Saturday, October 24, 2009

where are these one-storey houses?











these single-storey terrace houses should really be classified as one-and-a-half storey houses because the rooms are raised above ground level. i was attracted to these houses by the decorative motifs and the out-of-the-ordinary structure of the building, including the edge of the roof.

i believe this row of houses, together with some other houses, was featured in yesterday.sg two years ago.

quiz questions:

1 what is the address of this row of houses?

2 why was it built this way - with the living area raised above the ground?

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

1. Sea Avenue (near Joo Chiat).
2. Prevent flooding.

Victor said...

1. The place is a little road off East Coast Road of the same name as the main road. The road is parallet to and just after Sea Avenue if you are travelling along East Coast Road towards the city. Just before the road, you will see a vet clinic.

2. The houses are raised from the ground for several reasons:

a. the houses feel cooler;

b. got place to keep dog kennel and other stuff;

c. if got flooding or tidal wave, occupants can be safe.

peter said...

The road to these houses sandwiched between one shop selling Khek (or some dialect) cake and a Mt Pleasant vetinary shop. Opposite used to bea SHELL Station (now secondhand car dealer shop). i.e. between Sea Avenue and Joo Chiat Road. If I am not wrong, there is a Chinese street barber on that road who operates form a small shed.

nah said...

In the early years, these houses used to have the luxury of the beach at their doorsteps. These houses, like those facing Marine Parade Road and along Upper East Coast Road, were raised above the ground to prevent flooding, not from rain water, but sea water, during high tides. The whole of Marine Parade housing estate sits on reclaimed land.
When I was a kid, my uncle used to bring my siblings, cousins and I, to the beach just behind Roxy theatre, now Roxy Square, to pick sea shells.

yg said...

nah, roxy sq. isn't that the place with a lot of massage joints? there is a basement canteen where we go for authentic foochow fishball and red wine chicken.

peter said...

YG
How come u see but I don't see?

Lam Chun See said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Lam Chun See said...

Victor may not remember this (since it is not related to his favourite topic), but after our lunch at the former Joo Chiat Police Station place, Wee Kiat brought us to see this place.