A festive mood at the Ngee Ann City complex.
This week, guest writer Nadia, a photography and shopping enthusiast, shares her thoughts and photos on Christmas in Singapore.
December in Singapore is heralded with decorative balls in the trees, reindeer on the lamp posts and the biggest, brightest Christmas trees along Orchard Road. The malls attempt to outdo each other with decorations, and the sidewalks come alive with a different magical theme each year.
If you’ve never been to Singapore, Orchard Road is the place to shop: where malls line both sides of the road and where there is an abundance of high-street, couture and home-grown/ Asian labels everywhere you look. Orchard Road is where you find two Louis Vuitton boutiques separated by just one mall in between them. It’s where you will find a mall (http://www.ionorchard.com/ ) with Prada and Harry Winston on level 2 and The All Havaianas Store on Basement 2.
This shopper’s paradise is constantly growing and this year spilled beyond its typical boundaries as more malls sprouted further down the road. We have plenty of other shopping districts but this growing tribute to the local (and international) shoppers’ appetite is probably what propelled Singapore to Number One in FutureBrand’s 2009 ranking for shopping (http://www.futurebrand.com/cbi/rankings/).
Orchard Road at Christmas is an international tourist attraction.
The Christmas spirit in Orchard Road is infectious. I don’t celebrate Christmas but just being towed along in the flow of humanity on the brightly lit sidewalks one night was enough to make me seek out potential, albeit imaginary, presents for my loved ones. Imaginary, that is, until I succumbed and decided to give little presents anyway. Partly because I wanted to share in the Christmas cheer permeating the crowds, and partly because I was motivated to do so by the memory of a little red velvet sock, with soft white feather trimming, filled with colorful chocolates that I woke up to on a Christmas morning in a little blue house on the hill.
Christmas in Orchard Road may be hot or wet depending on the fickle weather; the malls filled with students on vacation; the streets a mass of humanity; and the roads a blockade of vehicles. But it’s the brightest, happiest place to be. Will I see you there next year?
The tree at the Ion Orchard mall is the biggest tree on Orchard Road, standing at 6 storeys tall and 9m wide.
Christmas lights along Orchard Road.
The decorations at Tangs department store, one of Singapore's most famous landmarks.
A trio of trees, including one that looks like it is made of giant Ferrero Rocher chocolates.
Takashimaya's delightful Beary Christmas Tree.
Ngee Ann City's Christmas tree.
Building Bridges 
Sharifah,
Spectacular scenes.
Riding down Orchard Road at Christmastime in an open top double decker bus on a balmy Tropical night is powerful competition to riding in a one-horse open sleigh in any Winter Wonderland a la Jingle Bells. I wonder if that’s still done?
Hi Louis,
The open top double decker bus is still traversing Orchard Road. It’s even more popular around this time as you get a great view from above and with the slow-moving traffic, there’s plenty of time to take photos of the decorations and shopping frenzy. Try and wave at the crowd, there will definitely be people waving back.
Hi Louis and Nadia, thanks for the comment and the answer.
Talking about Christmastime and the weather, I remember as a child, I was fascinated by winter scenes in story books. I told myself that one day, I would be able to make a snowman, complete with a carrot for a nose, and with a scarf and hat. Now that I’m living in a country with snow, I’ve yet to fulfill this childhood ambition. Maybe, soon. Happy Holidays.
Nadia, thanks for the information that the open top double decker buses still operate along Orchard Rd.