Located in the center of the bustling Kampong Glam district of Singapore, Haji Lane is an vivid representation of the city-state's rich traditions of culture and contemporary innovative thinking. This charming, relatively small lane, measuring around 200 meters in length, has gone through a remarkable process of transformation from its historical beginnings into becoming a buzzing hub for contemporary culture. It is conveniently located just a short walk from the Bugis MRT station.
Haji Lane is distinguished by the wide variety of businesses. The street is home to a diverse array of local vintage stores, like Superwasted and The Cartel's Vintage Store, which focus on carefully selected vintage goods. Various dining options can be found among these businesses, including charming cafés such Rumi the Poet's Cup that provide customers with a quiet space. Adding on to the contemporary scene also includes Solace Airlines by Solace Studios, a photography studio with inspiration from Korean popular culture.
The street also offers a culinary experience that reflects the cosmopolitan nature of the city-state, featuring both native Singaporean specialties and international cuisines.
1800s-1960s: The shophouses of Haji were most commonly used as lodges for Hajj pilgrims whilst on their journeys. During their stay, the pilgrims would work close by as hawkers in order to save enough money to continue the rest of their journeys.
1960s-1970s: Haji Lane provided shophouse homes for poorer Malay families. [1]
After 1970s: There were a lot of empty shophouses. The ones that were occupied were used as storage spaces. [2]
Katong is a residential neighbourhood in the eastern portion of the Central Region of Singapore, within the Marine Parade planning area. The Katong district stretches from Fort Road area to the Joo Chiat area. It used to be located by the sea, before land reclamation towards the south to East Coast Park was created for housing and recreational purposes beginning in the 1960s to 1970s.
Geylang is a planning area and township located on the eastern fringe of the Central Region of Singapore, bordering Hougang and Toa Payoh in the north, Marine Parade in the south, Bedok in the east, and Kallang in the west.
Chinatown is a subzone and ethnic enclave located within the Outram district in the Central Area of Singapore. Featuring distinctly Chinese cultural elements, Chinatown has had a historically concentrated ethnic Chinese population.
A shophouse is a building type serving both as a residence and a commercial business. It is defined in the dictionary as a building type found in Southeast Asia that is "a shop opening on to the pavement and also used as the owner's residence", and became a commonly used term since the 1950s. Variations of the shophouse may also be found in other parts of Asia; in Southern China, Hong Kong, and Macau, it is found in a building type known as Tong lau, and in towns and cities in Sri Lanka. They stand in a terraced house configuration, often fronted with arcades or colonnades, which present a unique townscape in Southeast Asia, Sri Lanka, and South China.
Kampong Glam is a neighbourhood and ethnic enclave in Singapore. It is located north of the Singapore River, in the planning area of Rochor, known as the Malay-Muslim quarter.
Bugis is an area in Singapore that covers Bugis Street now located within the Bugis Junction shopping mall. Bugis Street was renowned internationally from the 1950s to the 1980s for its nightly gathering of transvestites and transsexuals, a phenomenon that made it one of Singapore's most notable destinations for foreign visitors during that period.
Boat Quay is a historical quay in Singapore which is situated upstream from the mouth of the Singapore River on its southern bank. It spans from the shophouses near UOB Plaza, stretching along one bank of the Singapore River, all the way till Elgin Bridge.
Lucky Plaza is a shopping centre located in Orchard in Singapore. Built by developer Far East Organization, Lucky Plaza was completed in 1981 and has proven to be one of the most successful shopping centres in Singapore.
Shanghai Street is a 2.3 km long street in the Jordan, Yau Ma Tei and Mong Kok areas of Kowloon, Hong Kong. Completed in 1887 under the name of Station Street (差館街), it was once the most prosperous street in Kowloon. It originates from the south at Austin Road, and terminates in the north at Lai Chi Kok Road. Parallel to Shanghai Street are Nathan Road, Temple Street, Portland Street, Reclamation Street and Canton Road. Though parallel, Shanghai Street was marked by 2- to 3-floor Chinese-style buildings while Nathan Road was marked by Western-style buildings.
An artist-run space or artist-run centre (Canada) is a gallery or other facility operated or directed by artists, frequently circumventing the structures of public art centers, museums, or commercial galleries and allowing for a more experimental program. An artist-run initiative (ARI) is any project run by artists, including sound or visual artists, to present their and others' projects. They might approximate a traditional art gallery space in appearance or function, or they may take a markedly different approach, limited only by the artist's understanding of the term. "Artist-run initiatives" is an umbrella name for many types of artist-generated activity.
Joo Chiat Road is a road in Joo Chiat District and a residential conservation area located in the east coast of Singapore.
Pagoda Street is a street located in Chinatown within the Outram Planning Area in Singapore. The road links New Bridge Road and South Bridge Road, but has since been converted to a pedestrian mall to Chinatown MRT station at its New Bridge Road end.
Keong Saik Road is a one-way road located in Chinatown within the Outram Planning Area in Singapore. The road links New Bridge Road to Neil Road, and is intersected by Kreta Ayer Road.
Balestier is a sub zone located in the planning area of Novena in the Central Region of Singapore. The main road, Balestier Road, links Thomson Road to Serangoon Road and the road continues on as Lavender Street. The area is home to rows of shophouses, such as the Sim Kwong Ho shophouses, the Balestier Art Deco shophouses, 412-418 Balestier Road, and 601-639 Balestier Road, low-rise apartments and commercial buildings as well as a shopping mall known as Shaw Plaza. Balestier also has another mall, Zhongshan Mall. There are several lighting and electrical shops along Balestier Road, which is also home to the Ceylon Sports Club and the Indian Association. The area is known for its food such as bak kut teh and chicken rice. In the area, there are several apartments, condominiums, and budget hotels.
Sungei Road is a road in Singapore situated between Serangoon Road and Jalan Besar and runs along the Rochor Canal. The area around Sungei Road formerly housed affluent Europeans and Asians, and many ornately designed buildings were built there. Since the 1930s, the road has been synonymous with Sungei Road laksa and the Thieves' Market, the largest and oldest flea market in Singapore, where locals can shop for old bric-a-brac or second-hand goods. The market was permanently closed on 10 July 2017 for "future residential development use".
Nos. 600–626 Shanghai Street, or more specifically Nos. 600, 602, 604, 606, 612, 614, 620, 622, 624 and 626, is a group of ten pre-war shophouses (tong-lau) in the Mong Kok section of Shanghai Street, in Hong Kong, that have been listed as Grade I historical buildings for their historical value.
Rochor Centre was a group of buildings in Singapore built by the Housing and Development Board. Dating back to the 1970s, there was an increasing number of people living in slum-like condition with poor sanitation due to the insufficient housing for Singapore's increasing population. Therefore, as part of the urban renewal program under the Housing and Development Board, Rochor Centre was completed in 1977 to take in residents and businesses that were uprooted across the city.
Kampung Cina, is a Chinatown located in Kuala Terengganu, Terengganu, Malaysia. Kampung Cina is located along Jalan Bandar, in Kuala Terengganu city centre at the river mouth of Terengganu River that empties into the South China Sea. Kampung Cina literally means Chinese Village; it is also called Tn̂g-lâng-pho (唐人坡) or KT's Chinatown by local people. It is one of Southeast Asia's early Chinese settlements and contains stately ancestral homes, temples, townhouses, and business establishments. The town is small but has colourful shophouses along both sides of the road that carries traditional flavour.
Sino-Portuguese architecture, also known as Chinese Baroque,Straits/Singapore Eclectic architecture or Peranakan architecture is an Asian hybrid style incorporating elements of both Chinese and Portuguese architectural styles. It is common in urban centers where Chinese settlers lived in southern China and the Peranakans of the Malay Peninsula, with examples found and most prominently conserved and maintained in Singapore.
Peranakan Place, formerly known as Peranakan Corner, is a row of six two-storey shophouses facing Orchard Road, built around 1902 at the intersection of Emerald Hill Road and Orchard Road in the planning area of Newton in Singapore. It forms part of the Emerald Hill Conservation Area within the Orchard district in central Singapore.