1 Degree North: February 2014

Well that was quite a rest-bit... but we're back with it now. Last weeks adventure took us to Kampong Gelam, which is the Muslim Malay historic area of Singapore. Since their independence in 1965, most kampong (villages) were broken up. Ethnic peoples who gathered to work and live in areas were moved apart so there wouldn't be zones of peoples. Currently the HDB (govt subsidized affordable housing) is sold in percentages of ethnicity. In other wards, one group can't come in and take over a building. They are divided up: so many Chinese, so many Malay, so many Indian. If an Indian sells up, only an Indian family can move in.

But back to the walking tour...
Kampong Gelam was home to the Malay royals before the British invasion in the early 1800s. It takes the name from "glam" (eucalyptus in Malay) trees that used to grow there. The Bugis and Malay peoples used the oils for medicine and to make their ships water tight. This area had been the water front back then.

First stop, Sultans Mosque. The first mosque was built on this sight in 1824 (the current one is from a century later) using a grant of 3000 British Pounds from the East India Company. It was named in honor of the Sultan of Singapore and was once part of his enclave

If you know me, you know I have a weird love of cemeteries. I believe you can tell a culture by how they bury/deal with their dead. There is a lovely, though I feel neglected, Malay cemetery in this area. One is royal, adorned with the color yellow symbolizing royalty. The other is for the average Joe. It seems there are head posts and foot posts ( newel like). They all aim one direction, but it doesn't seem to be toward Mecca. I could just have my bearings wrong...

One of the oldest buildings still remaining here is the Alsagoff Arab School. Built in 1912, it originally taught just boys but over time added girls into the student body.One of the few Islamic centers in Singapore, it has students who are local, as well as from Malaysia, Brunei and Thailand.

There are two other mosques in this small area, all still being used.

completely tiled in small blue tiles

What may be the height of the area is the old Sultan's palace, which is now the Malay Heritage Centre. The second sultan of Singapore ceded the island to the East Indian Company in 1824, with the proviso that they build the palace and his family could live there as long as they wished. The proviso was repealed in 1897, but the last Sultan's decedents moved out in 1999!! It sits adjacent to the Sultan's Mosque and another villa built in the 1920's for guests.

Arab Street, which is another major tourist destination, is but two blocks west. I did do some shopping for bits and bobs, but no need for photos. Below are just some random shots of the area.