| The Old Seawall at Pasir Panjang |
| On
Tuesday, 5 September 2006, I took off on a walkabout like a true Australian
Aborigine into the outback desert. In the end, I found myself walking
and climbing all six coastal hills -- starting from Kent Ridge to
Labrador, Mount Faber, Pearl Hill, Fort Canning and finally Mount
Emily -- all in about six hours on a single day; each step following
the next without a plan. It was simply letting go; carefree, wonderlust
and exhilarating all the way. |
|
Among the many interesting things that greeted me that day was a relatively
rare seashore tree, Gmelina elliptica, growing
along the old railway track at Kampong Bahru where, it seemed, common
drains remained as places White-Breasted Waterhens scurry about and
Mollies still swim. There were the Rufus Woodpeckers at Kent Ridge too, the ant-termite battle of Labrador proving all too absorbing a sight, and even the dungs of the Common Palm Civet -- littering both places -- took on greater significance when spotted on the same day. I saw them all and more; my memory a reverie in the spunning coolness amidst the trees atop these hills and a beautiful driftwood collected to remind me of the |
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generous sea below. The old seawall at * Pasir Panjang was particularly enthralling. I didn't know it existed before but recognised its antiquity almost instantaneously when I stumbled across it behind the Currency House and * Jalan Pelepah. The wave hood and the stone-stairs are unmistakable parts of a seawall anatomy. Even the whitewashed parapet looked suspiciously like those fronting the Queen Elizabeth Walk of old. Moreover, something did not appeared quite right to me about the opposing walls of this so-called 'canal'; the two sides look more like strange bedfellows in construction. One is obviously old in the way it was laid while the other looks new in its smooth formwork. The new one is in all likelihood the retaining wall of land reclamation that had given shape to the present Pasir Panjang Wharf over what was once the shallow sea of * Ayer Nipah. Civil engineering students and geography teachers should find this innovative 're-use' of the old seawall for drainage purpose interesting. Inasmuch, here lies indeed a rare landmark which shows where previous coastline had been. This is especially poignant in the rapidly-developing island of Singapore where coastline morphology changes beyond recognition within a single generation like nowhere esle around the world. It would seemed a trifling silly to be so excited over an old seawall that has not been buried under. But sad to say, it is here where such excitement equals that of great archeological discoveries. To an old student of serendipity like myself, I am not only awe-struck but all too eager to share this gem of a heritage I think we should all appreciate. I walked and climbed six hills that unforgetable day... and saw so many people along the way. I wished they could see what I saw. That was truly how I felt. |
* Pasir Panjang: Malay, Pasir meaning sand (refering to a beach); Panjang meaning long.
* Jalan Pelepah: Malay, Jalan meaning road; Pelepah -- the large veins of palm leaves.
* Ayer Nipah: Malay, Ayer meaning water; Nipah -- a brackish water palm.