Singapore is a
multi racial country with all ethnics stay peacefully and harmony under one
country roof. From the three major ethnics, Indian community does have their
own gathering site, Little India. When weekend arrived, many of them flocked to
there to enjoy the shopping and delicious local Indian foods there.
Soon after the arrival of Indian
migrants in the 19th century,
many laundry yards business were emerged and sprouted in Dhoby Ghaut in the
days whenStamfordCanal was an open waterway. There is There is a busy canal at
that time with many merchant ships and boats passed over there, loading and
unloading cargo and having business operation there. Further down the area is Serangoon Road,
where cows were reared for their milk. This provided jobs opportunities and
soon after, more and more Indian migrants came and stay here to make a living,
resulting with temples dedicated to various Hindu gods being built.
Serangoon Road and its
colourful and busy side streets today form the backbone of Little India.
Pungent spices and sweet jasmine smells knock your attention whenever you
passage over Little India. Since olden day, Indian already famous for their
spices, and Arab merchants came here to buy the spices to sell to Europe market at a promising earnings. Spices were used
to preserve the food and seasoning daily cook.
Dining along the Little India side
streets is a celebration with North and South Indian restaurants standing side
by side along the streets with those offering vegetarian choices. Curry fish
head flavoured with tamarind is a local Singaporean cuisine that is very
popular among Singaporean, including Chinese. Take your pick from Indian
vegetarian as well as Indian-Chinese fusion dishes and curries galore. These
restaurants are open for lunch and dinner, and do offer snack menu.
Surrounding Little India has famous
Kwan Im Tong Hood Cho Temple. Built in 1884, this temple was dedicated to Guan
Yin the Goddess of Mercy and miraculously survived from bombings during World
War ll. The particular interest sight in Kwan Im Tong hood Cho temple is many
devotees seeking for answers to their irresolvable questions by shaking bamboo
sticks inside brass containers, creating an incessant clanking.
If you visit to Little India, you can
not miss out Tekka Centre. Tekka Centre is a wet market,
food centre and shopping mall under one roof. Below is wet market
where local residents come early morning to buy the ingredients for daily
foods. Food court was there waiting for their customer to order breakfast after
finishing their wet market buying. Second floor were shops selling traditional
Indian and Punjabi clothes.
Sri Srinivasa
Perumal Temple and
Mustafa Centre are other attractions you must visit. Sri Srinivasa
Perumal Temple
was first built in 1885 and subsequently rebuilt in 1960. This temple was
developed by Indian community leaders. The temple’s rajagopuram (main gateway)
was added in 1979 and consecrated with holy water fromGanges River,India.
This temple was starting point for the spectacular kavadi procession during
Thaipusam festival, usually held in January. Mustafa Centre is a four floors
shopping mall that offers round-the-clock shopping. Initially popular with
Indian visitors, it is today patronized by Singaporean and visitors from all
over the world. Besides electronic goods, clothes, jewelleries and grocery,
Mustafa do have many selections of Indian spices, foodstuffs and cooking
ingredients.
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