Located in the central region of Singapore, Tiong Bahru is known to be one of the oldest housing estates in the country ━ making it rich in cultural heritage. I am unsure how it went from there to becoming the hipster pulse of Singapore. Though I had never lived in Tiong Bahru or its surrounding area before, I kept returning to the neighbourhood the last few times I visited Singapore.
The pull has been so strong that I am considering doing a week WFH stint from an Airbnb in the neighbourhood next year.
Things to do in Tiong Bahru
I have yet to discover the whole Tiong Bahru estate (the market and the bakery are on top of my list), but here are some of my fave spots there:
Explore The Old Tiong Bahru Estate Neighbourhood
I don’t know where my love for architecture came from, more specifically, my obsession with people’s living spaces and homes. But it’s there and well-fed whenever I take a nostalgic stroll around Tiong Bahru’s old neighbourhood.
Stock Up on Some Local Books
Tiong Bahru first caught my attention because of a bookstore – BooksActually. The indie bookstore has a massive English and Singapore lit collection, including hard-to-find and niche books. I could and have spent plenty of time here just browsing and soaking in the vintage atmosphere.
Note: I am not sure whether BooksActually is still operating. Google says yes, but I couldn’t find it the last time I was in Tiong Bahru, and I have a pretty good sense of direction.
The good news is there are more than one bookstore in Tiong Bahru.
Shop Local Arts and Culture at Cat Socrates
Socrates is a store in the neighbourhood that I love as much as I love the bookstore. It’s filled with all kinds of trinkets and stuff that I am into as if someone created a store curated just for me. You can find cute earrings, tarot decks, cute self-help books, and all things Singaporean and Peranakan culture (from yoga mats to tableware) to local artists’ artworks here. I got two earrings, books, and an oracle deck from my last visit to the neighbourhood.
Then, I returned on the same day to get an original art by Weng Pixin of pixmadeobjects titled 1299.
Deepen Yoga Practice
It’s a personal dream of mine to take a yoga class in the Tiong Bahru area. It feels like a perfect piece of hispter jigsaw puzzle that I have to do.
Visit Art Galleries
There are plenty of arts to immerse yourself in, from street art, such as murals and artsy landmarks, to paintings and sculptures displayed in galleries. If you are into art, it’s worth making your way here.
Chill at the Hipster Coffee Shops
Nothing could be more obvious than the appearing-from-nowhere coffeeshops for a hipster-gentrification, and Tiong Bahru has plenty of it. Though I have been to a few, none of them warrants a specific mention, so I will leave it to you to explore and maybe share your favourites with me.
Cool Down with A Cup Ice Cream
Truly, I can’t think of a better treat to survive the humid Singapore afternoon than a cup of ice cream. Tiong Bahru has several ice cream shops, but my favourite is Creamier – the handcrafted ice cream stall. By handcrafted, I assume they meant homemade – alas, it matters not because their Butterfly Pea Vanilla flavoured ice cream was good enough of a reason to visit the neighbourhood.
Aside from it being the hipster spot in Singapore, Tiong Bahru is so green. It felt like a different side of Singapore than I was used to while living there.
Oh, one last thing, if you have been reading the blog for some time, you know how much I love Haji Lane in Arab Street Singapore; Tiong Bahru by no means has replaced my love for it. It’s just another pocket of Singapore that I discovered a bit too late and equally loved.
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