My goal has been to explore and connect with Singaporean culture and history. I have walked by the beach multiple times, and always thought that organising a beach cleanup would be an effective way to spend a morning, trying to make a difference in a small way. I am part of a group called Bye Bye Plastic Bags in Singapore, which focuses on raising awareness about eco-conscious decisions that can be made in order to improve our interactions with the environment, and turn them from destructive, to constructive. We organised a beach cleanup, though with the COVID regulations it was always difficult to do. However, we went down to East Coast Park in the morning, and started picking up whatever trash we found. We organised and recorded it so that we understood the trends and what type of trash was being most thrown away and littered. I found that plastic bottles, not just water bottles, but drink bottles, shampoo, any liquid container, were the most common. Cans, and styrofoam were not as likely to be found. Whilst we were cleaning up, we met another old uncle who said he comes here to clean up every week. This made me realise that I do not need to plan a whole day of work to come and clean a beach. I can do it whenever I want to. Sometimes, we get too caught up in the logistics that we fail to see the practical ways in which we can make a difference! We collected 32kg of trash in one morning, which made me realise just how much lack of awareness there is surrounding littering, and throwing away materials that can harm the environment. Thinking about how to get the message and awareness out there is the true challenge, and one that this activity taught me to reflect on.

My research question was to understand and become acquainted with Singaporean history and culture in order to build my identity as a Singaporean. In this post, I will be exploring the natural habitats of Singapore and how these have been preserved even today. During my holidays, I went on a hike to the Bukit Timah Nature Reserve with my friend to explore the preserved parts of the Singaporean landscape. We hiked the BTNR, and ended up exploring (and getting lost!) in the Dairy Farm Nature Reserve trail as well. Living here for 18 years, I have never seen this much of raw nature in Singapore, nor has my family ever taken me. I was incredibly excited to be surrounded by nature and away from the bustling life of the city for a little bit, as I have always loved being in touch with the elements. I think the COVID-19 pandemic, forcing us to stay within our countries, made me look for new ways to explore this place I called home so confidently. Now, I see there was so much it was willing to offer me that I never knew about. 

The Bukit Timah Nature Reserve is home to the largest primary forest in Singapore, and has the largest range of biodiversity. It used to be one of the first eight forest reserves in the late 1800s. This means the flora and fauna that was present in the 1800s is still allowed to flourish today. BTNR contains at least 40% of the country’s native flora and land fauna even though it occupies only 0.2% of the total country area. We saw many monkeys in their natural habitat because of the conservation of this area. It was fascinating to me that the Singaporean legislation is placed in such a way to allow for the conservation of nature in such a stringent way. The Bukit Timah Nature Reserve is protected under the Parks and Trees Act, and was officially declared an ASEAN Heritage Park in 2011. In a world where climate change and biodiversity loss is not only the reality, but the terrifying potential for ecosystems collapsing, seeing the Singaporean government place importance on nature builds hope for the possibility of conservation, and the simultaneous existence of urbanization and nature. 

sources: https://www.nparks.gov.sg/nparksbuzz/issue-41-vol-2-2019/conservation/bukit-timah-nature-reserve

source: https://www.nas.gov.sg/archivesonline/data/pdfdoc/20111026002/factsheet-_bukit_timah_nature_reserve.pdf

I was born and brought up in Singapore. However, being brought up in an international school, I feel I have not had as much exposure to Singaporean history and culture as I should have. The aim of my holidays this time was to understand Singaporean history a little more, and this was achieved by visiting Fort Siloso in Sentosa, the last standing Fort that lives to tell the tale of the invasions by the British, the Japanese, and finally the fight for freedom. I think it’s important to understand the true history of the place we live in, so that we are not ignorant about the privilege we have. I find myself guilty of taking my place in Singapore for granted, but I think it has to come with an understanding of what brutal sacrifices were made in order to live in the peace and happiness we have today. Fort Siloso allowed me to have a glimpse of Singaporean history, though I am aware I have much more to learn about. 

Fort siloso is in sentosa, an island off of Singapore which is typically associated with fun and vacation, strongly juxtaposing the initial nature of events that took place on the island.  

I have always found history difficult to comprehend, and therefore I always tended to ignore it. This is because I cannot wrap my head around the fact that humans, just like you and me, had to go to war, had their lives taken away from them as other countries invaded into their place they call home. I think I am scared to acknowledge history, and I know this is problematic. This is why I took a conscious effort to go to fort siloso, and rid myself of a bit of ignorance. I did not take photos of the exhibits inside as no photography was allowed. However, I learned many things from the exhibit. I learned how the British colonised Singapore, but the Singaporeans did not necessarily mind. There are a lack of any violence or horrific acts committed during this act of colonisation, although I am skeptical to believe this was the real situation. However, what appalled me was the sheer amount of conflict going on in the world during World War 2. The time during WW2 had various conflicts going on simultaneously, in Europe, Asia and in North America. I related this back to my documentaries of WW2 I have been watching this holiday with my family to once again, deepen my understanding of the historic events that shaped the present day.

I am keen to learn more about Singaporean culture, and history, that we often do not hear about today. I wish to become acquainted with more Singaportesn history and culture, in its nature, and truth.