Nuttaphon's Reflection
I came to Singapore 2 years ago and I did not go outside of the campus much. This time, I went to Joo Chiat to do my group project. We decided to work on the Vietnamese that dominate Joo Chiat, as well as the other races living around the area.
The first time, when we drove to Joo Chiat road, I saw the Peranakan buildings and Vietnamese buildings around this area. In Thailand, we do not have an area where others races would dominate, like this place.
My group told me that Joo Chiat was called a “Little Vietnam”. When we walked around the street finding information, I saw many Vietnamese restaurants and Vietnamese stores and everyone spoke Vietnamese and most of the customers were Vietnamese too. Joo Chiat was a place for
delicious food. There are many kinds of food in this area such as Vietnamese food, Chinese food, seafood and Peranakan food.
My group asked me about laksa that I quite like to eat in daily life. They said that Katong has a famous laksa that I should try. They treated me to the Katong laksa. That was very interesting. The noodles were cut into little pieces. They told me that previously, people did not have a table for eating and the customers had to stand while eating laksa. Hence, the noodles are cut because the customers will be able to eat it with a spoon.
For me, I wonder how people live and how they dominate this place. Compared with Thailand, some parts of Bangkok have also been influenced by other races, but it is not like Joo Chiat. In Thailand, everyone speaks Thai and everyone is Thai.
On the other hand, in Joo Chiat, the other races came from their own country and live in this place like it is a new home.
This project was a very good experience for me. I am a music student and I do not have much time to go outside. This time, I have learnt much more information about Singapore, especially about Joo Chiat. This makes me really enjoy learning about Southeast Asia. It also teaches me
about how many different races can live together in a small place like Joo Chiat.
DATE: Friday, March 23, 2012
TIME: ||12:08 PM ||