Hop on a bus with Gan Kam Jean and explore peaceful Sembawang.
If the words rural and Singapore seem like an oxymoron, you're in for a surprise. Board Trans-Island Bus service 167 or 980 to the northern shores of the Lion City and you'll find yourself travelling towards Sembawang – worlds away from the non-stop action of Orchard Road.
Life slows as you journey along Upper Thomson, meandering through leafy green tunnels made from the mammoth branches of old rain trees. This is the heart of rubber tapper land – palm plantations developed in the early 1900s by Lim Nee Soon, landowner and business tycoon extraordinaire. Known to be a generous employer he established Singapore’s first cinema – in the midst of his rubber estate – solely for the rubber tappers’ enjoyment. Today, Sembawang is rather more developed and even boasts a satellite town – Yishun, named after Nee Soon. But compared to the rest of Singapore, Sembawang still enjoys a leisurely pace.
Travelling by bus there’s a lot to see from the large picture windows and plenty to do if you hop off along the way. From the secluded Lower and Upper Peirce Reservoirs – great for cycling and picnics – prata and kopi tiam restaurants, Singapore Zoological Gardens, the 1970s New Zealand and British armed forces' enclave – including black and white houses, a bar and church – and Sembawang Park.
Getting there
Board TIBS bus 167 outside Newton MRT or near MacRitchie Reservoir, along Thomson Road. Buses 74, 93, 130, 132, 156, 157, 162, 162#, 165, 166, 167, 852, 855 and 980 all go to MacRitchie. From MacRitchie, you can also take service 980. Travelling time from MacRitchie Reservoir to Sembawang is 50 minutes.
Stop B15 – Bicycle adventures
The relaxed ambience only increases after Lower Peirce Reservoir, about seven minutes away from MacRitchie. Bring your picnic basket or hire a bike to explore both the lower and upper reservoirs.
To hire a bike, walk with the flow of traffic to the T-junction of Upper Thomson Road and Ang Mo Kio Ave 1. On Ang Mo Kio Ave 1, take service 262 four stops to Bishan Park 2. Cross the road to stop B10 and take the path marked “Skate Park, Dog Run Facility, Palm Court II” to the bike shop. Bikes are available by the hour at $8 for adults and $4 to $8 for children. Each subsequent hour is half the price. To fully explore Peirce Reservoir allow three hours. Safety helmets can be hired next door for just $2. And don’t forget identification for a deposit.
From the bike shop, turn left and ride to the end of Bishan Park 2, cross to Bishan Park 1 and cycle through – approximately two kilometres. Once you reach the Upper Thomson Road and Ang Mo Kio Ave 1 junction, cross over to Old Upper Thomson Road, which leads to both lower and upper reservoirs – around five kilometres away. Gates to the upper reservoir close at 7pm.
If you prefer to take things a little easier, alight at stop B35, opposite a row of restaurants. Visit The Prata Place for delicious roti prata – “Singapore’s Answer to the Croissant”. Choose a plain prata – flat, pancake-sized, fried bread – served with a hot curry sauce, or opt for a sweet prata filled with fresh pineapple, banana, strawberry, chocolate or condensed milk. A substantial meal including teh tarik – Indian “pulled tea” – should cost no more than $10.
Stop 37 – Singapore Zoo
Walk with the flow of traffic to Mandai Road for service 138. The Park Hoppers Special gets you into both the Zoo and the Night Safari at $28 for adults and $14 for children. If you stay on the bus you’ll come to Sembawang Road, Dieppe Barracks and Chong Pang City.
Stop B21 – Satay delights
A real gastronomic draw is the Singapore Satay Club. Trademark succulent Malay kebabs are grilled on the spot and served with a range of mouth-watering Malay fare. After stop B21, service 167 and 980 loop around Canberra Road to terminate at Sembawang bus interchange/MRT station and Sun Plaza – offering a cinema and the Sembawang Community Library.
Sembawang Park
Continue to the northernmost point of Singapore – Sembawang Park. Service 882 from the interchange reaches the park in just three minutes. Stroll amongst hundred-year old trees, a WWII bunker and pavilions from the 1970s. There was even once a traditional village here – Kampung Wak Hassan.
Stop at Beaulieu House. Now a restaurant, it was an admiral’s residence just 30 years ago and overlooks the beach. Backtrack 200 metres to Andrews Avenue and stroll down to view a small wooden mosque, still visited regularly by worshippers. You might also witness pilgrimages of another sort when fruit-lovers come to harvest the wild mangoes that grow here. Stop for a bite at Bottle Tree Village seafood restaurant and take note of the nearby track. The Simpang Kiri Park Connector is part of a network of paved tracks spanning 300 kilometres across Singapore. Usually found alongside the canals and rivers flowing through the island, these green corridors take walkers and cyclists away from exhaust fumes, bringing them closer to nature – surely, one of Singapore’s best kept secrets.
Gan Kam Jean is a teacher by profession with a love of the outdoors and writing. She enjoys welcoming international friends to Singapore, showing them unique facets of the Lion City many structured tours forget.
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Posted on Aug 06
