#House Hunting

So today I posted my 101st Singapore house on Instagram. And to be honest, that seems like a pretty good place to stop and perhaps use my time and my social media account to pursue more worthwhile activities - like getting a job, though something tells me I won’t be able to stop myself putting up a pic of the odd mansion every now and again.

Still 101 houses (and plenty more that didn’t make the cut) is no small feat and for what it’s worth I thought it would be good to jot something down about the experience – for my sake if nothing else. A memento of four months of morning walks. Four months of poring over google maps to pick out prime routes through fancy looking residential enclaves. Four months of following up on leads from well-wishers. Four months of being asked what exactly the point was. 

At the end of the day this whole ‘project’ really started by accident; the result of a jokey post taken at the start of Singapore’s Circuit Breaker measures way back in April. Not being able to travel anywhere I was forced to look closer to home for my dose of exploration. As a result, I found myself using my daily exercise entitlement as an opportunity to scout out the sprawling residential neighbourhoods around our apartment in Holland Village.

What I discovered (and had only half glimpsed before) was a hidden warren of leafy tree-lined streets populated by hundreds of fantastical mansions that were as epic in scale as they were diverse in design.

The house that started it all

The first photo was taken partly in jest, a comment on the sheer over the top nature of the property in question – a massive faux Greco-Roman pile with a swimming pool out front that could easily house a family of 20. It was a house whose sheer pomposity was made even more ludicrous by the fact that it was clearly completely empty.

It was just staggering that in this tiny country, where we are constantly told that space is at such a premium that huge houses like this were sitting unused and unlived in. Even more so at that time. Tight restrictions meant the majority of the population were forced to stay home in their tiny flats while the virus raged like a wildfire through the cramped and over-crowded dormitories housing the huge army of foreign workers; the very same workers who had been brought to Singapore to build and maintain these types of house.

But of course, I’d be lying if I said that stark social commentary was my only (or being honest) even my main inspiration to carry on taking the photos. That was really the joyous wonder I got from discovering the sheer diversity and quality of buildings available to discover a short walk or bus ride from my home. Post-modern, brutalist, art-deco, classical, contemporary the influences and styles on display (and often situated right next to each other on the same street) were simply mind-boggling.

As a fan of design and architecture it was a real treat to uncover this wonderland of styles, trends, fashions and also a fascinating insight into the unique and idiosyncratic personal preferences of some clearly very wealthy owners. Some were simply stunning, architectural gems that took the breath away, some living historical records of Singapore’s past, others monuments to folly and pride, but each was special. Whenever I thought I had seen the most outlandish mansion or the most beautiful home I would turn a corner and stumble across stranger and more eclectic. I really did find an architect’s playground where anything goes, and imaginations have been allowed to run riot, free from anything as boring as planning regulations or conservation considerations.

I came to realise that in many ways they somehow reflected some of the ambiguities that are present in modern Singapore society. Wealth, privilege, excess, modernity, heritage, and the very cutting-edge design techniques, it was all here to be discovered and enjoyed and often was to be found sitting side by side on the same street.  

Aside from fuelling my design desires the project also gave me the perfect excuse/impetus to get up early and enjoy the city from a completely fresh perspective. It allowed me to truly appreciate what a green place Singapore really is and what an abundance of nature finds its home in among all the concrete and steel. This was especially apparent while the Circuit Breaker removed the invasive rumble of traffic, clatter of construction and roar of overhead air traffic. Nowhere was this more apparent than in the cornucopia of bird life that greeted me whenever I stepped out the door.

Every morning, just as the sun was rising, I’d be greeted with the whooping calls of the koels, the chatter of the mynah birds and the incessant hollers of the clearly sizeable population of Jungle fowl that call central Singapore home. If I was really lucky, I’d also get to spot more exotic (for me anyway) locals, the brightly coloured kingfishers and orioles, the turbocharged gangs of parakeets or the rambunctious family of sulphur crested cockatoos who would squawk and squabble above my head as I trekked through the Dempsey area.

And, taking everything into consideration, it’s this last reason that I continued taking the photos for so long and why I will carry on taking my morning walks even if I don’t decide to record it via the bricks and mortar structures I see along the way. With no sign that we’ll be getting off this island anytime soon, my morning walks will continue to give me the opportunities to wander down dead end streets, discover new sights and get my daily dose of the natural world all the things I love about travel.    

Ps. Just to confirm all 100 different properties were taken within a few kilometre radius of my home and were reached via a long walk or a short bus ride. A HUGE thanks to everyone who commented on their favourites or suggested roads and areas to explore.

Pps. I have been considering exploring some of Singapore’s architecturally interesting religious buildings next so if you do know anywhere….