Tag: Heritage

How Lee Kuan Yew Foiled Communists Through Radio

October 11, 2014 Blog, Book Reviews no comments

Let’s do a little quiz.

How many of you know who Lim Chin Siong or James Puthucheary were?

Or this formidable sounding dude called “The Plen”?

Stumped? Don’t worry. I was just as clueless.

Hopefully that will change with the re-launch of The Battle For Merger. Narrating how our first PM Lee Kuan Yew wrestled control for Singapore from communist insurgents, the book is published jointly by the National Archives of Singapore and Straits Times Press.

Brainchild of DPM Teo Chee Hean, the reprint of The Battle For Merger chronicled the series of radio broadcasts by former PM and Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew (LKY). Updated from the original edition published way back in 1962, it contains the transcripts of 12 radio talks written and delivered by Mr Lee between 13 September and 9 October 1961.


Groove to Musicity at Tiong Bahru

March 16, 2014 Blog no comments


Courtesy of Marc Nair

Do you relish gawking at beautiful old places? Perpetually plugged in to music on your digital device? Love to immerse yourself in a rich sensorial experience?

Well, if you’re an experience hedonist (like yours truly) who loves to zone out to the alchemy of architecture, music, and food, you may wish to check out Musicity.


Customised Curated Memories

July 5, 2012 Blog no comments


Ethan’s birth was one of my life’s biggest moments

In a consumer world awash with an endless stream of innovative products and services, there appear to be one thing that’s missing. And that is to tap onto a customer’s deep and intimate memories.

Now wait a minute. Isn’t that the same as what peddlers of nostalgia goods are already doing?


Sail on the Maritime Experiential Museum & Aquarium!

October 6, 2011 Blog 2 comments

Maritime Experiential Museum

Southeast Asia’s exciting maritime past comes alive this 15 October with the opening of Singapore’s first maritime museum. Known as the Maritime Experiential Museum & Acquarium (MEMA), the attraction at Resorts World Sentosa features more than 400 rare objects including the Jewel of Muscat (a life-sized reproduction of a 9th century Arab dhow), and treasures from the Belitung Shipwreck.  Designed by Ralph Appelbaum Associates, an international museum design firm, the museum depicts the romance of a bygone era with tales of seafarers braving the stormy seas along the Maritime Silk Route.

Set in the 15th century, the museum’s centrepiece revolves around the story of legendary Admiral Zheng He who launched many maritime voyages from China to the Western oceans with a fleet of 300 shops.  Through highly interactive features and realistic replicas, the stories of exotic lands and seas from the past comes alive.


Colourful World of Costumes and Cultures

August 14, 2010 Blog no comments

Singapore HeritageFest Opening
Check out Singapore HeritageFest these two weeks!

Feeling bored this weekend? Don’t!

There are tonnes of activities to do as the inaugural Singapore 2010 Youth Olympic Games (YOG) opens today, with a smorgasbord of 26 sports, culture & education, and outdoor activities awaiting. Other than the Marina Bay area which is teeming with free concerts and programmes starting today, you can also check out the various shopping centres like Suntec City Mall where the Singapore HeritageFest is happening.


The Fragility and Fury of Pompeii

September 22, 2009 Blog 2 comments

After waiting for the (non-volcanic) dust to settle from my assignments, readings and thesis writing, I took some time off today to visit the exhibition “A Day in Pompeii” that is now showing at the Melbourne Museum till the end of October. I have a personal interest to view this blockbuster exhibition as I have visited the site some 15 years ago in 1994 when I toured Europe as an undergraduate. If you wish, you can actually experience Pompeii online with this wonderful virtual walk through that allows you to see what is available in each gallery. Of course, nothing beats the real thing!

Nestled in what is now close to modern day Naples in Italy, the ancient city of Pompeii lived under the ominous shadow of the volcanic Mount Vesuvius. Citizens and residents of that town-city were used to the occasional rumblings of the dormant volcano, and took it quite matter of factly. It became a part and parcel of life, according to famed Roman lawyer and magistrate Pliny the Younger. Nobody could have suspected that a disaster of cataclysmic proportions was about to occur.