Best Places To See In Balestier

Changing with the Times

Unlike major tourist hot-spots like Orchard Road and Chinatown, Balestier may not seem to offer anything exciting at first glance – but this cannot be further from the truth.

Shophouses along Balestier Road


Sun Yat Sen Memorial Hall


The legendary Malaysian director P. Ramlee


The Church of St. Alphonsus, better known as Novena Church


Sasanaramsi Burmese Buddhist Temple


Loong Fatt's famous tau sar piah at Balestier

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Singapore’s other 62 islands: Kusu

Here’s a factoid for you: Singapore is actually made up of 63 separate islands. But most people, even locals, don’t venture much further beyond the main island andSentosa. Many of the outlying islands are explicitly off-limits to visitors because they’re used for heavy industry or military training, but my goal is to visit as many as possible. First up: Kusu Island.

Little Kusu Island is only 5.6 kilometres from Singapore and a short ferry ride from the Marina South Pier. The island’s name means “Tortoise Island” in Chinese and the reptilian theme persists with tortoise statues and a tortoise sanctuary with hundreds of the animals.

The island’s name originates from its creation story. Local folklore says a giant tortoise turned itself into the island to save two ship-wrecked sailors, one Malay and one Chinese. Both men returned to the island and built shrines to show their thanks to the magic tortoise, and to this day the island is an important place forreligious pilgrimage.

 Welcome to Kusu Island

Kusu Island temple

Little Kusu Island – that’s all of it!

A quiet place for a dip

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Killing time with the kids

Waiting doesn’t always have to be chaotic or boring, especially with these five fun and no-fuss games

 Sitting in traffic, standing in line, or waiting in restaurants should be a breeze. Unless you have kids in tow, which probably means a nuclear meltdown is imminent. These days, the best way to keep them busy (and keep them quiet) while waiting usually comes in the form of an electronic device. 

But I would like to think there are other forms of games to occupy them. And all these games require are you, your kids, and a little bit of free time.

The ABC Game
Pick a topic, such as cartoons, movies, animals, food, etc. The first player starts by saying a word that begins with ‘A’ in the selected category. The next person continues with a word that begins with ‘B’ in the same category and so on. The game continues until you get to the end of the alphabet.

Memory Game
Test your child’s observation skills in this memory game challenge. Choose a direction and have the players, save for one, stare at it for 20-30 seconds. Then have them turn around and take turns to say everything they remember seeing in that direction. One of the players—the one who didn’t turn around—should act as judge. Whoever is stumped when it comes to their turn loses.

Don’t Laugh Copycat!
As the leader, you can move any way you wish, or choose exaggerated facial expressions. The only rule is, everyone must copy you…without laughing! Not even a smile. Anyone who laughs is out.

Let’s Tell a Story
This is nothing new but it is definitely a great way to pass the time. One person gets the ball rolling by making up the beginning of a story. The next person picks up and starts adding to the story. With kids, you can be sure that the story is bound to get sillier and sillier, but that’s the beauty of it, no? Plus, it might just aid the kids in having to think creatively!

The Telephone Game
This game is ideally played with a larger group of kids. Whisper a fairly long phrase into the ear of the first child and have him then whisper the phrase into the next person’s ear. Have the last person in the chain say the phrase aloud and see how much of it has changed! Cue giggles and laughter all around.

Hope you will enjoy playing these silly no-fuss games with your kids the next time you are stuck waiting for something or someone!

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Singapore’s old-style cafes

Singapore’s traditional breakfast of kopi or teh with kaya butter toast and eggs has seen a surge in popularity in recent years, with local chain Ya Kun even branching out abroad. If you’d like to get nostalgic and take a step back into Singapore’s culinary past, where should you head?

Local coffee chains include Ya Kun, Killiney, Wang Cafe, Good Morning Nanyang and Toastbox. Seek out the first two on the list if you can, as they’re the oldest. Killiney’s original branch on Killiney Road was established by the Hainanese in 1919, while the original Ya Kun stall was set up in the 1940s near today’s flagship outlet at Far East Square on China Street — and it’s still run by the founding family.

Other cafes like Wang and Toastbox don’t have as huge a reputation, but still serve up a similar style of coffee and toast with kaya and butter. Tradition lives on through the serving of the kopi in a porcelain teacup and saucer — some Singaporeans absolutely detest it if any other type of cup is used — but they also offer a range of other Singaporean specialties such as laksa and Malay favourites like mee siam, mee rebus and nasi lemak.

There’s a Ya Kun almost everywhere

They offer a mean pasta in addition to the classics, but quality remains consistent

Dong Po Colonial Cafe boasts vintage style, from the outside in

Almond fingers and butterfly cupcake, washed down with a cup of kopi

Sip and play at EatPlayLove

Ding Dang, anyone?

Hello fried finger foods, goodbye small waistline

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Singapore hawker dishes: Lor mee

Lor mee tastes much better than it looks

Lor mee is a hawker dish of Hokkien heritage. The lor or gravy is simmered for hours, with spices, meat stock, egg whites and corn starch to give it its sticky consistency; served with flat yellow noodles and some crunchy additions, it’s dish worth seeking out while you’re in Singapore. (You’ll also find lor duck, lor pork and lor beancurd at cheap stalls right across the city state).

Flat yellow noodles are a key ingredient, but then lor mee stalls will vary other ingredients added. Stewed pork belly, deep-fried fish in a crispy batter, fish cakes and deep-fried hand-made meat balls are among the ingredients most commonly found in lor mee — usually topped with a hard-boiled egg. Most stalls will also add chilli paste, sprigs of cilantro and a huge dollop of raw minced garlic for you to mix in with the broth to give it additional bite. You can opt out of these if you’re uncomfortable with them.

For an added kick, lor mee stalls usually provide black rice vinegar, which you can add as liberally as you wish for a sour taste to cut through the rich broth — it definitely lightens the dish. If you wish for more spiciness, head for the chopped chillies and soya sauce that’s always available at Singapore hawker stalls.

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