SingAPraise: June 2011

Do you know how the station came to be in Tanjong Pagar and why it has to move?

Well, the station is one of the legacies left behind by the British empire when they granted independence to Malaya and Singapore. They partitioned this railway station and the entire railway line from Tanjong Pagar to Malaya as land belonging to Malaya.

After years of this arrangement, the Tanjong Pagar site and other KTMB land parcels in the island republic will be jointly developed by MS Pte Ltd, a company with a 60 per cent stake held by Khazanah Nasional Bhd and 40 per cent by Temasek Holdings Ltd, as agreed by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak and his Singapore counterpart, Lee Hsien Loong in 2010.

After queuing unsuccessfully for the 8am ride (because it was sold out!), we finally managed to get tickets for the 1pm KTM train ride from Tanjong Pagar Railway Station to Malaysia. The atmosphere at Tanjong Pagar Railway Station was exciting. Instead of the usual sleepy and quiet feel that we get every time we pass by it, the station was bustling with Singaporeans, Malaysians and other tourists eager to soak up the history, sights and sounds of the station and the train ride before it closes on 30 June 2011.

What better way to keep a slice of Singaporean history than to capture the memorable sights on camera?

The directory that greets you upon entering the station.

Check out the large murals on the wall. They depict village life in early Singapore and Malaysia.
Their fresh colours and detail make them a joy to admire from afar.

Love the natural light streaming in from the windows above.

The all-famous railway food station. Their amazingly fragrant teh-halia (ginger tea) is going to be missed.

Checking out the arrival area. Super old-school.

Police station.

The tracks. Some people actually climbed down to take pictures, totally oblivious to the fact that they could be hit by incoming trains if they couldn't run fast enough. But they came up after the station master came running after them while blowing his whistle non-stop.

Shutterbugs and eatingbugs.More photos of the food in Part 2

The stalls in the canteen.

Teh-halia!

A photo with the very obliging station master.

These used to be hotel rooms. They are not in use anymore though.

Looking up...

And moving off to the departure area.

Station master No.2 punching our tickets. Looking kinda bored though.

Inside the train carriage

Snapping a picture from outside the train.

The departure platform at Tanjong Pagar Railway Station.
Last chance to buy snacks!

Another look inside the carriage. It's air-conditioned and pretty comfy, with a little table in front of each seat.

Leaving the station at Tanjong Pagar. You won't believe the amount of lush greenery in Singapore. Check out the videos in Part 2. There's really, really, really a lot of it.