Eng2218 student id20910329-sitedocumentation v2

DOCUMENTATION OF CHINESE GARDEN, SINGAPORE

Table of Contents:

1. Map, Location, Boundaries and Surrounding Area

2. Map of Garden

3. Sights:

1. West Entrance and White Rainbow Bridge

2. Garden Courtyard

3. Live Turtle and Tortoise Museum

4. Confucius Statue

5. Dragon and Phoenix Court

6. Twin Pagodas and 7 Storey Pagoda

7. Stone Boat

8. Tea House Pavilion

9. Bamboo Garden

10. Bonsai Garden

11. 8 Heroes

12. Garden of Abundance

13. Flowers and Plants and Others

4. People

5. What the Place is Used as

6. Rent of Facilities Rates

7. Reference List

1. Map, Location, Boundaries and Surrounding Area

Chinese Garden is a garden in Singapore and is also commonly known as Jurong

Gardens. It is located in Jurong East and is a five-minute walk from Chinese Garden MRT

Station. The garden was built in an effort to introduce greenery to the industrializing

landscape of Jurong. The garden is surrounded by water from Jurong Lake and entrance to

the garden is via bridges. Admission is free and it is open from 6 am to 11 pm daily.

Address: 1 Chinese Garden Road, Singapore 619795

Tel: 6268 5363

2. Map of Garden

The Chinese Garden was built in 1975 and designed by an architect from Taiwan, Professor

Yuen-chen Yu, who modelled the garden to the northern Chinese imperial style of

architecture and landscaping, specifically the Sung Dynasty Period. The 13.5 hectares has

been revitalized over the year with new features added like the Bonsai Garden and the

Fragrance Garden (not illustrated on map).

3. Sights:

1. White Rainbow Bridge, East Entrance and Bridge to Japanese Garden

The main entrance is connected by the White Rainbow Bridge, the east entrance

which exits towards Chinese Garden MRT Station is connected by a red-coloured bridge

and another entrance, which is connected to the Japanese Garden, is connected by a

stone bridge.

The east entrance was specially constructed in conjunction with the Chinese Garden

MRT station for increased accessibility. The red colour of the bridge symbolises fortune

and good luck in Chinese culture and the two stone marble lions at that entrance

symbolises authority. There is also a guardhouse situated there.

2. Garden Courtyard

During my two recent visits to Chinese Gardens, the Garden Courtyard was

closed off for renovation. The garden courtyard is situated within the Main Arch

Building which is across the bridge of the main entrance (refer to Garden Map). This

area is typically popular for picture-taking because of it's grandiose form. Below is a

picture of the Main Arch Building from the outside.

Picture credit to juronglakerun.com

3. Fishes' Paradise

The Koi symbolises success through hard work. A Chinese folklore tells of a koi

which, with determination, swam up the T'ung Kuang Rapids and was transformed into a

heroic dragon.

Visitors are allowed to feed the Koi with provided fish food from 1-1.30pm daily.

4. Live Turtle and Tortoise Museum

The Live Turtle and Tortoise Museum holds over 1000 turtles and tortoises of

more than 50 different species. It holds the Guinness World Record of the largest

collection of turtles and tortoises (The Live Turtle and Tortoise Museum, 2009). Some of

the highlights are the Snapping Turtle, Snake necked Turtle, Pig-nosed Turtle,the world's

third largest tortoise and even a six legged tortoise.

Visitors are allowed to feed the animals with fresh vegetables and food pellets

provided. There is also a petting corner for the tamer species of turtles and tortoises,

with Soft Shells and Terrapins allowed to roam freely through the park. Guided tours are

available to those who request for it.

Apart from live specimens, the museum also collects and displays objects

inspired by turtles and tortoises. In addition to that, the museum also rehabilitates and

rescues abused and neglected pets (Timeout Singapore, 2011).

Admission fee of SGD$3 applies for children and SGD$5 for adults.

5. Confucius Statue

There are two Confucius statues at the Chinese Garden. One located outside the Main

Arch Building and the other is amongst the 8 Heroes ensemble.

Confucius was born in 551 B.C. And he was a thinker, philosopher, political figure,

educator and founder of the Ru school of Chinese thought (Wison, 2002). His influence

is wide-spread and Singapore's education system includes the history and teachings of

Confucius. Confucianism, which are his views on life and the world is regraded by some

as a religion. After Confucius' death, his teachings were compiled as 'Analects of

Confucius'.

6. Dragon and Phoenix Court

This is a wide-open area of 1200 square meters which can be rented out to host events. It

is non-sheltered and costs $500 per day to utilize. Rates of other spaces available for rent

is included in the Rent of Facilities Rates available on page .

7. Twin Pagodas and 7 Storey Pagoda

Pagodas are originally a religious tower built near a temple and commonly used by

Buddhists for keeping human bones (Encyclopædia Britannica Online, 2011). Later on,

the pagoda was incorporated with the traditional art of building and developed into a

symbolic architecture (Kieschnick, 2002).

The seven storey pagoda, also known as 'Ru Yun Ta' is built on a small hill. This

structure is very prominent and can be seen from anywhere in the garden. The spiralling

staircase up rewards you with a panoramic view of the estate. Although the pagodas in

this Chinese Garden are not for religious functions, at the time of visit both the seven

storey pagoda and the twin pagodas were closed from public access.

A view from the top of the tower can be seen by visiting this site:

http://www.singaporevr.com/vrs/chinese_gardens/pagoda_view.html

http://www.singaporevr.com/vrs/chinese_gardens/pagoda_view.html

8. Stone Boat

'Yao-Yueh Fang' (the Stone Boat) is based on an adaptation of the Peking style design. It

is a lakeside pavilion which has a base of stone imitated to look like a boat. The solid

stone base indicated that the dynasty was not to be overthrown, attributed to Wei Zheng,

a chancellor in the Tang Dynasty who said to the emperor “the waters that float the boat

can also swallow it”, which implies that people can support the emperor but can also

topple him.

It is a two-storey structure however, the room leading to the staircase going up was

locked.

9. Tea House Pavilion

The Tea House Pavilion is located opposite the Stone Boat and modelled after the

gallery at the Summer Palace in Beijing. The area is a wide vacant space and is an

essential component of a Chinese garden as it is used as a resting place to contemplate

nature. Visitors commonly use it as a picnic or gathering space as it is also equipped

with a soft-drink machine.

10. Bamboo Green

On both my visits, there were children running about this area. There are seats for

resting and it is a cosy spot for resting or a picnic.

11. Bonsai Garden

The Bonsai is miniature nature in a pot, or also called 'pen jing' in Chinese.

Opened in 1992, the 5800-square-meter garden houses over 2000 bonsais and cost over

$3.8 million to build. The Bonsai Garden is open from 9am to 5pm daily.

12. 8 Heroes

Unveiled by Prime Minsiter Goh Chok Tong on 18th September 1991, the eight

sculptures of Chinese legendary heroes depicts basic moral values honesty, loyalty to

country, righteousness, modesty, love, filial piety, courtesy and love. The sculptures are

about eight feet tall and were originally placed in Marina City Park before being re-

located to the Chinese Gardens on 15th January 2007.

The eight sculptures were donated as a gift to Singapore on it's 25th anniversary by Tee

Yih Jia Group. The organization is a Singapore International Company which hold

strong Asian values and is a leading frozen foods manufacturer exporting more than 90%

of it's food products worldwide.

Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong at the unveiling at Marina City Park

Engraving at the base of each statue

Confucius (551 - 479 BC) Qu Yuan (340 - 278 BC)

Guan Yu (160 - 219 AD)Hua Mulan (386 - 436 AD)

Yue Fei (1103 - 1142 AD) Zheng He (1371 - 1435 AD)

Wen Tianxiang (1236 - 1283 AD) Lin Zexu (1785 - 1850 AD)

13. Garden of Abundance

Sculptures of Chinese zodiac animals and small bridges and stone benches reside here.

The 12 zodiac signs is associated with certain characteristics. They are the Rat, Ox,

Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Sheep, Monkey, Rooster, Dog and Pig (Lau, 2005).

Sundail at the Garden of Abundance

14. Flowers and Plants and Others

4. People

I visited the site twice, once during noon and another during the late afternoon. Majority of

the people found at the site are between the ages of 10 to 60 years old. Children below the

age of 15 were usually accompanied by family. Most people found there were generally

foreigners, meaning tourists or are of non-Singaporean nationalities. There were quite a

number of people working there as the landscape needs to be constantly maintained. Those

workers are typically males, foreign workers and between the ages of 25 to 45 years old.

The site attracted visitors of both the female and male genders equally.

The garden is a quiet tranquil place with not a lot of visitors.

5. What the Place is Used as

The Chinese Garden is used as a site for:

• Social activities like gatherings and family picnics. Also used as a spot for couples to go

on dates.

• Interaction with nature in terms of plants such as bonsais and animals such as turtles,

tortoises, birds and insects. The site is also used as a site for interaction as annual events

like the Lantern Festival are held there.

• Machine of ethnicity relating to the Chinese ethnicity.

• Machine of ideology. Elements such as religion and tradition is obvious from the

architecture of pagodas to information displayed regarding Buddhism and Confucianism.

• Machine of media as it conveys certain moral, educational and national messages.

• Machine of finance. The site generates income from renting out spaces for filming and

events. To a lesser extent, income is generated from the sale of soft-drinks from the

vending machines and fee charged to visitors who buy food to feed the fishes and turtles

and tortoises.

6. Rent of Facilities Rates

Facility Description and Location Capacity Rental Rates (w/o GST)

Filming (for commercial use and non-Mediacorp filming only) NA

$100 per day (1 to 5 days)$500 one-time payment (6 days to 1 month)

Photo-Taking (for commercial use only) NA $100 per day

Main Arch Plaza & Main Arch Lobby

280 sqmNon-sheltered hard court250 pax standing capacity15 dinner tables30 cocktail tables

$200 per day

Main Arch Fishers' Paradise

60 sqmSheltered deck50 pax standing capacity4 dinner tables12 cocktail tables

$150 per day

Main Arch Garden Courtyard


$300 per day

Dragon & Phoenix Court


$500 per day

Stoneboat Ground Floor


$200 per day

Stoneboat 2nd Level

199 sqmAir-con facilities50 pax standing capacity6 dinner tables

$400 per day

Stoneboat Promenade

248 sqmOpen deck 200 pax standing capacity16 dinner tables25 cocktail tables

$200 per day

Confucius Terrace

550 sqmOpen hard court500 pax standing capacity30 dinner tables48 cocktail tables

$300 per day

Bamboo Garden 570 sqmOpen hard court450 pax standing capacity

$300 per day

35 dinner tables50 cocktail tables

Moonlight Terrace

264 sqmOpen deck200 pax standing capacity16 dinner tables25 cocktail tables

$200 per day

Teahouse Pavilions


$300 per day

Bamboo Plaza

229 sqmOpen hard court150 pax standing capacity15 dinner tables24 cocktail tables

$200 per day

Bonsai Garden (Right/Left Garden without Main Hall & Souvenir Shop)

600 sqmOpen garden150 pax standing capacity40 cocktail tables

$300 per day

Bonsai Garden Main Hall

226 sqmAir-con facilities50 pax standing capacity20 cocktail tables

$400 per day

Bonsai Garden Souvenir Shop 30 pax standing capacity10 dinner tables

To be determined when there is an interested party to rent the premises on a tenancy basis

Garden of Abundance

1000 sqmOpen garden300 pax standing capacity20 dinner tables30 cocktail tables

$500 per day

Multi-Purpose Grounds800 sqmOpen hard court300 pax standing capacity

$200 per day

Entire Chinese Garden 13 ha $15,000 per dayIf you require any information or would like to rent any of these facilities,please call the JTC Contact Centre Hotline at 1800-568 7000.

Reference List:

Chinese Garden history. Accessed of December 6th 2011. (http://www.juronglakerun.com/chinese-

garden)

Space Rental Rates. Accessed of December 6th 2011. (http://www.jtc.gov.sg/Pages/Facilities-

Chinese-Garden.aspx)

The Live Turtle and Tortoise Museum. Accessed of December 6th 2011. (http://www.turtle-

tortoise.com/template.jsp?pg=home)

Timeout Singapore, (2011). The Live Turtle and Tortoise Museum. Accessed on December 6th 2011

(http://www.timeoutsingapore.com/aroundtown/venues/museums/live-turtle-and-tortoise-museum)

Wilson, T. A. (2002) On Sacred Grounds: Culture, Society, and the Formation of the Cult of

Confucius. Cambrdige: Harvard

Documents

Eng2218 student id20910329-sitedocumentation v2