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Welcome to Singapore's Civic District – a place where the Lion City’s history comes alive and wonderfully blends with the present. Here at Malaya Travel, we invite you to join us on an exciting walking tour across Singapore’s historic district following the footsteps of Sir Stamford Raffles! This Singapore tour itinerary is designed to be explored on foot, allowing you to complete it at your own speed, savoring every moment, every story you come across along the way. So lace up your walking shoes, pack lots of water as it is going to be hot and humid, and join us for an exciting walking tour.
Our adventure begins at the majestic Merlion Statue, an emblem of Singapore's maritime roots and a symbol of its prosperity. From there, we'll meander through the streets of the Civic District, uncovering the secrets of its oldest and most beloved landmarks. You will discover the significance of Singapore's national flower, the beautiful Vanda Orchid, learn about the legendary Sarkies brothers and their legacy in the hotel industry and much more! And no visit to the Civic District would be complete without a taste of the iconic Singapore Sling, a cocktail created at the Raffles Hotel.
This blog post is the first part of our three-part series, where we'll dive deeper into the fascinating history and heritage of Singapore's Civic District. Feel free to follow this itinerary step-by-step as it follows an excact route. Stay tuned for more insights and discoveries in the upcoming installments.
Starting Point: Merlion Statue
Merlion is a mythical creature with a lion’s head and the body of a fish. The lion head symbolizes the “Lion City”. According to the Malay Annals book, written in the 15th century, Prince San Nila Utama of the Srivijaya Empire renamed the island Singapura or “Lion City”, after spotting a lion here. The body of a fish symbolizes the ancient Temasek or “Sea Town”, which was Singapore’s early name. The sculpture was designed by Kwan Sai Kheong and it is almost 9 meters tall. It was first unveiled on 1972 at its former site by the Singapore River. After its recent renovation, the Merlion statue today stands proud overlooking the Marina Bay and it is the starting point of our suggested Civic Walk. Across the Merlion statue at the foot of the Singapore River stands the Waterboat House which used to supply fresh water to incoming ships. It provided fresh water to ships up until 1990. The building is managed by the nearby Fullerton Hotel.
Fullerton Heritage Precinct
Enjoy the fantastic view of Marina Bay and the iconic Marina Bay Sands while walking alont he promenade. The are around you is called the Fullerton Heritage Precinct, which consists of 7 iconic buildings: The Fullerton Hotel, Clifford Pier, The Fullerton Bay Hotel, the Fullerton Pavilion, One Fullerton, the Customs House and the Fullerton Waterboat house. Currently, they all owned by Singapore's largest property developer, Far East Organisation. Next to the ultra-luxurious One Fullerton stands Clifford Pier which older residents remember as Red Lamp Pier. This was Singapore’s famed pier and the landing point of sea passangers and immigrant who came to seek new life in Singapore. In the old days of the first half of the 20th century, a red oil lamp was hanging there to serve as a directional sign to seafarers.
To cross the always busy Fullerton Road, walk towards One Fullerton. Just past the Starbucks and before Jing Seafood you will see a small set of stairs leading up to a taxi stand. Walk up the stairs and turn left where you see a sliding door and escalators down. The tunnel used to be the General Post Office's "secret tunnel" in the old days, where the pier was connected to the Post Office with a 35 meter-long subway.
Fullerton Hotel is without a doubt, one of the most photographed building of the city. The area used to be the site of the Fullerton Fort and was named after Robert Fullerton who was the first Governor of the new British Settlements (with its seat in Penang) along the Malacca Straight (Penang, Malacca and Singapore). Governor Fullerton is mostly known as the person who prevented the expansion of Siamese influence into Malaya. It was the largest structure in the city when it was built in 1928. The building was originally built to house the General Post Office, the Exchange and the Singapore Town Club. In its sad days it was converted into a hospital during WW2. The building was the site where British announced their surrender to the Japanese troops as well. Today, the building house the luxurious Fullerton Hotel. Feel free to walk into the hotel to catch some old time vibe: imagine when it was full of excited locals waiting for their overseas packages in front the longest post office counter in the world at that time! The Fullerton Heritage Gallery is open for visitors to learn more about the building’s history. An original red mailbox (pillar box) can be still found here from the colonial era. You can purchase your postcard and your mailbox at the nearby gift shop and send a unique post card home from here! There are also organized walking tours conducted by the hotel.
Cavenagh Bridge
Behind the Fullerton Hotel stands Singapore’s oldest bridge in its original form, named Cavenagh Bridge. It was built in 1869 and connects the Commercial District with the Civic District on the North bank of the Singapore River. You could still see the original police notice at either sides of the bridge that regulated heavy traffic on the bridge, making it a pedestrian bridge in in the early 1900s. As you arrive on the North Bank of Singapore River you could immediately find two sculptures near the bridge: one if them is Jose Rizal, a celebrated national hero and martyr of the Philippines and the other person is Ho Chi Mihn, a symbol of the democratic reforms in Vietnam.
Empress Place
As you continue your walk in the Civic District, the first building you will come across is the Asian Civilizations Museum which was completed in 1867, and it is known as one of the last large building projects that was built by convict laborers. In the old days, the building was used for several government departments. Later on, it was renamed as Empress Place Building to commemorate the reign of Queen Victoria of Great Britain, who was also the Empress of India. After a complete renovation, the building houses the Asian Civilizations Museum. The museum’s mission is to promote Singapore’s multi-ethnic society.
Make sure you explore the park in front the museum and visit some of its art installations. Probably the most notable is the collection of large stainless steel spheres, called 24 hours in Singapore and it attempts to bring Singaporean's every lives into the realm of art. Each sphere plays audio recordings of instantly recognizable sounds of Singapore's landscape - from hawker centers to public transport. Next to it, you could find the “Chettiars to Financiers” Sculpture that shows the transformation of the city’s financial sector from traditional money lending in the early days to the banking services of our modern days. The people you can easily spot is a Chettiar (Indian moneylender), a Chinese clearing house employee and a female Simex, a Singapore Stock Exchange Trader.
Along your walk you will see the Dalhousie Obelisk, which was built to commemorate the second visit of the Marquis of Dalhousie in 1850. Right next to it stands the Victoria Theatre & Concert Hall. These two historic performance venues went through many transformations during the years, Two building were incorporated into one larger structure. It was meant to keep the original Town Hall’s façade, and they added the adjoining section in a similar way. They are linked by a 54 meter tall iconic clock tower. They renamed the building as Victoria Concert Hall to house the Singapore Symphony Orchestra. In front of the Victoria Hall stands the original Raffles Statue, in memory of the founder of Singapore. The statue was erected not far from its current location on the Padang. However, stories say the statue was always in the crossfire of the cricket matches, so they had to relocate it to its current location.
Raffles Landing Site & Overlooking at Boat Quay
Once you leave the Victoria Hall, make a left detour to see the "new" Raffles Statue that stands on the site where Sir Stamford Raffles, an agent of the British East India Company, believed to have landed in January 1819. Raffles was in search of a new British port somewhere halfway along the China-India trade route. Raffles successfully signed a treaty with the Sultan of Johor and established a trading port with a free trade status. The Singapore River, where you are standing now used to be the main artery of the trade. Along the river stood all the trading and warehouse facilities. Raffles did not spend much time in his beloved “city”, but he made sure to drew a precise town plan for the future of the city based on functionality and ethnic divisions. The river was a boundary between ethnic zones as well. The north bank was reserved only government use, the south bank was highlighted as the financial and commercial area. Raffles wrote down his plans in such details that you can still see while walking in the city. The so-called five-foot walkways (covered 5-foot wide sidewalks for protection from the rains) was also his idea. Different areas belong to different races, however, most have already changed during the years, but for example Kampong Glam still remains the Arabic cultural center.
Across the river you can see the shophouses of Boat Quay or as once called, Public Quay. Boat Quay was the first area developed specifically for commercial and warehouse facilities. The Chinese settlers saw the area as a lucky and prosperous area and they referred the location to as the belly of the carp thanks to the bend of the Singapore River,, which symbolizes a place where goof fortune resides. The whole area was reclaimed from mosquito infected swamps. In its glory days, Boat Quay existed up until today’s Fullerton Hotel. Raffles also designed the shouphouses built in the area. These shouphouses were two to four-storey buildings that offered business promises on the ground floor and living quarters on the upper levels. There are back alleyways behind the building that was used to unload goods and products. In its heyday, the Singapore River was so busy that hundreds of bumboats were fighting for an available space. Large ships anchored near the mouth of the river, and these smaller different type of boats transported the goods to the warehouses along the river. While the trade have shifted to Singapore’s new port, the pollution of Singapore River remained a huge problem until the 1980s. Wastes from the upriver pig and duck farms were flown into the river, street hawker and vegetable sellers all through their rubbish into the river. By 1987, due to a 10-year cleaning project thanks to Singapore’s prominent Prime Minister, Mr. Lee Kuan Yew, the Singapore River has been transformed into a living and breathing artery of Singapore where dragon boats, sampans can still be seen on the river, but instead of carrying goods, they are offering scenic river cruises for visitors and locals alike. Today Boat Quay is a popular destination filled with fantastic bars and restaurants.
A lot has changed in the area since Raffles arrived in Singapura. The view you are enjoying today was completely different even a couple decades ago. The old of Singapore is long gone. Today it is a Marina Reservoir and all the popular tourist attractions beyond that were all built on reclaimed land. Marina Bay today is actually the damming of the Singapore River, an extremely valuable source of fresh-water for Singapore. Next, we will continue Malaya Travel's Singapore Walking Tour from the Raffles Landing Place all the way to Clarke Quay, followed by a tour from Clarke Quay to the iconic Raffles Hotel via Fort Canning.
