As I went further into the Chinatown Heritage Centre, I was even more convinced that Every Face Has A Story To Tell, Every Story Seeks To Be Heard....
The story of the humble, industrious immigrants or the sinkheh went beyond the four evils - mafia, prostitution, opium and gambling. The early immigrants found kinship in associations that helped them cope with the stresses of being away from home...
These associations kept their bonds with their motherland alive. They kept their culture alive, celebrated festivals together...
New bonds were created, a "home" away from home was created...
This reminded me of what Indian diaspora had done abroad. In Mauritius, we had experienced how a crater lake at Grand Bassin was considered as "holy" as the Ganga by the Indian immigrants.... The called it the Ganga Talao... They congregated here for kumbh and other festivities that they celebrated back home....
This wall was quite interesting - it explained the origin of various Chinese surnames....
Every name also has a story to tell....
This quote of a Samsui lady, Loh Ah Kwai, is so quite true for the diaspora, Chinese or Indian....
Life in those days wasn't easy, with a lack of amenities and sanitation....
Racially segregated as part of the Raffles Plan, Chinatown got its water supply through bullock carts....
Si Lat Po, as the early immigrants called Singapore, was a dream for many, but the journey was expensive and arduous....
Loh Ah Kwai was an actual immigrant to Singapore. I am told she was interviewed and her experiences have been recorded and are presently housed at the National Archives of Singapore...
But the numerous, facesless sinkheh would have had similar stories to tell, stories of adversity and courage....
Religion kept the early immigrants culturally connected to the Mainland... and many temples came up in Chinatown...
The steps, literally, the steps of history give a timeline of Chinatown...
A model of a modest tea shop housed in a "shop-house" with dim-sum steamers on the tables...
The marketplaces of yesteryears...
Bookshops and libraries...
Street-side kitchens of yesteryears....
Keeping traditions alive...
恭喜發財 - Kung Hei Fat Choy - New Year celebrations in Chinatown!!!!
Business was brisk at festival time...
The origins of the Night Markets...
The Chinese, much like Indians, have a fascination for gold... And goldsmiths had a great franchise in Chinatown...
I tell you, the Chinatown Heritage Centre is such a fascinating place to visit, actually a must visit in Singapore for all those interested in the heritage of the city-state...
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