TIONG BAHRU ESTATE

 Today's weather - sunny

When I feel tired, I write incoherent and gibberish stuff, like some of my earlier posts. Unfortunately, my less than perfect command of the English language doesn't, or should I say didn't, help. But then again, I constantly remind myself this is not a blog posting on the English language. Instead, it is just my humble blog on the things that are close to me, in particular plants. This is my attempt at writing my own plant diary, and so I shouldn't be too hard on myself.


Anyway, I went to the Tiong Bahru Plaza for a movie recently and ended up going to the refurbished Tiong Bahru hawker center via the old Tiong Bahru estate. This is a prime area, for those who hanker for a taste of a slightly sleepy, rustic but more private residence. For those who stay on the ground floor, they have a backyard, or frontyard, to landscape, like some of these photos shown here. If one cannot afford a private terrace or bigger house, this is the next best thing, I guess. Some of the owners have a very good sense of aesthetics and amazing horticultural expertise, as demonstrated by the beautiful landscapes and healthy plants here. For instance, one owner seemed to be able to grow the Hydrangea macrophylla in a very healthy, flowering condition, with leaves that are not plagued by leaf spots and so on.


And then, there is the old hawker center with lots of good food. In fact, this was only the second time I was here. The last time I came, it was about 10 months ago. Surprisingly I saw clumps of this uncommon but established palm. Pardon me here because I do not know its identity as my knowledge of palms is really limited. They look impressively different and amazing. 


If one is lucky enough, they would have a small open space in front of their compound and can get to appreciate some of the older trees, that never lost their favour with me. I, for one, was fortunate to see the beautiful pink flower Rose of India and carpet of Yellow Flame flowers there and then. 


NB on 15 Mar 12: Yes, the very refreshing palm is Euterpe oleracea ( common name: Acai Berry).

MARINE PARADE

I have not been to Parkway Parade for years on now. I used to go there almost every weekend when I was staying nearby a decade ago. The hawker centre across the shopping centre still looks the same and there are still the same stalls around.

KAMPONG ARANG

This is a block of flats at the Kampong Arang hawker centre area. I actually took a bus there for lunch but the hawker centre was undergoing major renovation. Anyway, the Bougainvillea cultivars along this corridor were flowering beautifully. This is a plant that I am considering for planting along my corridor.