Toa Payoh Trail

Before night shift

2011-11-11T02:57:00.001-08:00

Went to find dear at his house, we went to sembawang hill food centre to makan lunch, before that I reached his place while he was showering. So while waiting for him, I hid in the room beside him and gave him a surprise shock once he came out. It was a hilarious and fun scene which I will never forget hahahhahas what fun day today was. Then since it was raining we brought his umbrella and when going back to his house from lunch, dear had used his umbrella for support and the handle became crooked so I laughed at him thinking it was due to him putting his whole weight in the umbrella. But it turned out that he was about to slip and fell that's why.

In the attempt to revive the umbrella handle, I accidentally snapped the handle off the whole umbrella and he kept laughing at me saying it was a retribution for scaring him. Hahaahhas wwhat an eventful afternoon we had today!! Now I'm gonna sleep as I have night shift waiting for me. Till then

Lo-ving-this-place

2009-04-27T05:29:00.000-07:00

Toa Payoh.What so great about it. Well, Everything.. This is where i live half of my life. I used to live in Tampines but shift to Toa Payoh when my sister was born. This is where all my childhood memories took place. Toa Payoh is filled with warmth and love, and don't forget happiness.

Time passes but the atmosphere around it still remain the same. Despite that, the memoirs still kept tightly in my heart. Nothing can cause me to forget Toa Payoh. There is so many interesting places that remind me of Toa Payoh. Most of the places was filled with countless good memories. Places of interest for me is the Toa Payoh Central. Its where one can find their necessary needs. There the Toa Payoh library where you can spend your after school time to borrow books for self-reading or school purposes.

Weekend was always filled with fun and happiness. This happiness was shared with families and childhood friends. I can still remember the day when and my close cousins and some adult, venturing through an old school in Toa Payoh. Its an ordinary school but was believed to be haunted. I was once a mischievous child with mind filled with curiosity and questions about everything I encountered. Every time we reminisced about that incident, laughter would fill the air. We were like little kids of Toa Payoh searching for fun but ended up in an old,haunted school.

Well, fun wasn't the only thing that is in Toa Payoh.. Its Food... It can be found all around Toa Payoh. Local food to western food. It can be found anywhere. Where ever you turn, there's a food court that sells your choice food or other unrecognized food that may be drool over.

Even though Toa Payoh is small, it is big in its content. Toa Payoh its a hall of fame filled with memories that is imprinted on the heartlanders heart forever.

Toa Payoh..Love It

2009-04-04T21:16:00.000-07:00

Toa payoh have always been the place i loved. It was a swamp before but became a beautiful city as years goes by and becoming the favourite hotspot for the young and old heartlanders. Toa Payoh is always been the place i've belong, where i live and also the start of my primary school education till now being in secondary3.

Toa Payoh is my heartland where i hang out and also the place which i spent with my parents for the past 15 years. I've always anticipated the weekend as it is the only day i can enjoy the moment with families and friends around. I love going to my previous primary school that is the 'Pei Chun Public School' which is located at lorong6. That is the place where my education got serious but also the best moment spent with all my new friends.

The moment was unforgettable. I remember always going to the fish pond with my friends during recess just to chit-chat and i remember there was a piano there for students to play. Once, someone i don't know fell into the fish pond while a student was playing the piano. Everyone was initially enjoying the piece till that moment, it was chaotic as people were laughing, pointing fingers at that particular guy. It was really a unforgettable experience for me and my friends.

Now, in secondary school, it is a fun experience for me as i get to know friends of different characters and personality.i learn to communicate with different kinds of people and also trains me to use different tone to different people. life in Toa Payoh is fun and exciting. it is full of memories and fun things to do. People around are amiable and great. i love Toa Payoh.

Once it is a swamp..

2009-04-02T07:01:00.000-07:00

As we can see how toa payoh has developed from a swamp to such a populated area with all the HDB flats and so on, like a interchange and so many changes. Now its a area buzzing with people shopping for their daily needs and stuff.

I grew up in toa payoh, this place has kept alot memories of me growing up. I feel very contended to live here as the Toa payoh provides me almost all the facilities i need. Entertainment facilities, all the nice foods, sports facilities like the basketball courts, swimming pool, badminton courts and alot others, you name it!

We have fast-food restaurants like Mac Donalds, KFCs, Mos burger, burger king , Swensen and pizza hut in toa payoh central, there are also Food courts like Kofu which is situated in the interchange. Fork and Spoon for the halal food near entertainment centre. Toa payoh will never let you down when it comes to food. The lorong 8 market with large variety of choices for you. Foreigners whom came and eaten our local dishes sometime came back for more. My dad's oversea friends felled in love with our local dishes and asked for take-away so that he can eat it on the plane when he is heading back to china.

The entertainment centre in toa payoh seems to be some reason why alot people is heading to Toa payoh central, the entertainment centre consist of a arcade, where gamers pit their skills against each other from, racing on cars to dancing on the virtual dance floor. The entertainment centre also includes a movie theatre which includes 6 halls. Besides the entertainment centre, there is also SAFRA, with its facilities like a smaller swimming pool compared to the toa payoh swimming complex and they have a LAN-shop , a KTV for karaoke and also a cafe to relax yourself.

I grown up playing basketball in the different basketball courts in toa payoh, such like the south Community Club with all the friendly people, which i came to know and some even became my close friends ever since, the west community club with all the very strong players, you might not really want to mess with them. There are other courts like the one near block 229 and the one near block 12, the one you need the key to open the gate. I remember climbing into the gate and getting caught while playing basketball by policeman and ended up getting reprimanded by my parents. Those are the days...

I started learning swimming at the age of 10, and it all started from paddling in the baby pool of Toa payoh swimming complex with my parent to supervising to taking on tests which is suppose to boost your rank from bronze to silver to gold to gold star and finally to honour. With my parents cheering for me.The people in the pools are very friendly but watch it when you are in the pool. Sometime when people can't control their bladders. they end up peeing in the water and there is one occasion i swallowed the water with a weird taste, i guess it is sour, and it makes your mouth have the feeling that its dried up. Totally disgusted, i climbed out of the pool and dare not waddle in the pool until next week.

Want to take a walk? You can go down to Toa Payoh Garden with all the places to slack off with your mates and perhaps bring your drinks there with a newspaper, as you sit in the park and feel the wind blow against you as your take a sip from your drink.

Any Hotspots? Why not in toa payoh!? The tree temple in toa payoh is one of those place which is believed to be spiritual,and the residents later than build a little shrine since 1969 with their offerings. Legend states that in the early 1960s,when land had to be cleared to make way for the New Town,an engineer who attempted to remove the tree crushed to death under his own vehicle.

With that, i will end my Post Aven =D
3E2

Toa Payoh

2009-04-02T04:38:00.000-07:00

Hi

Lets see how to start. As you can see other people have already writen so many things about the blog already. I can start by saying that Toa Payoh have many fascinating places like the NTUCs, the pasar malam(night market)and i really feel happy living in here as there are so many good places. There are also places like interchange and many shopping areas and some fast food restraunts like MacDonald and KFCs.

Besides the places mentioned above, there is also a entertainment center which is also situated in Toa Payoh Central. The entertainment center consists of MacDonalds(all time favourite for kids), the arcade(all time favourite for teenagers), a 6-halls cinema and of course, restaurants such as Swensens and Sakae Sushi. It's quite lucky to have facilities near the place i stay as i can get everything i need in such a short period of time.

What will you think of when people ask you about Toa Payoh? Alot of people would just talk about Toa Payoh Central which my fellow schoolmates have done. Other than the Toa Payoh Centre, there are other places that i think people ought to know such as the Community Centres(South, East, West, Central), the stadium, swimming complex, and most importantly the neighbourhood. Apart from gourmets found in Toa Payoh Centre, there delicious food to be found around the neighbourhood such as in the markets and hawker centres. Let's give a brief history about Toa Payoh. The word 'Payoh' is originated from the malay word 'paya' which means swap.
Toa Payoh is simply means ' big swamp land' It was an extensive and notorious squatter district. Most squatters were engaged in farming and rearing pigs. (^oo^) The others were hawkers, factory workers, mechanics or domestic helpers. The squatters started moving out in1962. Clearance work was able to commence and the redevelopement project started in early 1964.

The Toa Payoh New Town, HDB's 2nd satellite town, was built in 1970. The housing estate was self-contained and had a town centre acting as a focal point for the shopping and entertainment needs of the resident. Industrial developemens were also built within the town to provide residents with job opportunities close to home while schoold were built within the neighbourhood.

Toa Payoh was the largest town in Singapore at that time as the first HDB town. The 12-storey structures of the standard blocks in Toa Payoh were then typical of the new apartment blacks built by the HDB, the new housing authority formed in 1960 to give a growing population an adequate shelther.

Most importantly, Toa Payoh has the honoured of having the visit by the Britain's queen, Queen ElizabethII. She is a distinguished dignitary who have visited Toa Payoh. She was here on 18 Feburary 1972, with the Duke of Edinburgh and Princess Anne. On the day of their visit, thousands of Singaporeans lined the streets outside Block 53 and 54 to welcome the royal party. The visitors made their way through the red-carpeted lift up the 19th floor roof-top to see the view before the residents.'

This is the end of my blog post.
Hope you enjoy and thank you.

2009-03-31T07:40:00.000-07:00

Okay,to start of,i don't live in Toa Payoh.But since the age of 6,i have been regularly visiting Toa payoh almost twice every week,and now because of my school,i go to Toa Payoh everyday.I'll first state my impression of Toa Payoh.To me,Toa Payoh is almost like a second home to me,meeting friend's,making friends,learning new things there and most of all it has such a lively atmosphere that arouses everybody's anxiety's.

The first time i went to Toa Payoh was probably around 5 years old,as i attended swimming lessons at the Toa Payoh swimming complex.Talk about fun!everybody in the pool will always take a delight in swimming in the cool waters,and some even pee in it.Yes,impossible as it may seem,it's true!I have even experienced the baby pool feeling warm and hot,with a sour taste inside it,now that really made an impression on me!

So basically,even though Toa Payoh has made many changes,i'll still remember those experiences that it has given me,the thing's it has taught me,and how lively the place still is despite all the changes here and there.

There are many hot spot's in Toa payoh.Like for example the Toa Payoh sports area,the tree temple,the Toa Payoh garden and the Mosque muhajirin.Each of the hotspot's that were mentioned each have their own unique history.For the tree temple,legend has it that in the early 1960s,when land had to be cleared to make way for the New Town,an engineer who attempted to remove the tree crushed to death under his own vehicle!After that incident,this tree was believed to be spiritual,and the residents later than build a little shrine since 1969 with their offerings.

But the best hotspot in Toa Payoh i feel is the Toa Payoh sport's area.Firstly,it has everything essential there about sports,and the travelling distance between each area is so short!from swimming to playing soccer,it's just a brisk walk of about 2 minutes to get to the other area.So it's the best best best hotspot in Toa Payoh and we LOVE it!

BRYAN?

2009-03-28T21:29:00.000-07:00

As a resident of Toa Payoh since I was as young as eight, the memoirs I have are indelibly etched in my mind. I feel that Toa Payoh is a place filled family warmth and love, maybe due to the fact that this is where I belong since it's the place I grew up. No doubt, this is a place that brings back all my childhood memories.

As the time passes, things around changes; let alone it be the appearance and concept of Toa Payoh. However, no matter what changes may be made, there are some things that'd never be gone. That'd be none other than the memories being left behind, always kept in my heart.

I remember during my younger days, I always anticipated weekends and holidays as only during these times I would be able to stay over at my grandparents' place. As I have many cousins living near my grandparents, we play and live together since young. Apart from that, we even know each and everyone of our childhood friends! There was countless games that we've played together, umpteen quarrels or even misunderstandings and making up after five minutes. In my memory, those days were nothing but happiness. Sorrowful memories seem to be shadowed by all the happiness that took place. I personally feel that Toa Payoh is a place that allows one to reminisce and feel as if they are a child once again due to the environment. Albeit the elderly population over here is increasing, the facilities are still suited to the elders and younger children. An example would be hop-scotch. Think back and you'd realize that this is not as omnipresent as it was once, before. Even the playground which were once laid out with sand are now replaced with those with rubber foam.

Some thing that has never changed over the past few years or probably even, decades, would be the delicacies and delicious food found in Toa Payoh. Small it may seem; but when it comes to tempting food that'd make one drool by just a look at it, Toa Payoh will never let you down. Furthermore, there's a huge variety of different races food for you to try out!

A hot spot of Toa Payoh that I often frequent would be none other than the Toa Payoh Sports Area, as it consists of the stadium. Did you know, in fact, there's a history behind the Toa Payoh Sports Area? Singapore hosted the 7th Southeast Asian Peninsular (SEAP) there, in 1973, for the first time as a new nation and Toa Payoh was to play a very essential role in hosting the games. Today, Toa Payoh Sports Area is rather significant to many people living and studying in this district as residents would pay a visit to the Gym for workout, swimming pool for a swim and stadium for either a run or perhaps, jog. Schools around this area have their Sports Day held at the stadium too! Some schools also make use of the swimming pool for swimming activities for their CCA. In addition, the stadium is also going to be used for the Youth Olympic Games (YOG) next year, 2010.

Joey [:
3E2

Toa Payoh!

2009-03-24T06:23:00.000-07:00

Toa Payoh is a rather popular place in Singapore.Toa Payoh is not the place where I grow up in.Singapore is not my homeland.But I can feel the sense of warmess from the people and environment."Toa Payoh"it sound so unfamiliar to me,only when I was posted to First Toa Payoh Secondary School.I get adapted to this place slowly.Soon I had a sense of belonging to the school,to Toa Payoh.

Toa Payoh,have many interesting story about it past,and now too.Audition of Singing competition had once held at Toa Payoh hub,audition of singapore idol too.Many occassion take place there.

Toa Payoh is a convenient place for people to travel to and fro.Toa Payoh is also a place where i hope to live in.Toa Payoh has a pleasant history and I believe it will have a better future!(:

Serena Leong 5N2

2009-03-23T23:50:00.000-07:00

Toa Payoh is one of the most popular places in Singapore. Although I don't frequent Toa Payoh, once i come back from other places to toa payoh, there is a sense of warmness here. When i was young, my parents often took my family to the Toa Payoh Garden to enjoy the scenery and the environment of the garden. Whenever we pass by the garden, my parents often remind me of the memories we have there.
Another place that is convenient is the Toa Payoh Stadium. Since i was in primary school, my school used to go there for sports carnival. I used to run for my team in the stadiumm too. Now that I am in secondary school, i realised that alot of schools use Toa Payoh Stadium for their sports carnival too. I guess its because its convenient and easy to book. Most elderlys also go there to sit down and relax, most probably its because of the quiet scenery.
Many people come from other places to toa payoh to dine too. Even MediaCorp sends their artiste to try the food stalls in toa payoh. This will also promote the popularity of the food stalls.
Toa Payoh is also the central area, which makes many people feel convenient in going to other areas, which is not very far away from toa payoh since its the central area.
There's also a library in toa payoh which causes convenience to the students when they wants to find a place to do their homework or to study. After studying, they can also go to the cinemas to watch movies for leisure and entertainment. It is also one way to destress themselves.
Overall, I think that toa payoh is a very nice and peaceful place which attracts people to come here. Compared to other places, Toa Payoh is also one of the most frequent places that people come to.

Posted By:
Lynnette - 5N1

2009-03-23T23:22:00.000-07:00

Toa Payoh Garden

Toa Payoh Interchange

Toa Payoh Tree Temple

Lian Shan Monastery

Toa payoh 40 storey Building.

Toa Payoh has many different cultures and a legend behind everything. The first place which has an air-condition interchange is located at Toa Payoh central. At toa payoh central, we have a famous tree temple and now Toa Payoh is the only place which have the tree temple. Over the years, Lian Shan Monastery had being a target for tourism.

It is also a place where my family and I would gather together every weekend for dinner. Over there, they sell delicious food. They also had a number of fast food restaurants. Although I don’t stay in toa payoh, but still, for Chinese new year preparation, my family and I would go there and shop for grocery. It is a place where you can find a lot of mini shop with affordable clothes, accessories etc. My impression about toa payoh when I was very young is when my mum first bought me there to but my New Year clothes when I was the age of 5 at that time, I found that the place is so dirty and stuffy and I hate. But guess what? As I grew older, I begin to like and get use to it.

Toa Payoh has a lot of old estate and now it had been upgraded to beautiful buildings. One of the famous hdb flat in Toa Payoh is the 40th building because it is the first hdb flat that had a sky garden. You can see nice scenery at night. Toa Payoh also had a heart of compassion because it is the first KFC that hire deaf workers. It touches my heart when I got to know this news.
Toa payoh is a hang out place for me and my friends. The place we often hang out is known as “entertainment.” As long as someone mentions that place, people definitely know where it is. I like Toa Payoh’s environment and its beautiful sight when it reaches the night.
Great leisure, Great facilities. That is what Toa Payoh is make up of!

Posted by : angela 5n2

2009-03-23T08:17:00.000-07:00

Hello Friends,
I am very glad to be a part of this trail.
I lived in Toapayoh(TPY) since 5-6years ago when
me and my family moved house here from Woodlands.
Said Bye to Woodland & Said Hi to Tpy,
when i was 12years old that year and then was studying
in one of the neighbourhood school nearby, Kheng Cheng School.
Once i asked my mum what is the reason that made us
moved to TPY. She replied : cause is more convenient
to travel from TPY to other places(: TPY is just like in the
center of th Singapore mapp & for her the most important
reason is : we doesnt need to travel for about an hour plus
to myy grandma house every weekendd.
started to agree with her, when i got myy first job
last year at takashimaya (Orchard) :D I dint have to
wake upp so early to prepare for work compared to
some of myy working friends, cause myy travel time
from tpy to orchard is only needs to take about half an hour(:
Other then is convenient ; those people who i got to know
in TPY, they are friendly, caring, and nice toos (:
I love ToaPayoh ! okays , Let me begin to describe
TOAPAYOH :D
-
Toa Payoh in the Hokkien dialect means "big swamp land".
The word 'Payoh' originates from the Malay word 'paya' for swamp.
This extensive district was quite notorious for the numerous
squatters who were mainly engaged in farming and rearing pigs.
-
Toa Payoh town is just 6km away from the city centre.
It is well-served by the expressways and major roads
as well as excellent public transportation. The town is
bounded by Braddell Road and Bartley Road to the north,
Upper Paya Lebar Road to the east, MacPherson Road
and Jalan Toa Payoh to the south and Thomson Road to the west.
There are Two MRT stations within the town,
namely, Toa Payoh MRT station and Braddell MRT station.
Situated above Toa Payoh MRT station is the
new air-conditioned Toa Payoh Bus Interchange,
itself integrated with the HDB Centre. The bus interchange
is a major transportation hub serving not only the needs
of town residents in and around Toa Payoh,
but also links residents to other parts of the Singapore.
-
Toa Payoh has developed a distinct character through the years.
The area bustles with activity and is a great place to soak into
the local lifestyle. Both residents/visitors will impress themselves
with a wide range of merchandise, food and entertainment options.
Here you can pick up garments at attractively low prices-
T-shirts and shorts at SGD 10 for three items or
children's clothes for as little as SGD 2. Toa Payoh town centre
has its own cinemas, hawker centres, coffee shops,
foodcourts, fast food restraurant like Macdonal, Kfc,
Mos burger, Burger king... ... a community library
and a nearby neighbourhood park.
-
Dont forget to
explore the first L-shaped shopping mall built in the 1960s!
In the 1920s, Toa Payoh was a vast stretch of swampy
land with vegetable farms, fishponds and dwelling huts.
It was a notorious squatter district then; until the early 1960s
when the squatters moved out and clearing work was able
to commence. That was when the redevelopment started.
Toa Payoh was the first prototype town centre in Singapore.
-
Within walking distance of Toa Payoh MRT Station
is the Lian Shan Shuang Lin Si ("Twin Grove of Lotus Mountain Temple"),
located at 184E Jalan Toa Payoh. Whilst the rest of the temples
featured in this website have Taoist origins,
this temple commemorates the birth and demise of Buddha.
Construction of the temple took about 11 years to complete
(from 1898 to 1908)and it was funded by a Hokkien merchant
by the name of Low Kim Pong, who was a devout Buddhist .
The temple sits on 2 hectares of land.
It has an elaborately decorated gateway which opens
in a courtyard with exquisitely carved Buddhas.
-
There's still some more places/thing in Tpy that
made it special, but now is already 1.3oam and
I will still need to go school tomorrow morning for
lessons, will update more next time , sorryy D:
anws I took some photos from googles and yahoo.
It will shows you how Tpy looks like in the past
andd how does it looks like now. for info :
I put caption on the photo that i going to upload.
goodnights friends (: JOLYN 5N2 ~
-

Toa Payoh Trail

2009-03-23T07:26:00.000-07:00

Hi~Everyone!!!

I live in Toa Payoh since i came to Singapore until now. I am very grad this is where I live. It's a good and convenient place to live. Toa Payoh provides us a better environment and gives us a better standard of living.

For example, Toa Payoh interchange is the first air-conditioned bus interchange in the country, which was completed in 2002 and officially opened by then Transport Minister.

The interchange has many bus routes ,so it is very convenient if you need to go to anywhere in Singapore.Besides the bus , it has a direct connection from the bus interchange to the Toa Payoh MRT Station on the North South Line.

The bus interchange also participated in the Exercise Northstar V( Anti-Terrorism Exercise) on January 8, 2006.

Except of the convenient transportantion, Toa Payoh is also providing quality healthcare,such as clinics,hospitals and medical research facilities. For instance, Singapore Chung Hwa Medical Institution.

Chung Hwa Medical Institution is one of the most established not-for-profit providers of complementary TCM services in Singapore. It was established in 1952 and currently operates 4 clinics in the country. It is associated with Singapore Chinese Physicians Association, the largest TCM practitioner organisation in Singapore.It also is the largest traditional Chinese medicine academic organization in Singapore.

Toa payoh polyclinics also is example. It is near my house and I would like to go there when I was sick. It also gives good services and medical amenities.

Toa Payoh Town Park is also the first park in Singapore.It was developed in the 1970. It was a very popular for wedding couples, especially those recapturing fashion of the 1970s. The main features of the park are the observation tower and the landscaped pond surrounded by willowing trees. Today, the Toa Payoh Town is now furnished with amenities such as open-concept restrooms, a large pavilion with stage for organized activities, rustic-looking gazebos for the relaxation of visitors and brightly coloured pathways for an enjoyable stroll or jog around the park. The observation tower has also been rejuvenated.

It also is a good place for leisure. We always can see many senior citizens came to the park and chat or jogging.

And the last,

This is the scene taken from 11th floor in my house. I like it very much!!! cause there is a small shop at downstairs. And it sells many many many .................................good things.....................haha!!!!!!!!!!!!!^_^

Done by Huang Bailu 5N1

2009-03-23T06:41:00.000-07:00

I like going to Toa Payoh, especially the town centre. It is surrounded by separated neighbourhoods, each with its own shopping amenities and community centres, well served by a network of vehicular roads and generous open space separating them.

Nevertheless, with time, the Toa Payoh Town Centre has become increasingly popular. It has a busy atmosphere because, as with many shopping malls of the time, all commercial activities are concentrated along a single mall with high point blocks on either side and major department stores at each end. The shopping mall has two plazas, one with a branch library and cinema, the other with an area office and a post office. Each plaza has a department store at either end.

The HDB Hub comprises two wings, an atrium, four commercial building blocks, a leisure and learning centre and a three-storey basement parking lot. The building also accommodates Singapore's first fully air-conditioned Toa Payoh Bus Interchange and integrates it with the existing Toa Payoh MRT Station.

Choy Kar Yen 5n1

toa payoh.

2009-03-23T06:13:00.000-07:00

hello people!

honestly, i don't know much about toa payoh. i don't really come here that much unless i come to school of course. but after finding out more information of the place where my school is, i found it a more interesting place. judging by the previous posts by my schoolmates, i guess everyone already knows that toa payoh in hokkien is 'big swamp'. there is also a cemetry that was previously in the area and the area is well known for that cemetry. creepy.. but that is toa payoh in the olden days. how is toa payoh like now? well, toa payoh is a very convenient place for everyone. there are many housing estates, residential blocks and skyscrapers. many residents move here due to the conveniency of this area. at toa payoh central, there is a bus interchange where there are many different bus services. there is also an mrt station at toa payoh. entertainment can also be found in toa payoh. there is a building 'Entertainment Centre', where there is a cinema and an arcade. there are many food varieties too, for those who are food-lovers like myself. there are many different hawkers selling their food speciality from their ethnic groups. yum yum. for those who love to work out and keep themselves fit and in shape, there is also a stadium, sports hall and swimming complex. there is also a town park nearby and you can take a walk or just feed the fishes. for bookworms, there is also a library. sometimes, there will also be 'pasar malam (night market)'. for other entertainment or recreational activities, SAFRA also provides such activities. there are also many fast-food outlets in toa payoh too, for those who prefers fast and convenient food. there are also supermarkets like NTUC Fairprice and Shop & Save in the toa payoh area.

frankly speaking, i think that the residents in toa payoh are very lucky to live here as it is so convenient for them.

Nicky (3E2)

Toa Payoh Trail

2009-03-22T18:10:00.000-07:00

Toa Payoh, once a vast stretch of swampy land back in the 1920s is now developed with blocks of high-rise flat and a mini shopping arcade. I lived in Toa Payoh since 17 years ago when I was born, there are too many memories to share. I remember when I was a child, I always like to whine and ask my mother to bring me out to Toa Payoh Central.

Have you heard of the 1st air-conditioned bus interchange in Singapore? It is actually the well-known bus interchange at Toa Payoh Central! Over there, you could discover great food at several restaurants and hawker centres, cheap bargains at shops located along the street (handphone shops especially because of the intense competition there) and many others. Talking about food, there is a wide variety of KFC, Mcdonald's, Crystal Jade Kitchen, Pasta Mania, Delifrance ... you could find them all over there! And if you would like to have a stroll after meals at this food paradise, Toa Payoh Garden located just opposite the interchange is the best option. You can have a glimpse of these places i mentioned below:

Not forgetting the famous tree temple which I always go with my family, it is still around with many people visiting each day.

Toa Payoh is my hometown - a pleasant heartland area to live in. It is full of memories of my family, neighbours, as well as those childhood playmates I used to have.

POSTED by: Xuanhui 5N2

2009-03-22T10:53:00.000-07:00

Toa Payoh central Toa Payoh National library

Toa Payoh is a central area that bustles with activity and it is a great place to soak into the local lifestyle. The town is just 6km away from the city centre. It is a well- served by the expressways and major roads as well as excellent public transportation. Besides, Toa Payoh central is the first Singapore's air-conditioned bus interchange. Both residents or visitors always enjoyed for the choices with a wide range of merchandise, food and entertainment options.Toa Payoh town has more than 36,600 units of flats with the majority 3-room followed by 4-room type of flats. Although i'm not a residents of Toa Payoh but i find the place interesting and nice to shop at. There are full of shops, fast food restaurants, coffee shops, and entertainment area for people to spend their time shopping and relaxing with their friends. Furthermore, there is also National library, a quiet and comfortable place that makes a choice for students to study, do research and borrow books. It is a joy to shop and spend time in Toa Payoh, where there are lots of fun places and activities that never fails to make a great satisfaction for many people.

2009-03-22T07:15:00.000-07:00

I am so glad and honoured to post my views.I am familiar with this name since last 2years.Toapayoh is the first place which i heared more about ,ignoring orchard.Beacuse the most i was worried about my studies when i came to singapore at end of year 2007.There was no place in any schools.Toapayoh has been luckiest place for me as i got admission in first toapayoh secondary school.Toapayoh is also one of my favorite place.Sometimes my friends tease me that my dating place would be toapayoh as well because whenever they ask for outing the first place i point out is toapayoh.Its very calm especially toapayoh interchange with air conditioners and available with everything.Things are not very expensive and most of them are girlly.

2009-03-22T07:09:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone!!!I am so happy and honoured to contribute this trail.And it is first time i am blogging, so please forgive me if i make any mistakes :) Although i am studying in Toa Payoh,it is sad to say that i am not really familiar with Toa payoh... So i take my time surf internet to know more about Toa Payoh

I learn that Toa PayohTown Centre was the first prototype in Singapore. It is surrounded by separated neighbourhoods, each with its own shopping amenities and community centres, well served by a network of vehicular roads and generous open space separating them. The result, as in the English new towns of the 1950s, is that residents tend less to travel to the main town centre but rather to shop within their neighbourhood; if they travel, they go to Orchard Road or the town area via the MRT system, at the Toa Payoh MRT Station and the Braddel MRT Station, or public bus services at Toa Payoh Bus Interchange.

I really happy to know something about Toa Payoh and it has very interesting places.I am really glad that i study at Toa Payoh...And i really love my school,friends and teachers...I think Toa Payoh is really good place to live as it has every facilities and it is in the central of Singapore... Well ...it is all i have to say about Toa Payoh and it is one of my favourites places...

Dulam

Toa Payoh Trail~

2009-03-22T06:56:00.000-07:00

Hi!

I am very honoured to be part of this trail~! Although i`m not a local student,But i live in Toa Payoh for quite alot of years and i love it just as much as my classmate do.

There are alot of places in Toa Payoh are interesting ,Such as Toa Payoh town park!

Toa Payoh town park tower was once a favorite place for weddingphoto and even now , it is still a good place to go with.

Toa Payoh is the of the earliest Public residential area,After few years of development . Toa Payoh forms its own unique style ,Toa Payoh is the best place to experience life in singapore.

Shopping in Toa Payoh is fun and cheap,$10 for 3 shirt,$2 for baby clothes,isn`t intersting? And Toa Payoh also have cinema,Coffee shop，Hawker center as well as the library!

Lastly,how can we forgot HDB while talking about Toa Payoh .HDB is one of the landmark of singapore!

I like Toa Payoh ^ ^

ZhuQing 5N1

2009-03-22T06:48:00.000-07:00

Toa Payoh Sports Stadium,
a place where our school First Toa Payoh Secondary holds its annual Sports Carnival.
Look at all the fun we had this year!
Toa Payoh, a truely heartland for all of us, although i don't live here.

HEARTLAND- MY IMPRESSION TOWARDS TOA PAYOH.

I don't live in Toa Payoh, and honest speaking, I'm rather a stranger to Toa Payoh.
I study in First Toa Payoh Secondary School for 3 years, and i'm secondary 3 now. Before i study and spent nearly half of my day in Toa Payoh everyday, my family and i rarely come to Toa Payoh. First Toa Payoh Secondary School could be said as part of Toa Payoh's history, Toa Payoh's asset. Given it's name First Toa Payoh Sec, it was the first secondary school in Toa Payoh. The school now has a heritage of 40+ years, and a second home to nearly 900 over students, consisting of not only local singaporeans, but also varies from all parts of the world. We're proud to say over the years, through many mergers of different schools into one, First Toa Payoh Secondary still managed to preserve her history and name. With its long journey down the years, students in FTPSS were successfully cultivated into motivated and independant indivisuals. Toa Payoh is a district located in the Central Region of Singapore. on every peak hours each day, there would be many vehicles lining up along the roads of Toa Payoh either starting their day for work/school or knocking off from work. Therefore, ERP gantries were build to reduce and prevent road accidents and congestions. Toa Payoh one of the earliest public housing estates in Singapore, which is also referred as the Housing and Development Board (HDB) housing estate of Toa Payoh New Town. It was redeveloped in early 1964 after the squatters were asked to moved out in 1962 with benefits of increased compensations and other practical inducements offered by the Government. Before the redevelopment, Toa Payoh was once an extensive and notorious squatter district. Most squatters were engaged in farming and rearing pigs. The others were hawkers, factory workers, mechanics or domestic helpers. I remember my dad telling me all these when i was young, but i paid no attention to those since i thought there was no way my life would cross toa payoh. In my opinion before, Toa Payoh was merely a slumpy HDB area providing roofs for mainly old folks. But now, after studying in Toa Payoh, and spending almost all my time there, i realised there was much more beauty than it seems on the surface. It is near town and i could travel to town as convieniently as it is only a few train stations away. Furthermore, Toa Payoh provides its own entertainment and also, many famous and delicious delicacy. My impression towards toa payoh had changed, and i am impressed with the governemnt for such meticulous planning and reconstruction of Toa Payoh into such a beautiful city area from a swampy farming area rearing pigs. I feel a sense of belonging with a 'homely' feel when i stepped my foot in FTPSS, located in Toa Payoh.

Some source cited from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toa_Payoh.

Written By: Zoe Teo 3E2

2009-03-22T06:11:00.000-07:00

Hi there,
Toa Payoh is a place that where i have grown up. I live here since i was born till now, primary schools n secondary school also in Toa Payoh area, 1st time work also in Toa Payoh area, 1st time hang out with friends till late night also in toa payoh and alot of things in Toa Payoh
Research from the internet, is like what every 1 had said, which Toa Payoh is a Hokkien language reference to "big swamp". When i am small hear from my primary school teacher that last time my primary school, Westlake Primary School, last time was cemetary or somewhere near 1, and from my mother that now where i am staying last time was a vegetables farm. Now it have been developed to so much different from last time.
Now in Toa Payoh we have air-con bus interchange, children or small kids wanted toys can go to kiddy palaces, More Than Words or shops that are open inside the bus interchange. There also have KouFu, Fork & Spoon, food court for people to eat. New families that just come to Toa Payoh and stay and families which stay at Toa Payoh for a long time, when they needed new furnitures they can go to Courts, cash converter or electronic store. People can buy go their daily needs can buy in either 1 of the 2 FairPrice or some covenience shop in Toa Payoh Central. People need to buy clothes can shop in Toa Payoh central. There are also having 3Macdonal, KFC, Mos burger. There also have Japaness food. Toa Payoh Entertainment centre have arcade, Zone X, teenager like to go there play,watch movie at Eng Wah, people also can go there for ice cream at Swensen. People who are a sporty can go to the stadium to run, swimming complex to swim, gym to have their workout and World Of Sport to buy their needs. People who want to buy bread and cakes can buy at Bengawan solo, Bread Talk or shops which have sell both. People who care about their hair and beauty here also have shops for them to go to, now Toa Payoh central have more hair salon as shop close down. People care about health can go to clnic or Yu Ren Shen.Here also have phone shop of M1,Starhub and Singtel or even 2nd hand shop.
But for me the bad thing is that the Comic Collection have been close down,but i still like this place as this is where i live and where i grow up.i will stop here as no more idea of what to write anymore.

Ho Zhe Hao of 5N1

2009-03-22T05:04:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone

I feel very honest to ba a part of this trail .I was queit worried when i first learnt that i need to do a trail on Toa Payoh as am not a local student and i do not understand Toa Payoh as well as other local stuents.Thus,i do a lot of surf in order to have a better understanding of Toa Payoh.

Toa Payoh in the Hokkien dialect means "big swamp land". The word 'Payoh' originates from the Malay word 'paya' for swamp. This extensive district was quite notorious for the numerous squatters who were mainly engaged in farming and rearing pigs.

Toa Payoh town is just 6km away from the city centre. It is well-served by the expressways and major roads as well as excellent public transportation. The town is bounded by Braddell Road and Bartley Road to the north, Upper Paya Lebar Road to the east, MacPherson Road and Jalan Toa Payoh to the south and Thomson Road to the west.

There are two MRT stations within the town, namely, Toa Payoh MRT station and Braddell MRT station. Situated above Toa Payoh MRT station is the new air-conditioned Toa Payoh Bus Interchange, itself integrated with the HDB Centre. The bus interchange is a major transportation hub serving not only the needs of town residents in and around Toa Payoh, but also links residents to other parts of the Singapore.

One of Singapore's earliest public housing estates, Toa Payoh has developed a distinctive character through the years. The area bustles with activity and is a great place to soak in the local lifestyle. It boasts Singapore's only air-conditioned bus interchange and visitors will be spoilt for choice at the range of merchandise, food and entertainment options available.

I love Toa Payoh not only because it is the central area of Singapore and very convenient to go to other place. However,people live inToa Payoh no need to worry about food, shopping,looking for doctor...

For student like me, after school also can study at library~

2009-03-22T02:54:00.000-07:00

Although i dont live in toa payoh, i spent most of my time there. First reason is i work in toa payoh and second reason is i study in toa payoh(: Toa payoh is quite an interesting place. There used to be a fountain pool outside the toa payoh library where young people like to sit around with their friends chatting away or simply sit alone and feel the breeze on windy days. After the renovation, it became a small stage where people will held event during chinese new year, hari raya and christmas. Whenever there are no event, we can still see children playing and teengers chatting with friends. A hotspot in toa payoh will be the entertainment centre. There are fast food restaurants, hair salon, arcade, sakae sushi, swensen, cinema etc. many young people like to hang out there during their free time. We can also see students there as they will meet up with their friends for lunch or dinner. Another hotspot in toa payoh would be the bus interchange. It is the first air conditioned interchange. There are many shops in the bus interchange so that people can have more choices regardless of clothes, food or stationary. So i can say that Toa payoh is a happening place. Hang out more often and you'll find that toa payoh is indeed, an interesting place to be (:

by: Alicia koh^^

Toa Payoh Trail

2009-03-22T02:10:00.000-07:00

I am very glad to be part of this trail.^^I like Toa Payoh and I think it is a good place to live.

The HDB Hub has transformed the Toa Payoh Town Centre into a bustling hive of activities. With its prime and convenient location served by Singapore’s first air-conditioned bus interchange/MRT and more than 186,000sft of retail space offering services from banking, fastfood outlets to supermarkets together with events organised at the mall area, the HDB Hub is definately the place to be!

SAFRA Toa Payoh is a place where members can get a good mix of educational and entertainment offerings against a backdrop of club facilities like swimming pool, rockwall climbing, etc, where participants of courses can also partake in these facilities for better value and unique privileges. The different curriculum caters to different age groups at one single location for an all-rounded, family-oriented setting.

Indoor Bus Interchange is the first and only indoor bus interchange which Singapore has. This has been built for some years now. Those who use this interchange lots, is grateful for the air condition in hot Singapore.People will still queue around the stainless steel railings inside. Do you see the glass doors where the exit sign is? That's where the glass doors are. When the bus arrives and is ready board passengers, the glass doors will open and passengers will slowly board the bus.

Toa Payoh is a good place to live as it's transportation and habitation.

Toa Payoh

2009-03-22T00:57:00.000-07:00

Toa payoh is a central area. People can travel from Toa payoh to any of their destination in short period of time. I am actually unfamiliar with Toa payoh only after i came to study at First Toa Payoh Secondary School.It was only then i found out what kind of place Toa payoh is actually.There are many hotspots in Toa Payoh such as the Toa Payoh entertainment centre etc. Whether it is after school or school holidays, teenagers and office workers would go there for lunch as there are a few restuarant which serves delicious food. There are also fast food restaurant such as MacDonalds which allows students to study and have lunch. Students can also access to the internet in MacDonalds to do their work there. There is also a cinema in the entertainment centre. People who wanted to catch a movie can watch there. Students who are stressed from doing all the homework can play a few games in the arcade to help release some of their stress. Overall, it can be consider as quite a good place for teenagers and people to go to.

Xinni, 5N2

Toa Payoh Trail

2009-03-21T18:36:00.000-07:00

*yawn* sorry about that.....I just woke up. Anyway.....it seems that this is about the Toa Payoh Trail. Well......I don't live in Toa Payoh but I live in the town which is one of its neighbours......which is.....Potong Pasir. Well......as far as bus number 142 is the only public transport to Toa Payoh that is cheap......going there by foot is also possible.....near the park, there is a bridge that links to the Industrial area and also......FTPSS! Just cross that overhead bridge and we're on Toa Payoh.....but enough of that.....let's just talk about the Toa Payoh Trial itself......

Sadly...if only I have some pictures I would be able to explain more but words alone can tell you how wonderful it is. When you take a bus (It's a hassle to list them all) into Toa Payoh Interchange, you'll be greeted by the shops there. The Popular on the 2nd floor provides various stationary and books for both the young and old and also near the intercnange were shops with lots of varieties waiting for you......

If are looking for the best shop deals....come to the Toa Payoh Trail....you'll love it!

2009-03-21T11:15:00.000-07:00

helloo(:

how and where shoud i start? hmmm... I had never live in Toa Payoh before. And i dont know much about this place. But i only know one thing about Toa Payoh. That it is a convenient place. You could take a train from the MRT station or any bus from the air conditioned bus interchange. Isn't it convenient? There are also a few hot spot in Toa Payoh area. But let me just say two of the hot spot as im quite familiar with these two places.

Firstly it is the Tree Temple in Toa Payoh Central. I still remember my mum will bring me and my siblings to Toa Payoh to this temple. And after praying, we will go for shopping? hahas. That is so long ago. Because we dont do it anymore. That was years back when im in primary school. Below is the picture of the Tree Shrine.

The Trail ends at this unique chinese shrine. It is set under an old tree. The shrine is located at one end of the pedestrian mall. Legend has it that in the early 1960s, when the land had to be cleared to make way for the New Town, an enginner who attempted to remove the tree was crushed to death under his very own vehicle! This tree was hence believed to be spiritual. After praying to this tree spirit for several years, the residents established a little shrine under the tree in 1969, with their offerings.

Today, the shrine is well protected by the roots of the formidable old tree.

Secondly, it is the Lian Shan Shuang Lin Monastery. My family and i used to come here in the past. And i know this temple is very old already. It is the second part of the Trail.

It is established in the year 1898, this century-old Monastery is the oldest in Singapore. Due to its rich historical and architectural value, Shuang Lin Monastery was gazetted as a national monument in 1980.

Stroll through the two 9.1m tall Feature Gates into a picturesque setting. As you enter the splendidly decorated Main Entrance, be prepared to be enchanted by the magnificence of the three main halls: Hall of Celestial Kings, Mahavira Hall and Dharma Hall. No tour will be complete without a visit to the majestic Dragon Light Pagoda. This seven-storey is constructed entirely of granite and reaches a breathtaking height of 29m above ground.

I find that Toa Payoh is quite a fun place to be? You could shop around, and hang around during your free time and etc. hahas. Thats all.(:

Toa Payoh Trial

2009-03-21T08:36:00.000-07:00

I lived quite a long time in toa payoh. From the day that i was born, i was at staying in toa payoh. It contains lots of memories for me, happiness and saddness. But, thinking of the history of toa payoh really trills me. What is actually is toa payoh? Many will be wondering. It is actually located in the central region of Singapore. Toa payoh is actually a direct translation from Hokkien. I was shocked to knew this as i always thought that it is just a name. Toa payoh actually means big swamp, but that was in the past. Now, it had been upgraded to become a wonderful place.
There are many places in toa payoh that must be looked out for. Some of the places are like HDB Hub, Town Centre and Town Park. HDB Hub is linked with the bus interchange. Inside the HDB Hub, it provides services like Banking and places for Food And Beverages. Examples of Bank inside is the POSB Bank. Some examples of food and bevarages that can be bought inside are Subway or The Coffe Bean. Just right outside of the HDB Hub is a row of shops. There are the places of my memories as one of the shop is the place that i am working at. It was sometimes tiring though. Next place is at the Town Centre. It is surrounded with neighbourhoods. There are a lot of shops that could be found there. Mostly beauties or fashion shops. There are also several handphone shops there too. There is also a place that is not commonly known there is a tree temple. I used to pray there when i was young. But, i prayed there is just mainly for the sweets that i am aiming for. That was when i was young. My parents used to tell me that 'believe something extra to be safer than not to believe on anything'. That was why now, whenever i was free after work, i will take a stroll there to just offer a joy stick. Next place that i would talk about is the beatiful Town Park. It is located just opposite the majestic building of HDB Hub. There is quite a good place for light exercise like jooging. It is also a good place for relaxation after a tiring day. It is a very wonderful place to stroll at not only in days, but also night when it is filled with lights. There are playgrounds for children, a tea kiosk, seating places for resting and outdoor chessboards. Imagine all the funs that could be made there.
Beside of the Town Park is a swimming complex where national swimmers trains there. Right beside it is the Toa Payoh stadium for people to do morning exercise like jogging. It is also a place for S.League club, Balestier Khalsa FC where it plays its home game. Gymmnasiums and basketball court could be found there too. Beside it is SAFRA which provides a mixture of educational and entertainment, offerings against a backdrop of club facilities like swimming pool, rockwall climbing and many more.
The last place that i would like to mention is my school, First Toa Payoh Secondary School. It is located in Toa Payoh as it is stated in the name. The school now is actually a new and upgraded school located near Kim Keat Road. Before that, it is located near Braddell that area. Inside the school is filled with warmth and cares given by the teachers. Teachers will do their very best to train all of the students well. This is where the happy memories came.

Toa Payoh~

2009-03-21T07:24:00.000-07:00

I had never live in Toa Payoh before, nor i know much about it. According to http://www.wikipedia.org , Toa Payoh was once an extensive and notorious squatter district. Most squatters were engaged in farming and rearing pigs. The others were hawkers, factory workers, mechanics or domestic helpers. The squatters starteed moving out in 1962 as a result of increased of compensation rates and other practical inducement offered by the Goverment. Clearance work was able to commence and the redevelopment started in 1964. The Toa Payoh New Town, HDB's second satellite town, was then built in 1970.

Toa Payoh have many first of its kind, such as Singapore's first fully air-conditioned bus interchange.

The town center was the first prototype in Singapore.It is surrounded by neighbourhoods, shopping amenities, community centre, sporting facilities.

I found Toa Payoh quite an interesting place to hang around, shopping or sporting.

~ Toa Payoh lar sey! ~

2009-03-21T04:03:00.000-07:00

Hey hey,I have never write a blog before and pardon me if I have done any embarrassing mistakes.Okie,okie,almost like everyone who have posted on this blog.I was born in Toa Payoh and raised till the age of nine.Then my family and I shifted to Bishan.Although I am still living in Bishan.I love TOA PAYOH SO MUCH MORE.I studied in First Toa Payoh primary school then to First Toa Payoh Secondary school.Where next?Hope there will be a First Toa Payoh Polytehcnic or First Toa Payoh Junior College.Won't that be cool?The place I usually go to or hang-out at is the Singapore's first air conditioned interchange. Below are the pics of how old interchange transformed to the present interchange.

old interchange parking lot

new interchange parking lot

It is the first air-conditioned bus interchange in the country, which was completed in 2002 and officially opened by then Transport Minister, Yeo Cheow Tong, on 19 May 2002. The bus interchange has only services of SBS Transit and is managed by the company itself. It has a direct connection from the bus interchange to the Toa Payoh MRT Station on the North South Line.Can Toa Payoh get any cooler?

so for the people who hate Toa Payoh,I hope u would change your view on Toa Payoh and please do come experience the ''special'' aircon we have in our Toa Payoh interchange and maybe you can find your love of your life here as I say Toa Payoh is the heart of Singapore.Its in the centre of the island so that makes it a heart! <3

Hope you have enjoyed my part of the trail,take care and may god bless you.

Toa Payoh Trail

2009-03-21T03:55:00.000-07:00

Greetings.

In my point of view, Toa Payoh have quite a lot of interesting places to know. Examples of Toa Payoh's hot spots are:

Singapore's first air - conditioned bus interchange which was completed in 2002.

Sri Vairavimada Kaliamman Temple which is one of the oldest Indian temples in Singapore.

Muhajirin Mosque

Lian Shan Shuang Lin Monastery which is the oldest monastery in Singapore.

Toa Payoh Town Garden which was popular with couples in the 70s for their wedding photography.

Chung Hwa Free Clinic which provides free Chinese medical consultation and treatment for residents of all ages and races.

Toa Payoh Town Centre, the first L-shaped pedestrian shopping mall built in the 1960s.

Lastly, this Tree Shrine, set under an old tree, located at one end of the pedestrian mall.

Therefore, Toa Payoh is a place where people won't get bored wandering and looking around because there are a lot of places to go to and spend time at. At times, I will go to some of the places which I can relief my stress or hang around with my friends. One of the places which I usually hang around with my friends is the bus interchange. This is because it is a convenient place with air - conditioner where there are varieties of eating places to choose from, small shops to see, shelter us from rain and heat and sitting places to sit and chat around.

Eventhough I live in Bishan, it seems like I know more about Toa Payoh and after doing small researches about Toa Payoh, I learnt and knew more about Toa Payoh.

Credits: http://www.toapayohtown.com/town_toapayoh.htm, http://www.straitstimes.com/gallery/Breaking%2BNews/Singapore/Story/STIStory_326981.html & www.radical-youths.blogspot.com/ for the photos.

Nurul Hidayah M. Fawzid, 5N2.

2009-03-21T03:11:00.000-07:00

I am very glad to ba a part of this trail. I have been staying in Toa Payoh around 3 years and i really love this place as here has the facilities that can fulfill my daily needs.I was delighted when i learnt that i need to writ about Toa Payoh where i am living becouse i want more people to understanding the place better.

Toa Payoh is a Hokkien language reference to "big swamp" (toa is "big" and payoh means "swamp"). The Malay word for swamp is paya. The reference indicates the large swampy area that preceded the later development of Chinese market gardens in this area. It is the Chinese quivalent of Paya Lebar, i.e. big swamp land. To older generation Chinese, Toa Payoh is known as ang change shan (or anxiangshan) or "burial hill" because of the cemetery located in the area.

J.T. Thomson, a government surveyor, refers to Toa Payoh in his 1849 agricultural report as Toah Pyoh Lye and Toah Pyoh. Whampoa or Hoo Ah Kay had an orange garden here that Johnson visited. The neglected garden which Whampoa had bought was converted into a tasteful "bel-retiro" with its avenues, front-orchard, hanging gardens, Dutch walls, bamboos and orange trees, shrubs, stags and peafowls, its aviary and menagerie and artificial curiosities of horticulture.

Toa Payoh was once an extensive and notorious squatter district. Most squatters were engaged in farming and rearing pigs. The others were hawkers, factory workers, mechanics or domestic helpers.

The squatters started moving out in 1962 as a result of increased compensation rates and other practical inducements offered by the Government. Clearance work was able to commence and the redevelopment started in early 1964. The Toa Payoh New Town, HDB's second satellite town, was built in 1970. The layout of the new town follows urban planning principles of the time. The housing estate is self-contained and has a town centre acting as a focal point for the shopping and entertainment needs of the residents.
Industrial developments were also built within the town to provide residents with job opportunities close to home while schools were built within the neighbourhoods.The town centre was the firstprototype in Singapore. It is surrounded by separated neighbourhoods, each with its own shopping amenities and community centres, well served by a network of vehicular roads and generous open space separating them. The result, as in the English new towns of the 1950s, is that residents tend less to travel to the main town centre but rather to shop within their neighbourhood; if they travel, they go to Orchard Road or the town area via the MRT system, at the Toa Payoh MRT Station and the Braddell MRT Station, or public bus services at Toa Payoh Bus Interchange.

Nevertheless, with time, the Toa Payoh Town Centre has become increasingly popular. It has a busy atmosphere because, as with many shopping malls of the time, all commercial activities are concentrated along a single mall with high point blocks on either side and major department stores at each end. The shopping mall is actually L-shaped and there are two plazas, one with a branch library and cinema, the other with an area office and a post office. Each plaza has a department store at either end. The commercial development, HDB Hub, located at the Toa Payoh Town Centre was completed in 2002. The Housing and Development Board relocated its headquarters from its premises at Bukit Merah to the HDB Hub on 10 June 2002.

The HDB Hub comprises two wings, an atrium, four commercial building blocks, a leisure and learning centre and a three-storey basement parking lot. The building also accommodates Singapore's first fully air-conditioned Toa Payoh Bus Interchange and integrates it with the existing Toa Payoh MRT Station.
Another landmark of Toa Payoh is the facility of Royal Philips Electronics (the Dutch multinational making medical and electronics equipment). Philips established an extensive facility, parts of which are now owned by Jabil and NXP. The facility has been used by Philips for developing, amongst others, televisions and DVD players for years.

Toa Payoh Centre is always the best choice for my friends and me to sit down have a good chat after school.We love to have our dinner at KFC and talking about the event that happen in school,and we share the happyness and sadness together.Alought i am not a local, i always see Toa Payoh as my home as here give me the feeling of home and the caring that i have from my teachers and classmates in school..

Last but not least, i hope the information that i have provided is helpful for you to have a better understanding of Toa Payoh:)

ToA PaYoH

2009-03-20T07:17:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone!

I am proud to be living in Toa Payoh ever since i am young. There are many memories and history in Toa Payoh. Toa Payoh means "Big swamp" in hokkien, can you believe it? We are now living in such wonderful condition while we are called big swamp in the past. Now we are one of the most established residential communities in Singapore and located at the heart of Singapore.

Toa Payoh is a place where i usually haunt around as i stayed near the interchange, i will have to go pass it everytime i go out with friends or even to school. The old days in Toa Payoh, there used to be many bakeries around the neighbourhoods. They sell buns and bread which only cost roughly juz 30 cents, what a steal! Hanging out with primary school classmates at playground, cooling down ourselves with some ice pops which only cost 10cents each. The old bus interchange is not air conditioned but is beside the garden, so it became a normal hang out place to play and fool around after school. There are many happy memories with friends, eating cheap and nice traditional food. Playing a fool, falling down, getting in trouble, all these memories are which are precious past time which i enjoyed in Toa Payoh.

Toa payoh is such a accessible place to be, there is bus and mrt services which can transport people to many places in singapore. Even if you stay at the very corner of Toa Payoh, there will still be bus stops around. This convenients make people connected, friends and relative can meet so easily! Toa Payoh flats are very close to each other, thus going on daily routes like going to the market or morning walk, can easily make new friends. This forms close bonding between people of Toa Payoh, making it a very friendly environment.

Toa Payoh is a squatter town in the past, but now it has advanced and changed totally into wonderful town. Its a big transformation and changes in the history of Toa Payoh, and i am very proud to be around in this evolution!

Toa Payoh!(:

2009-03-20T03:40:00.000-07:00

hi all!^_____^
Just like many of the students in First Toa Payoh Secondary School, I grew up in Toa Payoh estate. I have been living in Toa Payoh for more than a decade. Living in Toa Payoh is very convenient for me as i will never be late when going to school because it is very near my house! :P

As Toa Payoh is the central area, it allows residents in Toa Payoh to travel conveniently from place to place. Toa Payoh is filled with many facilities and well-built infra-stucture, one of it is the well-known National Table Tennis Association, which is for national table tennis player to train themselves.

I spend my leisure time having fun in Toa Payoh, which includes swimming! There are many places to play around in Toa Payoh! They are the places that is filled with my lovely memories!

This is the temple which is nearest to my house!
Although this is not the famous Shuang Lin Monastery, but it is still a wonderful temple to me as the temple is filled with my oldest memories. How much i yearn that i could go back to the past! How lovely will it be if time machine exist! My family members seldom meet up; so i can only wait till different ocassions when it will allow my family members to gather together at the temple. Therefore, as what i remembered, this is the place where my first family day took place. There was once a hilarious incident took place at the temple too! When i was feeding a chicken from the temple, i got bitten by it! But now the chicken no longer stay at the temple, perhaps it 'moved' to a more suitable place. :)

This is the senior citizen corner where my grandparent used to do morning exercise before they moved house. Due to the renovation of houses, they moved to a place that is far away from Toa Payoh. I like this place, because it is filled with memories of me and my grandparents.
I used to exercise in the morning too! But not now..........

This is a playground near my house which is where both happy and sad incident took place. I used to go there with my friends everyday to play the see-saw and to share our feeling and secrets! The playground is also the only venue that i had been to to celebrate my friend's birthday. Find it weird? But many beautiful memories stayed there.

This is the dinosaurs and it eggs. They're extinct, haha! I will go to the playground to play with a 1 year-old kid whenever i am free. That's not childish of me, i'm just trying to leave some
childhood memories for him! I want him to grow up happily in Toa Payoh estate just like me!

Toa Payoh ,a place with fond memories which etched deeply in my heart, a place despite all the drastic changes it had, a place consisting all my memories. My life journey start from Toa Payoh; from my childhood to my teenage hood and i believe it will still goes on, i will not allow it to end.

Toa Payoh, a lovely place where i love to be and where i belong (:
These are all the places around Toa Payoh that i preferred out of all of the wondrous places!(:

eileen5N1

Hang out spots and Food..

2009-03-20T01:39:00.000-07:00

I live in Toa Payoh since I am born; I wish to share with everybody the nice hang out spots and great food over here. Toa Payoh have entertainment centre, beautiful garden and most important of all Toa Payoh is the first place that had air conditioned bus interchange. Toa Payoh does not have big shopping malls as it maintain the traditional shop houses which i think is part of the history collections. Over here we also have the first 40 story HDB building and the view from the top is great, if u ever have the chance to explore the best spot, it will be at Block 79B. There is a garden at 8th story which you will be able to see through almost half of the Toa Payoh central, if u proceed up to 40 story u will be able to see Singapore Flyer and the whole Toa Payoh. It is definitely the best and free hang out spot. :)

Toa Payoh also has many remarkable food stalls which are cheap and good; examples are famous chicken rice at Lorong 1, duck rice at Lorong 4, fish ball noodle at Lorong 5, Egg oyster at Lorong 7 and incredible crabs at Lorong 8. There is many more other food to explore in Toa Payoh and we are a friendly neighbourhood, so feel free to explore us! :)

2009-03-20T00:33:00.000-07:00

Hello Everybody!!!!!

I have been living in Toa Payoh since i young. Toa Payoh is the central area. It is very convenient for it is the central, therefore going to other parts of Singapore is easy because there is many transport for you to use. It has many food courts in Toa Payoh HUB. There are also many shops in Toa Payoh HUB. That is why i love to hang around in Toa Payoh alot. There are just many things to do. I can spend the entire day just doing window shopping or just walk around doing it nothing. Just being there makes me less stress. It also holds many wonderful memories.
Being a FTPSS sudent, i find myself wandering around Toa Payoh with all my friends. We just like to shop, eat, watch movie and just slack. I also like to go out and study with my friends too because i could never study at home. We also like to sit at the red circle in the bus interchange and cool down just sitting around talking with one another.
That is all the thing i love to do here in Toa Payoh. There will still be more wonderful and joyful memories yet to come.

Posted By: Jared

2009-03-19T23:39:00.000-07:00

i've been living in toa payoh for more than a decade,now.
what i like about this place is because, it is soooooooooooooooo - convenient.
there's shopping amenities, community centres,park,stadium,swimming complex and even a sports hall.
toa payoh is a district located in the central region of singapore.
it commonly refers to the housing and development board housing estate of toa payoh new town, one of the earliest public housing estates in singapore.
from my research i actually discovered the meaning of toa payoh.
toa payoh is actually a hokkien language reference to big swamp.
and it was once an extensive and notorious squatter district(can you believe it?)
i can't believe how much changes toa payoh had gone through over the decades.
nevertheless, i am proud to be a part of this history ;D

here are some pictures that i have captured, specially for this trail.

hope you guys, enjoyed it (:

the indian temple located near my school .

mariana, 5n2 .

2009-03-19T23:36:00.000-07:00

Toa Payoh

Hi everyone ! ~

I'm very happy to be part of the trail. Though I'm not living in ToaPayoh, but ToaPayoh is a of the place that gives me the most memories. Since young, my parents always brought me and my sister to ToaPayoh for our family day. Everytime when my mum came over to me and my sister's room and say that we're going to ToaPayoh, me and my sister would be shouting : "KFC KFC! We want to eat KFC !" And so my parents would always bring us to ToaPayoh KFC to eat for our dinner. Shopping and going to Toa Library had always been our favourite past-time. Thus, going to a school that is around ToaPayoh had always been my dream. It brings back alot of memories and the happy time that I spent with my family there.

But as a student of FTPSS, haunting around ToaPayoh is 1 of my favourite past-time. Going around ToaPayoh with my buddies, shopping, eating and slacking are things that what we always do after school. Even when we're having our school holidays, ToaPayoh is the meeting place where we would meet before going anywhere else. ToaPayoh Bus Interchange is the first air-conditioned bus interchange in Singapore. So whenever me and my friends feels hot, we would buy a cup of bubble tea and sit at the steps in ToaPayoh Bus Interchange to cool ourselves down. Taking a tour around ToaPayoh Town Park can also helps to relax our mind, after studying for long period of time.

Overall, ToaPayoh is not only a place for me to shop and have fun at. It is always a place that gave me alot of memories and joyful memories that I had there.

-RiXin

2009-03-19T05:47:00.000-07:00

Toa Payoh is a district located in the Central Region of Singapore.It commonly refers to

the Housing and Development Board (HDB) housing estate of Toa Payoh New Town,

one of the earliest satellite public housing estates in Singapore.

Toa Payoh MRT Station was the first MRT station in Singapore to be completed,

topping out in 1985, this makes it the first station with platform screen doors in the world.

This station was among the first phase of MRT stations to be opened in Singapore in 1987.

The first phase included the stations from Toa Payoh to Yio Chu Kang. Today, the concourse area bears the inauguration plate of Singapore's MRT system.Toa Payoh Bus Interchange is the first airconditioned bus interchange in the country, which was completed in 2002 and officially opened by then Transport Minister, Yeo Cheow Tong, on 19 May 2002. The bus interchange has only ervices of SBS Transit and is managed by the company itself. It has a direct connection from the us interchange to the Toa Payoh MRT Station on the North South Line.When the old Toa Payoh.

Bus Interchange was demolished in 1999 to make way for the building of HDB Hub, the new

and current headquarters of the Housing and Development Board of Singapore, the inhange's operator, SBS Transit, moved its bus operations to a temporary location opposite

its original site located at Toa Payoh Town Park, which was upgraded after the temporary

interchange was demolished.Toa Payoh New Town is the second oldest new town in Singapore,

developed since 1962. It is home to the HDB Hub and hosts one of the country's three

airconditioned bus interchanges, the other two being the one in Sengkang and Ang Mo Kio.

It boasts excellent sporting facilities, including a stadium, an indoor sports hall and the country's

best swimming complex, where the SEA Games swimming competition was held at. These are

also the venues for several of the National Schools sports competitions. There is a plethora of

shophouses in Toa Payoh Central that participate in the annual Great Singapore Sale. Outside

the central area, the Singapore Press Holdings main office can also be found.

The town centre was the first prototype in Singapore. It is surrounded by separated

neighbourhoods, each with its own shopping amenities and community centres, well served by

a network of vehicular roads and generous open space separating them. The result, as in the

English new towns of the 1950s, is that residents tend less to travel to the main town centre

but rather to shop within their neighbourhood; if they travel, they go to Orchard Road or the

town area via the MRT system, at the Toa Payoh MRT Station and the Braddell MRT Station,

or public bus services at Toa Payoh Bus Interchange.

The Housing and Development Board decided to allocate a large area of the Toa Payoh New

Town for a gardenlandscaped park, the Toa Payoh Town Garden, despite the pressure on

land here for housing.

The town garden used to be popular with visitors who came from near and far to enjoy the display of willows, bamboos and the brilliant reds and yellows of the Delonix regia trees.

At the heart of the garden is a 0.8 ha carp pond which contains a waterfall and a cluster of

islands linked by bridges. The islands are arranged to provide a sequence of delightful

walking experiences not only by day but also by night when the garden is lit. The garden

is buffered from the noise and nighttime glare of passing traffic along Jalan Toa Payoh by

an elevated slope planted with thick rows of Angsanas. There are also a children's

playground, seating areas and outdoor chessboard, a tea kiosk and a 27metre high viewing

tower.

Toa Payoh Town Garden was partially closed in 1999 to make way for a temporary bus

interchange. After the new Toa Payoh Bus Interchange at the HDB Hub was completed in
June 2002, the temporary bus interchange was converted to a landscaped park. Toa Payoh

Town Garden was subsequently renamed as Toa Payoh Town Park.

Wanting

Toa Payoh Trail

2009-03-19T03:54:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone!

I am very glad and honoured to be part of this trail. Although I am not living in Toa Payoh,I also love it very much.As I am a student of FTPSS,I alway haunt at Toa Payoh Centre .After school I must through Toa Payoh Interchange take bus to go home.Some time I also eat with my friends at the food court and go to the National Library to study.I feel that when the time I and my friends together at Toa Payoh centry was the most joyful time.

As I am not a local student,I do not know about Toa Payoh so much.So that I do a search on the internet about Toa Payoh.The town centre was the first prototype in Singapore.It is surrounded by separated neighbourhoods, each with its own shopping amenities and community centres,well served by a network of vehicular roads .With time, the Toa Payoh Town Centre has become increasingly popular.It has a busy atmosphere as with many shopping malls , all commercial activities are concentrated along a single mall with high point blocks on either side and major department stores at each end. The shopping mall is actually L-shaped and there are two plazas, one with a branch library and cinema,, the other with an area office and apost office.Each plaza has a department store at either end.Toa Payoh Bus Interchange is the first air-conditioned bus interchange in Singapore,which was completed in 2002 .The stadium and the simming complex are based in the southern central part of Toa Payoh, which is located near the town centre. Where national swimmers train at the complex.

I find Toa Payoh is a nice place to visit .There have some places is the first place in Singapore.Toa Payoh also have some good recollections to me as I with my friends.

Junhe

2009-03-19T03:32:00.000-07:00

F2

F1

It 's a wonderful opportunity that i can take part in this trail . Since 2004 , the first year i came to Singapore . Toa payoh is the first place which i was stayed until now . Although i 'm not a local resident , but i still feel that Toa payoh is the most joyful and memorable place for my mum and I .

As a student of FTPSS , i always haunting in Toa payoh central with my buddies . Such as food court , the National Library and of course , our favourate place -POPURLA ! After school , we ate at foodcourt , studied at library then shopping at popurla ! Almost five years passed , everyplace in Toa payoh fills with our cheerfulness .

To know more about Toa payoh , I do research some informations . Sad that the old bus interchange was demolished in 1999 to make way for the HDB Hub (HDB shift their HQ from Jalan Bukit Merah to here). So the bus interchange relocate to a temporary location opposite its original site and then shift back after the Hub was completed. (F1)Of course, the nearby Toa Payoh Library was another must visit then when I needed to borrow some books. In front of the library, there was a fountain but now it’s replaced by amphitheatre. The library together with the fountain was built in 1973.(F2)

However , Toa payoh is also a helpful and conveniency place for everybody . Chung Hwa (Zhong Hua) Medical Institution is the largest TCM (Traditional Chinese Medicine) organization in Singapore, and it offers free TCM medical consultation to the general public regardless of race, nationality and religion. It is locate at Lorong 4 Toa payoh . And TOA PAYOH swimming complex is locate at lorong 6.

I found living in Toa payoh was the happiest time for me and i hope these informations would help you to know more about Toa payoh .

>.< Melody Lu

Toa Payoh Sports Area

2009-03-18T23:13:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone!

As stated in the title, I'm doing the Toa Payoh Sports Area which consists of the stadium and the swimming complex. Did you know that many historical events had taken place right here at this very place? I bet you didn't know that. So, let me tell you about it.

Singapore was chosen to host the 7th Southeast Asian Peninsular (SEAP) in 11973 for the first time as a new nation. And our very own Toa Payoh was to play a very big and important role in hosting the games. Athletes from different countries came to Singapore to train at the stadium and the swimming pool to win medals for their country in the sports they excel in. They were housed in newly built blocks of flats at Toa Payoh Lorong 2, Lorong 4 and Toa Payoh Central. And, during the 7th SEAP Games, the athletes competed at the stadium and at the swimming complex.

Toa Payoh Stadium is located at 297 Lorong 6 Toa Payoh and it was taken over by the Singapore Sports Council on the 30th of November 1973. It was then later opened to the public on the 1st of March 1974. The stadium is used for multi-purpose for different events. It is currently used for soccer matches and is the home for the Balestier Khalsa FC. Also, school events such as Sports Day are held in the stadium. When the stadium is not in use for schools or sports matches, it used by people of different ages to exercise. The young and old use the track to walk, jog or run and families can gather at the stadium to spend time with each other or exercise as a family.

Toa Payoh Swimming Complex in situated at 299 Lorong 6 Toa Payoh and it is only a walking distance from the Toa Payoh Stadium. The 1973 SEAP Games was also held there for athletes specialising in water sports. They built a spectator's seat so that fans can see the action in the pool during the SEAP Games. The swimming complex had witnessed a lot of athletes competing for the gold medal. Currently, the swimming complex is open for people of different ages as well who go there for a swim if the weather was really hot or go there for some swimming lessons as well as have fun under the sun.

The Toa Payoh community has benefited many people in this area because its a one-stop place for people who wants to shop, play and eat. It is also very convenient to go anywhere from here as there is a Bus Interchange and MRT in Toa Payoh itself. It has evolved from a swamp to a thriving community.

I feel that this place is very helpful because I can go to the stadium anytime to train for a coming sports event or go for a swim at the swimming complex. I hope this information had helped you in further understanding Toa Payoh and learned about new interesting facts of this place.

Jenina

<< Toa Payoh Trail >>

2009-03-18T09:01:00.000-07:00

Hey.

I had once stayed in Toa Payoh, about 2-3 years perhaps. I think that Toa Payoh had lots of food to eat and it is quite a famous place! I think Toa Payoh had turned to an old but still a popular place, as from what i had seen around me, the buildings, markets and factories. I knew that Toa Payoh had a few temples which are very popular. There is one near our school, in fact, it is just located right behind our school. That is a huge one, which connected 2 or 3 temples together. Also, it had a small pond which had small turtles and fishes in it, and a wishing well which is located some where near the exit. This century-old Monastery is the oldest in Singapore. The Lian Shan Shuang Lin Temple is known as the Siong Lim Temple in the Fukien or Hokkien dialect. The Lian Shan Shuang Lin Temple is situated in Singapore's Toa Payoh.

History of the Lian Shan Shuang Lin Monastery.

When the affluent trader Low Kim Pong was in his sixty, he saw the dream of a golden light over the sea and it was rising from the west. He thought it to be a sign of omen and the next day he went over to the coast. In the evening, there he met a strange Hokkien family coming by boat. The family was returning to their home in Fujian after undertaking a pilgrimage to Sri Lanka. The families were devout Buddhists and Low was so gripped by their devotion that he persuaded them to reside in Singapore and preach the faith and even set-up a temple for them. Xian Hui, the patriarch of that family became the first abbot of Lian Shan Shuang Lin Temple.The area of the temple decreased to 20,000Sq. meters when the Singapore Improvement Trust acquired portions of the land. Today among all the residential flats, the temple still towers as a landmark building. On 17th October, 1980 the Lian Shan Shuang Lin Temple acquired the status of a national monument, representing the cultural and social roots of Singapore's Chinese immigrants. The Lian Shan Shuang Lin Temple despite being granted the status of a national monument was neglected. The temple was in terrible shape in the 1990s parts of the temple area was declared unsafe. It received a facelift from 1994-2002. Eighty carpenters, artisans and sculptors were drafted in to restore the earlier Chinese glory of the temple.

Due to its rich historical and architectural value, Shuang Lin Monastery was gazetted as a national monument in 1980.

A national monument, this Buddhist temple was completed in 1908 and commemorates Buddha's birth and death. The temple has an elaborately decorated gateway, reached by a bridge, which opens into a courtyard. Visitors can see beautifully carved Buddhas here. As you enter the splendidly decorated Main Entrance, be prepared to be enchanted by the magnificence of the three main halls: Hall of Celestial Kings, Mahavira Hall and Dharma Hall. No tour will be complete without a visit to the majestic Dragon Light Pagoda. This seven-storey is constructed entirely of granite and reaches a breathtaking height of 29m above ground. Indeed, it is a beautiful temple.

2009-03-17T23:40:00.000-07:00

Firstly, I am very glad and honoured to be part of this trail. It will be interesting to do a research on a neighbourhood I have been living for almost 9 years. Wow, in just a blink of an eye, it has been 9 years since then! I can still remember how little i was when i first moved into Toa Payoh.

After doing some basic research, I have came to realise "Payoh" comes from the word "paya" which means swamp. Toa Payoh is the Chinese equivalent of the Malay Paya Lebar which means “big swamp land”. Prior to 1960, the area was a huge residential colony. Toa Payoh New Town was built in 1970 and is the republic’s second satellite town after Queenstown. Toa Payoh was once an extensive and notorious squattar district. Most squatters were engaged in farming. The others were hawkers, factory workers, mechanics or domestic helpers. The squatters started moving out in 1962 as a result of increased compensation rates and other practical inducements offered by the Government. Clearance work was able to commence and the redevelopment started in early 1964.

I do not have much childhood memories in Toa Payoh Estate as my family moved to China to stay for a period of time. However, I still do remember the times I had in my primary school and the hang outs at the playgrounds. Not forgetting, the drastic change from an old and warm bus interchange into a beautiful and convenient air-conditioned bus interchange we have today. It is also the first fully air-conditioned bus interchange in Singapore. Nevertheless, Toa Payoh Central has been one of the most convenient places for me to purchase daily necessities. Also, Toa Payoh town centre has its own cinema, hawker centres, coffee shops, a library and a nearby park. Visitors will be spoilt for choice at the range of merchandise, food and entertainment options available. Recently, I went to Toa Payoh Park for a photoshoot with my friend. It was a great experience as I have not been visiting there for quite some time. Both my friend and I enjoyed the pleasant nature and environment there.

I am glad to be a part of Toa Payoh Estate for the convenience and would definitely love to explore it more whenever i have the chance to.

Love,
Claris (:

2009-03-17T23:10:00.000-07:00

Even though i do not live in Toa Payoh but Toa Payoh is not that unfamiliar to mi as I do often hang out there as my school is nearby and most of my friends stay near by Toa Payoh too. It a convient place for me and my friends to meet up together. To my knowlwdge of Toa Payoh, Toa Payoh is a district located in central region Singapore.The housing estate is self-contained and has a town centre acting as a focal point for the shopping and entertainment needs of the residents.Industrial developments were also built within the town to provide residents with job opportunities close to home while schools were built within the neighbourhoods. It is surrounded by separated neighbourhoods, each with its own shopping amenities and community centres, well served by a network of vehicular roads and generous open space separating them.Nevertheless, with time, the Toa Payoh Town Centre has become increasingly popular. It has a busy atmosphere because, as with many shopping malls of the time, all commercial activities are concentrated along a single mall with high point blocks on either side and major department stores at each end. I have also heard from my friends who stayed at Toa Payod about the garden-landscaped park, the Toa Payoh Town Garden and my friend once took me there for visit. I feel great with the environment there it so relaxing. It used to be popular with visitors who came from near and far to enjoy the display of willows, bamboos and the brilliant reds and yellows of the Delonix regia trees. Overall, i find Toa Payoh is a interesting place to hang out as there got branch library to study at and cinema to have entertianment with friends. There also have a big stadium and sport hall which is convient to people to have exercise there and it also letting school to held sport day at there. I do remenber it a tiring day but rejoice day too having sport day at there.

2009-03-17T19:37:00.000-07:00

I haven't been living in Toa Payoh for a very long time like most of the other students. In fact, I just moved here less than a year ago. Toa Payoh is an unfamiliar place to me, and I still have problems finding my way around it. But one thing's for sure, I have not even heard of the existence of a park in this very neighbourhood of mine before madam Shanti(my English literature teacher) mentioned it.

Ironically, however alien Toa Payoh is to me, there is still this one place I frequent to purchase daily necessities and even find appealing. And that is- Toa Payoh Central. A place where the contemporary meets the passé. Every trip feels like a ride in a defective time machine. It's the type of feeling one will never get accustomed to. It's akin to a brand-new adventure every time.

I still don't feel like one of the residents, and I still don't think the world of Toa Payoh like I am supposed to. However, I am confident and certain I will one day adore it like I used to cherish my old neighbourhood.

Ting Jin Nee 3e3

2009-03-17T08:37:00.000-07:00

Toa payoh in the hokkien dialect means “ big swamp land “ .the word payoh originates from the malay word “paya”for swamp . toa payoh had a very big improvement as from a non-air conditional interchange can change into the air conditional interchange that’s very impressive.Toa payoh estate is a focal point for shopping ,and entertainment . I myself grow up in toa payoh estate , this place is the most familiar place that I had know.all my childhood memories , friends, relatives are in toapayoh .the place I like most in toapayoh is the HDB hub ,I always hangs around there as the place is the most convenient place to meet up with friends .there in Toapayoh central there’s a lot of shops it’s very convenient to buy daily needs .the garden beside the HDB hUB was the place I use to go when I am small .the place has a very good environment and there can help us to relax our mind when we are stress ,we can also take a walk with parents and chit chat .there is really a nice place .When we are board we just can go to the community centre for some courses as there are a lot of course for us to sign up and improve our skills/language and relax our mind/brain (yoga, Korean language ,etc.).After all I like TOA PAYOH !!!!!!!!

post by:SIPING

Toa Payoh Trail

2009-03-17T06:13:00.000-07:00

Toa Payoh is home of the heart landers. Majority of the estates such as the HDB flats have a playground for kids, a huge empty space for people to hold their functions, kids to play, or even for old people to do their morning work out. The residents staying there make it a point to keep the lifts as well as the environment clean. I often see bulletines pinned up on the notice board, such as family outings, games for kids, or events for the residents of Toa Payoh. I feel that the people in Toa Payoh are so bonded as there are often events held for them to interact with one another. Be it different backgrounds or religion, everyone treats each other equally, and that is the way things should be. The estates in Toa Payoh have good facilities provided for the residents.

Favourite haunts in Toa Payoh:

One of my favourite places in Toa Payoh would be the park. I love chilling at the park with my friends because it is quiet and at the same time, it has great scenery and ambience. Also, as my passion is photography, I love going to the park to take photos. Shown below, are pictures taken at the park (:

Memories of my childhood:

As a toddler, I used to stay at my grandma's place together with my siblings. I was enrolled in a childcare near Toa Payoh Lorong 6, thereafter I was in PAP during my kindergarten years, which was located at Kim Keat. Very often, my siblings and I would go to the playground below my grandma's house to play. The playground there left countless great memories I would always cherish. Though the estate there is now under construction, each time I walk past the place it would bring back bitter-sweet memories of my childhood years spent there. Shown below, is a picture of me at the playground when I was just a toddler.

What I like about Toa Payoh?

The one thing i like about Toa Payoh the most, is the fact that it is efficient as it is filled with our neccessities, gaming arcade, food joints, movie theater and awesome places to slack. Of all these facilities provided, I love the variety of food the most. Toa Payoh has several eateries and majority of them serve tasty food. Not only that, most of these food joints such as the Laksa stall, Roasted Chicken Rice stall, etc. are featured in the newspaper or media. Very often, there are interesting events that provide entertainment for the onlookers to watch or participate at the Toa Payoh Hub.

Improvements or Suggestions:

I hope to see more fashion outlets and dessert stalls in Toa Payoh.

I am delighted that Toa Payoh is turning into a more vibrant and modern environment, that would improve the life of many! (:

2009-03-17T00:47:00.000-07:00

Hi to all!!
I feel happy and honour to be in this trail.I live in Toa payoh when i was in Primary one till now.It has so many fond memories for me.There were many places that i went to play after school when i was a small child at that time.Like the playground near my block.(pics at the botoom)It is a very convient spot of me because there is a market,shop and save,where can buy necessities things.(pics at the bottom)
Toa payoh was once an broad district.The things they done was rearing,farming.The others were hawker,factory workers.Toa Payoh is a Hokkien language,which Toa is "big" and Payoh means "swamp".so it was called 'Big Swamp'. It indicates that the large swampy area preceded the later development market gardens in this area.It has been come an increasingly busy and pouplar because of its atmosphere,as it has many shopping malls,sometimes actitvites was conducted over there,like line dance for ederly,etc.Meanwhile,the swiming complex where national swimers trained at the complex.Another thing is that it was the FIRST air conditioned bus interchange and visitors will be spoilt for choice at the range of merchandise, food and entertainment options available.
playground

playground

hopscotch

and i think you cannot find any more this kind of games anymore as it is'outdated' to those new generation youngsters as they did not see these find of games.

shop and save

It is very easy to get the things that you needed badly.you do not need to go to central and buy,just a few minutes walk from home and you will be able to buy the things that are needed.

Emily Chng

Toa Payoh trail

2009-02-25T20:10:00.000-08:00

Toa Payoh Trail project under the Love Toa Payoh East Movement has indeed stirred many nostalgic emotions within me... Toa Payoh is my hometown and playground as have many great friends and neighbours here. I hope that by taking on this learning journey, I will be able to network with those whose hearts have been etched with pleasant and fond memories of Toa Payoh.

2009-02-08T05:22:00.000-08:00

When i was approached by the teachers at first, i thought i was in trouble for whatever reasons. But when i found out it was about the project, i felt shocked because it was my 1st time doing a very big project.

The difficulties i faced was finding the necessary information. Its hard to summarise the information up when you're bombarded with informations from everywhere. Sometimes, the members could not meet up and we had a tough time to sort things out. However, with members co-operation and patience, we managed to tackle this together.

Ah, yes, the Flash animation. Its so hard that i almost gave up. Even if there is a slight mistake to edit the picture, it will screw up everything and you have to start again from scratch. But, practice makes perfect.

My group was in charge of the Toa Payoh Interchange. For me, i discovered alot more about the interchange. For example, it was the first air-condtioned Bus Interchange in Singapore. How interesting is that? The interchange is also bigger and I see alot of people there often when im coming home from school.

Zul-qisti

2009-02-07T07:20:00.000-08:00

Hi!
I was surprised when the teachers approached me. I also felt proud and honoured to be part of this trail. Its exciting to research and know more about your neighbourhood.

The difficulties encountered were about the time. We worked in groups, so I did not have time to meet up regularly. It was hard to balance school work, my cca and the trail. I had to manage my time carefully so that our training sessions does not crash. Sometimes we also had difficulty finding the information I want as most of the website gives similar information.

The skills we have learnt is the Flash Amination. It requires alot of patience because we need to follow the steps to make an attactive animation. I really must thank Archie on that as he helped me through the process of making. It was a great experience.

My research was about the Queen Elizabeth coming to our Toa Payoh housing development board. In the 1990s, that time singapore was known for their flats, HDB. the Queen came to visit singapore to learn about the flats. Then again, she came during the 21th century to our neighbourhood. I remembered she wore a green striking hat that day as we crowded around the HDB flats. Its fun and interesting to learn about what Toa Payoh used to be, how it came about and on... I have enjoyed myself during the process of learning.

zhongyi

2009-02-06T05:42:00.000-08:00

When I was first approached by the teachers to research on Toa Payoh, I was shock and surprised because I never expect myself will get into this Toa Payoh Trail. I felt honoured that I can be in this team, working with all the members, was also a great experience for me.

The diffcult part I experienced was that the research info was diffcult to search on. Nt able to find alot info on my research was a big problem to me. But at last, through days of researching, I am able to find info about my research.

I was to attend a workshop about learning of FLASH. Is quite interesting and fun to do with it, dicussing with teammates how are we going to do, are also fun too. We exchange our opinions and then decide what to do. It was a great experience for me.

Researching of tree temples tells me that it is a chinese temple which the buddhist can pray.

aileen

2009-02-05T21:24:00.000-08:00

Hello to all(:

Toa Payoh is a rather interesting place as there are all the facilities needed for oneself. Like the stadium, swimming complex & shopping malls!
When I was first selected to do this project, I was feeling thrill, but at the same time, not knowing how to go about doing it as perfect as i could. But because i had a great team- Jolie & ZhongYi, we were quite successful in the research part. We trekked to alot of places in Toa Payoh just to do interviews & the most tedious part was to stay up all night just to make a trip to the night market near the school. Jolie & i were all very tired, but coming to think that since it's part of our project, we had to do something significant to impress ourselves & prove others wrong. However, it was not included into this project.(But, we certainly had fun!)
As what Jolie had said, we went to many places. & i think to both of us, the most memorable part was the research done in the library. We had to make alot of trips up & down between the floors just to get the resources we want. But all hardwork has not gone down the drain because there're groups using our research(:
The Flash Animation was also quite interesting. We learnt alot from the workshop organised by Ms Lee & i'm grateful for her guidance throughout the workshop. I had alot of problems doing the flash because it was tough & i received help from my teammates & classmates.

Thank you to all the teachers who has helped me in one way or another.

- Shanhui (:

2009-02-04T05:44:00.000-08:00

Well, I feel quite honoured when I got selected. I learnt alot, mainly about Toa Payoh & much more. I was given encouragement by teachers & friends, & that's what that got me continue going through into all these experience.

What I found out about Toa Payoh is that it was once an extensive and notorious squatter district. Most squatters were engaged in farming and rearing pigs. The others were hawkers, factory workers, mechanics or domestic helpers. & as Archie said, Toa Payoh is a Hokkien language reference to "big swamp" (toa is "big" and payoh means "swamp"). The Malay word for swamp is "Paya". The reference indicates the large swampy area that preceded the later development of Chinese market gardens in this area. Lol.

Also, I learnt alot of new skills for the Flash Animation lesson, & probably, I can learn more if I have the chance. I might forget some of the skills taught, but still, I had the experience & got the chance of trying them out. Hee. Thats all then.

- Qurrah

2009-02-04T03:19:00.000-08:00

hello people.

when the teachers approach me, i was a little shock.

it was told that this groups of students were being chosen because we have the potential.

and the first thing which came into my mind was, "i have potential??"

however, i was very eager to try out new things, working with different people for one common target, which is to complete this project as fast as possible.

when workshops and meetings started, i was trying my best to keep up the work as well as my school work.

in the holidays, my group, zhongyi and shanhui, and i were out to do the project together, such as researching for information in the national library for hours, have interviews from different organisations, and walked around the whole toa paoyh to look for places that were once there and took pictures of them. the difficulties i had was unable to have a suitable timing that the group could sit down to do the project together. but we still manage to overcome it by doing it together once we were free. or we work individually, then we will compile our work together. each was given a job to do so no one was been left out.

there's a workshop during the last year holidays and it was about how to make websites and animation. it was kind of hard and it needs alot of patience to do that. i learnt how to use the photoshop to take parts of the picture that we wanted.

i have done quite a number of research regarding the history of ToaPayoh, however, some was not been used as part of the project as there were changes. i did a research on the ToaPayoh Garden. it was a very pleasant place for couples in the past. now it is still a pleasant place with a better environment suitable for all kinds of occasions. there's a restaurant in the ToaPaoyh garden ever since 198os.

this is a picture of the toapayoh garden restaurant in the 1980s.

pic taken from http://timesofmylife.wordpress.com/2007/08/21/majong-at-toa-payoh/

but for now, it is more beautiful and the garden is a peaceful place.

Jolie:))

2009-02-03T08:06:00.001-08:00

I feel happy because I finished the trail and I had fun doing it. I also got to know people from other classes which I do not usually talk to. I learned many things about Toa Payoh which I did not know before. I feel proud to have been part of the Toa Payoh trail and have contributed to the school. I also gained leadership from the trail.
I had difficulties in managing my Flash Animation because I did not really understand the how to go about with the animation. I find it hard to find information for the Toa Payoh trail too.
I learnt Flash Animation and also learnt an easier way to find information in the library and the net.
Toa Payoh stadium and the Toa Payoh swimming complex was once used for the olympics and many people used it to train. Nowadays, it used for soccer matches.

Ri Yan

2009-02-03T03:42:00.001-08:00

When I was approached by the teachers to do this project, I didn't really know how to react because I myself was not sure of the history of Toa Payoh. I felt that this was going to be a bit of challenge because of the time constraint and that I have to spend hours on finding books about Toa Payoh but it was all worth it because now I know so much more about Toa Payoh. How it was once a big swamp to now towering bulidings all over and bustling people walking around. I felt happy and relieved at the same time because we were able to find loads of information and that I had play a part in letting people know more about Toa Payoh.

Mainly the difficulties that I experienced was spending alot time in the library under the cold. As there were many books, it takes some time to find the right book and I had to read it if I needeed the information for the trail. It was also difficult to find suitable pictures for the trail. Another challenge for me was the Flash Animation as I spent hours trying to make it look nice and beautiful. Sometimes, it does not turn out what I expected it to be and it frustated but nonetheless, with patience, I managed to complete it.

I have been equipped with the skills of Flash Animation and I attended a talk on finding the right information form the internet and books. It helped me alot because I was able to find the exact information I wanted. The flash animation also helped me because atleast now, I know a few tricks from Flash Animation.

I researched on the Toa Payoh Stadium and Swimming complex and found out that it was once used for the Olympics and that many people from other countries used the Stadium and the swimming complex to train then. Now, it is used for recreational activities and the stadium holds soccer matches and allows schools to hold their Sports Day Event there.

Jenina

My feelings when approached by the teachers to research on Toa Payoh.

2009-02-03T02:01:00.000-08:00

Hello mate!Initially,when the teachers approached me, I felt that a research on Toa Payoh was a daunting task for me.Simply because i did not grow up in Toa Payoh:D and had little prior knowledge about this INTERESTING town!However,with the aid of the teachers,my interest grew.The teachers gave us a guideline on how to do a report on Toa Payoh.Our research skills was really useful and made our report excellent.

One of the things I learnt about this town was how the name Toa Payoh came about.Toa Payoh is actually derived from Hokkien language.It means Big swamp:D VERY INTERESTING FACT! HMMM.i wonder what lays under this swampy town.cya! toodles

ARCHIE

Introduction

2009-02-01T20:50:00.000-08:00

The Students Involved

2008-09-01T20:28:00.000-07:00

We are proud of the group of student leaders who have diligently done the research of Toa Payoh town facilitated by Mdm Santhi and Mdm Rozainah. Apart from that, they had also undergone Flash animation training conducted by Miss Jasline Lee. The latest activity that they had completed is the conceptualizing of the Games and Activities that are to be carried out at the Hot Spots for the trail.

We will be having a Launch for this Toa Payoh Trail in mid November. We do hope to get participants from all generations to participate and bask in the old time charm of Toa Payoh. The Trail will be launched by Mrs Josephine Teo, MP for the Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC and supported by the Toa Payoh East CCC.

The Hot Spots that we will be in our Trail Route for 2008 are:
n First Toa Payoh Secondary School
n Old Toa Payoh Hospital
n Tree Temple at Toa Payoh Central
n HDB Hub
n Toa Payoh Bus Interchange
n Toa Payoh Town Garden

For those of you who are interested to learn more about the history of the old Toa Payoh Town and also the activities that will lead up to the Launch of the Toa Payoh Trail in mid-November, do feel free to visit and upload your comments on our blog page at www.toapayoh-trail.blogspot.com .