two newly renovated houses

at kg lorong buangkok

following a report in some overseas press , the new paper, on 14 jan 2009, ran a report about the government acquiring the land at kampong lorong buangkok, the last remaining village on the mainland. my blogger friend victor koo also urged us to visit the place before "it disappears in the name of progress and deveopment."

this is the report that appeared in some foreign press:

It is Singapore's secret Eden, a miniature village hidden in trees among the massed apartment blocks, where a fresh breeze rustles the coconut palms and tropical birds whoop and whistle. White butterflies flutter among the mango and star fruit trees, and tiny fish swim in a tiny stream. With just 28 houses in an area the size of three football fields, it is Singapore's last rural hamlet, a forgotten straggler in the rush to modernize this high-rise, high-tech city-state.

But apparently not for much longer. The village, called Kampong Buangkok, is slated by the government for demolition and redevelopment, possibly in the near future. When it is gone, one of the world's most extreme national makeovers will be complete.

Kampong is a local word for village, and also defines a traditional rural way of life that Singapore has left behind.

today, we took victor's advice and drove to gerald drive. from what we have seen and from talking to one of the house owners, it does not seem like the disappearance of the kampong will take place any time soon. the two newly renovated houses, facing each other, belonging to two sisters who are singaporeans, look incongruous in a place that is slated for redevelopment.

although most of the renovation materials were not brand new, they have spent a few tens of thousand on doing up the houses. when asked if the land was acquired, she told us that they had not heard anything about it. she explained that they did not own the land; it belongs to the landlord, who still lives in the same kampong.

in the true kampong spirit, she invited us in - total strangers to her - for a tour of the place. the upper floor will serve as a storeroom. the place has electricity, piped water and proper sanitation. the owner, who used to live in malaysia, likes the kampong way of life. of course, the very low rent is an attraction.

among the four of us who went to visit kampong lorong buangkok today, i was the one who felt most at home because i used to be a kampong boy.

i felt very much at home at kampong lorong buangkok, with its fruit trees, foot paths and long kang. it was the type of environment that i lived in for more than quarter of a century.

a safer option - go to jb by bus

when i wrote about my driving trip to johor, one of my balestier group walking kakis, posted this in my facebook:

But Johor's a 'dangerous place'. My office attendant lost her car and passport over the weekend in Johor. ALL GONE! Luckily she had her i/c with her and managed to come back to SIN in time to report for work today. sigh....

another case, another warning. this was posted in my yahoo group forum page:

If you meet a guy who rides a motorbike with bloodyhand knocking your window demand you to stop and asking for tissue paper to clean the blood when you are driving a car, remember DO NOT stop the car at all . Even how he damages your car or holds the side mirrors tightly also DO NOT stop the car but directly drive to the nearest police station.

with all these reports of cars being tricked into stopping by men with bloodied hands, isn't it better and safer to travel into johor bahru by bus. there are at least three local services that ply the singapore-jb route. they are smrt service 950 and sbs services 160 and 170.

with the opening of the new ciq, i find it more convenient to get to johor central/jalan wang ah fook. after the immigration and custom clearance, you just follow the directional signs to 'johor central' and you will soon find yourself at level 3 of city square.

if you prefer a clean, orderly and apparently safe environment, then stick to city square. if you are more adventurous, then you can venture to the older parts of johor bahru, which is just next to the shopping complex.

the place is like a mix of geylang and sim lim square - a lot of makan places, vendors peddling sex pills and enhancers and shops selling vcd and dvd. in spite of constant raids, the flesh trade is still thriving in the old shophouses of jalan wang ah fook. the dvd sellers are more discreet these days.

it is also quite convenient to take a bus back to singapore. after clearing immigration at the new ciq, you just follow the directional signs and they will lead you to where all the buses are parked. if you are taking the bus back, pay for your fare in malaysian currency, don't use your ezlink card.

don't get excited , it's only a leaf

it does appear obscene but it is just a common leaf. most national serviceman soldiers - which means any male s'porean below the age of 58 - will know the plant from which this leaf comes. during their training in their wooded areas, when they had nothing to do, they could have played with the leaves of this plant. i think this plant is more a shrub than a tree. it is a common plant in singapore.

what is the name of the plant? quite a number of people have blogged about this leaf/plant.

area licensing scheme (als) before erp

photos from national archives of singapore
(first day of implementation: 2 june 1975)

before the electronic road pricing (erp) came into being in 1998, we had the area licensing scheme (als). when it was first introduced in 1975, the als was in operation from 7.30 a.m. to 10.15 a.m. on weekdays. drivers of private cars had to pay $3 for a pass to enter the restricted zone during the operational hours.

however, there was one concession. if a private car carried four heads or more, it could enter the zone without paying. this also led to car-pooling, where certain points were designated for car-pool pick-up. i use the word 'heads' instead of passengers because that was what the cisco police, who were manning the gantry points, were instructed to do: count the number of heads in the car.

as usual, the smart singaporeans tried to abuse this provision. private cars were picking up bus commuters just to avoid paying the fee. some tried to pass off a mannequin as one of the 'heads'. this eventually led to the scrapping of the four passengers or more for free entry into the zone.

the cost of a licence to enter the restricted zone went up to $4 in 1976 and reached $5 in 1980. however, it came back to the original amount of $3 in 1989, when als was extended to the evening, from 4.30 p.m. to 7.00 p.m.

in 1995, road pricing was extended to the east coast parkway.

the east coast parkway was also first to see the introduction of the electronic road pricing. in april 1998, erp started on the ecp.

the erp system uses a dedicated short-range radio communication system to deduct erp charges from a cash card. the card is inserted in the in-vehicle unit (ius) of a vehicle before each journey.

each time, the vehicle passes through a gantry when the system is in operation, the erp charge will be automatically deducted.

desert rose (adenium obesum)

the desert rose (adenium obesum) is a succulent bush with thick, fleshy branches. the 'obesum' in its name refers to the large, fat base. this plant, usually grown in a pot, is popular with chinese families but i have also seen my malay neighbour growing it. i stopped having this plant after the last one lost all its leaves, shrivelled up and refused to re-grow new leaves. i think i must have overwatered the plant.

the leaves are glossy green and semi-deciduous. if left without added water and no rain for a long time or after a cold night (in temperate countries), the desert rose can lose most of its leaves. but, fear not, the leaves will usually re-appear if the plant gets some water or when the weather becomes warmer.

i have come across four colours in its flower - pink, red, white and white mixed with pink at its edge. this spring orchard at lane 4 lim chu kang has all the four varieties.

the adenium obesum produces bean-like seed pods. the same orchard has many pots of baby plants. they must have propagated them from seeds, and not from cuttings.

one not so common desert rose is the one with variegated leaves. when pruning the plant, you must avoid contact with the sap. the sap is believed to be poisonous, and so you should clean your hands after you have done your pruning.