Swords into parks

After the otters, my other must-see in Singapore was Fort Canning, the headquarters of British military rule in the colony during the 20^th Century. More specifically, I wanted to see the Battlebox, HQ of the British commander who, having bollixed the defensive campaign against the Japanese in 1941-42, surrendered on 15 February 1942, consigning his remaining troops to harsh conditions in POW camps and the citizens of Singapore and Malaya to 4.5 years of occupation hell.

I’ve got thoughts on that whole mishigas, but I’ll save them for another time; I’m still processing my fury.

What I’m concentrating on today is my joy at how the Singaporeans have turned a military base into a park, where scores of families were playing and picnicking yesterday, on their National Holiday. (They finally got shot of the Brits on 9 August 1965.) I've been on a few military bases, and not even the Presidio is as beautiful as Fort Canning Park. 

I think my favorite is the Forbidden Spring, said to be the bathing place for the noble ladies of the palace of the kings of Malaya, which was situated on the hill in the 14^th Century. You come across this kind of suddenly, but it is so beautiful and peaceful; you could stay here for hours. Maybe years.

I got to chatting with a fella who says he comes there—to the park and the spring—very often, and I would certainly emulate him if I lived here.

I also love the thought that’s gone into designing walkways and stairs throughout the park.

(Even more—I love that they have up-escalators for most of the steepest ones.)

Here are some more of the flowers; I can’t seem to get enough pix of them.

Variegated banana bush (I think):

I have no earthly idea what this is:

Ferns growing on a tree with a really interesting infrastructure:

A guardian monkey:

There’s a shrine to one of the Malay kings; what I found most interesting was this notice:

And the scores of pigeons hanging around on the ground and looming overhead from the roof over the shrine.

With all the lawns, in sun and shade, I thought it rather interesting that this family chose to have their picnic on concrete:

But then, this family did the same on Sunday at the Gardens by the Bay, so maybe it’s a thing:

(I was put in mind of Brits who take the family to the beach but end up eating their sandwiches and drinking their thermoses of tea in their cars because it’s pissing down rain. Not kidding—it’s a thing. And I saw it once in a car park at the Isle of Wight hydrofoil terminus at Portsmouth.)

And here’s a view of the modern city running right up to the edge of the park: