UOB Plaza, Singapore

Currently one of the three tallest skyscrapers in Singapore

UOB Plaza Two and UOB Plaza One.

The UOB Plaza (United Overseas Bank Plaza or 大华银行大厦) is a complex of two high-rise buildings in Singapore. The UOB Plaza One is with its 280m one of the tallest skyscrapers in the city, the smaller UOB Plaza Two shares the post-modernist design of the first building, but only tops out at 162m. The UOB Plaza is one of the 3 skyscrapers in Singapore that are 280m tall: The other two are OUB Centre and Republic Plaza.

The UOB Plaza Two and One in December 2008.

The UOB Plaza in the concrete jungle of Singapore's downtown.

The UOB Plaza seen from the East. On the right are the High Courts.

Sir Stamford Raffles in front, UOB Plaza in the back. Photo from January 2005.

[Info][Skyscrapers page][My Singapore page][All photos by MKL, 2005/2008]

Siloso beach, Sentosa 2005, Singapore

Singapore's famous island

Siloso beach is a beach on Sentosa island in Singapore. It was my favorite beach during my stay in 2005. I really enjoyed swimming here, although it was extremely hot and I could get sunburned very easily. Singapore lays near the equator and the tropical sun is merciless. The beach is very well preserved, but a lot has changed since my 2005 trip. Actually meanwhile the whole Sentosa island has been heavily modified. I've seen a big construction site during my 2008 trip and wasn't happy about it. Let me show you how Sentosa used to be before they started to build like crazy.

Siloso beach in January 2005:

I was all empty that day, because I went during the week.

Cool deck, where you can drink overly priced drinks.

Small islets along Siloso beach.

Palms.

The water was clear and seemed clean.

Sentosa is very close to the port of Singapore, one of the biggest ports in the world.

[My Singapore page][All photos by MKL, 2005]

Esplanade - Theatres on the Bay, Singapore

Singapore's modern architecture

Boy, was I in shape in 2005.

The Esplanade - Theaters on the Bay is one of Singapore's landmark buildings. Actually, it's two buildings in a shape of a durian (or maybe eyes of a fly? Who will ever know). The two buildings are a concert hall and a theater (like Liberty square in Taipei), but there are also a library and a shopping mall. My ex girlfriend and I went atop of the Esplanade building to enjoy the view of Marina bay and Singapore's down town. It was really hot at that time, but I enjoyed the nice views. Enjoy them with me:

The durian on the right.

Hotels on the left.

Below is a small yard, pretty neat.

Swissôtel the Stamford raising above the Easplanade.

Parts of Singapore's down town.

One of my favorite buildings in Singapore: The Fullerton hotel.

[Skyscrapers page][My Singapore page][All photos by MKL, 2005]

Singapore's downtown skyline, 2005

View on Singapore's skyline in January 2005

The tallest two buildings are UOB Centre and UOB Plaza One, both 280m tall.

I remember how impressed I was with Singapore's skyline, when I first saw it in January 2005. It looked like a concrete forest of high-rise buildings to me, the tallest among them topped at 280m. And since in Slovenia we don't have such downtowns, it was truly something new to me. This experience was life changing to me. In one day that I needed to arrive on the other side of the globe, I have entered into a world I have not known before. Never was I further from home than at that time, when I was in Singapore. It was also the biggest city I have ever seen until that time. I was young, barely 25 and of course fascinated by everything I saw and experienced in Singapore. Now, after seeing Hong Kong, Taipei and Seoul, I'm somewhat harder to impress.

The skyline of Singapore today doesn't impress me anymore. I think they have spoiled it by building too many questionable buildings. I'd rather see they would've kept the downtown as it is and build a very tall skyscraper in the middle, maybe around 500m. Instead they're building tens of smaller buildings all around Marina bay (you can see that here). That will somehow make Singapore's skyline three times bigger. But will the quality of life increase? Will it benefit average Singaporeans? We will see. I understand that Singapore needs to have plans for further development, but I wonder how will the city look like in 100 years. Where can they expand? Will they start tearing down old skyscrapers and replace them? Only time will tell. Until then, let's enjoy Singapore's old skyline from January 2005:

Statue of Sir Stamford Raffles, a British colonialist, who founded Singapore.

He wanted Singapore to be an important harbor for the British empire in Southeast Asia (early 19th century). He is being worshiped in Singapore today, praised as the founder of the city. The names Stanford or Raffles are commonly used for buildings and streets in Singapore. The statue above is located in the downtown near the Singapore river.

Below the statue, in memory of Stamford Raffles.

Singapore's high-rise buildings in the downtown area.

This made me dizzy in 2005. But it wouldn't make me dizzy anymore after I've seen Hong Kong.

[Skyscrapers page][My Singapore page][All photos by MKL, 2005]

Parkview Square, Singapore

One of the most expensive office buildings in the city

Parkview Square.

Parkview Square is an office high-rise building in Singapore. It was completed in 2002 in an Art deco style. It's located in Singapore's central district and stands out with its design and height (144m, 24 floors), because it's surrounded by parks and smaller buildings. I like this skyscraper, but I think it doesn't fit well in Singapore's architecture, it's too different, too unique. It looks massive from close, like a monumental palace, that could stay somewhere in Europe, rather than in Asia. It's definitely one of Singapore's most notable skyscrapers.

I took this photo in January 2005.

Golden crane, the symbol of Parkview Square.

[Singapore][My Skyscrapers page][Info source][All photos by MKL, 2005]