unesco 2010 heritage award temple

i used to think that hong san see was some mixed-up version of leong san see and that they were one and the same temple. today, armed with a straits times feature article, my walking buddy took me to visit one of the two temples in singapore that have won the unesco awards for cultural heritage conservation. i found out that although hong san see and leong san see were both started by hokkien groups, they are two distinct temples: one is at mohamed sultan road while the other is at race course road. hong san see received the award of excellence this year while thian hock keng, another temple started by hokkiens, was given honourable mention in 2001.



some people tend to give the name of the temple as hong san see temple. i think the word 'see' or 'sze' is chinese for temple. so, adding the word 'temple' may be superfluous. it is the same with some places with a malay name, like sungei buloh river, gunong tahan mountain, bukit timah hill and masjid sultan mosque. it is like saying 'jalan besar road' when 'jalan besar' will suffice.

hong san see had its beginning on tras street (second picture) in tanjong pagar. the original temple was built in 1829. according to a plaque at the present site, the year is 1836. it was the gathering place for immigrants from the hokkien province of nanan or lam ann. the temple at tras street had to make way for a road-widening project. it was relocated to its present site on mohamed sultan road.

the award winning temple in the river valley area was built between 1908 and 1912. it was built on a hillock that once overlooked the sea. today, this view is blocked by all the high-rise buildings around it. the temple has undergone renovations at least three times. the last renovation was started in 2006 and it was only completed this year.

one feature unique to this temple is the electric lift chair meant for handicapped visitors. it can be used to help the physically disabled move from the base to the hill top where the temple is sited. however, when we visited yesterday, the chair was all wrapped up. the caretaker of the temple explained that the chair was hardly used because it was very slow moving. it would take about half an hour to complete the short distance.

as with all the other chinese temples, like thian hock keng and shuang lin temple, that were elaborately and skilfully renovated, the artisans and craftsmen were brought in from china. i think we do not have the expertise to do that kind of restoration work. most, if not all, of these imported workers are experienced and old.

i had driven past this temple before my friend took me there, but that day i thought i was seeing it for the first time. on reviewing some old photographs, i realised that i had failed to recognise it because the yellow paint on the retaining wall had been removed.

hong san see was designated a national monument in 1978.