I Only Came For The Music: 41 - Oriental Magic
...I adored Singapore from the minute we touched down and realised immediately that I belonged there...
Betty McKay tells of life in an exotic city.
Living in Singapore was far different from the time we had spent in sleepy Malaysia. This small island buzzed with energy that I have never encountered to such a degree anywhere else. To say that I was happy there would be an understatement. I adored Singapore from the minute we touched down and realised immediately that I belonged there.
We had been in Singapore ten years previously when we had a brief stopover before moving 'up country' to Kuala Lumpur and Taiping. We had foreseen and expected the cultural diversity of Chinese, Malays, Indians and some Europeans and Australians. There wasn't any diversity, everyone got along very nicely, thank you very much!
We moved into our enormous apartment in Holland Village on the day after we arrived. No long stay in a hotel before settling in. Everything was there in perfect order for our arrival. The following Monday Alison and Richard were settled into their school. Things couldn't have been smoother. A marvellous form of oriental magic was working well for the McKay family.
There was a wonderful panoramic view from our wide balcony. Looking to our right was a wooded area beyond which lay the MacRitchie Reservoir. Immediately opposite, on a hill was the enormous Chinese Cemetery, and to the left in the distance were some high rise flats in an area known as the Chip Bee estate. Within a short time we had hiked around the reservoir, climbed up the steep path to the cemetery, and visited the Chip Bee flats, where a great many British service families lived.
As English was one of the official languages, it was easy to go shopping and happily co-exist with the local population. In Malaysia we had travelled around in our Rover, but in Singapore we saw no need to buy a car. Buses were a very cheap way of travelling around the island. Quite quickly the McKays became walkers. We walked everywhere. Every Sunday we went to the beach.
A great deal of our shopping we did in the Orchard Road area, where there were many large shops and hotels. In that area was an enormous indoor market; which looked very like a large Victorian iron construction. Here we could purchase fresh fish, meat, vegetables and delicious, exotic fruit, much of it flown in from Australia, New Zealand and America. The Chinese Emporium was a huge building, where one could buy almost anything.
After a busy morning shopping it was relaxing to meet up with friends at the Singapore Cold Storage and enjoy the delicious ices or banana splits which could be eaten in an air conditioned environment or have a coffee in the Whitelaw's or Robinson’s large departmental stores.
In the evening until well after midnight all along the Orchard Road was at least a mile of brightly lit, decorated stalls with street traders, where one could bargain for almost anything under the sun - from cheap plastic toys to the latest expensive electronic equipment. There was clothing for all ages and very large items of rattan and teak furniture.
Usually the good-humoured bargaining was accompanied by a cold fruit drink or a Coca-Cola. There were stalls selling inexpensive traditional Tamil or Chinese or Malay food, all with enticing aromas. Many dishes on display introduced elements of Eastern and Western cuisines.
The night street markets were always crowded with busy shoppers, locals and many visitors from the huge liners anchored offshore. Some of the stalls sold records and videos and jewellery; all much cheaper than their cost in the large shops, and all probably illegally produced. The children were completely entranced by the sights, sounds and smells. And later we would wander back home to our spacious, elegant apartment.
Umtata, our gentle Madrassi amah was lovely. She behaved like our guardian angel and spoilt the children rotten. They adored her. I often wish I could go back there and meet her again, to tell her once how much we loved her. I never even knew where she lived. Just that she was poor and loved working for us. I'd like to think that she lived happily ever after, and I truly hope she did.
After we left Singapore, we flew back to Britain. Hugh was posted to Catterick Camp for a short time. Then he left the Army and on the 1st of January, 1970, began working as the Personnel Officer at St. Bartholomew's Hospital in London.
We didn't find a suitable house in London, so we decided to live in Luton. Hugh eventually became a Principal Lecturer at Luton University in the Management Centre. We loved living in Luton and stayed there happily for almost thirty-three years.
