We will now be entering Reflections at Bukit Chandu. Remember to maintain silence at all times! Just a word of introduction, this museum is rather small in comparison to other museums such as the Singapore Art Museum or even the Singapore Philatelic Museum, but it is still a treasure trove of knowledge about World War Two in Singapore, especially about the Malay Regiment that made their last stand here. The museum is only two stories tall and does not cover a very large area, but it definitely enables us to appreciate the sacrifices made by those brave soldiers who perished to defend their homeland and the golden peace which we enjoy today.
On entering, one can see some artifacts from the ye old days of war which included parangs, gas lamps and air-raid sirens behind glass panels. Apart from that, excerpts from war diaries, black and white photographs and information and dates regarding the war are also present. Directly in front the glass doors, or to the right of the mini gallery, is a projector screen with some informative "movies" about the battles that took place in Singapore, which includes "Massacre at British Alexandra Hospital", "Battle at Pasir Panjang", etc. A little wooden bench is directly in front of the screen for people to sit on while watching the shows. Against a wall beside them (to the right) are yet more black and white photographs along with related information, but this time about the bicycles that the Japanese used during the war, along with two of such bicycles in front of them. On the opposite side of the wall, a metallic statue of Japanese general Yamashita stands with a walking stick in one hand. I am inclined to believe that a barricade was placed in front of it to prevent an angry mob of people from pushing it over (ha,ha!). To the right hand side of the statue is the wooden staircase leading up to the second level, and beside that is a dark room with "pepper's ghost", a soldier on a small screen in a computer-generated background of a forested area and some small houses. The soldier constantly talks about the fierce fighting in Singapore and the resistance put up by the Malay Regiment against the Japanese. Japanese planes keep flying overhead and shower the area with bombs. At one point, the soldier evens fights with some Japanese troops. The show ends tragically with the British surrendering and the soldier disappears into nothing.
That's all for the time being, but we will be going up the staircase to the second story soon. Until then, see you!
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