According to a poll of about 300 people, reported in yesterday's Sunday Times, (how come nobody ever asks me these things?), the Seven Wonders of Singapore are (in order of merit):
1. The Esplanade (a whopping 82 votes)
2. Changi Airport (53 votes)
3. Sentosa
4. The Merlion
5. The Singapore River
6. Food
7. Mount Faber and LKY (tie - 10 votes each)
Some 'offbeat choices' which didn't make it to the top 7: aunties selling tissue paper at coffee shops, Singlish, kiasuism, 4D-Toto outlets and Newater (said someone of Newater: 'We are probably the only country with branded recycled sewage.' Well said, ha ha.).
Maybe it's a personal bias but I feel that a 'Wonder' must also have strong historical and cultural/social value (so I'm rather miffed that Angkor Wat didn't make it to the 7 Wonders of the World; in fact it was never in the running for the top 7). Therefore, these choices are a little too modern for me. The Esplanade, for example, is arty and cultural, I suppose, but in too modern a sense. I'd rather go for the original Esplanade, that stretch beside the sea, where the Satay Club used to be.
Anyway, how did Mount Faber make it to the list? I didn't know 'natural' features were considered 'Wonders' of this sort. Well, I can think of some better natural wonders, e.g. all the off-the-beaten-track natural habitats for birds, marine and other creatures. And that 80-year-old Braddell Road angsana tree (chopped down already).
What I would choose:
1. Fort Canning Hill/Bukit Larangan (i.e. whatever remains of the palace, fort, excavation site)
2. City Hall, Supreme Court, Padang and the old Esplanade (the whole area)
3. National Museum (revived!) and the old National Library (chopped down already) at Stamford Road
4. Sultan Mosque and former Sultan's Palace (the current Malay Heritage Centre)
5. National Stadium (going to be chopped down)
6. Nicoll Highway (still there) and old Kallang Airport (chopped down already)
7. My dear school, CHIJ Victoria Street and the old SJI (both partly still there, partly chopped down) -- wah, so biased, choose her old school one
pic from Pastel Portraits
Okay, I know I cheated by having pairs, but some of these really go together what. By the way, notice how 'wonders' have a habit of being chopped down?
As for the non-building and non-food choices, I really wouldn't argue with LKY being on the list. Here's what else I would choose:
1. The Peranakan sarong kebaya, complete with kerosang, silver belt, beaded slippers, the works
2. The song 'Singapura'
3. Singlish, as chosen already by others
4. 'The Awakening' (Chinese drama serial)
Any other biased and unbiased suggestions, anyone?
Comments
You chose The Awakening. What about The Samsui Women?
Samsui Women is not a bad choice. I chose The Awakening because it was the first one and also, it captured the 'history' of many Chinese Singaporeans very well. I preferred the actors and actresses in The Awakening too. Ha ha, personal bias again...
Yah I was wondering why Mt Faber made it to the list too. And the Merlion - it's just a Singapore Tourism Board construct!
Luckily I didn't get asked because I would be hard pressed to name any "wonder" in Singapore. Maybe I would say "hawker centres" - well it's quite a wonder to have such a dense concentration of food stalls and wide variety in a single place.
Thanks for your comment. I'm happy to dish out food for thought :-).
I did think of sports personalities but it was hard to decide so I didn't choose any in the end.
Fuzzoo,
I share your feelings about the Merlion. The article quoted someone saying that it had links to Sang Nila Utama and the naming of S'pore but I doubt the creature he saw looked like the Merlion!
Hawker centres - yes, some are more wonder-ful than others.