educational institutions on that hill. These include Trinity College, and the Nanyang Academy (of Fine Arts or NAFA) which moved to Mount Sophia in 1983. The College has since moved to Upper Bukit Timah while NAFA to Bencoolen Street.

Even ordinary places like the park and the toilets are unique...

The former Methodist Girls School was turned into a hip, creative area for budding artists in October 2007...

Visitors here drive fascinating mobiles...

Where only a thin line divides the quiet from the bustle a few steps away...

The majestic colonial building spotlighted at twilight...

More photos are available on Merlion Wayfarer's Picasa at :
Places - Dhoby Ghaut

Sources

"Mount Sophia" by Vernon Cornelius-Takahama (21 September 1999). Singapore Infopedia. Retrieved from http://infopedia.nl.sg/articles/SIP_482_2004-12-27.html.

"The Art of Old School - The Buzz Generating Newcomer" by Mabel Tay (24 October 2007). Mount Sophia Pte Ltd. Retrieved from http://www.oldschool.sg/press_release_general.pdf.

Bartley Road 2009 - Going Underground Majestically

5:05 PM East, North East, Transportation

Bartley Road to Tampines Avenue 10

North-East to East, Singapore
May and December 2009

The extension of Bartley Road to Tampines Avenue 10 provides a vital link from the east to central regions. This direct central-east connection will also help to relieve traffic congestion along the Pan Island Expressway (PIE) near Eunos and Bedok Reservoir Road.

Started in late 2000, the first phase between Kaki Bukit and Tampines Avenue 10, was completed in 2003. The second phase, from Kaki Bukit to Bartley, was originally slated to open in 2005. It stalled after the builder ran into financial problems. In 2006, the LTA called for fresh tenders and local contractor Hock Lian Seng clinched the deal.

When the link opens in January 2010, it will be Singapore's sixth viaduct. Along with it, a new surface road - Bartley Road East - will also open, linking Airport Road to Hougang Avenue 3. At the relocated Bartley Road/Upper Paya Lebar Road junction, the underpass will form a three-tier road interchange with the Bartley Road extension viaduct and the surface roads.

At the Hock Lian Seng - LTA site office, old diversion signs lie piled up in a storage shed...

As part of the Bartley Road extension project, a vehicular underpass was built along Upper Paya Lebar Road and opened to traffic on 8 March 2009. The newly completed dual-two lane underpass allows motorist to bypass the junction of Bartley Road and Upper Paya Lebar Road as they travel towards Airport Road or Lorong Ah Soo...

In living with Singapore's Garden City image,

new saplings were planted along the sides of the road...

The Hock Lian Seng banner lies in the background,

a proud reminder of its successful project undertaking...

On 23 May 2009, yet another new breath of life was added to Bartley Road with the opening of
the Circle Line MRT Station beside the newly-renovated Bartley Christian Church...

9 months later, the viaduct has been completed. Vehicle drivers undergo yet another road diversion
which has resulted in frequent traffic jams as drivers get used to the changes...

A scene on the last day of 2009 with the completed viaduct,
a recent Traffic Police banner on road safety and new road signs stuck with black tape...

Two new pedestrian overhead bridges have also been constructed along Bartley Road and Upper Paya Lebar Road to facilitate pedestrian crossing - The axis of the first bridge is uniquely-angled to accommodate the lie of the land...

The second bridge is in the midst of construction...

The earlier temporary road signs have been replaced with permanent road signs.

The tree saplings have also grown and are now sprouting leaves...

Bartley Secondary School, an icon of Bartley Road,

is now a lot closer to the main road - due to the widening of Bartley Road...

A misplaced road sign in a construction site along Upper Paya Lebar Road,

pointing in the direction of nurseries instead of the viaduct...

With the opening of the underpass, the existing Upper Paya Lebar Road will be realigned, so that the junction of Upper Paya Lebar Road and Bartley Road will be relocated southwards directly above the underpass...