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2 live thesundaytimes May 26, 2013 PHOTOS: ST FILE, DIOS VINCOY JR FOR THE STRAITS TIMES Clifford Pier in 1950 (above), and under reconstruction in 2009 (below) with Marina Bay Financial Centre also under construction in the background. “I can’t remember how long we waited, but there was no boat schedule and we did not have mobile phones then.” MR WONG HIONG BOON (left), 81, a part-time art teacher who, as a six-year-old in the late 1930s, spent hours at Clifford Pier waiting for his father to return from his job working on ships out at sea One On The Bund (left) at Clifford Pier serves contemporary Chinese cuisine. Some architectural features have been retained in the makeover because the pier has been designated a conservation building. A Pier into the past and future A new exhibition will trace how Clifford Pier has changed from a humble pier into an upscale venue Cheryl Faith Wee A s a six-year-old in the late 1930s, Mr Wong Hiong Boon would head to Clifford Pier at least once every two weeks on Saturday mornings. There, he would spend hours waiting for his father Wong Seet Lin to return from his job working on ships out at sea. The 81-year-old part-time art teacher recalls standing on a platform near the water’s edge with his older brother and late mother, who were then nine and 30something respectively, anticipating his father’s return on a sampan. He says: “We would get there early. I can’t remember how long we waited, but there was no boat schedule and we did not have mobile phones then.” Clifford Pier, which opened in 1933, was then a bustling landing and departure point for passengers commuting to ships out at sea. It was nicknamed Ang Teng Beh Tao (red lamp pier in Hokkien) because of the lights used to direct sea vessels. Today, boats no longer arrive and depart at the art deco-style pier. It closed in 2006, and was converted into an upscale dining complex in 2008. An exhibition next month in celebration of the pier’s 80th anniversary will take a look at its past. It is organised by The Fullerton Heritage, a dining and hospitality group which runs the building. On display are about 60 photographs of the pier, donated by the public and government agencies. Mr Wong’s memories of the place, along with 13 other personal accounts of the pier, will also be featured. They consist of first-hand accounts gathered by The Fullerton Heritage, as well as memories submitted to the irememberCliffordPier campaign of the National Library Board’s Singapore Memory Project. The president of Singapore Management University, Mr Arnoud De Meyer, 59, who has lived here for about eight years and is originally from Belgium, contributed his memories to The Fullerton Heritage. He made trips here about three to four times a year from 1984 to teach operations management to executives from developing countries. He visited Clifford Pier in 1987 when he took a wooden boat from the pier for a day-trip to the Southern Islands. Mr Meyer, who is single, says: “I came out of the clean high-tech world in Orchard Road, where my hotel was, into an older part of Singapore – it was a lot messier back then. There were the old Indonesian boatmen who were quite loud.” Clifford Pier was given conservation status by the Urban Redevelopment Authority in 2007. The 26,000 sq ft space currently serves as the entrance to The Fullerton Bay Hotel, which opened in 2010. It also houses the five-year-old Chinese fine-dining restaurant One On The Bund. A chandelier now hangs from the distinct arched concrete trussses that hold up the former pier, designed by the late Brtish architect Frank Dorrington Ward. He was also responsible for the former Supreme Court building on St Andrew’s Road. Ms Susan Leong, an administration assistant in her 30s, recalls going to Clifford Pier with her mother when she was seven years old. They were en route to the Central Business District to run errands and spent several minutes at the pier just enjoying the sea breeze. She says: “It used to look very dark from the outside. Now it is all lit up. The high arched roof looks the same but it is now a place that is more for tourists.” Kezia Toh Black-out curtains, warm milk before bed and lavender-scented pillows. For years, insomniacs in Singapore have been tossing and turning out ways to slip into a dreamy snoozefest. A recent editorial in the Annals, a journal by the Singapore Academy of Medicine, found that one in three people here is getting so little sleep that it is affecting their health. It said that people who do not sleep enough are more likely to become obese and suffer from diabetes and heart problems. SundayLife! asks a range of experts, including sleep doctors, traditional Chinese medicine physicians and aromatherapists, for tips to make falling asleep easier. Hide the clock Avoid the temptation to watch the clock if you cannot sleep, says Dr Ong Thun How, director of the Sleep Disorders Unit at Singapore General Hospital. “If you lie down and stare at the clock while trying to fall asleep, you are inadvertently stressing yourself by trying to meet a ‘deadline’.” Turn your clock towards the wall while you sleep to avoid sneaking peeks at it and No electronics allowed Keep mobile phones, television sets, laptops and iPads away from your haven of sleep. If these are in your room, switch them off. While there is no scientific evidence that the wavelengths from electronic devices affects sleep, turning off mobile phones removes the “subtle stress” of the need to stay connected, says Dr Shirish. A bedroom “only for sleep” may be difficult to achieve, says Dr Ong, as many Singaporeans live in crowded living spaces, which may not be sleep-conducive. Leave your bed If you lie awake in bed for 30 minutes or so, get up to do something else. A sedate activity such as reading is good, but avoid doing it in bed. Make sure you are in a different part of the bedroom or in a different room, says Dr Shirish. This conditions the body to sleep when you fall into bed. Return to bed only when you feel sleepy. The exhibition Clifford Pier – A Place In Our Hearts will run from June 4 to Aug 31 at One On The Bund restaurant at 80 Collyer Quay. Smell sleep An aromatherapy burner to diffuse fumes from essential oils of lavender, mandarin, rose and chamomile can do wonders, says Ms Julie Lew, 52, manager of aromatherapy brand Perfect Potion. A cheaper option is to drip one or two drops on a tissue and slip it into your pillowcase so that you can smell it while you sleep. A scent pillow or satchet may not be a good idea as it could grow mould in about three months, she adds. Cedarwood, ylang ylang and patchouli could also work, says aromatherapist Sheeba Majmudar, 39, from health and wellness centre Verita. You can apply a drop behind each ear or use a timed diffuser, which will automatically switch off when you fall asleep, she says. Keep hands and feet warm Wear mittens, gloves and socks to “trick” the mind and body for better sleep, says Dr Shirish Johari, 43, a senior resident physician at Tan Tock Seng Hospital’s Sleep Disorder Clinic. Studies have shown that keeping your hands and feet warm dilates blood vessels in those parts, which cools the blood as it flows through the open channels near the skin’s surface, lowering your body temperature and making sleep come easier. turn it back around in the morning to check the time. [email protected] stress hormones like adrenaline.” Doctors advise a two-hour wind-down period – have a hot shower, a massage or practice muscle relaxation techniques, or listen to new-age music. Avoid studying, office work, cybergaming, television or housework during this period, says Dr Sridhar Venkateswaran, 43, assistant director of Changi General Hospital’s Integrated Sleep Service. It sees about 120 patients with sleep disorders a week, an increase from previous years. Sleepless in Singapore no more Cool your room Sleep at a temperature which is comfortable for you, says Dr Shirish. Though it differs from person to person, the ideal range is between 20 and 22 deg C. A cooler room tricks your body into lowering its temperature, a pre-requisite for deep sleep. Likewise, Mr Wayne Lim, 28, an operations executive in the maritime industry, says he can barely recognise the pier. From 2003 to 2006, he went to Clifford Pier almost every day as part of his job, to take small speed crafts to big ships. Sometimes, he arrived at the pier in the wee hours of the morning at 4am. He recalls: “Some of the people who worked there would be sleeping on the floor on mattresses. In the past, it was a very simple place but it is so high-class now. It is such a big change.” Strangely, trying to stay awake rather than trying to fall asleep can do the trick. He says: “In what is known as ‘paradoxical intention’, the mind that focuses on being awake will relax sooner than the mind that is struggling to fall asleep.” Two-hour wind down To relax the mind and body, dedicate a winding-down period to prep for a good snooze, says Dr Ong. She says: “The mind is not an engine that can be turned off at will and when you are tensed up after a hectic day, the body is still pumped full of TCM methods Cook a sweet dessert of lily bulb, lotus seed, red dates and longan – about 30g of each – and drink it two hours before sleep, says TCM physician Lim Lay Beng, 50, of YS Healthcare TCM Clinic. These ingredients clear the “heart fire” which prevents sound sleep. To calm the nerves, drink half a glass of warm milk. However, avoid drinking Milo, says Ms Lim. “I usually do not encourage patients to drink this as it contains cocoa and can wake up the brain,” she adds. She also recommends a 30-minute warm foot bath an hour before bedtime – dip your feet in warm water mixed with about 30ml of rice wine or vinegar, which helps the blood to circulate. [email protected]