Untouched by time

Can you identify the place shown in this photo? It is one of those few places that has not changed much in decades. You can be forgiven if you mistook it for some place in Malaysia. But it is actually right here in modern Singapore.

There are few places like this around. But it won’t remain like this for long. Big changes are coming to this place soon ….. and that’s the hint.

Through the years

Have you seen the latest TV advertisement from Nikon? They adopted a technique that has been used ’through the years’; namely to simply play a nice song without saying anything about their product. The song of course is Kenny Rogers’ THROUGH THE YEARS.

It brings to mind a few other memorable tunes:

The first is Louis Armstrong’s WHAT A WONDERFUL WORLD used by Fuji Film some years ago. I believe this ad won an award for the Viewer’s Choice at that time. Viewer’s Choice was a competition where viewers chose their favourite advertisement. (I think you will like this version)

Another one is The New Seekers’ I’d LIKE TO TEACH THE WORLD TO SING used by Coca Cola. This advert used to come up during the Christmas season. It showed a group of young people from different countries holding lighted candles and singing the song. As the camera zooms out, you see the picture of a Christmas tree formed by the candles. In this case, they modified the song a little to include, among other things, Coke’s famous tag line, It’s the Real Thing. You can see this ad here.

But my favourite is still Paul Anka’s TIMES OF YOUR LIFE for Kodak. Not only are the lyrics so meaningful; Paul Anka’s soulful voice adds a certain melancholy to the mood. I remember seeing this ad at the old Cathay Cinema. The snippet showed Paul Anka singing the song in a recording studio with headphones and all. The year was probably around 1975. You can listen to it here.

Some years ago, Kodak did a brief re-make of this advertisement; but the song was sung by someone else. I felt that it was a complete flop. Viewers who knew the song would automatically compare this version with Paul Anka’s and the obvious result would be disappointment. I think what Kodak should have done and should do is to show the original advertisement scratches and all. The age of the images, the old seventies fashion and even the scratchy sounds would themselves provide the nostalgia and remind the viewer about the brand name, Kodak.

In fact, I actually made a suggestion to Kodak to do just that. On their website, they have a feedback/suggestions section where they will reward you if your ideas are adopted. My suggestion however, was not adopted. I suspect there were some copyright issues involved. Too bad. Young viewers of today will not able to see for themselves what I try to describe here in words.

A view of the beautiful landscape outside our camp in Chien-Pu, Heng Chun, Taiwan, in March 1977


Whenever I hear Times of Your Life, I am reminded of my time doing army training in Taiwan on what was called Exercise Starlight. It was the culmination of our nine months of Officer Cadet Training. One day, my friends and I were moving along a dried river bed near our camp in Heng Chun. It was summer time and the river was quite dry. By the way, we were not supposed to do that. It was cheating and if caught would have certainly earned us some punishment. Anyway, as we passed a village, I heard this song coming from one of the houses and it made me terribly homesick.

Here’s another 'Ad song' I stumbled on while surfing around on YouTube - Kodak’s 1960’s advertisement using the song; Turn Around.

Do you have a favourite song like the ones I mentioned above? Please do share with us.

Nantah as she was 37 Years Ago

Last Monday, I fetched my daughter to NTU (Nanyang Technological University) where she is doing her 2nd year in Biological Sciences course. It was actually a public holiday, the previous Saturday being Hari Raya Puasa. I decided to pay a visit to the Nantah Lake to see if it was still the same.

Looking at the two photos below, you would agree that this is one of the few spots in our tiny island that has been untouched by time. In fact, Nantah itself had undergone two name changes; first to Nanyang Technological Institute and later Nanyang Technological University.

In comparison, the surrounding area has undergone tremendous changes. The road that once led from the Nantah Arch at Upper Jurong Road has disappeared. The kampong-like environment has been replaced by high-rise HDB apartment blocks. A new highway has even emerged right in front separating the NTU campus from its previous entrance. And a replica of the famed Nantah Arch has been constructed in the Yunnan Garden.

The top photo is of my late parents taken in 1970.





The iconic Admin Building and the Yunnan Garden in front of it have also been preserved. I believe they now call it the Chinese Heritage Centre. The top photo is scanned from the book, Singapore, An Illustrated History, 1941 ~ 1984, Information Division, Ministry of Culture.





Previously there was a garden clock on the ground in front of the Admin Building. Now there’s a fountain. The guy in the photo is my old friend Simon Chu. We took this photo in 1969 during our crazy cycling trip around Singapore.





I saw a group of well-dressed people posing for a group photo in front of it. They must be former students back to capture some old memories.



The Yunnan Garden too has not changed much. In fact, it has improved because the pavilions and other structures look very well maintained. The Yunnan Garden looks rather empty. The students are probably too busy to utilize it. Maybe this is a good place to visit for some peace and quiet and exercise. Below are two photos taken in 1970 or thereabouts of me and my brother Chun Chew (Zen) in front of this structure (I don’t know what you call this).

We never dreamed at that time that our photos can be displayed on the internet for the whole world to see. I don't think even the futurologists ever imagined that there would be such a thing call the internet back in 1970.







Check out Dr Tan Wee Kiats posts about the Nantah Arch here and here.