星州百姓庆己丑 - celebrating the year of the ox with the lao baixing – the connection hence

这个新年待在狮城 过牛年，和往年不同而又过得特别的不一样。虽然人在星州，但好像是在中国过年似的。自所以说好像在中国过年似的是因为初一初二在牛车水一带所遇到的都是来自中国的男女士们。本岛的华人从年三十除夕在牛车水办好年货后都躲在家里或到亲属朋友们家拜年去了。

牛车水就交给了- 有朋从远方而来的中国百姓们， 亲也，乐也!

The Lunar New Year period holidays were spent in Chinatown – together with the mainlanders – baixing - 百姓. They are the common folks who are here as foreign labors, students, and without a better place to hang out, they gathered in Chinatown – to be with their own kind and to seep in whatever air of festivities that the sights and sounds the Chinatown could bring them.

With the local eateries all closed for two consecutive days, the only place that one could have lunch and dinner was at the restaurants run by the Chinese – that is the Chinese Chinese.

Well to differentiate the Chinese Chinese from the Singaporean Chinese, let’s refer to them as the Chinese from the mainland or the Mainlanders for short (this reference here is purely for ethnic identity, and with respect).

The fellow ethnic Chinese from China mainland are by and large different from the local Singaporean Chinese. Different – is because this wave of immigration of the 21st century is from the Northern and interior provinces of China, while the early immigrants of our forefather’s time were from the South-easterly costal regions and the island of Hainan.

The overhead bridge garden was a convenient and busy gathering point for the migrant workers who had a long holiday break. I had a chance to join in and listen to the conversation that this local old man had on the evening of the First Day of the Year of Jichou - 己丑年 - with the three fellow Mainlanders.

The local old man – let’s refer to him as Ah Pek –阿伯- uncle in Hokkien - is in his sixties, and probably a resident of Ngau Chiar Shui - 牛车水- Chinatown in Cantonese - all his life. His teeth are almost gone. He did not cut his hair for the New Year, perhaps he has not much left, and is the typical kopitiam - coffee joint ala carte local flavor - Ah Pek.

Together with him were two other local Singaporean Chinese, but because they could not speak Mandarin, this Ah Pek was the live wire, interpreter and spokesman for the mini New Gathering of the baixing –百姓- the hundred surnames – meaning the common folks.

What was interesting of this conversation was that – this Ah Pek is perhaps typical of the older generation of Chinese educated Singaporean Chinese, who still has a feel and connection with the fellow Mainlanders – verbally and culturally. A passing breed –

He introduced to the fellow Mainlanders that he is by dialect group Cantonese, while his two other fellow local Singaporean is Hokkien, and Teochew. He spoke in a mix of Mandarin, Cantonese, Hokkien and English. Whatever his two other fellow Singaporeans who could not connect with the Mainlanders in English, he helped them interpret to Mandarin.

He asked which part of China the Mainlanders were from and they replied – Henan – 河南省and Hunan 湖南. When he heard Henan – he immediately mentioned – Justice Bao – and sang and an aria from the popular TV drama series – Bao Qing Tian – 包青天-the incorruptible judge of the Song Dynasty – 宋朝 - 960 – 1279CE. And said the song Justice Bao is popular among the common folks here. Well, the cultural connection!

On Hunan, he mentioned Mao Zedong – 毛泽东- and Zhu Rongji - 朱镕基. Perhaps because it the Lunar New Year and with all its custom, beliefs and traditions, he proudly mentioned that Mao advocated atheism – wusen lun – 无神论- and demonstrated courage and break away with traditions. He mentioned that without Mao’s foundation, there would not be China today. You see, the depth and interest he knew of China !

Interestingly, he mentioned that previously the government was suspicious of Chinese education, and he was indignant about it. At the sideline listening, I was wondering how much the Mainlanders could relate to this episode of the local history where the Chinese schools in Singapore and the Malay Peninsula then, from the 1950/s to the 1970/s, were the hot spot of communist infiltrators.

On Zhu Rongji, Ah Pek spoke with respect and deference, and said that the former Premier Zhu had never allowed his children to be in politics - whether it is a fact or not. Well, …

He also jokingly related the difference between Cantonese - 粤语 - yueyu - and Mandarin –which he refers to as Guoyu - 国语 the National Language – that is – Mandarin or Putonghua – 普通话- which Taiwan -the Republic of China - still uses. He mentioned that in Mandarin, one would greet each other as - Ni hao ma or Hao bu Hao?– 你好吗? or 好不好? - in Cantonese he said that it would be disrespectful to use Ni hao ma - especially to female for cos in Cantonese - hao bu hao 好不好- means – are you sexy or not! In Cantonese hao means - sexy! Here, the ethnic connection!

Well, so much for the all the Bull… shit, it's time to leave for dinner!

It’s to North-Eastern China – Dong Bei Restaurant- 东北菜馆– at Mosque Street - for a treat of jiao zhi - 饺子- meat dumpling – a must have tradition in the Northern Provinces of China – regions north of the Yangzi River - 扬子江。

After dinner, it was off to the nearby LianZhong Wangba - 联众网吧- internet café to enjoy the recording of the – Spring Festival Year End Gala - Chunjie Lianhuan Wanhui – 春节联欢晚会。

A hundred years hence, 2109 - perhaps, it will be left to the descendants of these Mainlanders to make the connect with the Mainland…


Postscript -

1. Baixing – 百姓

Usually use with the adjective lao – 老 – Lao Baixing – 老百姓 - an intimate term – to mean the common folks.

President Hu and Premier Wen spent their New Year with the Lao Baixing in Jingangshang – 井冈山- the cradle of Chinese Communism, and the Wenchuan – 汶川- the epicenter of the Sichaun earthquake, respectively.


2. 己丑年 – Year of Yichou

The naming of the year using the Ten Heavenly Stems – 天干- tian gan - and the Twelve Earthly Branches – 地支 - dizhi - began more than 3000 years ago – with a cycle of 60years - is much older in origin than the 12 Chinese Zodiac cycle – 十二生肖。


3. 春节联欢晚会 - The Spring Festival Year End Gala

The Year End Gala Performance by CCTV broadcast on the eve of Lunar New Year - into it’s 28 odd years started with China opening up in 1978 - is a must see for the Chinese. It is as much a New Year traditional to the Chinese, as to the Japanese watching the - Red & White Song Festival - 红白歌合战大会 - broadcast by NHK on 31Dec, each year.




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where have all the tea leaves gone? a tale of the likes of - 牛车水- ngau chair sooi - in transition

It faded quietly into history. Unlike the 7 Storey Hotel at Rochor or the National Stadium – its passing was without any fanfare. As it was not reported in the newspaper, there was no shutter bugs buzz snapping a lasting shot for memory.

In it’s making over; the shophouse has kept its architecture very much intact. The new color tone of pastel purple, with the front painted light beige and the multi-colored frame on the upper floor patio gave it a pleasant refreshing look. Surprisingly or surprisingly not it has kept the motifs of the Chinese characters on the shop pillars. And for someone who does not read these characters, they might have thought that the characters are a part of the deco of the art gallery.

The boldly formed characters reads - 广珍茶庄 – Guangzhen Chazhuang - or - Gwongzhen Chazhong – (Cantonese) - meaning - Gwongzhen Tea Manor. Its former self was a shop trading in Chinese tea. It was one of the last of the - 老店铺 – lao dianpu – old shop houses along Smith Street, that had keep its original trade selling various varieties of tea from China. I believe, the dim sum restaurants- 点心茶楼 - or the bak kut teh - 肉骨茶 - in the vicinity of Chinatown would have gotten their daily tea supply from this shop.

Though painted over with a coat of emulsion the Chinese characters on the pillars are still very much visible. The Tembusu Art Gallery which took over the shop had perhaps thought that the characters have some artistic touch and had decided to retain them. However, there no longer is the fragrance of tea wharfing from the new old shop house though there are traces of tea lingering on its shop front.

About the Chinatown you can find this phenomenon repeated in the renovated shophouses - a modern establishments retaining an element or two of the old Chinese characters, which is an anachronistic miss-fit.

The new business that took over the shophouse had perhaps thought these Chinese words still look pretty and bold. It would not be too jarring to their trade, and had kept them there - feng shui or no feng shui – 风水 – even if it renders their name incorrectly. They exude a character – so to say – that the modern signage hardly could match.

It’s perhaps a reflection of the cityscape in transition - a reluctance to discard the traditional in total, but keeping elements of them but albeit in a masked mode. For these are the finger prints that have a distinguishingly unique local flavor in all that is modern and global.

Though the shophouses in the Chinatown area are preserved, however something seemed amiss. Perhaps that was what Kit Chan, the Singapore singing sensation, meant in her recently National Day interview, she quoted- that she could no longer recognized the Chinatown that she grew up in – the Chinatown of the 1970s and 80’s. Perhaps, she still could, the physical buildings are still much intact in form, however much of the soul is gone.

I came to Singapore in the closing year of the 1980’s and had a chance of to catch a glimpse the tail end of it’s past – the past that Kit grew up in. There was still the old Tai Dong dim sum restaurant along Pagoda Street – 大东海记。 It opened for business at 6am in the morning. Many a Sundays, I would jog from Geyland-Guillamard Road starting off at 5am, and be there as one of the earliest customers for the weekend morning treat.

After breakfast the bill would be settled in Cantonese. For a plate of dim sum costing $2.70 the attendant, already way past his prime, would called it out as – 两两礼拜 – liongliong leibai - literary meaning – two taels & a Sunday. It reflected a facade of the ingenuity of the Cantonese dialect with an entrepreneurial flowery pitch. For Sunday is equivalent to a seven. That was the way that they counted it out in the dim sum restaurants in Ipoh, KL and even in Hong Kong, too.

Alas, though they have cloned the Tai Dong Restaurant along the junction of Smith and Trengganu Streets – Da Dong Restaurant – in Mandarin - was no longer its former self – unpretentious, and for the locals. It has pretty lost much of this - Ngau Chair Sooi - touch and transformed into another Chinatown restaurant. The staff members are young pretty lass from China who speak in Mandarin. Weekend biz starts from 11am and as with much that is main street Chinatown, it’s targeted at the tourists. Well, and nobody wears wooden clogs anymore!

Well the likes of Gwonzhen tea manor along Smith Street are gone for good. Others have morphed into the pretty tea joints – offering a cool and comfortable place to sip Chinese tea in a hot Sunday noon. Their - lao dianpu – - 老店铺- old shophouses – will no longer be there , though their – lao zhihao - 老字号 – their old trade names – may continue business in modern convenience, without characters.


Postscript:

1. Shitamachi – したまち　－downtown

So much for downtown Singapore, how is downtown Tokyo –the shitatmachi district of Ueno-Asakusa －上野―浅草.

Well – along the streets of Ueno, Asakusa- you can hear the voices of children. You can see old ladies sweeping the streets. Old trades are thriving and there is a daily life 24/7.

This photograph was taken in downtown Tokyo in the Ueno area. It is an old shop cum office and residence engaged in the traditional construction business. It is next to a modern apartment building, but the old trade has continued to stay – a refection of old Tokyo of the Edo Era.　－江戸 。

As for Singapore – Chinatown – along the streets of Duxton and Ang Siang Hills one could hardly find a sign of life after the last of the pub closes at the wee hours or the night. There was still the shop that sold wooden clogs many years back – but it was mainly kept for the tourist, I thought then. However that was gone too, for you cannot just survive by tourist alone.

2。 老字号 – lao zhihao

Though they may no longer occupy their original the lao dianpu - 老店铺– the original old shophouse –many of the lao zhi hao - the established brand with a good old tradition and tale behind it - continue to prosper in Ngau Chair sooi - the Chinatown.

Some of the lao zhihao -老字号 - ( pronunciation rendered in Cantonese) :

白花油 – bak fa yau - traditional Chinese medical ointment – a must stop shop for tourist from Hong Kong
大中国 – dai zungguo - traditional Chinese pastries - with the hot selling moon cake in the signature paper bag come each Mid-Autumn festival
林志源– lam zhiyuen- Dried meat – when you see snake of long queue outside the shop, you know that Chinese New Year is round the corner.
东兴饼家 – dong heng bang-ga – Tong Heng pastry shop – a must for ordering traditional wedding cakes to sent to one’s bridge.

These are the brands that maketh the place and help to render it a continuing soul -

3. Photograph

Gwongzhen Chazhong – 05September 2002 - Smith Street

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the kereta that no longer runs on local ayer

Date: 8Jul/Sunday
Time: 9:30pm
Place: Junction of Smith Street – Trengganu Street

Was making my way to the MRT station and while passing thro the junction of Smith and Trengganu Streets, bumped into the street performance and stopped to watch. . Had thought that it was a Cantonese Opera but it wasn’t. The singing was in the Beijing Opera style.

It was a short act from the script - Jin Pingmei – 金瓶梅 - with Wu Song (the hero who killed a tiger with his bare hands) - 武松- Pan Jin Liang- – 潘金莲(the loose sister-n-law of Wu Song ) and Ximen Qing ( rich philander) – 西门庆-in appearance. The drunken screen of Wu Song gulping down huge jars of wine, was superbly acted, and the fighting of with Xiemen Qing was acted with such acrobatic skills and force that it could have broken the make shift stage into pieces, brought applause from the small but mainly tourist audience.

It was a weekend event to rejuvenate the nigh live in China town, possibly organized by the local community club or the STPB. Much has been said about Kereta Ayer having lost its true character, and the Beijing opera in the street certainly had further added on to it – maybe not so much visually, but certainly acoustically.

When I first arrived in Singapore in the late 1980’s, and when I felt a little homesick, I would make my way down to China town. Then, you still find the old styled Cantonese dim sum restaurant - such as Tai Tong dim sum restaurant in Mosque Street -大东海记 . These restaurants had big huge mirrors both sides of the walls, where the menu was written, and a bill of $2.70 would be sung out by the attendant to the cashier as, 二两 礼拜, and in Cantonese – yiliong leibai - literary two tales and a Sunday. 2 tales for two dollars and Sunday, a seven meaning 70 cts.

The Da Dong Restaurant – 大东酒楼 - at the junction of Smith and Trengganu Streets – with the same name Chinese name though as the former TaiTong Restaurant – is not the real McCoy any longer. The attendants for one could do not speak Cantonese – which used to define Kereta Ayer. Without the atmosphere and the familiar sound, the dim sum in this new restaurant does not seem to taste as good and as delicious.

With Kereta Ayer in constant make that which is a part of its unique heritage is visually much altered on its main streets. Not far from Yu Yan Sang Medical Hall –余仁生 - along South Bridge Road, there is now a Tong Ren Tang – 同仁堂 - medical hall from Beijing. A brand new temple styled in Tang architecture which is more at home in Xian - 西安 , or Kyoto, than in this tropical island, just came about.

A Taiwanese style tea salon, a Sichuan hot pot restaurant - is found next to the to the local hawker fare in Smith Street; Chinese cuisine from the North-eastern Provinces such as Heilongjiang, & Shanghainese noodles. And well, a German sausage stall near to Sago Street has definitely added an international flavor to the potpourri of Chinese oriental selection.

Much that I could remember of Chinatown in the past 15 to 20 years odd since I first came has gone – for better or for worse. And for the local folks who are born and bred here, what more has make way for the new and is lost forever, one could get a glimpse of it in the Chinatown heritage museum in Pagoda Street.

It was the ‘Cantonese’ character that use to bring me to Kereta Ayer, as that was the place where I would go to when I wanted to have a taste, feel and hear - of hometown.


Post-script:
A ) Kereta Ayer – 牛车水 – ngau che sooi (Cantonese ) – niu che shui (Hanyu pinyin)

Kereta Ayer – or Bullock Cart Water is the local name for Chinatown. Kereta is the Malay word for a vehicle or a cart. Ayer is water. History has it in the early days of the Singapore, bullock cart would be used to transport water to this place, and thus it was called Kereta Ayer.

However I would like to think that the Ayer – as in - 水 - sooi - or water in Cantonese - is to mean a thoroughfare or a street. A busy street in Cantonese could be called a sooi – I think。

Thus - 牛车水 – ngau che sooi - is a thoroughfare jammed packed with bullock carts. And it so happened that these bullock carts were carrying jars of water to sell to the local population.