…cont’d from Pt.1

I’m talking about the old Roxy and Palace Theatre…funny right…they used to call it theatre instead of cinema. These 2 theatres are located along the same East Coast Road on the same side but opposite to the Odeon Katong Theatre. Both theatres are demolished.

If we walked along East Coast Road from Katong Shopping Centre to Still Road, this stretch was known as ‘The Roxy Area’. It was also the traditional ‘Heart of Katong’. From this, what can see how popular is the Roxy Theatre back in the 50s and 60s.

Take a good look at how the ‘landmarks’ changed its look over time… sad to say I’ve not been to any of these 2 theatres for a show but only passed by.

Roxy Theatre

This old theatre was there before World War 2 and much much older than me. Let’s check out some old photos;

Credit : Fairypoint

When I see the above photo, I doubt it’s Roxy Cinema in Singapore as it looked totally different. If it was then it must be very very long ago. Sad to say there isn’t much photos of the old Roxy in Katong. Luckily after searching for sometime, I managed to find another old photo which resembles the above;

Credit : Donor N Lloyd, Australian Was Memorial

The above shows the Roxy Theatre circa 1945. Read more about Roxy Theatre here.

When the Roxy Theatre was demolished, I’m not sure. The land now is occupied by Katong Plaza / Roxy Square and the back portion of the land is Grand Mercure Roxy hotel. Take a look now and you cannot never visualise how the old Roxy Theatre sits in there.

Palace Theatre

This is another old theatre along the East Coast Road which is demolished now. Take a look below see how it looks like in 1960;

Credit : National Archives of Singapore , PICAS

You are still able to see the theatre in 1990 as shown in the photo taken from Ceylon Road ;

Credit : National Archives of Singapore, PICAS

Understand that this theatre in her later years was used more for live performances. Probably in the 90s, the name of the theatre was also changed to Paradise Theatre. Below shows the Paradise Theatre in 1994;

Creadit : National Archives of Singapore, PICAS

The theatre was demolished and now a Eastgate building in its place;

These 2 theatres Roxy and Palace were separated by a road called Brooke Road.

Let me wish all friends here a Happy 2008 New Year before I begin my first post for this year.

Katong Shopping Centre;

So when was it built? Yes, 35 years ago, opened in 1973, it was one of the nearest shopping centres from my home in Haig Road back then. I loved to visit there during Saturday especially after my NCC Air ECA (now known as CCA) at the Haig Road Camp.

When my dad bought a 5rm flat at Haig Road in the early 70s, I was so happy as it was within walking distance to so many shopping area there like Katong Shopping Centre, City Plaza, Tanjong Katong Complex, Parkway Parade - of course some were built later.

This 35 years old shopping centre used to be full of textiles and shoes shops in the early days. The popular Oriental Emporium was located at one corner occupying 2 floors. It was fun shopping there especially before the Chinese New Year.

Below is how it looked like in 1994;

Photo Credit : National Archives of Singapore, PICAS

Now the whole place especially the basement and ground floor, are full of eatery shops. But I must said some of the eateries shops served value for money food. The good old Oriental Emporium, and many textiles and shoes shops were gone… This used to be a good place to know some Tanjong Katong Girls School students haha.

Luckily this old shopping centre still retains its old look and not much of a makeover like most other shopping mall. The main structural change is probably the addition of a lift at the corner near the Haig Road.

This is how it looks now(photo taken Dec 2007);

The eateries at the basement;

Somehow as I’m very much older now, this shopping centre seems to have ’shrink’;

Odeon Katong Shopping Complex;

I wonder how many still remember the old Odeon Katong Theatre (Cinema) here before this Odeon Katong Shopping Complex was built? For how long the old Odeon Katong Theatre was here, I really don’t know. If I will to base on the 1988 Edition of Singapore Street Directory, it was still here in 1988. However the 1998 Edition of the Singapore Street Directory, it shows Odeon Katong Shopping Complex instead. So it must be between 1988 to 1998 that there was a makeover.

This is the old Odeon Katong Theatre in 1960;

Photo Credit : National Archives of Singapore, PICAS

Frankly I’m not too sure if there is a mix-up of dates as I recall that in the early 80s, the new Odeon Katong seems to be there already. During the Chinese New Year, I remember I went up to the cinema by escalator to book 3 days advance tickets for a movie. It was a norm to book advance tickets up to 3 days and usually the queue was extremely long during the Chinese New Year period. Haha, maybe I’ve got the years wrong myself….anyway…

Here is the 1994 look of the Odeon Katong Shopping Complex;

And the updated look in 2007 below;

I didn’t realise that the cinemas inside were gone…until I dropped by last month. See what the whole building becomes;

Can’t see…haha…let me tell you: 80% of the building occupied by Cornerstone Community Church! In fact, a number of old cinemas in Singapore have been converted to Church.

Here is the escalator leading to the old Odeon Katong cinema;

There is some changes to the road when the Odeon Katong Shopping Centre was built.

Before the Odeon Katong Shopping Centre was built, the Mugliston Road was terminated before the canal at the Katong Shopping Centre Carpark Entrance;

Now after the Odeon Katong Shopping Complex was built, the Mugliston Rd was extended below the building and joined with the Ean Kiam Place;

I don’t know how long these 2 buildings will last especially the Katong Shopping Centre. Those old buildings surrounding are going and gone one by one…

to be continued in Pt.2…

Credit : National Archives of Singapore

This was the first type of phone my Godparents had in the 60s/70s. No choice of color for the phones back then, I think. Not many households are able to afford a telephone; my parents do not have one too.

I remember my Godparents got engaged those telephone cleaning lady to clean the phone every now and then. The cleaning lady would carried a hard bag like those cosmetic makeup bag, containing all her cleaning kids. She would changed the white color mouth piece ‘filter’ and then sprayed some ‘fragrance’ onto it. And they wore those gloves when doing the cleaning of telephone.

So what does STB stands for? It stands for Singapore Telephone Board. And its logo back then has a swallow bird - don’t know why?

Even the telephone carried the logo, as shown on the telephone above.

Back then the bills envelopes are like this;

See the above envelope. So in 1971, it was still STB and the postage back then was 6 cents!

OK, Singapore had its first telephone service in 1879, almost 128 years! The British were providing the telephone services until 1955. In 1955, STB was formed.

TAS (Telecommunications Authority of Singapore) provided overseas services while STB on local services. In 1974, both merged to form Singapore Telecom.

So when did we first have our push button phone? That should be August 1970. By early 1980s, all rotary phones were replaced by push button phone. Regret didn’t keep one of those rotary phone or the first generation of the push button phone with the Telecom logo at the bottom.

Here is the First Day Cover for the 100 years of Telephone Service in 1974;

So what will be the next change be?

My dad always mentioned to me a certain place near 独立桥, and I stopped to ponder for a short while - where is this 独立桥..or Merdeka Bridge. Not many people nowadays talk about this Bridge. It’s not mentioned for quite sometime and even I also have to ‘rewind’ my memory to recall where is this Bridge haha.

The younger generation may ask where exactly is Merdeka Bridge in Singapore? In the 50s to 70s, this bridge was commonly known as 独立桥 (Independence Bridge) by the Chinese. ‘Merdeka’ is a Malay word which means Freedom or Independence.

In fact from 50s to the 70s, Merdeka Bridge was mentioned frequently by the people. As time goes by especially in the late 80s onwards, Nicoll Highway was mentioned instead of Merdeka Bridge as Merdeka Bridge is just part of the Nicoll Highway.

Where is this Merdeka Bridge then? This Bridge crosses the mouth of both the Rochor River and Kallang River. This Bridge was built in 1955 by PWD (Public Works Department).

It was named Merdeka probably to symbolise the people’s pursuit and spirit for independence. The bridge was constructed to link two stretches of the then new Nicoll Highway. It was built at a cost of $9,500.000. It was declared open by the then Chief Minister Lim Yew Hock on 17 August 1956. It was the longest prestressed concrete bridge in South East Asia then (mid 50s).

So why is this Bridge built then? It was built to ease the traffic congestion during peak hours at Geylang Road/Kallang Road then. It was part of the Nicoll Highway which the bridge linked.

It should be 50 over years old by now.

The main icons of the Merdeka Bridge should be the 2 Stone Lions guarding each side of the bridge. They have since been removed, first to Airport Road, and are currently placed at the SAFTI Military Institute in Jurong.

Below shows 2 photos of the Merdeka Bridge after its completion in 1957;

Photo Credit : National Archives of Singapore, PICAS.

You can see from the above 2 photos that there were a lot of undeveloped areas in the 50s. Probably we cannot recognise it haha. The stadium was not built then. Now, the National Stadium is going to be teared down…

This is how the bridge looked like in 1978;

Photo Credit : www.hanthorn.com

Here is another view of the Merdeka Bridge;

Photo Credit : Penang Antiques

Here are some old postcards of the Merdeka Bridge;

Note : You may wish to take note of the street lights design on the bridge was totally different from now.

Take a closer look at the Stone Lion;

Another view;

Photo Credit : Nusantara

…cont’d from Part 1

Besides the above First Day Cover showing the National Library together with a few other landmarks of Singapore, I couldn’t find or remember seeing any stamps or covers on the old National Library alone. Wonder why?

So do you know exactly where is this old red brick National Library? Let’s take a look at the old map below (around 70s) showing the National Library;

You can see that the old National Library is just besides the National Museum at Stamford Road. The demolishing of this old red brick library is to facilitate the building of the Fort Canning Tunnel, but the reasons why the importance of this tunnel, I’m not keen at all to touch on it. See the current map now without the library;

Of course with the tunnel built, and lots of road changes made and the SMU buildings around the area - it seems like a different landscape! Before my memories fade, let’s recall some of the main buildings around here…

CPIB Building;

This 3 storey building at Stamford Road was just near to the old library. The old Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau (CPIB) building was here from 1962 to 1984.

Tao Nan Chinese School;

The old Tao Nan Chinese School was located at Armenian Street and was built in 1906;

Photo Credit : National Archives of Singapore, PICAS.

Now this building has been restored and it’s the Asian Civilisations Museum;

MPH Building;

This is an very old building (190 formerly known as Malaya Publishing House (MPH). This Red and White colored building seems like a very “expensive” bookshop to me during my school days. I still remember the wooden staircase inside the bookshop;

Photo Credit : National Archives of Singapore, PICAS

It is now known as the Vanguard Building, which houses the Vanguard Interiors Pte Ltd;

After taking a look around the old library, now let’s take a look at the old library itself. But just before that, we probably could not forget that old coffee shop besides the library carpark. It’s a very small coffee shop. Below shows some old photos of the red brick library;

The front main staircase

Photo Credit : National Library Board, NLB

Below shows 2 photos taken in 2004.

The courtyard which is rather different from the 70s;

The most memorable fountain at the library. Wonder where it is now?

Above 2 photos credit : By James 1504

Take note of the old logo at the main entrance of the library;

Photo Credit : National Library Board, NLB

See the difference with the new logo;

Now let’s talk about the National Library Logo;

During the Raffles Library times : The Logo resembled the crest of the Colony of Singapore. The crest which looked like the British Royal Coat of Arms had mottoes that read “Dieu et mon droit” (French for ‘God and my right’). It neither represented the library’s function nor aspiration.

Below - something like that;

Credit : Wikipedia

In the 60s : The National Library carried its own logo. It is said that the logo was designed by one of the librarians. The logo composed of a book and a superimposed figure of a lion. The book symbolised the collections, or books and reading, while the lion represented Singapore. This logo was seen on library cards and library books.

The old library card carrying the old logo;

The New Logo : The new logo was launched in 1996 after it became a statutory board. The logo is composed of a stylised book with flipping pages that transits from bold solid pages to pixels. It symbolises the organisation’s aspiration of a modern, dynamic and creative library and information service provider. Meaning of the new logo as stated in the library report;

Stylised book and flipping pages
Represents qualities of dynamism and the power of unlimited learning. It also reflects the qualities that promote reading, learning and a continual search for information.

Transition from bold solid pages to pixel
Traces the evolution from print to electronic media. It represents NLB’s focus in current technology and its commitment to be at the cutting edge of technological developments as well as the drive for improvement and expansion of its services.

Three pages
Depicts the library system’s three-tier concept: regional, community and neighbourhood libraries and the outreach programme to bring information to the doorstep of every household in Singapore.

Here is the new logo;

…how I miss the old red brick library…

Built in 1960 and end in Mar 2004…lived a life of 44 years!

I remember that was how it looked like in the 60s/70s. If I’m not wrong, my last visit there was during my secondary school days in the 70s. After the Fort Canning Tunnel was completed, what remained are the 2 red brick pillars (previously located at the entrance of library);

Significant changes are seen in these areas of the old National Library!

Check here for a more detail of the History of National Library.

Maybe a brief Time Line of the National Library may help;

1823 : A small collection of books were started in Singapore Institution (known Raffles Institution in 1950). Mainly for the British and priviledged class. Below shows the old Raffles Institution at Bras Basah Road where the current Raffles City stands;

1862 - 1876 : The Library was then transferred to the Town Hall (known as Victoria Memorial Hall). The postcard below shows the old Town Hall;

1874 : The British Colonial government took over the library and renamed it Raffles Library.

1876 : The Raffles Library again relocated back to Raffles Institution.

1887 : The Raffles Institution moved to the domed shape buidling (now National Museum) along Stamford Road. It was also known as the Raffles Library and Museum Building. The library was located at the West Wing.

Photo Credit : National Archives of Singapore, PICAS.

1942 - 1945 : During the Japanese Occupation, the library was renamed as Shonan Library.

1945 - 1953 : After the Japanese surrendered, the BMA (British Military Administration) took over the running of the library.

1953 : Dato Lee Kong Chian offered S$375,000 to build a free public library and the British accepted the offer. The old St. Andrew’s Chapel and British Council Hall located at the Stamford Road were demolished to make way for the then new red brick library. Below shows the then British Council Hall located at Stamford Road;

Photo Credit : National Archives of Singapore, PICAS.

Below shows Dato Lee Kong Chian laying the foundation stone at the library in 1957.

Photo Credit : National Archives of Singapore, PICAS.

1958 - 1960 : The library then was a project of the then Labour Front and the National Library was officially established in 1958.

Below shows the Mobile Van of the then Raffles National Library.

Photo Credit : National Archives of Singapore, PICAS.

1960 : The Public Works Department (PWD) completed the red brick library in 1960 and it was opened by our late President Inche Yusof bin Ishak. Finally the National Library was at this red brick building at Stamford Road and separate from the National Museum.

1995 : In 1995, the National Library Board was formed.

2004 : The old red brick National Library was officially closed on 31 March 2004.

Photo Credit : National Library Board.

2005 : The National Library moved to its new premises at Victoria Street in 22 July 2005. The library consists of two 16 storey blocks, with three basements. It has the glass building like in contrast to the old red brick look.

Do you still remember those old library cards (borrowers’ cards)? Think one need to deposit a small amount of money and get these 4 beige colored cards;

Credit : Emily Lim

Or do you remember the Due Date slip pasted on the inside of the front cover of the books you borrowed?

The above are no longer in use now. All you need is just to scan your IC or Student Pass at the Borrowing Machine (after you have registered as member) to borrow a book. A Loan Receipt will be printed from the machine showing the due date;

There are still many good memories of the red brick library itself and the surrounding, but I’ll continue in Part 2……

To be continued in Part 2…

Do you still remember which is the first English song you listened to? I don’t but I remember which song that triggers my love for listening to nice songs haha. OK, it’s this song “Tie a yellow ribbon round the old oak tree” that my Primary School teacher taught us during Music lesson. She brought along a portable record player (like this one shown below) and played that song;

- Tie A Yellow Ribbon Round The Old Oak Tree by Tony Orlando and Dawn in 1973.

Yes that was in the 70s during my Primary school music lessons. Of course you will not forget his “Oh my darling knock 3 times” as you always heard it on radio then.

- Knock Three Times by Tony and Dawn

Here are some of my favourites songs of the 60s;

- Puppy Love by Paul Anka in 1960;

He wrote this song “Puppy Love” for Donny Osmond (if you remember the Osmond family).

- Puppy Love by Donny Osmond

Talking about Paul Anka, a singer as well as song writer, was popular in the late 50s and 60s. Here are some of his songs that I loved to listen to;

- 1957 Diana by Paul Anka

- 1959 Put Your Head On My Shoulder by Paul Anka

- 1969 My Way by Paul Anka

- 1974 Having My Baby by Paul Anka Duet with Odia Coates

- 1974 I Don’t Like To Sleep Alone by Paul Anka Duet with Odia Coates

- 1974 She’s A Lady by Paul Anka. This song he wrote for Tom Jones.

- 1971 She’s A Lady by Tom Jones (Tom Jones version)

- 1975 Times Of Your Life by Paul Anka (This is the popular Kodak Ad Song, remember? maybe also Chun See favourite song too)

Tom Jones is another sexy male singer of the mid 60s. One of his popular song was “She’s A Lady” mentioned earlier.

In 1969, he was;

and now;

Photo Credit : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_Jones_(singer)

Some of his songs that I love;

- Green Green Grass Of Home by Tom Jones

- Delilah by Tom Jones

- It’s Not Unusual by Tom Jones

So how popular is this song “It’s Not Unsual”? Just quote ” I dare anyone over forty to listen to Tom Jones’ “Its Not Unusual” without singing along to the chorus and attempting a brief Jones like hip swivel.“

Not forgetting the King of Rock & Roll - Elvis Presley!

- Love Me Tender 1956

- Jailhouse Rock 1957

- Are You Lonesome Tonight 1960

- Can’t Help Falling In Love 1962

In the 70s my godparents got this type of radio cassette recorders where I used it to listen to radio and try to tape down the songs that I liked.

Here is a photo of those old radio cassette recorder;

And the typical TDK blank cassette tapes that I used;

Luckily in the past, radio had less talk and commercial and they played more songs. Here is another song about racing that I loved best.
- Tell Laura I Love Her by Ray Peterson in the 60s.

Another of his top hit;

- Corina Corina by Ray Peterson.

- Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow by Shirelles in 1960. Of course there were many version for those songs in other languages.

- I Can’t Stop Loving You by Ray Charles . Though he was gone, but this was a top hit too in 1961.

When I talked about Ray Charles, I tend to think about Stevie Wonder too. Another great singer!

- Part Time Lover by Stevie Wonder

- I Just Called To Say I Love You by Stevie Wonder

- My Cherie Amour by Stevie Wonder. Those head shaking action of his seems to become his icon.

- Blowing In The Wind by Stevie Wonder. You must watch this one and listen to what he said before singing.

The original version;

- Blowing In The Wind by Bob Dylan in 1963.

Another version by Bee Gees too;

- Blowing In The Wind by Bee Gees
In 1962 the year I was born, one of the best song was by Neil Sedaka. Another famous singer of the 60s.

- Breaking Up Is Hard To Do by Neil Sedaka in 1962;

- Same song when he was older.

- Laughter In The Rain by Neil Sedaka.

- Solitaire by Neil Sedaka. Another great song! I love to see him playing the piano as he is a good entertainer.
Remember I told you I loved to record those songs broadcasted on the radio during my Primary School days on the blank audio tapes. Some of the songs I recorded were;

- Take Me Home Country Road by John Denver in 1971.

Photo Credit : http://www.john-denver.org

A popular country song singer and song writer. Almost everyone who played the guitar then will play this song. In fact, I love quite a lot of his songs;

- Leaving On A Jet Plane by John Denver in 1969.

- Follow Me by John Denver in 1970. Because of him, I then came to know that guitar can have 12 strings and not just 6 strings hehe.

- Sunshine by John Denver in 1971.

- Rocky Mountain High by John Denver in 1972.

- Annie’s Song by John Denver in 1974.

- Perhaps Love by John Denver in1982.

- Perhaps Love by John Denver and Lene Siel. This is a beautiful duet version you shouldn’t miss.

When I looked at John Denver’s hair, of course that will lead me to recall Olivia Newton John. A beautiful singer who fell victim to breast cancer. Maybe you remember her better through that movie Grease with John Travolta.

Photo Credit : http://www.olivia-newtonjohn.com

- If You Love Me (Let Me Know) by ONJ in 1974.

- Have You Never Been Mellow by ONJ in 1975.

- Please Mr Please by ONJ in 1975.

- You Are The One That I Want by ONJ with John Travolta in 1978. This song from the popular movie Grease then. Movies like this one and Saturday Night Fever were very popular with youngster then. Of course we were all trying to dance like them like the fingers pointing slanting up.

- Summer Nights by ONJ with John T. also from the movie Grease.

- Hopelessly Devoted To You by ONJ in 1978.

- Magic by ONJ in 1980.

- Xanadu by ONJ in 1980.

- Suddenly by ONJ and Cliff Richard in 1980.

- Physical by ONJ in 1981. This video will help you to recall the TV entertainment show Solid Gold. Solid Gold was a TV programme to countdown the weekly top ten with their Solid Gold Dancers. A popular TV show from 70s to 80s.

- Heart Attack by ONJ in 1982.

Another popular lady singer during my Primary School time was Anne Murray. Her are some of her songs that I love best;

- Snowbird by Anne Murray in 1969.

- Danny’s Song by Anne Murray in 1973.

- Killing Me Softly With His Song by Anne Murray in 1973. My favourite at that time.

- You Needed Me by Anne Murray in 1978.

In the late 70s, my parents bought a HiFi set comprised of cassette deck, record player, radio, amplifier and a pair of speakers. That was the time where I started buying albums and more blank tapes to record my favourite songs. Here you can see of of my favourite singer Lobo;

See that big headphone on the floor. That was the trend I think at that time haha. Another trend, or rather fashion trend then was the “bell bottom” jeans or pants I wore. It was the fashion at that time hehe!

Some of my favourite songs from Lobo are;

- How Can I Tell Her by Lobo

- Me And A Dog Named Boo by Lobo

- I Love You To Want Me by Lobo

There were simply too many too many nice songs and good singers in the past. It will be never ending if I attempt to list them all here (though after trying for a week, I gave up hehe). Before I end, I don’t think I should before listing Beatles.

- Hey Jude by Beatles

- Yesterday by Beatles

Beatles had inspired other pop groups to form in other countries like the Bee Gees. In 1966, the Bee Gees. Barry, Robin, and Maurice worked together as a group to create and record their own songs. Though they were already singing as Gibbs brothers way before that, but most of us came to know about them maybe through the movie Saturday Night Fever.

The Gibbs Songs - if you wish to know more about this 3 brothers.

- Words by Bee Gees

- I Started A Joke by Bee Gees

- Same song but in the past. Let’s compare.

Last but not least this song for you;

- Holiday by Bee Gees.

If I didn’t post the title “Haw Par Villa”, you will never guess that this is the public toilet in the Haw Par Villa - and it’s free entry!

It’s so clean and no charges for it’s use except for 10cent if you want to have toilet paper. Usually when the public toilet is clean - it means not many visitors or it’s a “paid” toilet where a cleaner is stationed there.

I’m glad that after 70 years (built in 1937), this “attraction” (at least to me) is still around and the entry is free again (though parking charges is $5 per entry but now can park all the way inside besides Hua Song Museum);

This villa was built in 1937 at a cost of probably $1 million by Mr. Aw Boon Haw for his younger brother Boon Par, for helping him to market his medicated ointment Tiger Balm. This is the model of his grand 7 domed shaped villa;

Below is the old photo of the real mansion, but too bad it was destroyed in the war from 1942 to 1945;

So are there any changes since my first visit to the Haw Par Villa in the 70s till now? Of course there were many changes…

It was such a crowd puller in the 60s and 70s as can be seen in the below postcard;

Note that the entrance gate name was “Tiger Balm Garden” in the 60s and the Chinese name “10 Thousand Golden Oil Garden”.

Now in 2007, the crowd is gone;

Understand that the name was changed to “Haw Par Villa” in 1990 and same goes for the Chinese name too.

The most drastic change was in the early 90s when it was converted into a Theme Park named “Dragon World” in 1990 and managed by International Theme Parks, a joint venture between F&N and Times Publishing. You may not notice that it had actually expanded to 3 times it’s original size to include those 2 water rides “a slow boat through the 10 courts of hell” and “a rollercoaster like flume ride through a mountain and down a river”, etc. Many sculptures were relocated or stored in the “graveyard”.

Below shows the Buddha sculpture relocated to the main entrance in 90s;

This was the same Buddha sculpture I had a photo taken with my brother in the 70s, and it was then inside the garden;

And now in 2007, it’s back to it’s original position but with a thick and long “necklace” added and those joss sticks offering boxes placed in front;

Of course in the past when I was young, every sculptures seem like a giant to me, but not now haha. Do you realise that a lot of these sculptures now have these joss sticks offering boxes placed in front of them. I note that the caretaker goes round to offer joss sticks and cigarettes to the sculptures;

When it was converted into a Theme Park in the 90s, the entrance ticket was the highest priced - S$15 or S$16.50?

Though the slow boat ride was one of the main attraction thru the 10 courts of hell then, but we missed out a lot when viewing the sculptures. Below is the slow boat ride thru the 10 courts of hell via the Dragon Mouth;

It’s difficult to view the sculptures in the 10 courts of hell when in the boat ride as we need to turn our head left and right;

See the difference in the above 2 photos of the same 1st Court of Hell! The top photo was view from the boat ride in 90s and the bottom one is now in 2007.

A lot of sculptures were surrounded by water in the 90s to match the Theme Park;

Now, most of the water were drained off and the ground resurfaced;

The amphitheater constructed in the 90s where plays were shown in the Theme Park;

Now it’s gone… and the whole place is much quieter than in the 90s.

This used to be a place where the parents will tell their kids not to be bad or evil, else they will be punished like those shown in the 10 Courts of Hell!

After the trip, I asked kids if they like the place… “No” is the answer and the reason is the same as mine in the past - “scary”! Hopefully, we get to retain this beautiful place as long as possible, else what’s left to us is this 1980 stamp issue on Haw Par Villa;

If you ask me, I hope it will remain forever….

It’s been quite sometime when I last seen this type of boxers (briefs or underwear) worn by my godfather in the 60s and 70s;

Saw this pair of boxers at the “Stamp Museum” second floor. Yep, most of them were like pajamas stripes type of pattern, though some were just dark blue plain color - those worn by my father.

I’ve always wonder where do they sell such boxers or all are self-made? Of course, nowadays the boxers come in plenty of nice design. Why I call it Ah Gong’s Boxers? Simply because I think it’ from my Grandfather’s generation up haha.

Whenever it’s Chinese New Year time or rather before the Chinese New Year, I will always made a trip down to the then NCO Club at Beach Road. During the early 80s (1982) when I was first enlisted, we were still allowed to buy duty-free cigarettes and liquor (beer). So it’s always such a long long queue to buy such ‘New Year Goodies’ as there was a limit on how much one was allowed to buy. Later in years, only the duty-free beer were allowed to buy and as times go by, even beer also not allowed anymore!

First known as NAAFI Britannia Club in the 50s… then in the 70s it was the NCO Club (my time)… later in the 90s, it was converted into Warrant Officers and Specialists Club. See this link of The CHEVRONS.

Here is an old army map showing the location of the NAFFI Club;

You can see the old Alhambra Cinema along the same side of Beach Road then. Below is the NAAFI club in the 50s;

Photo Credit : www.marsden.me.uk

A postcard view below of the club;

Credit : LimYap Collectibles

Frankly, I didn’t make full use of the facilities there during that period. But the swimming pool don’t seems to be much difference compare to in the past (during NAAFI period). The pool still look more or less the same as in the past;

Below is an interesting map showing the NCO Club in 1976;

This map even show the original shoreline before the first land reclamation. Also some of the landmarks are not built yet while some were still there.

Here is the aerial view in 1969 by Mr.Boey YB;

If we walk past the former Beach Road Camp to the NCO Club, you may find that it’s all ‘boxed up’ for construction works. This 3.5-hectare site could be transformed into a mixed-development - with more than 600 hotel rooms as well as commercial and retail space, which to be ready probably in year 2010.

The following are some

beautiful photos from URA site;

Below shows the plan of the 4 buildings that will be conserved in this plot of land;

Let’s take a look at how the NCO Club changes over the years;

Here is the Beach Road Camp;

Beach Road Camp is what I normally called, do you know the actual name of this camp?

Photo Credit : All 4 photos above from URA.

If you wish to know more about this re-development of this Beach Road site, pls check it out at URA Web Site.

Of course what I enjoyed most in this NCO Club is probably the Tombola nite. Those who frequent the club will know what I’m referring to. The other thing I enjoyed was shopping at the SAFE Superstore at this outlet at that time.

I bought my first SLR camera from SAFE hehe, and that was a Nikon FA! Wonder if the SAFE superstore is still operating now? Any idea?