Tiong Bahru

More than 75% of Singaporeans live in government funded, built, and subsidized apartment blocks known as HDB flats. Moving around Singapore, these blocks are easy to spot (usually because they look much less attractive than any of the private condominium developments). Also obvious is the era in which the flats were built -- decade by decade. Some of the newer ones have finally caught up with private condos in terms of design and amenities. One decade that is hardly represented, however, is the 1930s. However, this decade is alive and well in the neighborhood known as Tiong Bahru where, walking around the area, I was immediately transported back in time. In fact, this group of thirty buildings was the first public housing project undertaken in Singapore. Unlike pretty much the rest of Singapore, the flats here are only two to five storey buildings and, although simple, there's an Art Deco vibe and aesthetic to the buildings. More than that, there was an effort to include the style of the colonial shophouses in the design. The result, back in the '30s was that this was a neighborhood for the rich and powerful. An area that was all cemeteries (Tiong Bahru translates to "New Cemetery") and deemed unclean and full of squatters in 1925 had been changed into one of the most expensive neighborhoods in the city, a place where many wealthy men kept their mistresses, giving the neighborhood it's new name, Mei Ren Wo, or "Den of Beauties". Miraculously, this neighborhood has survived despite the wall of ten or twenty times taller apartment blocks all around it. Over the years, the area lost its status but retained its old world charm. In the past decade it has been "discovered" and the neighborhood's nostalgic appeal has transformed it into a hip and up and coming neighborhood. Thrillist and Vogue have voted it amongst the most hipster neighborhoods in the world. At the same time, the Singapore government recognized the neighborhoods place in the history of Singapore and put the entire area under heritage conservation, protecting it from redevelopment. Exploring the hood, I found several small organic grocers, a great bookstore with wonderful children's annex, coffee places, and funky shops. It's a beautiful neighborhood and only 20 minutes walk, across the Singapore River, from our place.