Do you remember these Old Trades, Food and Services ?
Street Barbers
Cobblers
Born in the late 70s, growing up in the 80s as a young kid, I still can remember the above Old Trades, Food and Services, even though I didn’t go to the fortune teller when I was a kid and didn’t get to taste the ice ball, I can see the cobblers and kachang puteh sellers around Singapore. One of my best memories was the kachang puteh seller at the Old Cathay Cinema when it was just a 2 stories cinema (it is now the Cathay Cineleisure Cineplex) and I would love to buy the sweet kachang puteh from him!
Fortune Tellers
Singapore’s National Heritage Board organised a Heritage Event, known as Heritage Along Footpaths, bringing us back in time and history, to re-introduce trades that were once common in Singapore. This would definitely suits the older generation because it would invoke many of their memories – childhood, teenager, growing up years and suits the younger and middle generation too, sharing the memories that their seniors/forefathers had last time
Ice-ball Sellers
Heritage Along Footpaths was held on 2 weekends, 3rd and 4th December and 10th and 11th December 2011, from 10am to 5pm, at 2 locations : The Singapore Art Museum and Stamford Arts Centre (along the mural wall facing Middle Road). I went to the Singapore Art Museum and I had a great nostalgic time there, eating my kachang puteh, tasting ice ball for the first time in my life! Well, I didn’t get my shoes repaired by the cobbler or got my fortune told by the fortune tellers, nevertheless, it was great to see them back again, even for a while.
Kachang Puteh Sellers
Our Singapore’s Heritage Along Footpaths, will you remember them ? Will they survive in this fast changing cosmopolitan modern city living ? How can our future generations remember what is their forefathers time like ? I sincerely hope that they will be able to survive and continue on, even though the challenges today just make it very difficult. For a start, let’s all start to spread the word and continue the story telling, of our heritage, culture and history to our current young and future generations.