Trip to London (and Greece) in June 1974 - 5 months before the PSLE !

 

Trafalgar Square June 1974

The month and year was June 1974. I was 11 going on 12 years of age. My Dad (Papa as I called him) had this brilliant idea of bringing me to experience life in Europe. My plane ticket was still considered as a child seat, so it was economical for him to take me along to see his Auld England or his 'motherland'. He was a real Anglophile, so thought the world of the British Empire of Winston Churchill and the rest of them.

London Tower Bridge in the Background - June 1974.

We headed to Greece first, and I recall sitting beside my father atop one of the columns with pride beside the ancient Parthenon in Acropolis, Greece. We spent something like 1 week in Athens before spending another week in London.

I was doing pretty well in Primary 6, it was the Primary School Leaving Examination year (Nov 1974) and in June, during the mid year holidays of one month, had the privilege of taking 2 weeks to fly to Greece and England - just like that. The year end PSLE exams were just around the corner, and no parent of today would dare allow their children to enjoy 2 weeks in Europe - I am sure. 

I was a privileged and an extremely fortunate son. 

Feeding Pigeons June 1974

I believe, this was probably my first or second time I was taking a plane. Perhaps the first was in 1973, maybe to Thailand, though I couldn't be absolutely sure. To be clear, in those days, practically no one took flights overseas, Singapore was still a pretty poor and backward country. Most of our Sanya Samaki trips overseas, (like to KL, Penang, and even Bangkok) were all by coach, and the trips those days took easily 1 to 2 days.

With the Bobby in the Background

England was a revelation for this young impressionable kid. I recall my Papa bringing me to see some of his old friends from Uni days, as well as I think we watched a classic play called, "No Sex Please we are British !" which ran at the West End for years and years. We also were invited to some of his friends estate houses and ate some peculiar curry which his wife made for us. I think we also watched another famous play by Agatha Christie called "The Mousetrap" which was also world famous.

Outside St Paul's Cathedral

We stayed a few nights at the Bed and Breakfast and had the last 2 nights at a hotel called "The Strand" which my father had insisted on taking me. He wanted me to try all the different levels of British hospitality from warm English simple houses rented out to tourists and the last few nights we were to stay in a 5 star ambience.

11 Year Old Me at St Paul's Cathedral 

The final memoery I had was that I liked the European experience very much and when I returned home, I remember telling my mother than the peas she made in a dish reminded me of Jolly Old England !

Carpe Diem 

Singapore In the 1970s, Couples had 2, 3 4 kids.What Changed between then and now ?

In Thailand in 1974 I believe, Konrad Wee centre and Ms. Mabel Wee (Konrad Mum)

In the 1960s, 70s, 80s and 90s, Singapore was a brand new third world country. People were literally living 'hand to mouth' and average monthly salaries in the 1960s (as a brand new independent country in 1965 having separated from the Federation of Malayan States),  was in the region of USD 100 to 400. 

In the 1960s, salaries were a pittance, compared to the then Great Britain (One GBP was 7 SGD and 1 USD was 4 SGD). People were eking very hard lives. There were people doing manual labour, from carrying rice sacks from the bumboats to the godowns in Boat Quay for example. Many people were trishaw riders, taxi drivers and construction workers. Gangster troups were aplenty, and there were numerous murders, crime, and rampant petty thievery in general society. Singapore had emerged from the British colonial past bruised and with an uneducated workforce hungry for work. The EDB was newly formed and the top administrators were in the process of conducting roadshows in the West enticing many companies to set up shop in Singapore. That I believe started to take shape in the mid to late 1970s. 

Yet, when I look back at my paternal and maternal families, I am happy to note that all of my uncles and aunts,had at least 2 children (many had 4) in their lifetime. Why ? 

On my mother's side, there were 4 sisters, and they each had

Anna (Dai Yi) : 2

Dona (Yi Ma) : 2

Mina (San Yi) : 4

Mona (Sai Yi) : 2

Kau Fu (youngest brother) : 3

On my father's side there were 

Paul (Eldest) : 2

Geoffrey        : 2

Alex              : 2

Felix             : 3 

Esther          : 2

Diana           : 3

Nowadays, many young men and women are putting off marriage altogether, let alone having children, and the alarming news is that the Total Fertility Rate (TFR) for Singapore in 2025 is a pathetic 0.85. That means, we are not replacing our Singaporean base.

While it is easy to open the doors to people of similar cultural backgrounds (like Malaysia and possibly Indonesia), this phenomenon of offering 'free passage' to citizenship riles many ordinary Singaporeans who have to serve mandatory National Service and the feeling of intense competition fighting for places for jobs (and reservist) leaves people with a 'fight for your own lunch' mentality.

So why were there many more children per couple way back in 60s, 70s 80s and possibly the 90s ?

Healthcare in 1960s and 1970s was quite poor.

Well for starters in the 1960s and 70s, Singapore was a poor 3rd world country. Our medical care and hospitals were overworked, understaffed and with poor health outcomes. As a result, our infant mortality (children dying from disease below the age of 5 years old) was high. 

Couples wanted to ensure some heirs to either take on the family name, and possibly one or 2 girls to 'balance' the equation in the family. Added to the mix was that if any one child died, there would be ample replacement(s). As a result, many parents had 2, 3, 4 and beyond. Also in the third world, 'many hands make light work' (Confucius), so the reasoning was that it was better to have more offspring to help out in the a) farm b) foodstall or c) provision shop.

This population spurt alarmed the then Government so much that the Ministry of Health had a 'Stop at 2' promotion to 'encourage' parents to reduce their productivity so to speak. (It was a bad decision in hindsight, looking at our current need to import foreign born people to shore up our service, manufacturing and financial sectors year after year).

Assets and Government flats were very affordable then

Assets like landed houses back in the day (1960s and 1970s) were very affordable then. I recall my mother going 'house hunting' with another good lady friend Nina Cohen and she told me some people were selling preowned terrace houses for as low as $4,000 in the late 60s to early 70s. While it is true that the average salary was around $300 per month, the affordability of the landed property assuming 20% of average take home pay goes to service the mortgage so $720 per year would go to paying off the mortgage, it would take all of less than 8 years to pay off for a terrace house in the 1960s to early 1970s based on the average salary of $300.

So the aspiration to find a nice partner, settle down and purchase either a Government flat (it cost only something like $6,000 or so for a 3 room flat) or even a private land house was realistic and achievable. 

From Left : Audrey, Tan  Gillian Khoo, Tan Xian and my brother John 

One parent stayed at home 

Thirdly, for most families, only the father or male parent worked. It was a good time, mothers (a good 80 to 90%) stayed and home and minded the kids. Hence, with a parent minding the child, why not one or two more ?  

Raising Children in those days was cheap. 

There was hardly any tuition centres or personalised tuition to catch up. Things like ballet, piano, swimming, badminton, coding courses and all manner of holidays were practically unheard of. 

Society was pretty much on a level playing field. We were all similarly poor yet so much happier then. 

Fast Forward 50 Years Later. 

What has happened to young couples after COVID 19 ?

My opinion is that young couples choose to want to 'have it all' ; a nice starter flat, an enviable lifestyle with holidays, possibly an EV car. That does not leave very much to having a kid or two ?  

Our Government has for so long gone down the path of accepting foreign workers as domestic help that I believe this fact is one of the reasons why couples choose to chase sought after private property (condominiums and to a certain extent landed property) where the cheapest property would cost $1.5 million and above.

Imagine a big chunk of the duo's earned income of (for example) $12,000. Say using my 20% rule again $2400. If they could fork out (for example) $500, 000 (using CPF and savings), and take a loan at today's rate of 2%. Even forgoing the interest component, they would end up paying the full amount in 35 years !

So, they put up 40% which is $4,800 per month. A hefty sum no less. They end up paying slightly over 20 years to repay only the principal. So it is likely to be 25 years.

The young couple are betting on a few things :

a) they will continue to upgrade their careers and earn more for the next 20 to 30 years 

b) the property prices will hopefully rise up and they can offload it in 5 years time with some capital appreciation.

c) the economy will be 'hunky dory' and not contract, and there will be no retrenchments.

d) there will be no health or family issues impacting the couple financially.

Of course, I exaggerate. The couple can always start with the Government Build To Order HDB flat, the selling price ranging going from $300,000 to over $600,000 new after subsidies.

The bottom line is this, they still need to fork out and repay for the flat for easily the next 15 to 20 years depending on their average take home salaries.  

Posing in Thailand swim Pool in 1974. 

So, with the price of the basics sky high, thats where the inertia and the apprehension lies.

Whats lurking in the horizon ?

> Perceived job loss from AI for many front line and repetitive work ; this means job security is very insecure.

>  Asset prices do not seem to come down ; since COVID, Singapore has seen the asset classes jump and stay there.

>  The Middle East Conflict is causing high oil prices and inflation is rearing its ugly head. The big worry is if the economy stagnates, and if there is no growth either through foreign direct investment through setting up of new companies, industries then we are facing stagflation. 

In summary - reasons why Singaporeans are having fewer or no children are :

1. Sky high asset prices 

2. Uncertain job climate 

3. Major economic restructuring with new jobs requiring AI skillsets

4. Young people's aspirations to own good class assets and fantastic life experiences over  raising family. (my opinion)

There it is. My humble opinion on what is leading to the low TFR in Singapore. 

 

We should Lead by Example.

Kids Aplenty in the 1970s. 

The recent brouhaha about the "Marriage and Parenthood Reset" by our Government and spearheaded by an interagency workgroup chaired by a Minister is laudable. However, the assignment of leadership of this workgroup needs to be reconsidered. The choice of the chairman is also rather puzzling,and I question the powers that be in selecting a chairman with no prior experience in both these aspects (Marriage and Parenthood)

People can and sometimes do a better job  than people who have experience. Look at football managers in the top flight. Many of the top managers (Pep Guardiola, Nuno Esperito Santo, and Juergen Klopp) have limited top class playing experience, but that did not stop them from helming top clubs, like Manchester City, Nottingham Forest (OK, they are second tier) and Liverpool respectively. 

Marriage is a union between 2 people, a holy matrimony in whatever religion people choose and it also a legally binding contract between 2 people in the eyes of the law, a husband and a wife. Singapore still chooses to be conservative and their is no same sex union recognized in Singapore at this point in time. 

Parenthood is another tough task, a lifetime of sacrifice, struggle, comittment and love for one's offspring. Today's world is very different from the Baby Boomer's time, (1946 - 1965) when raising children in the 70s, 80s, 90s had vastly different challenges, and opportunities than today.

I question whether the Committee can truly succeed, and how can they firstly emphatise what is front and centre of the Millenials, and Gen Zs minds, which is - high housing costs, long wait times, high cost of living, disruptive work with no guarantee of long term employment in this convoluted world ?

Better to sit down and talk to all the young folk out there, aggregate their fears and desires and come up with a workable blueprint and put it out and run with it. Better still, the working committee should be composed of people who are themselves married, and parents themselves.

Choose a few young influencer couples, divorcees, and singles (not the flashy in your face) to be the poster boys and girls.

Then GO WITH IT.

Tweak when there is resistance or bumps in the road.

Our Government is not omniscient, certainly they are no experts. 

They should accept whatever the new generation feedsback to them in this area. 

    

Road Deaths hit 10 year high in 2025 - ST news today. It takes 2 hands to clap.

Singapore Roads 

Today's headlines highlighted the fact that in 2025, the number of road deaths hit a record high for the last 10 years. Any person reading this would assume that the motorists are the sole problem. I disagree. There is another actor involved. 

LTA. You are also part of the problem. Let me cite just 3 stretches of road, which I commute regularly and, frankly, the road repositioning or roads, without proper early notification to motorists is deadly and an accident waiting to happen.  I reckon there are easily 20 stretches of road all over the country, which are undergoing massive road works due to MRT underground works, road widening and many so called 'road improvements' which cause massive irritation to drivers like myself, not to mention the chances of accident happening when there is road diversions (the traffic crossing is at another place some 30 m and to the left of the original road is an example).

When I say early notification of road diversion, there MUST BE some sign on the road clearly displayed as far as 500 m ahead for stretches of road, indicating that one lane will be closed off. In Singapore's case, it is at best 200 m ahead. This is poorly thought out and executed.

Many drivers like myself, keep to speed limits and we drive defensively. BUT if the road is totally new and there are new detours, many a times, we drivers are lost and following road and signal signs which sometimes are confusing, so sometimes, we get into some minor confusion while looking at the signs and not looking at the car to the left or right of your car.

New road signs pop up (Friendly Roads is one), and all kinds of road diversions (keep left and right as there is some road works at the centre lane of the Expressway), all add to the confusion of the driver.

New road diversion, new signs, not enough early warning in terms of road cones only put up less than 100 m to where the traffic truck is stopped, all these in my opinion fall far short to (for example) West European road safety protocols, which I was used to when I drove many times in Europe and Germany (from 1997 till 2010).    

Over last  4 years, post COVID, I have noticed that there are NUMEROUS road works in practically every town centre, or suburb. Thomson road area is a massive worksite for the last 3 years, pity the residents living along the stretch of Thomson Road leading to Scotts Road.

Thomson Road from Balestier Road Junction - United Square 

The area outside Velocity and Square2 is especially bad in terms of road diversions. This are has been in this state for 3 years at least, so much so that the entire area has for the last 3 years become something of a worksite with roads traversing through it.

Ang Mo Kio Central

In Ang Mo Kio, there are many roads which have also moved, due to some MRT underground tunneling and hence there are road diversions.

Ophir Road stretch from Jalan Besar to base of Sheares Bridge

There's so much road diversion, and with the diversion, sometimes, the road winds, and the lane markers get narrower between lanes.

Surely this will give some problems to drivers, cars or vehicles eating into each other's lane unecessarily. 

The Government should look into some of the points raised. 

     My suggestions are 

a) Do road enhancements (as much as possible) during the hours from midnight to say 6 am.

b) Keep top heavy vehicles such as cement mixers, low transporters and low loaders off the vehicular roads, especially expressways (like in Germany) and limit there usage to between midnight and 6 am.

    

c) Be mindful of are major high density roads leading to major office blocks (like MBC and downtown), and plan road works AFTER the rush hour (like 10 am to 4 pm) 

d) Drivers pay so much in terms of COE and still, we live the problem of many road diversions, the occasional congestion, and now, sky high number accidents resulting in road deaths. 

d) Private Hire cars (I will get a lot of flak here), need to slow down, and pace their routes carefully, if that is practically possible.

(I am just a driver reaching elderly driver status, this is just my opinion). 

   Conclusion

> There must be a nice balance between road upgrading timelines, scheduling of resurfacing and repainting of road to night times, (not during peak hours of getting to work and end of the day commute) 

> Give us motorists a break !!! 

  

 

Cameron HIghlands 1973 with Prof Chao, Mrs. Lee and Other Friends

 

L to R : Mrs. Chao, Arnold Lee, Prof Chao, Mrs. Lee,June Lim, John and Mum. 

Here are more pictures of the trip to Cameron Highlands in 1973 with her best friend, Prof Chao Hsi Ching and his wife, Mrs. Chao.

There was also another close family friend, Mrs. Lee and her son, Arnold Lee who is now a doctor based in the US.

L to R : Mrs. Chao, Mum, Mrs. Lee, John 

My Mum, bless her soul, seldom flew intercontinental trips. Her job was the personal assistant to the Permanent Secretary Ministry of Health and she was very dedicated to her work.However, she seldom flew with my father on his trips to England, where his studied at the Grays Inn of London back in the post war late 1940s and early 1950s.

My Dad Geoffrey had many friends and he almost always did a 'pilgrimage' to his adopted 'Motherland' every 1 to 2 years. I remember when growing up, we kids played with many of the children of Geoffrey's friends from England, and I recall even visiting a family with my father in 1974 (before I turned 12) and having some curry cooked by the wife of our host.

Mum with Unnamed Colleague

Mum however, did all the regional trips with us, during our swimming days at the Singapore Swimming Club in the early to late 1970s. To the best of my recollection, we travelled to Bangkok (1973), Penang (1974), Manila (1975) and Jakarta (1976). I will dig up those unforgettable photos - mainly for my recollection but they were really the 'salad' days of my youth.  

                                                         Mum with Colleagues 1975. 

I've always maintained that I am a much better runner than I am a swimmer. At best, I am an above average swimmer but not I'm not at national level. However, I was good enough to be the Swim Captain for my House in Sec 2 till Sec 4. I swam also for the Mechanical Department during my Undergraduate days and we won 3 Gold Medals. 

I was also selected as the Boys Swim Captain for my Swimming Team from 1975 till 1977, taking over from Adrian Tan in 1974. 

I will try to recall the lovely memories from 1974 till 1974 which had some really nice 'war stories'.

Wait for the Next Post, readers. 

Teen Years Cameron HIghlands 1973 ; John, Mum and Por Por

 

                        L to R : Por Por, Anna (Mum), John (Brother) and 2 Female Colleagues 

I'm posting some of these priceless pictures of my Mum, Anna, my maternal Grandmother (Por Por) and my Brother John of some visit they went in 1973. In those days, Singapore was pretty backward, and if my memory serves me right, I did not go for this trip in 1973. My mother, my Por Por and my brother went to Cameron Highlands with some of her office colleagues from the Ministry of Health. I believe the year was 1973. 

Mum with John outside Hotel in Cameron Highlands. 

All Smiles for a Group Wifie. Pity about the lady Covering Her Face. 

I believe I did not go for this trip as I was already slated to travel in 1974 with my Dad Geoffrey in June 1974 to Greece and England.

I will dig up those set of pictures and post them on the next few posts. 

Early Teenage Years 1974 till 1976

 

Travelled to London in June 1974

This is one segment of my life which I believe was one of the happiest. The early teen years, between 12 and 16 years of age. I will try to delve into my picture archives to see if I can find the years when we (my brother John and I) were actively swimming at the Swimming Club.

I recall, I was made the Boys Swim Captain as early as 1975, and we competed in the regional meets called the Sanya Samaki Swim meets with other clubs from South East Asia.

We travelled and swam in Penang, Bangkok Thailand, Jakarta Indonesia and Manila Philippines at the end of each calendar year, under the Team Captain of  Mr. Henry Chan

In June 1974, my father Geoffrey bought 2 tickets, one for me as a child (below 12 years of age) and one for himself, and we set out to Greece and England. Greece was the choice he chose because he wanted me to understand that Western civilization and the birth of Government was formed in the Greek empire, some 5000 years ago.

         Sitting Atop one of the Columns of the Parthenon in Acropolis, Athens, June 1974

We visited the Parthenon in Acropolis, Athens in June 1974. After one week, we went to London England and that is where he took this picture of me at the famous Tower Bridge. 

At the Swimming Club with John and my maternal cousins, Angela and Wendy  

(Dec 1974)

My parents joined the Singapore Swimming Club around 1972, when I was about 10 years old. My brother John (above) was 7 years old then. Those were really fun times, when we first learned to swim under the legendary coach Mr. Neo Chwee Kok (called the 'Flying Fish', as he represented Singapore under the Federation of Malaya during the 1956 Olympic Games). I was a late entry into the boys swim team, but I recall the other boys and girls game me the nickname 'Tarzan' (I'm not sure why maybe I was rather a devil prankster with a lot of mischief in me). John was given the nickname 'Teddy Bear' and these 2 nicknames stuck with us till we 'retired' from swimming sometime in  late 1979.

Bus Pass Photo 1975 (14 years of age)

We had training at least 4 to 5 times a week, most times in the evening, and when school was in the afternoon session, then we went for training in the mornings. On Sundays, we would skip Sunday School (tsk tsk) and go for waterpolo games after our training. The waterpolo games were really rough and a lot of underwater punching and scratching was going on. While this was a boy's tough game, I took it all in my stride, and came out unscathed. 

We participated in the inaugural Inter Team meet, where I was one of the 4 captains who led a co-ed team of  swimmers one week per month for 12 months. I recall my team was called the Barracuda Bravados and we won the inaugural (first of many) Team Championships. The other captains as I recall were as listed below. I was the weakest swimming captain of the 4, so I was given the first cut of choosing the swimmers for my Barracuda team. 

a) Sng Tong Hoe

b) Audrey Tan

c) Khoo Teng Cheong. 

1977 Inter Team Swim Meet.

Champions : Barracuda Bravados

Captain : Yours Truly.

I was incredibly proud of that first achievement !

I believe I have the team trophy somewhere in the recesses of my house.