Singapore in 1983

Addadude · Post by **Addadude** » Wed, 29 Jan 2014 11:14 am

This should bring back some memories for SMS!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e2BeLr-sXmo#t=460

Post by **sundaymorningstaple** » Wed, 29 Jan 2014 1:20 pm

Sure did. I remember before it was all torn down. Got lost for bout half an hour watching some of Rogge's clips from that era. Brought back a lot I'd forgotten about. I remember the stench of the Quays before all the sampans were moved out into the harbour. The photos of the garbage was typical back then. Thanks for that.

In fact, there are some photos on this board somewhere in a photo thread from a long time ago with some shots taken by me in '82-83 as well.

Post by **sundaymorningstaple** » Wed, 29 Jan 2014 2:21 pm

Ahhh, here it is...

http://forum.singaporeexpats.com/ftopic27994.html

Sadly, due to the transient nature of an expat board, a lot of the posters have moved on and most of their links are no longer valid. Mine as well, due to a shuffling of photos/folders on photobucket.

This one taken in either 82 or 83.....

the lynx · Post by **the lynx** » Wed, 29 Jan 2014 2:40 pm

Is ANY of the buildings in this picture still around at this time? I'm trying to figure out if I can identify any 'survivor' in this photo, if there is.

zzm9980 · Post by **zzm9980** » Wed, 29 Jan 2014 2:52 pm

the lynx wrote:Is ANY of the buildings in this picture still around at this time? I'm trying to figure out if I can identify any 'survivor' in this photo, if there is.

In SMS's? That big ugly one on the left is OCBC.

Post by **sundaymorningstaple** » Wed, 29 Jan 2014 3:07 pm

Hey! That's I. M Pei's masterpiece! lol

the lynx · Post by **the lynx** » Wed, 29 Jan 2014 3:14 pm

I guess the row of pre-war shop houses on the left is still the same, as well as Asian Civilisation Museum on far right (partially hidden). And if I'm not wrong, the white one on the right behind ACM is Old Hill Street Police Station?

zzm9980 · Post by **zzm9980** » Wed, 29 Jan 2014 4:13 pm

sundaymorningstaple wrote:Hey! That's I. M Pei's masterpiece! lol

Is it really? Looks nothing like his other work. I much prefer Bank of China tower in HK:

http://toptenpk.com/wp-content/uploads/ ... g-Kong.jpg

Post by **sundaymorningstaple** » Wed, 29 Jan 2014 4:16 pm

The building to the left of the OCBC on the left edge of the photo is the CFP building at the corner of Maxwell Road & Robinson Road

Yeah, he has definitely progressed with the times, hasn't he. They always called that building the calculator building when I first got here.

Post by **sundaymorningstaple** » Wed, 29 Jan 2014 4:25 pm

the lynx wrote:I guess the row of pre-war shop houses on the left is still the same, as well as Asian Civilisation Museum on far right (partially hidden). And if I'm not wrong, the white one on the right behind ACM is Old Hill Street Police Station?

ACM is the same and I'm assuming the white building is the old hill street police stations as well, but the taller white building has me flummoxed as it looks like part of it or maybe it's just behind it. Of course that building may well have been razed in the past 30 years as well.

JR8 · Post by **JR8** » Wed, 29 Jan 2014 6:04 pm

Finding it hard getting my bearings in that pic. Is that Boat Quay or Clarke Quay on the left?

The tall building centre-right is what was the Shell Building. It later got renamed something else... Caltex Tower IIRC? I worked in it briefly ('94) and it was really pretty grim inside (very dated and run down, REALLY awful bathrooms!). It fronted Raffles Place, right up by the Fullerton which was then the cavernous GPO of course.

http://tinyurl.com/lsstayn < picture

The octagonal one by it, rings a bell, but I'm unsure now. That being the financial district there was a lot of 'octagonal symbolism' going on around there.

p.s. Any future readers should note that the image was subsequently flipped/reversed, so right is now left, etc.

Post by **sundaymorningstaple** » Wed, 29 Jan 2014 9:25 pm

Okay, picture is sorted and now it makes sense. This one was taken from the bridge on North Bridge Road on the North Boat Quay side. Now all the perspectives are correct and you can see the Singapore Land Building as noted and the octagonal building it the OUB tower (1) before OUB Plaza and the second tower were built. The Museum is now on the left looking down towards the harbour and Shenton way on the right side. The negative was flipped during scanning and didn't notice it. Today Caltex Tower is next to the Singapore Land Tower.

JR8 · Post by **JR8** » Wed, 29 Jan 2014 9:45 pm

sundaymorningstaple wrote:Okay, picture is sorted and now it makes sense. This one was taken from the bridge on North Bridge Road on the North Boat Quay side. Now all the perspectives are correct and you can see the Singapore Land Building as noted and the octagonal building it the OUB tower (1) before OUB Plaza and the second tower were built. The Museum is now on the left looking down towards the harbour and Shenton way on the right side. The negative was flipped during scanning and didn't notice it.

Yes, that's much better, the 'financial district' side versus the museum side. Makes sense now [twist head back from backwards position

]

I just looked back at the old photos topic, but it's something like 900 posts long. Not by any means an easy 'skim' to recap. Shame, I'd like to see what if anything I and others posted before, and then see if I can post some more old stuff.

Perhaps splitting that one mega-topic into two parallel ones might be better?... the pix, and then another for comments on the pix? [I think most people like seeing the old stuff, but only a hardcore like the pages long analysis etc]

p.s. I still have some memory of these barges being moored up at the quays, from my earlier times there. Then they seemed to be done away with, and instead when you went down in the pm for beers, the river was pretty clear apart from tourist boats, some of which would tie up in the area later in the evening.

Post by **sundaymorningstaple** » Wed, 29 Jan 2014 10:42 pm

There are very few photos left in that thread. I shuffled through all 75 pages this afternoon at work. It's a damn shame, I tell you.

There's nothing left to split, but there not any problem with creating a brand new thread! The old thread was a game of sorts, as one would past a pic and the board would try to guess either what/where is the object in the photo or where was the photo taken from in some cases. Could be oldies or new photos of interesting spots.

Up for ideas, I am.

JR8 · Post by **JR8** » Wed, 29 Jan 2014 11:09 pm

Oh, what happened to the old pix?

I'm happy to try again though...

I rather enjoyed the [pic] 'Guess where this is?' question... as so much has changed so much that's almost familiar is no longer recognisable.

Guess....

Place in the middle was a doss-house called 'Air-master travel'...

Now...

... also
Then

Now

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Singapore in 1983

Singapore in 1983

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