A Singaporean couple, Amanda Cheong and Stanley Cheah, have launched Hidden Heritage Tours to explore lesser-known historical sites and stories in Singapore, offering unique insights into the nation's past beyond conventional tourist attractions.
In a city often associated with iconic landmarks and bustling districts, a Singaporean couple is charting a unique course, illuminating the often-overlooked narratives and spaces that define the nation's rich heritage. Amanda Cheong and Stanley Cheah, founders of Hidden Heritage Tours , officially launched their venture in 2024, a significant year marked also by the arrival of their son, Theodore.
Their mission is to curate experiences that delve beyond the usual tourist trails, exploring the hidden lives and stories embedded within atypical locales. Their tour, titled Don't Call Us Poor: Hidden Lives of Lavender, exemplifies this philosophy. The excursion, which AsiaOne participated in on a Saturday morning, spanned two hours and covered the Lavender and Jalan Besar areas, showcasing what the couple describes as their anchor tours. Stanley Cheah, co-founder of Hidden Heritage Tours, explained their deliberate choice to focus on places frequently bypassed by mainstream attention. His own journey into uncovering hidden stories began with a personal revelation: a familiar supermarket once housed Singapore's inaugural ice-skating rink. This passion for the unseen and untold is now the driving force behind Hidden Heritage Tours, operated by Stanley and his wife, Amanda. Before embarking on their entrepreneurial adventure, both Amanda and Stanley had established careers in finance, with Amanda accumulating 13 years of experience and Stanley two. Their shared interest in exploring abandoned and unconventional places in Singapore served as the catalyst for their meeting. The couple's initial foray into sharing these discoveries was through Abandoned Singapore, an Instagram page dedicated to showcasing intriguing and often forgotten locations across the island. The enthusiastic response from their followers and numerous requests for guided explorations led them to begin conducting unofficial tours on weekends. This organic growth, coupled with the birth of their son Theodore in November 2023, prompted them to leave their corporate jobs in August 2024 to dedicate themselves fully to Hidden Heritage Tours. Amanda elaborated on their choice of areas like Lavender for their tours, stating that more prominent tourist destinations are already extensively documented. The tour commenced at Crawford Bridge along North Bridge Road, a location steeped in history as one of Singapore's oldest roads, adorned with colonial-era emblems that spark conversations about the past. A subsequent stop was the North Bridge Road Tua Pek Kong Temple, a modest shrine nestled within an open-air car park adjacent to the North Bridge Road Market and Food Centre. Stanley and Amanda revealed that the temple was established and financed by market vendors as a means to accumulate good karma and express gratitude, particularly significant given that many of their livelihoods involved the preparation and sale of animal products. The temple also provided insights into the diverse deities it housed, including a unique representation in the form of a rock. The journey continued with a short walk to Heap Seng Leong coffee shop, a quintessential establishment offering traditional Nanyang coffee, kaya toast, and an array of pastries. In stark contrast to the modern cafes in nearby Jalan Besar, Heap Seng Leong felt like a temporal anomaly, a popular and vibrant space that has retained its vintage charm. The tour also ventured into the history of public housing in Singapore by exploring old one-room rental flats in the vicinity. These explorations revealed fascinating architectural adaptations, such as the inclusion of mezzanine levels in some blocks. This design feature was a practical response to prevent pedestrians from being injured by objects or debris accidentally dropped from upper floors by residents, a common occurrence in densely populated housing. During their walk, the couple shared anecdotes from locals, including a tailor who once cautioned them against lingering in the area after 7 pm, citing potential dangers. The tailor, who had previously specialized in crafting bell-bottom jeans, recalled the estate's notoriety for illicit activities such as illegal gambling dens and the trade of contraband cigarettes. This historical context lent a layer of intrigue to the exploration. The tour also highlighted the unexpected and sometimes peculiar aspects of local businesses, such as a Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) shop displaying a saiga antelope head and selling desiccated cockroaches for medicinal purposes. A particularly noteworthy stop was Sze Thye Cake Shop, a bakery with over seven decades of history, founded in 1950. This establishment holds the distinction of being the last in Singapore to create Teochew sugar lions, elaborate sugar figures traditionally used as temple offerings. The culmination of the tour was an immersive visit to a one-room rental flat occupied by a man identified only as Uncle Chow. A former secret society member, Uncle Chow has since transitioned into a contractor and artisan, transforming his humble abode into a vibrant sanctuary of art and personal expression. The narrow corridors of the rental block gave way to Uncle Chow's flat, a striking contrast with its lush hanging greenery and colorful mosaic art, evoking a charm reminiscent of a Studio Ghibli film. Upon entering, visitors were greeted by an unexpected detail for such a compact space: a pebbled entryway. The kitchen and bathroom areas were particularly captivating, enveloped in verdant foliage with floors laid out in real soil. Despite its modest dimensions, the flat felt expansive, imbued with the stories and artistry that Uncle Chow generously shared. His unique creations, including customizable unit number plates crafted with Italian mosaic tiles, were also available for purchase, offering a tangible connection to the narrative of this extraordinary space. These atypical explorations offer a profound glimpse into the multifaceted layers of Singaporean life, moving beyond superficial perceptions to uncover the human stories, historical echoes, and enduring cultural practices that shape the nation's identity. Hidden Heritage Tours, through its meticulous curation and passionate storytelling, invites residents and visitors alike to reconsider their understanding of heritage, revealing that the most compelling narratives often reside in the most unassuming corners
Heritage Tours Singapore History Unconventional Tourism Local Culture Hidden Gems
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