Daily Archives: 6 April, 1992

Indonesia: Batam Island

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Mom and I finally arrived at Finger Pier, at the end of Prince Edward Rd., and I got us fast ferry tickets (S$28 round trip).  Ferries for Sekupang Pier, the main entry point in the 715 sq. km. Batam Island, leave every half hour.

Later in the year, the regional ferry operation at Finger Pier was relocated to the S$50 million International Passenger Terminal (IPT) at the Harbourfront Cruise Centre (formerly World Trade Center).

On Board the Fast Ferry Sea Flyte of Dino Shipping Pte. Ltd

We left on board Dino Shipping Pte. Ltd.’s streamlined and airconditioned  Sea Flyte, leaving the pier by 3:40 PM.  The trip took a little over 30 mins. and was uneventful. Along the way, we weaved through Singapore’s southern islands, most of which are small and uninhabited. We docked at Batam Island’s Sekupang Pier by 4:15PM.

Sekupang Pier, Batam Island

After securing our arrival clearance at the Batam Customs & Immigration Area, I hired the services of a local taxi driver to tour us around the island.  Batam Island, a duty-free island, is about two-thirds the size of Singapore and is an economic development zone of Indonesia with emphasis on tourist development. Nagoya City, formerly known as Lubuk Baja which means “Pirates Waterhole,” has shops that offer local handicrafts and Asian food delicacies.

Nagoya City

Beginning in the 1970s, the island underwent a major transformation, from a largely forested area, into a major harbor and industrial zone. During our tour, land was being cleared for new roads and many factories, many operated by Singaporean companies, were being built. Evidently, with its lower labor costs and special government incentives, the island’s economy benefits from being close to Singapore.

However, we weren’t shown any old government buildings, mosques, churches or temples as there didn’t seem to be any.  After our tour, our taxi driver brought us back to Sekupang Pier where we again boarded our fast ferry back to Finger Pier, arriving there by 10 PM. Upon arrival, we had a late dinner at a Burger King outlet before returning to our hotel.

Enroute to Finger Pier (Singapore)

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After my Johor Bahru (Malaysia) tour, I returned to the Cockpit Hotel to pick up Mom for our Batam Island (Indonesia) tour.  Located 20 kms. from Singapore, this island of the Riau Archipelago is the closest Indonesian island to Singapore. To get there, we had to get a fast ferry from Finger Pier along Prince Edward Rd..

Raffles Place MRT Station

From the hotel, we had lunch at a Pizza Hut outlet then walked all the way to the Dhoby Ghaut Station where we took the MRT up to the Raffles Place Station.  From here, we walked all the way to the pier.  Along the way, we passed by a number of tourist attractions at the downtown area (the Dalhousie Obelisk, the Cavenagh Bridge, Victoria Theater, Empress Place) and the Padang (the Supreme Court and City Hall Buildings).

Singapore River and Cavenagh Bridge

Cavenagh Bridge, a suspension bridge (the only one in Singapore) spanning the lower reaches of the Singapore River, was opened in 1870 and is one of the oldest bridges in Singapore and the oldest bridge in Singapore that exists in its original form.

Dalhousie Obelisk

The Dalhousie Obelisk, located on the north bank of the Singapore River, is situated at Empress Place and near the Victoria Theater and Concert Hall. Designed by Government Surveyor John Turnbull Thompson, it commemorates the second visit of Marquis of Dalhousie, the Governor-General of India in February 1850.  It was originally located at Dalhousie Pier but was transferred to its present site in 1886.

Empress Place

Empress Place, built in 1834 as a courthouse, was later used as offices for the government departments until the late 1980s.  On April 7, 1989, it was converted to a museum after a 14-month, S$25 million renovation. On February 14, 1992, it was gazetted as a National Monument.  Its imposing Neo-Palladian facade has wooden louver windows and pitched, clay tile roof.

Subsequently, the Empress Place Building underwent renovations and, on March 2, 2003, it reopened as the second wing of the Asian Civilizations Museum exhibiting Southeast, South and West Asian collections.

Victoria Theater and Concert Hall

The Victoria Theater and Concert Hall, originally built in 1862 as Singapore’s town hall, is a complex of 2 buildings and a 54 m. high clock tower(completed in 1906) joined together by a common corridor.  The Victoria Memorial Hall, built in 1905, is the home of the Singapore Symphony Orchestra (SSO), transferred here in 1979.

City Hall

The Neo-Classical-style Singapore City Hall and its sister building, the Supreme Court, both on St. Andrew’s Road and overlooking the Padang, are also some of my favorites and both are reminiscent of our own National Museum complex, designed in the Federal style of American architect Daniel H. Burnham, the planner of Baguio City.

The Singapore City Hall, formerly known as the Municipal Offices, was built in 1929. Its steps were the site of the formal surrender of Japanese armed forces, headed by Gen. Itagaki to Admiral Lord Louis Mountbatten, Supreme Allied Commander of Southeast Asia. In 1952 the building’s name was changed when Singapore was finally made into a city by a deed signed by Britain’s King George VI and conferred by the Duchess of Kent.

Supreme Court Building

The impressive Supreme Court Building, on the other hand, was designed by government architect F. Dorrington Ward and was completed in 1939. It is the last Classical building to be so completed. What’s more, the building’s murals were designed by Italian artist Cavaliere Rodolfo Nolli.

Victoria Concert Hall: 11 Empress Place, Victoria Memorial Hall, Singapore 179558.  Tel: 6338 6125.

Johor Bahru (Malaysia)

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Upon reaching the Malaysian side, I cleared my entry to Johor Bahru at the Malaysia Customs and Immigration Office. Once past, I found myself along Jalan Tun Abdul Razak.  Here, a fenced historical marker with a plaque tells the story of the town.

Johor Bahru Historical Marker

Johor Bahru has a rich history that dates as early as the 16th century but its urbanization began in 1855. Sultan Abu Bakar (1862-1895), the 21st Sultan of Johor, transformed Johor Bahru from a fishing village into a thriving city.

Johor Bahru

Jalan Tun Abdul Razak and the adjoining  Jalan Trus has a number of shophouses, mostly built in the 1920’s,with great heritage value. Here, traders from Arab, India and China used to come to trade spices and tobacco. Also along Jalan Tun Abdul Razak is the Johor Bahru Railway Station.

On October 10, 2010, the spanking new JB Sentral railway station, along Jalan Tun Abdul Razak and Jalan Jim Quee, was opened. The old train station, located just 200 m. south of JB Sentral, has been decommissioned, its platform 2 and its tracks dismantled.  Only one track and platform remain.  There are plans for it to be preserved for a future Mini Railway Museum for the Southern Region.

Johor Bahru Railway Station

The relatively old Plaza Kotaraya shopping center, along Jalan Trus, is only 5 minutes walk from the Malaysia Customs and Immigration Office.  Across the street is the Arulmigu Sri Raja Mariamman Devasthanam Hindu Temple.  Built in 1922, it is one of the town’s oldest Hindu temples and has an impressive gopuram (entrance tower).

The Arulmigu Sri Raja Mariamman Devasthanam Hindu Temple was rebuilt and was officially reopened in 1996. In 2009, the temple was embellished with an impressive mosaic of 300,000 pieces of red, blue, yellow, green, purple and white glass (completed in October 2009) and, on May 12, 2010, the temple was listed in the Malaysian Book of Records as the first and only glass temple in the nation.

Arulmigu Sri Raja Mariamman Devasthanam Hindu Temple and Plaza Kotaraya Shopping Center

After this relatively short walking tour of Johor Bahru, I retraced my steps back to the Malaysia Customs and Immigration Office to clear my departure and, this time, took a bus back to the Queen Street Bus Terminal in Singapore.

Arulmigu Sri Raja Mariamman Devasthanam Hindu Temple: 22 Lorong 1, Jalan Tebrau, Johor Bahru, Malaysia.

The Causeway (Singapore)

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Singapore Customs and Immigration Office

Upon arrival at the Queen St. Bus Terminal, I took the SBS (Singapore Bus Service) Transit’s service 170.  These public buses provide one of the cheapest and most reliable form of transport directly into the heart of Johor Bahru, across the causeway over the Straits of Johor, from Singapore. The Johor-Singapore Causeway, completed in 1923 after 4 years of construction, was partially destroyed in 1942 during World War II, to prevent the Japanese army from invading Singapore. However, it was rebuilt once the Japanese had captured the island.

Huge Water Pipes, Railway Track as well as Roads Line the Johor-Singapore Causeway

Very popular but terminally congested, the causeway is crossed by buses, trains, taxis and cars and is normally jam-packed on Friday evenings (towards Malaysia) and Sunday evenings (towards Singapore).  However, it was the Qing Ning holiday (similar to our All Saints Day) and the bus queue was very long going to Johor. Seeing the traffic, I decided to alight from the bus and just walked towards the Singapore Customs & Immigration Office at Woodlands for the necessary departure clearance.

A second crossing, between Johor Bahru and western Singapore, was open on January 2, 1998. Known as the Tuas Second Link, it is much faster and less congested than the Causeway and  is used by some of the luxury bus services to Kuala Lumpur.

Traffic Along the Johor-Singapore Causeway

I also decided to just walk the whole 1 km. length of the Causeway to the Malaysian side.  It seems I was the only one doing so. Along the way, I noticed, aside from the huge traffic jam, the huge water pipes as well as the railway track between the two sides of the Causeway. I was dripping with sweat by the time I reached the other side.

In December 2008, immediately after the opening of the new Johor Bahru CIQ complex, crossing the Causeway, on foot, from Singapore to Johor Bahru was officially forbidden by the Singapore authorities. Once you have cleared Singapore immigration at the Woodlands Checkpoint, you have to take any of the public or private buses waiting at the bus bays downstairs to cross the Causeway. There is always a Singapore police officer stationed at the staircase entrance to the Causeway to prevent anyone from crossing the Causeway on foot.

Malaysia Customs and Immigration Office

Enroute to Queen Street Bus Terminal (Singapore)

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On my second day in Singapore, I decided to make a tour, on my own, to the nearby Johor Bahru, the first Malaysian town (and the capital of the state of Johor), across the Causeway, from Singapore.  After breakfast at a MacDonald’s outlet, I traveled all the way to the Queen Street Bus Terminal (also known as the Ban San Bus Terminal), a centralized location for commuters traveling to Johor Bahru.

St. Joseph’s Church

Along the way to the terminal, I passed a couple of noteworthy Roman Catholic churches.  The attractive, Gothic-style St. Joseph’s Church was originally built  from 1851-1853 by Portuguese Rev. Vincente de Santo Catharina.  The present church, built from 1906-1912 by the notable firm Swan & MacLaren, has a portico supported by 4 columns; a central, octagonal tower capped by a dome and flanked by 2 smaller towers and beautifully crafted stained glass windows.

Cathedral of the Good Shepherd

The Renaissance-style, graceful and charming Cathedral of the Good Shepherd, the cathedral church of the Archdiocese of Singapore and the seat of its archbishop, was completed on June 6, 1847 with funds collected by French parish priest Fr. Jean-Marie Beurel. Designed by Denis Lesley McSwiney, it was elevated as a cathedral in on February 14, 1897. It has 6 entrances, Palladian-style porticos, a high timber ceiling and round arches. On June 28, 1973, the cathedral was gazetted as a National Monument.

St. Joseph’s Church:  143 Victoria St., Singapore 188020. Tel: (65) 6336 2664 and (65) 6338 3167.

Cathedral of the Good Shepherd: cor. Queen St. and Bras Basah Rd., Singapore 188533.  Tel: (65) 6337 2036.