National Museum of Singapore

Although the building outside looks the same, abeit the renovations and refurbishments done, the interior of the museum is totally brand new and very much different from the National Museum I have been to many years back. The old musuem was eerie, dark and museum like. The new looks refreshing and more like an art gallery.

If you are driving there, you can park at the car park at fort canning park (next to ROM) and enter via the back entrance to the museum. Entrance fees are $10 for adults.

Must say that you can spend the whole day in the Singapore "History Gallery" to look at the exhibits and listen to the cleverly arranged scripts and stories from 1800s to the present. I took about 4 hours to finish the History Gallery (with in-depth concentration).

The "Living Galleries" are equally interesting with topics on fashion, food, wayang and photography. There is one particular section I particularly enjoy: the private collection of photographs of people, their families and scenes of Singapore in the early 1900s.

Although guided tours are available, I recommend taking the self guided audio tour. You will be given an audio set which you can put round your neck, with headphones attached. As you move round the museum, and see an interesting exhibit, just select the appropriate buttons on the audio set and hear the narration and explanation. There is a wealth of information available with this audio set. At times it seems like there is an overload of information.

Much of the exhibits are well preserved. You can find Passports, Japanese occupation documents, birth certificates and marriage certificates that look like they were just written a while ago....although the date says 1923.

Many immigrants came from China to look for a better life in Singapore in the 1920s. It isn't much different today. To think that these ones who came in 1920s for a better future are not longer in existence just makes you feel how short life is. And to think that the present is just as bad as the past, or even worse in terms of world conditions just makes you wonder if it really is possible to find a "better" life in another land. The past events portrayed in the Musuem really makes you think about life as a whole. Much of the Museums's exhibits dwell on the founding of Singapore, the Japanese occupation and the beginning of the political history.

It is also interesting to note that many road names we have today are named by the British in the 1800s. Much of Shenton way, Colleyer Quay, Alexander Road, Bukit Timah, Jurong and Even Tampines and Bedok were on maps dated in the 1800s!

Visiting the museum was an eye opener to people, their thoughts and aspirations. Over the years these have remained unchanged....and I guess will never change.

So if you want to do some soul searching, visit the National Museum. As the saying goes, "Without the past there will be no present".