When you talk about Bugis, many may think of shopping. But no! There are more to it.

Bugis’ night market which originated after World War II was famous for its street food stalls, and transvestites and transsexuals flirting, soliciting, dancing and generally behaving outrageously. The place was cleaned up in the early 1980s, and the development around MRT drastically changed the geography of Bugis.

Not only is Bugis a shopping paradise, it also houses many heritage and arts centre. Bugis has its own MRT station (East-West Line) directly beneath Parco Bugis Junction.


Waterloo Street with Sculture Square in the background

On the western end of Bugis is the Waterloo Street Arts Belt, which serves as a unique focal point for arts activities in the heart of the city. The arts groups housed in this arts belt are ACTION Theatre, the Chinese Calligraphy Society of Singapore, Dance Ensemble Singapore, Young Musicians' Society (YMS) and Sculpture Square.

The arts belt also provides space for talents to create and test their works. On this street alone, one could sample the works of various disciplines - music, dance, drama, sculpture and visual arts. Ying Tong has personally performed at YMS before and found it a pretty cool place to perform, given the low rental fee!


Ying Tong preparing for performance at YMS


inside YMS Auditorium, spot Ying Tong!

Moving towards Victoria Street is the National Library Building which houses some exhibition spaces and the Drama Centre, which was originally built at Fort Canning Park for the Singapore Council for Adult Education. Suhartono says he loves libraries; hence he totally adores this building.


Cathedral of the Good Shepherd

Just down the street is one of the numerous historic churches in the area, the striking Cathedral of the Good Shepherd. It is the oldest Roman Catholic church in Singapore, built in 1847.

Along Bras Basah Road you will see the Singapore Art Museum (S$5; S$2.50 concessions; free under 6s), which is a former Catholic boys’ school. It was revamped in the early 1990s when there was a policy converting old colonial building into museums. This museum specializes in smaller exhibitions, mostly 20th-century Asian visual art.


Singapore Art Museum


National Museum of Singapore

Just around the corner is the National Museum of Singapore (S$10; S$5 concessions) on Stamford Road. After the refurbishment and rebranding, the museum reopened with vastly-expanded display areas: History Gallery, four themed Living Galleries, a space for temporary shows and a lecture-performance-screening venue. It is worth visiting just for the neo-classical building!

Moving along Stamford Road, turn into Armenian Street, the Heritage and Arts District. This street holds the Substation, founded in 1990 by the late Kuo Pao Kun. It is Singapore's first independent contemporary arts centre which has a black box theatre, a gallery, and rehearsal studios. A popular bar/music venue is located in the back garden – Timbre @ Substation.


Substation

Right next to the Substation is the Peranakan Museum (S$6; S$3 concessions; free under 6s) which showcases the world’s finest and most comprehensive Peranakan collections, displayed in ten galleries. Reny is extremely fascinated by the whole culture of Peranakan and is still trying hard to understand it.


Reny and Ying Tong outside Peranakan Museum

Feeling tired? Here are some accommodations of our recommendation.

Bugis Backpackers Hostel (from S$36) is centrally located; just 2 minutes walk from the Bugis MRT station. You will be able to travel around the many attractions that we have mentioned so far, without wearing out your wallet and boots!

Or, you can choose the slightly more luxurious accommodation. Strand Hotel (from S$120) is stylish and fashionable. Its central location is also great for your excursions in Singapore.


Did you know?
Bugis Road is named after the tribe of nomadic Malays who used to sail into Singapore to trade. However, land reclamation had wiped away all the traces of that era.