Boat Quay is a historical quay in
Singapore which is situated upstream from the mouth of the Singapore River on
its southern bank.
It was the busiest part of the
old Port of Singapore, handling three quarters of all shipping business during
the 1860s. Because the south of the river here resembles the belly of a carp,
which according to Chinese belief is where wealth and prosperity lay, many
shophouses were built, crowded into the area.
Though serving aquatic trade is
no longer Boat Quay's primary role, the shop houses on it have been carefully
conserved and now house various bars, pubs and restaurants. Therefore Boat
Quay's social-economic role in the city has shifted away from that of trade and
maritime commerce, and now leans towards more of a role accommodated for
tourism and aesthetics for the commercial zone of which encloses the Singapore
River. It is the soft front to the cosmopolitan banking and financial sectors
lying immediately behind it.
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| Boat Quay - Singapore |