Ubin

This site uses Google Analytics to monitor search terms. Here are some of the search terms used which will be developed into full posts later. Meanwhile, I am updating them here in a Q & A format.

Q. Busiest period in Pulau Ubin.

Weekends and Public holidays are usually crowded with visitors. It get worse during long weekends holidays and there would be long queues at both Changi point ferry terminal and Pulau Ubin jetty and long wait ordering food. Most bikes are rented out too. On the other hand, its quiet during weekdays and passengers have to wait much longer for boats to fill up. But Ubin is more tranquil and shy animals more likely to be seen. Normal weekends would be the best with frequent boat departures from Ubin until 7.30pm when visitors dwindles down.

Q. Best times to visit Pulau Ubin.

Do check links on this site for the current temperature range. Anything above 31°C would be stifling hot. The other is to check the peak tides which coincide with refreshing breezes.

December to March is cooler which coincide with North East Monsoon, along with arrivals of migratory birds. Haze from Indonesia may occur during prolong periods of dry weather from June to September, affecting sensitive lungs and reduced visibility for photography. On the other hand, its durian season plus opportunities to photograph island festivals.

Q. Internet access in Pulau Ubin

There are no internet cafes on Pulau Ubin so you’ll need to use 3g wireless access. Make sure your signals are not picked up by Malaysian telcos to avoid ‘bill shock’.

Update: Jan 2012, Starhub has apparently cleaned up their act, their signals stayed locked throughout the whole day while we were trekking. My friend is able to browse and surf faster than in mainland Singapore.

Q. Dengue fever and Malaria outbreaks in Pulau Ubin?

There are no outbreaks in recent knowledge. Visitors get bitten by mosquitoes and inevitably worry about risks of getting dengue or malaria so bring along a mosquito spray. Those containing DEET are most effective. You can also click on www.dengue.gov.sg for current information.

Q. Nparks Toilets

This is an important question. Especially for those who prefer to hold their bladders than to do it in the bushes. The toilets are located far apart at beaches like Noordin Beach, Marman Beach, Jelutong Beach, the visitor centre at Ubin village and at Chek Jawa. Make sure you bring your own toilet rolls as selfish visitors are known to have taken entire rolls for their own use.

See the solar panel on top of the toilets roof? The flushes are sun-powered. But not when it rains with dark clouds for days. Then they stop working and the disgusting stuff stacked almost to the brim.

Q. Are you allowed to bring alcohol to Pulau Ubin?

I supposed its easy to form that impression, going through the X-ray security checking and seeing fences with razor concertina barriers. Although rare now, the Police Coast Guards even conduct passport checks on innocent looking tourists. Beers and cigarettes are sold in Pulau Ubin village provision shops. Duty paid alcohol and smokes are allowed in just like in the mainland.

Q. Bringing dogs to Ubin

A. You may bring your pets to Pulau Ubin with you. Only a small minority of city dwellers are terrified of animals, so you may have to charter the boat if they object. In such situation, organize among yourselves and top up the fares ($30 total) if there are not enough passengers. Also note that there are no clear rules if they are transported in pet crates while some boatmen are forever looking for ways to make a quick buck. Hopefully relevant parties take this up with MPA or report them with their boat numbers if you think you have been taken advantaged of. At the island, make sure you leash your pet for its own safety. Make sure heartworms shots are up to date due to prevalence of mosquitoes.

Q. Are there restaurants serving wild boar meat in Ubin.

We were camping in Ubin when an old man approached us asking where the barbershop at. A strange question indeed and when we asked around, there was a barbershop, a school and a government medical dispensary but its all gone now. Like Rip Van Winkle, your knowledge also out of date. In modern Singapore, eateries are only allowed to order game meat from approved sources for heath and disease control. Selling of bushmeat is otherwise illegal. Our ever creative chefs in mainland Singapore will however use fresh market pork, overcook it with heavy curry powders and gave it fancy names like wild boar, venison, even dog meat.

Q. PRC woman fell and died while cycling in ubin. (Cycling accident on 25 march 2011)

Bicycle crashes are common in Pulau Ubin, and once in a while someone get killed. Its big news on domestic media which overseas visitors are not aware. They see everyone renting bikes and assume its safe. As human beings we have natural fear of heights and water but no such fear when it come to coasting downhill until its too late. I think its time we should put up a large skull and crossbones warning signs instead of multiple ones which everyone seem to ignore.

Related post on bike crashes

Q. Ubin drownings.

See separate post

Q. Where can we swim.
A. Not at the beaches. Water is polluted. The quarry lakes is the best but closed for public safety. My NZ friend told me its warm and almost better than the lakes in his Christchurch hometown.

Q. Beach safety during high tide

Ubin beaches are not affected by strong sea currents unlike Sentosa where drownings had occurred. . At low tide, you can walk quite a distance away from shore with special guided tours at Chek Jawa organized by Nparks. But not all parts are navigable. Danger lurks at river mouths or streams flowing out to sea. The mud there are soft and its a struggle to free your legs from the sucking muck up to waist. You can struggle until high tide comes in. Best is to head back. There was an accident where a woman and her child drowned while clam digging at Kranji. Visibility was then poor due to rain. The unfortunate woman mistook the lights in Johore as landfall and walked further to sea while the tide came in.

Q. Rock temple of Ubin.

There is one mentioned in Joseph Lai Earth blog. Its located in Outbound Bound School and is not accessible to the public. You can find it in Dr. Chua Ee Kiam book – Pulau Ubin : Ours to Treasure. Would appreciate very much also if any readers, especially those from OBS, can share his/her latest pictures of Ubin’s rock temple.

Q. Chinese cemetries in Pulau Ubin.

There are 2 Chinese cemeteries in Ubin. They are named ‘Kg. Bukit Coffee’ and ‘Kg. Sungei Tiga’ respectively by Nparks. The first is located near Jalan Wat Siam.

The older one is located at Jalan Batu Ubin. According older folks who lived there since young, the cemetery is more than a century old. Its caretaker said its much older at more than 150 years. Being small, the plots were a mixture of designs of different eras and generations apart. The cemeteries were closed in the 1990s.

Grave plot meant for a two. Unfortunately, the surviving spouse would be interred in the mainland as the cemetery has been decommissioned.

Q. How to avoid ghosts on Pulau Ubin.

A. Fear of ghosts is perfectly natural among young people and its part of growing up. To avoid, stop your imagination from running wild by avoiding Asian ghosts movies and telling each other ghosts stories.

Q. Ubin Japanese ghost stories.

A. The Japanese invading army landed first landed in Ubin in WWII when the 5th Imperial Guards made a feint attack. The main attack from the western side would come a day later. Ubin however did not suffer from atrocities committed by sadistic occupation forces. There was no recollection of massacre sites in Ubin by the 101 year old headman of Pulau Ubin, Mr Lim Chye Joo, who have since passed away in 2006.

The villagers felt the island was protected by its resident Tua Pek Kong diety.

So feel relaxed and play songs of your favorite Japanese band.

Q. Na Tuk Kong (拿督公) Added Jan 2011.

Na Tuk Kong are said to be supernatural beings resident to a particular area. Shrines are built at places where people have encounters. Their presence are also felt by strong kemayan incense. The shrine structure, which is usually painted yellow, might appear empty except for a piece of granite rock compared to the small Na Tuk Kong statuette at the German Girl Shrine. Prayers are offered for lottery strike and good fortune. Two of such shrines can be found in Ubin, one near Murai Hut along Marman river and the other on the remote north east of the island.

Na Tuk Kong Shrine

Shrine interior

Q. Running in Pulau Ubin
There are two guys I know who run there every weekend. Using Nparks shelters as landmarks, their favorite circuits are
1) Murai, Kelicap, Pekakak, Punai, Beberek, Murai. The distance is about 3.8km with 2 steep and 2 gradual inclines, running with traffic.
2) Murai, Marman beach, Orchid farm, Rubber plantation dirt track, Murai. The distance is 2.1 km with 1 gradual incline, running facing traffic for the first part.
Small hazards include startled animals (they either fight or flee) so avoid running in total silence like a ninja.

Q. What is the history of Jalan Noordin

This is a very much a draft as I am still collecting materials for this entry and verifying the information.

Jalan Noordin derives its name from Kg. Noordin whose inhabitants have since moved out. Among its inhabitants were Orang Lauts who are nomadic fisher-folks, with their kampungs built on stilts at edges of river mouths.

Most features of Kg. Noordin has been obliterated. A contractor illegally flattened the area for soil reclamation was forced by the Government to refill it back to its original height. (Fortunately he has the financial means to do so but land on other parts of Pulau Ubin has been illegally cleared by others who are now on the run so to speak.) Kampong Noordin is appropriated and NPCC (National Police Cadet Corp) built which is off limits. There is a heritage tree, a Johore Fig (Ficus kerkhovenii) within its ground.

Noordin beach is a favorite swimming spot among British colonial forces and their families with its beautiful granite boulders. Too bad the boulders are now gone. There is a Nparks rulebook somewhere which state that Noordin Beach is the only beach allowed for swimming in Pulau Ubin. Unfortunately, the fence built by Home Affairs to keep out smugglers and illegal immigrants also keep floatsam and rubbish in so the beach is no longer pristine or attractive.

Noordin beach is probably the most known spooky place, with ghost stories that are passed on orally from one generation of kids to another. The Nparks toilet at the knoll was once a seafood restaurant. A Chinese burning tower is next to it, its dome glowing eerily on a moon lighted night. There is the so-called blue house where a ghostly apparition was seen which is just a house with its doors painted blue, the lady of the house has a habit of brushing her hair by the window.

Noordin beach is accessible via Jalan Noordin which cuts through a vast interior wetlands. Crocodiles once lurked there, Ubin village centenarian headman, who have since died passed away, recalled a person who was attacked and killed by a croc when Singapore was then Japanese occupied Syonan-to. The bridge where the accident happen would be flooded when tides reach 3.3 metres in height but is safe to cross however.

The swamp is home to rarely seen otters and its location known to Nature society people. Its proximity to the beach makes the whole area buzzing with biting insects so repellents are necessary to endure them.

Q. Tigers in Pulau Ubin

What are seen now are tiger beers sold at Pulau Ubin provision shops while the Chinese temple nearby has a tiger god shrine. Other than that, there would be occasional tiger scares due to by mistaken identity. In the book, Indiscreet Memories: 1901 Singapore Through the Eyes of a Colonial Englishman, tigers were observed to “swim over from Johore to Ubin, take a breather there, and complete the journey to the [mainland] island, landing at [Changi] Fairy Point, and giving birth to their young in that neighbourhood”

Q. Salt from fresh water brought by wind in ubin quarry?

The disused quarries nearer to the sea coast tastes saltier due to saltwater intrusion. This is also the reason why quarrying have to be stopped as PWD (Public Works Department) set depth limits for safety reasons. Already the earth along Jelutong Road section bordering Pekan Quarry have shifted prompting Nparks to close it. For this reason, it is unlikely the quarries will ever be re-opened for granite extraction. Singapore is now importing granite from places as far away as China.