A Quiet Singapore

Any place that’s packed with people is likely to offer something unusual—from lower prices to better quality to freebies, you just know there’s something good on offer when you see throngs of people willingly packing themselves into a tight space like so many sardines. But there would always come a time when there are just too many people around and you feel the need to get away from it all. If staying at home isn’t for you, try exploring some of these quiet and beautiful places in Singapore.

Religious places of interest

Outside of prayer times, a religious place of interest could prove to be a beautiful yet tranquil place for anyone to spend time in. Perhaps you’d find yourself enraptured by a mosque’s golden dome, or irresistibly drawn to the imposing statues of a temple, but rest assured that there’d always be new details to feast your eyes upon. If you need a quiet moment alone to contemplate life, there’s no better place to do it.

The Sultan Mosque is considered to be the national mosque of Singapore, and it is located in the atmospheric Kampong Glam. Visitors are able to walk in between the hours of 10am and 12pm as well as between 2pm and 4pm, and attend a guided tour from one of the mosque’s docents. St Andrew’s Cathedral is the largest of its kind and a well-located spring of peace in the busy City Hall district. For temples, you can’t go wrong with visiting the Buddha Tooth Relic Temple in Chinatown where visitors can view the tooth relic twice daily from a public viewing area, admire extravagant gold ornamentation, and view a unique species of orchid, the Dendrobium Buddha Tooth, in the rooftop garden.

Art galleries and musuems

Four of the most prominent art institutions in Singapore include the Asian Civilisations Musuem, the Singapore Art Museum, the National Gallery, and the National Museum of Singapore. At any of these museums, you would be able to take a long solitary walk through quiet rooms, and cast your mind back towards the past—or perhaps the future, if contemporary or postmodern art happen to be your cup of tea. But if there are still too many people in there for your liking and oblivious groups don’t seem to notice your personal space bubble, then perhaps you might like to consider some of the smaller art galleries dotted all around Singapore.

If you’re intimidated by galleries or museums in general, as you’re not really ‘that kind of person’, there’s a third option that you could consider. Some of the most famous (read: expensive five-star establishments) hotels in Singapore have opened up their art collections to members of the public. Anyone is able to walk in to view these artworks, so you don’t have to worry about having to be a guest there. Three such hotels are the Pan Pacific, Ritz-Carlton Millenia and Marina Bay Sands.

Nature haunts

If it is the city life itself that is starting to feel claustrophobic, head to one of the many natural sites in Singapore and take a moment to breathe in the fresh air and bask in the quiet tranquillity. Reservoirs are excellent choices as they are conveniently located all around Singapore, are readily accessible, provide leafy shady even in the hottest of days, and combine a good mix of both land and water scenery. These places are ideal spots to read a book, or pull out a mat and go to sleep under a shady tree. Once you’re ready to re-join civilisation, you don’t even have to go that far as many reservoirs also house convenient snack booths and bicycle rental stores so you can get some food and make your way around with minimum fuss.

21 Jun 2024
Singapore Expats