Sunset Places In Singapore

Sunset Places In Singapore

In this series on 'Sunset Places In Singapore', I have chosen to share a photograph of the sunset scene at Punggol beach.

You know my preference for quiet, slow-paced, relaxed places that are far away from crowds. Living in this fast-paced society where everything has to be number one, it takes an outing to secluded places in Singapore such as this, to reaffirm that there are natural laid-back places to appreciate in urbanized Singapore.

Photograph of sunset place in Singapore: Punggol beach.

I am sure you have your own favourite places in Singapore to see sunsets. Care to share those sunset places in Singapore?

See more places. Live more life.

[... read more inside Seen This Scene That...]

Punggol Beach Historical Marker

Punggol Beach Historical Marker

Where is the historical marker at Punggol beach?

A reader of Seen This Scene That asked about the location of the historical marker at Punggol beach after I published an article on it recently.

I have decided to share this piece of information with all my other readers. But instead of telling you where its exact location is, I shall put up a photograph of it.

Photograph: Spot the Punggol beach historical marker.

In this photograph, can you spot where the Punggol beach historical marker is?

Don't worry if you can't see it clearly in the photograph. On your next visit to Punggol beach, look for this police post and search around it.

Spend some time to read and reflect on what the inscriptions on the historical marker has to say.

What are your thoughts on this historical event?

See more places. Live more life.

[... read more inside Seen This Scene That...]

Punggol Beach

Punggol Beach

Of the many beautiful beaches in Singapore, Punggol beach is one of the more offbeat locations to find a sandy beachfront on the mainland. I was glad I make a trip there after my last visit last year.

Photograph 1: A scene of Punggol beach.

The greatest allure of Punggol beach is its peaceful ambiance. To me, I find that coming to Punggol beach is like taking a step back in time, away from the maddening crowd of a concrete jungle. Even the winding and undulating road that leads to Punggol beach looks different: no traffic lights, no zebra crossing, no ERP gantry, just a few parked cars on the 2-lane carriageway where durian hunters gather.

Photograph 2: Jetty at Punggol beach.

In terms of public amenities, there are hardly any at Punggol beach. If you visit Punggol beach, you won't find stand-alone kiosks offering bicycle or skate rentals. There are no public barbecue pits along the beachfront. There are no signs allowing or disallowing camping at Punggol beach. The only public toilet is a mobile cubicle that can double as a changing room if you intend to swim in the open sea.

There are no food and beverage outlets in the region of Punggol beach although that may change soon. There is a large sign board advertising the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) sale of a land parcel at Punggol Point for food and beverage development. I hope Punggol beach doesn't turn out to become another East Coast beach, overrun by fast food outlets and car parking nightmare.

The police presence at Punggol beach is apparent with large signs around a small hut-like building situated at the end of Punggol Road. Since a certain fugitive got caught across the Causeway, all appears quiet on this front.

Punggol beach is not really suitable for swimming as there are plenty of rocks just beyond the sandy shoreline. The large open spaces, coupled with sea breeze, is ideal for a quiet family picnic. Kids like mine would enjoy playing on the sand, working creations with sand castle-making tools and bare hands. The other popular leisure pursuit at Punggol beach, judging by the number of anglers on the jetty, is fishing.

One uncommon reason that could bring visitors to Punggol beach is a National Heritage Board historical marker that I wrote about last year, detailing atrocities committed at the beach during World War II, near the police post.

During my visit, I saw a platoon of young shutterbugs combing Punggol beach, shooting everything in their sight. I wonder if they knew about the other kind of shooting that took place decades ago on this very same beach.

What do you think of Punggol beach?

See more places. Live more life.

[... read more inside Seen This Scene That...]

Punggol Point Beach, Singapore

Punggol Point Beach Singapore

What is this place?
Welcome to an ‘ulu’ (undeveloped) part of Singapore’s northern shoreline at the end of Punggol Road. Once an estate for farms catering to pigs, poultry, fishes and plants, much of Punggol has undergone metamorphosis in a spanking new residential estate. Fortunately the upgrading has not extended right up to this part of Punggol.

In the northeastern reaches of Singapore, this place of interest is much nearer to Johore, Malaysia than to Singapore’s central business district. Far from the maddening crowd, this isolated strip of shore runs for several kilometers along the coastline with cloud-dotted sky in its line of sight. Wide open spaces lifted by sea breezes light up one’s spirit upon arrival. The salty air, however, is laden with industrial fragrances from nearby ocean-crossing tankers.

What did I learn?
Besides the customary sandy beach, small jetty and the usual visitors, a tombstone-like artifact, left behind by the National Heritage Board stirred my interest. Ultra-modern Singapore Inc had pinned a slab of concrete marker for posterity to remember a gruesome act of WWII history at a spot next to the flimsy-looking police post. Under torture of the sun, you can read inscriptions carved into marble on a trapezoid plaque. They explain the horrific plight of up to 400 Chinese civilians who were wiped out at the beach in the Sook Ching operation on 28 February 1942.

Besides attracting world-war veterans, peace-loving activists and curious by-standers like me, this heritage site had a compelling function. It reminded me of my years performing National Service when at times we would camp out by the sea. On another level, it touched a realization that my 2.5 years in National Service plus another 10 years of reservist (Nsman) service did possess intrinsic value: the sacrifice for the greater good of protecting our Little Red Dot’s survival and success. No matter how unmentionably tough our training was, or how disappointed we might have felt at the way the system treated us, deep down inside there remained an unspoken pride that came with completing those years of service. I am now able to look at the past through rose-tinted glasses with the mellowness that grows with each passing year.

I enjoyed the natural refreshing views. Beneath the L-shaped jetty, barnacles cling for life against tidal trauma. When the sea retreats, moss-laced rocks peep out from sandy shores. Sit on these smoothened rocks as you watch sampans ferry passengers and crew to distant ships. If you look back towards land, you may imagine Casuarina trees nodding to the wind, as if they are participating in the celebration of picnickers sitting around them.

Take care, stay happy.

[... read more inside Seen This Scene That...]