During the period leading up to the return and last day of the KTM Railway operations in Singapore, it gained massive interest and following, from taking photographs, trekking along the railway tracks, reminisce of the olden days, public consultation on the future of the Green Corridor and outcry over the removal of the railway tracks. I would not go too much into the details of the happenings and timeline after the return of the KTM Railway, it can probably become a mini thesis of the happenings and follow-ups, public consultations, exhibitions, discussions between different bodies. I had been documenting, photographing and writing on the Green Corridor as much as I could, do check out my The Green Corridor Collection on Flickr!

Map of the Green Corridor Stretch (Bukit Timah Railway Station to Holland Road)  - Maps attributed to OneMap by SLA, http://www.onemap.sg/index.html and CY Leong.

This Green Corridor is now officially known as the Rail Corridor, while the plans and ideas are currently still in discussion, planning and consultation between different bodies, the public and the government, the final plans for the Rail Corridor is still unknown. Most of the Rail Corridor is currently not yet open to the public again, however, there is a 1.4km stretch of station and railway land open to the public from September 16, southwards from the steel bridge along Bukit Timah Road towards Holland Road, that was announced via Channel News Asia. I had been wanting to walk this stretch and see for myself first hand how the changes were really like after the removal of the tracks, the surroundings. My business, time and other personal commitments stalled my plans, finally, I was able to set aside a bit of my time on Boxing Day, to explore this 1.4km stretch.

First and Foremost, with the removal of the railway tracks, some things once removed it will never be the same again. 

The railway tracks were covered up with soil/earth, grass is growing nicely on top of it, although not as natural as the surrounding flora and fauna, it somehow tries to fit into the greenery and surroundings, considering the factors, it’s quite good actually. There was a concern on the greenery, the wildlife and reserve, known as the Clementi Woodlands, being affected by the removal works. From my trek up and down this 1.4km railway land stretch, the damage (if any) looks minimal, the wildlife can be seen and heard, from the birds chirping away, to the dragonflies and fishes inside the small clear flowing stream and pond.

It’s definitely comforting that this stretch of the Rail Corridor still retains the aura, greenery, tranquil and natural beauty, while it’s a real pity that the railway tracks cannot be retained, I sincerely hope that this Rail Corridor or Green Corridor, will stay as a green belt, a green spine that gives Singapore a outdoor recreational and leisure area, for Singaporeans to remember her railway history, heritage and culture, along with space for trekking, running, walking, nature and wildlife studies, cycling. What exact plans/developments will the Rail Corridor be in the future ? We will know it soon in the next few years to come. Do follow We Support The Green Corridor or the Rail Corridor and look out for the updates!

Created with Admarket’s flickrSLiDR.

I was reading the Outdoor Photographer magazine on my Zinio Reader, the August 2011 issue, has a segment on B&W Special. This special segment really got me kick started to continue my own self-learning and improvement, although there are other photography areas too that I would like to gain more knowledge and explore e.g. how to setup studio lightings for portrait photography and the tricks + tips to lighting, that’s another post to chat about!

Besides, I am also inspired by my fellow photographer friends B&W shots, on their street photography, Callan, Jingwen, just to mention a few of them, street photography on B&W is very powerful and that would be an area for me to explore! It was also my first time on 22nd October, switching to the Monochrome mode on my Canon EOS 1Dmk3 and started some shooting, probably not the recommended way, however, a first step for me into more active monochrome and Black & White Photography.

Moving forward, I need to re-start my engine again, on my personal projects, Old Places and Old Playgrounds, maybe it’s the time to go more active into Black & White / Monochrome.

It’s also a reminder to myself to keep on learning and improving, through self-exploration, books, guides, peer sharing and mentored by senior photographers.

This was my 2nd trek along this particular stretch, check out my 1st trekking adventure here! As we started walking along the defunct track from Teban Gardens, there were no more railway tracks, with only the evidence of the small valley on the sides of the ridge lines, that indicates where the tracks were passing through previously. The community farming along those tracks still remain strong and healthy and I hope that this will stay for as long as it can!

After walking through the tunnel, the group did not bash through the thick vegetation, whereby the old railway tracks continued towards Sunset Way. We hiked along the expressway and walked towards Sungei Ulu Pandan Park Connector, reaching the old metal railway bridge across the river. Along the expressway, we can see construction going on in the vegetation and it’s disappointing to see beautiful wildland destroyed for commercialisation.

The old metal bridge was sealed up on both ends  and I sincerely hope that it will be open back to the public soon, just like before,, to its original beauty, aura and heritage. Continuing towards Faber Heights, more evidence of the old railway tracks being removed and only bits and pieces of the Old Jurong Line remains today, the rusty metal plates, hooks, bolts and nuts, along with their thick wooden blocks. This stretch of the Old Jurong Line is being transformed into something else, building a new access road for the Faber Heights estate (Faber Walk) to Commonwealth Avenue West, in anticipation of the increase in traffic demand arising from new developments around the areas nearby.

While we can still spot the old railway tracks hidden away in the lush greenery, we are blocked away by construction that is beginning to seal up the fate of the old railway tracks. Begun the loss of the Old Jurong Line Railway Tracks it has ! It’s just like a knife slicing through the heart and soul of the greenery, history and heritage.

Continuing our walk towards Clementi, whereby the beauty of the Old Railway tracks remained untouched in its original state, living hand in hand, in harmony with the community  farming, temples and green space. Due to the closure of the Sunset Way Railway Bridge, the group stopped their walk at the Clementi Avenue 4 and 6 woodlands area. Check out more photos here ! Do drop by my Green Corridor Collection on my Flickr!

We call can make a difference to the history and heritage of Singapore. Let’s all come together to share our stories and thoughts, contribute our ideas and inspirations, to make Singapore a better home for our future generations!

 

Created with Admarket’s flickrSLiDR.

Photographs courtesy of EPSON

Do check out my introduction and short technical specifications post here and the review post which I did recently after completing my 2 weeks review of the photo printer. Overall, it was a great experience and I am happy with my photography print outs and sharing around!

This was also an opportunity by We Support The Green Corridor group, to thank their supporters who were part of their movement and to continue engaging the supporters for the future of the Green Corridor. As most of the railway tracks were closed to the public after the official handover from the Malaysian Government to the Singapore Government, this was the final stretch of railway tracks there were open to the public for walking. It dawned upon me that this would be the final chance to walk the railway tracks again in its original form, therefore, I joined in with the rest of the supporters there for the Goodbye Walk.

It was also an opportunity to finally meet Eugene, the owner of We Support The Green Corridor, we were conversing via emails on this common topic/interest of ours on submission of my posts, photographs of the Green Corridor and referral to joint project/submission with other organisations. Before the walk commenced, Eugene gave a short speech and was also interviewed by the news crew too! He appeared on the evening news that day!

This was also a good time to make new friends who were passionate and interested on the Railway Tracks and the Green Corridor belt. Had a good time chatting with Jerome, who was one of the pioneer guys writing and sharing excellent content and photographs of the Railway Tracks and the Green Corridor. I also met CY Leong, the guy who was behind the Green Corridor maps that can be downloaded here, he did a great job! That’s also Judith Tong from Ngee Ann Polytechnic, who interviewed me at the rest point, Ah Mei Cafe at Rail Mall, wonder if I would see my interview transcript somewhere

Along the trek from Bukit Timah Railway Station to Rail Mall, the signs of removal could be seen, nevertheless, we soaked in the atmosphere and enjoyed the greenery, company of friends and tranquility of the railway tracks. As for the changes and damages to the railway tracks and forestation behind, I would leave it in another post to share my views.

While there weren’t many wildlife that morning, we managed to spot the beautiful dragonflies, fishes in the stream and a few birds. Trekking slowly together behind with Judith, Jerome and Jerome’s daughter, we were informing each other to look out for photography opportunities along the Railway Tracks and the Green Corridor.

Since we were a bit slow, we were pretty much the last group of trekkers to reach the railway bridge at Rail Mall, joining up with the rest of the Goodbye Walk trekkers, for a rest and drink, chatting and sharing our Railway Tracks and Green Corridor stories and adventures. In our chat, we were hoping to trek the Old Jurong Line too someday in the future and I would probably be there to help bring them around for a trek! With that, it marks the end of the Goodbye Walk, in depth thoughts and views of some of the developments, discussions and my own personal thoughts on The Green Corridor can be found HERE on my personal blog. Meanwhile, you can check out more photos of the Thank You Walk here on Flickr!

As much as we are sad about the end of the Railway Tracks, let’s welcome The Green Corridor!

Created with Admarket’s flickrSLiDR.

I was paired up with my great blogger friend, the legendary Keropokman, to visit a friend somewhere in Singapore, armed with a donated NetBook and Microsoft Software. We headed towards our friend’s home somewhere in Singapore on a Saturday morning, helping him to setup his NetBook, guiding him along to connect himself with/to the world of internet and social media, with Windows Live, Facebook and Skype. After a hearty breakfast in a neighbourhood hawker centre, Keropokman and myself were ready to move out for our volunteering expedition!

We were welcomed by our friendly and heartwarming friend, whom we slowly break the ice, interacted and chatted away. Keropokman and myself took turns to do the setup, guiding him through the various social media channels, what to do and how to move around them, points and tips to look out for. Our friend was happily taking the whole setup through and we did not rush him, taking it slowly and patiently, one small step at a time. During this sharing session, while one of us was helping and guiding our friend through the setup, the other teammate would be doing live social media updates via Instagram and Twitter, bringing live updates to the Nothing Less movement and broadcasting the TweetMeetSG movement, sharing with the social media community what this noble and wonderful event was all about.

Once the Facebook and Skype were setup, our friend tried conversing, interacting and chatting with friends from the social media community and our friendly folks from the IAC was there to chat with him too! Looking at his happy face, full of smile, happy to receive this small wonderful gift from IAC. We were very happy that we were able to make a difference to his life, helping him breach the gap between the social media/internet and himself, connecting him together and also his family, relatives and friends too!

What’s the TweetMeetSG all about? What’s Nothing Less all about? Check out my deep inner thoughts on NOTHING LESS to Help Them Reach Their Full Potential!

With each day counting towards the end of chapter in Singapore’s history and Malaysia’s history as well, it marks the end of an era and the beginning of a new era ahead. Many people from all walks of life gathered, remembered, reminisced, shared, trekked, taking photographs of the Grand Old Dame, her railway tracks, The Green Corridor, the traditions, heritage and history. The elderly, the parents bringing their children to know about the history of the railway tracks. The papers, social media, blogs and internet were buzzing with great interest and publicity on the KTM Railway lines and the KTM Railway Stations Tanjong Pagar and Bukit Timah.

Thursday 30th June 2011, on the final day of her railway operations in Singapore, it was the best to send off The Last Train Out From KTM Tanjong Pagar Railway Station in style and honour that she fully deserved, by being part of the history; to be there to remember her heritage, history and achievements, taking photographs and videos with their friends, family and loved ones, taking the last passenger train at 2200hrs out from Tanjong Pagar or the VIP train at 2300hrs driven by His Excellency, the Sultan of Johor himself, out of Tanjong Pagar Railway Station, marking the end and handing over of KTM Tanjong Pagar Railway Station.

A time of mixed emotions, I studied beside the KTM Tanjong Pagar Railway Station for 4 years (when I was studying at Gan Eng Seng School when it was situated at Raeburn Park) and the railway line situated behind Clementi HDB estate and Sunset Way Railway Bridge (when I was studying at Clementi North Primary School whereby it was situated at Clementi Avenue 6). With this closure, what lies ahead ? For the railway stations in Tanjong Pagar and Bukit Timah, we know they will be preserved for our history and heritage, how about the beautiful Green Corridor? Only time will tell …

I will not forget about them and did not choose to remember it just because it was near to the end of her long service, it’s for the memories that I grew up with that is unique to me and maybe others too.

Lest We Forget, the KTM Railway in Singapore, let the photographs continue telling the stories from here ….

 

Created with Admarket’s flickrSLiDR.

When: 25th June 2011
Time: 2:00 PM – 9:00 PM
Where: *SCAPE Atrium & Gallery

Many many interesting activities, performances, networking and sharing sessions will be on during Singapore Social Media Day 2011 at Scape. Do come down and join us for a day of fun and excitement, organised by bloggers, for bloggers and social media communities, networks and platforms (Facebook, Twitter, Micro-Blogs etc etc), the people who know what is it all about and how to go about doing it!

It’s also a day for a good social cause, fund raising for The Straits Times School Pocket Money Fund ! Follow them on Facebook ! RSVP for this wonderful and fun event ! Look out for this hash tag #ssmd2011 on Twitter ! Let’s all take this opportunity to widen the Social Media community and networks, make more new friends !

Last but not least, I am conducting a photography sharing session, full details here! Look forward to seeing you there!

Today, not many of these Old Playgrounds had survived the modern economic growth and expansion, it might be too old and ugly for some, even too dangerous for the young kids today to play in. Back during my time, it was a lot of fun for us as kids playing there. The Old Playground that is featured here, is the type that I played at regularly back in Clementi HDB Estate and it had been demolished, lost forever….

For this surviving Old Playground, located somewhere in Dakota Crescent, the bridge is now fixed and bolted tightly, in the olden days, it’s a swinging bridge and we loved to run across and back this swinging bridge. Those were the childhood memories, those were the days. As much as we know about and understand the need for growth and economic expansion in this fast paced ever changing environment, there would definitely be places, history and culture that would be inevitably be lost and/or destroyed along the way. There are still some surviving Old Playgrounds and Old Places in Singapore, let’s hope that they will be able to stand the test of time and history in Singapore.

Cherish these memories of Old Places and Old Playgrounds, looking forward to share more in my personal documentation and photojournalistic adventure of them!

Created with Admarket’s flickrSLiDR.

This is the tale of 2 Dragons … it forms part of the upcoming Old Places and Old Playground Photography Walkabout route

Old Dragon Playground

Old  Dragon Fountain

Are you ready for the Two Dragons to rise up again ?