Picked this up from the Library. This book transports readers back to the good old Singapore in the 70s. Though I grew up in Penang, there are so much similarities in the every day life in these two places. Street names, chinese customs and the public transport. On page 66, "Jaga". I remember the Big, Strong and friendly Sikh guard of Standard Chartered bank(This happens to be the jingle of the bank's advertisment on telly). Until the late 70s, he could be seen guarding the bank 24 hours. His life, home and work evolves around the entrance of the bank.
An eye opener to many unfamiliar to the old Singapore charm. The local names of the chinatown streets and the reason behind each name.
A must for those curious to know of the fascinating old days of white blouse black pant amah and their golden toothy grin.
3 comments:
Yes... memories. And I used to wonder how they slept on those "camp" beds outside the bank. Big strong and friendly, they used to call them!
the camp bed was a hard and strong bed made from good wood and jute.
A very old but lasting memory.
Thanks for writing this.
SHAM
I used to wonder, where did the charpoy disappear to when morning comes. The Standard Chartered ad was actually referring to the bank. I though it was referring to the Jaga!!
Sarawakiana
Thanks for dropping by. I wonder, if anyone still uses these charpoy as bed these days.
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