Lion City "Chinatown"

There are three historical blocks in Singapore, Chinatown is Chinatown in Singapore.

I traveled with several friends to Singapore and Malaysia. One of them's daughter is studying in Singapore, and her father and daughter have been separated for a long time, so it is just right to get together. That night, I watched the bustling city night scene under the guidance of my friend's daughter. Lion City Singapore is a multicultural society, and its population structure mainly includes Chinese, Malays and Indians, with Chinese accounting for about 7%, which is why when we walk in the street, we see many Chinese faces without much sense of separation.

at that time, I had not given up smoking, so I was not used to the restriction of smoking everywhere in Singapore. It happened in summer, so I had to gulp down a few cans of canned drinks to get rid of my addiction. The next morning, I visited several famous scenic spots in Singapore, such as Sentosa, Merlion Park and marina bay. I thought this trip to Singapore was basically in place. I am planning to enjoy a local dinner, and I can go to Malaysia the next day when I get some luggage back to the hotel. My companion's daughter suddenly asked, "Uncle and aunt, aren't you going to Chinatown?" Because I haven't heard of it, I heard that it was "cow gets water" for a while, haha, but after a little understanding, I felt I had to go.

Little India, Kampong Grameen (a Muslim-inhabited area) and Chinatown are listed as the three historical blocks in Singapore, and Chinatown is Singapore's Chinatown. More than 2 years ago, Raffles, an Englishman, was sent to Penang, Malaysia, and soon became the governor of Sumatra, becoming an important political figure during the British overseas colonial period. In 1819, Raffles advocated the development of Singapore, a small fishing village that was unknown at that time. However, the reality of narrow land and sparse population urgently required the introduction of construction population, so a large number of workers were recruited from overseas, which greatly increased the number of Singapore residents from a few hundred to more than 1,. Among them, most of the laborers come from China, Guangdong and Fujian, and most of them settled in Niucheshui area. With the increasing population, Raffles designated this land as a Chinese residential area. Don't look at the word "Chinatown", but now it is one of the most prosperous areas in the city center. Then why did you choose such a name? At the beginning of Singapore's development, the conditions were very poor, and there were no daily water and drinking facilities, so we had to use ox carts to pull water back and forth in the suburbs, and Chinatown was located in the water distribution center, so it was named.

The next day, it only takes ten minutes to walk from our hotel to Chinatown. Don't want to enter the block, the street crowded, shops, it can be seen that the main business is China commodity business. There are many restaurants, such as Hainan chicken rice, tea houses, bakers, dried meat, bone soup, Chaozhou cuisine, local fried kway teow and radish cakes. Various traditional handicrafts, such as sculptures, puppets, Buddha statues and incense sticks, are flooding the city. There are not only formal shop fronts such as Pearl Shop, Yuhua Chinese Goods Shop, Tang Cheng Shop and Chinese Medicine Shop, but also various vendors selling refrigerator magnets, bottle openers, key chains, jewelry pendants and clothing fabrics, which are typical market trade. In the area of Kena Street, there are many stalls and fashion bars, forming a mixed format that does not interfere with each other and you have me.

There are English, Japanese, China Mandarin, Cantonese, Minnan dialect, including Ala Shanghainese, and other dialects in the different contexts perceived when Chinatown strolls around and shops. Especially when chatting with several old men who keep stalls, there is no sense of disobedience in speaking authentic dialects. I can't help but recall my personal experiences in many Chinatowns, such as Los Angeles, Tokyo and Sydney. What impressed me the most was some old overseas Chinese who still had a strong imprint on their homeland. They have lived in a foreign country for decades, so far they can't speak a few words of English, especially in terms of diet. They still can't get used to western food, and they are still obsessed with the flavor of their hometown. However, overseas-born youngsters are different. They have basically integrated into the local society. Apart from mastering English, most Chinese families still pay more attention to their children's Chinese education.

As a city country with a large proportion of foreign trade, Singapore has formed a language education structure with English as the main language for many years. Lee Kuan Yew once wrote "The Challenge of My Life: The Road to Bilingualism in Singapore", focusing on the historical evolution of Singapore's language problems, which has many practical considerations based on national conditions. However, after China's reform and opening up, the status of Chinese has been greatly improved in Singapore, and fluent Mandarin is the first impression left by local Chinese youths.

I have a habit that I have developed for many years, that is, I like to visit some local museums, memorial halls, etc. There is a three-story Chinatown Museum near Niucheshui subway station, which is the last stop we visited before leaving Singapore. Through the transmission of frame-by-frame pictures, original restoration models, and oral interviews, the century-long history of the early immigrants in China was demonstrated in a multidimensional and three-dimensional way.

nowadays, the ox is obviously gone, but the "cart and water" Malone has interpreted a series of modern urban landscapes, making it a microcosm of overseas Chinese society. After all, the roots and veins have not only continued the forms and characteristics of many traditional cultures in China, but also witnessed the rapid rise of a city-state. (Yu Jun)