Singapore - The Rough Guide to Southeast Asia on a Budget - page 665

9

Introduction
Conveniently linked by a kilometre-long causeway to the southern tip
of Malaysia, the vibrant city-state of Singapore makes a gentle gateway
for many first-time travellers to Asia, providing Western standards of
comfort alongside traditional Chinese, Malay and Indian enclaves. Its
downtown areas are dense with towering skyscrapers and gleaming
shopping malls, yet the island retains an abundance of nature reserves
and lush, tropical greenery.

CHRONOLOGY
Third century AD The earliest known mention of
Singapore is a Chinese reference to Pu-luo-chung, or
“island at the end of a peninsula”.
Eleventh century The tiny island is known as “Singa
Pura” (Lion City) - according to legend because a prince
mistook a local animal for a lion.
Late thirteenth century Marco Polo reports seeing a
place called Chiamassie, possibly Singapore, which was
known locally as Temasek - “sea town” - and was a minor
trading outpost of the Sumatran Srivijaya Empire.
c.1390 A Sumatran prince, Paramesvara, flees to present-
day Singapore, murders his host and rules the island until a
Javanese offensive forces him to flee north to the Peninsula.
He and his son, Iskandar Shah, found the Melaka Sultanate.
1613 A Portuguese account describes the razing of an
unnamed Malay outpost at the mouth of Sungei Johor,
an event that marks the beginning of two centuries of
historical limbo for Singapore.
1819 Thomas Stamford Ra es, lieutenant-governor of
Bencoolen (in Sumatra), arrives in Singapore to establish
a British trading station.
1822 Ra es draws up the demarcation lines that divide
present-day Singapore. South of the Singapore River is
earmarked for the Chinese; the commercial district is
established on a filled-in swamp at the mouth of the river;
and Muslims settle around the Sultan's Palace in today's
Arab Quarter.
1824 Singapore is ceded outright to the British, and
the island's population reaches ten thousand as Malays,
Chinese, Indians and Europeans arrive in search of work.
1826 The fledgling state unites with Penang and Melaka
(now under British rule) to form the Straits Settlements.
1860 The population reaches eighty thousand. Arabs,
Indians, Javanese and Bugis arrive, but most populous of
all are the Chinese from the southern provinces of China.
1877 Henry Ridley introduces the rubber plant into
Southeast Asia; Singapore becomes the world centre of
rubber exporting, helped as British control of the Malay
Peninsula expands, completed in 1913.

Singapore is a wealthy nation compared
to the rest of Southeast Asia. Outsiders
have traditionally bridled at the
country's somewhat extreme regulations
(neglecting to flush a public toilet
carries a sizeable fine), but there are
suggestions that the government is
starting to loosen its grip on the
population, and as Singapore begins to
change, it has transformed into the
social hub of Southeast Asia. he
conscious effort to liberalize the island
has led to a growing arts scene and a
vibrant nightlife .
Although the city is a beacon of
modernization, it is still possible to get
lost in the diverse districts - Chinatown ,
Little India and the Colonial District - that
make up the leafy island. Much of the
country's appeal springs from its
multicultural population: of the five
million residents, 74 percent are Chinese
(a figure reflected in the predominance of
Chinese shops, restaurants and temples
across the island), sixteen percent are
Malay, and nine percent are Indian, while
the remaining one percent comprise
other ethnic groups.

WHEN TO GO
Singapore is just 136km north of the
equator, which means that you should be
prepared for a hot and sticky time
whenever you go; temperatures hover
around 30 ° C throughout the year.
November, December and January are
usually the coolest and wettest months,
but rain can fall all year round. July usually
records the lowest annual rainfall.