Boat Quay
sits on the last bend of the Singapore River - the night view has undoubted magic
'Downtown Core' is the assertive name given to Singapore's centre. This page pays homage to these skyscrapers, a rare tribute from a site that largely celebrates rural life. The giant buildings congregate on the last bends of the
Singapore River
as it flows into Marina Bay, and enters the Singapore Straits, beyond which are the islands of Indonesia.
On this page the emphasis is on height and quantity, for Singapore holds records on a number of such counts, however, lest you should gain an unbalanced idea of Singapore, the next page shifts attention away from sheer scale and more to the quality of the buildings, and the way Singapore has encouraged innovation in the best of modern architecture.
Boat Quay again, but in daylight, the magic is gone, lost to grey slabs
UOB Plaza (United Overseas Bank) dominates this walkway behind the riverside cafes
And a similar shot by night with the cafes to the right and the UOB building ahead
Looking down on the walkway along Boat Quay at night
Dine by a cleaned-up river, a stroll from a hot contender for the world's future commercial core
- boats gently passing
The great bulk of Capital Tower here appears above a delicately lanterned cafe on the riverside
The Stamford Hotel, part of Raffles City complex, is by the architect I.M.Pei, at 741 feet it is currently the tallest hotel in Southeast Asia
Capital Tower, Robinson Road
Dockside cranes and waiting containers just beside the towering buildings of the 'Core'
The Durian - the next page shows more of this building
Silhouetted cranes; the land beyond is Indonesia
To the left along the river bank runs
Queen Elizabeth Walk,
with the Stamford Hotel behind.
Skyscrapers around and beyond the Raffles Boulevard form the backdrop.
The Durian is central just beyond the Esplanade Bridge
The AXA Tower (top) is the world's tallest cylindrical building. Originally called Temasek Tower, after the fishing village on which Singapore city was built, it was also known as Springleaf Tower
Crowding together these three towering towers (the Maybank Tower, New Bank of China and '6 Battery Road') dwarf Singapore's only suspension bridge -
the Cavenagh Bridge
Singapore's gentle traffic (few are allowed the licence for a private car) with the 'Core' behind
A glimpse from Merlion Park of the 'Merlion' and the triple towers of the Marina Bay Sands complex
The
ArtScience Museum,
which takes the form of a lotus flower,
under construction
The 'Merlion'
a cross between a mermaid and a lion is Singapore's national symbol
The three tower hotel and resort complex, with a swimming pool on the top of three towers, was built by the American resort company Las Vagas Sands, hence the name Marina Bay Sands, the ArtScience Museum is across to the left, while the Merlion spurts in the foreground
Next week's page
completes the set on Singapore. Height and impact, indeed brashness in some cases, characterised the images above, the next page turns to quality rather than quantity, and undoubted architectural delights
The last page had images from the Jurong Gardens in Singapore
To Hà Nội and a couple of its relatively constrained 'Brutalist' developments
