One nation, many parties

Forget the stereotypes. When Insight asked people how they would love to mark Singapore's 50th anniversary next year, the ideas - from Ah Beng parties to an Instagram cafe crawl - show a different, creative and caring side to the so-called conformist, unemotional Singaporean. Nur Asyiqin Mohamad Salleh and Walter Sim report.

Food

1. Void deck picnic

"When I think of Singapore, I straightaway think of hawker food and void decks," says Mr Ang C.K., 52, who is self-employed. "So I want to invite all the people in my block to buy their favourite hawker food, and we can have a picnic together at the void deck." What's your favourite? "Satay! No, carrot cake. Or nasi lemak? Aiyah, I eat everything, lah!"

2. Durian party

Singapore Kindness Movement chief William Wan hopes to work with other voluntary groups to hold a durian party for lovers of the pungent fruit.

"We will have our favourite durians and sing all our National Day songs," he says. Proceeds will, of course, go to charity.

3. 50 fishes for a feast

"I will catch 50 fishes! Then we will cook them and have one big makan with our neighbours," says angler Ahmad Kasim, 50.

"Like real only!" his friend mutters, having been dipping their lines into the murky waters of a Jurong East canal for two hours.

"You don't believe?" retorts Mr Ahmad Kasim. "Then next year you do the cooking!"

4. Singapore-themed cocktails

Banker Melvin Chua, 30, says it will be fun to hold a house party with a few friends at home, where they can "experiment" and create cocktails out of uniquely local ingredients. What if someone concocts something out of durian?

He replies: "That's what the whole challenge is about!"

5. A special ice cream flavour

For Singapore's 49th birthday, home-grown ice cream chain Udders has a new flavour - "Mari Kita", red velvet and cream cheese ice cream with red velvet brownie mix-ins.

But for the Big 50, a "very special" flavour is on the cards - "Preferably something zesty and zingy to signify that Singapore at 50 years young - not old - is full of life and promise and unexpected surprises!" says director Wong Peck Lin, 43.

6. Visit 50 cafes in one day

Thick-rimmed glasses and artfully trimmed facial hair? Check. Found sipping coffee at a Tiong Bahru cafe, poring over a copy of Monocle magazine? Check.

"Am I speaking in my capacity as a hipster?" he asks, waving a hand dismissively when asked his name (too mainstream, perhaps?). He has a bow tie on, with shirt buttoned at the collar. "Maybe I'll visit 50 cafes in 24 hours next year and document it on Instagram. Do you think SG50 will fund me?"

7. Bake Singapore a cake

"I just picked up baking this year," says Madam Sally Chan, 52, waving a plastic bag containing three newly purchased books on baking. "Maybe I can make something - a red-and-white kueh lapis (layered cake) next year?"

Kids

8. Free hugs!

Pint-sized Chua Jin Sen - better known as child YouTube sensation Dr Jiajia - did a test run hugging 50 strangers in Orchard Road this February with his brother Jin Chou. Next year, he hopes for a repeat closer to National Day with volunteers at Raffles Place to catch the office crowd.

"It's very fun to see new people and hug them. Some of them were very happy and surprised! I think with a hug, you can make people happy," says the eight-year-old.

9. Party with neighbours

Nine-year-old Arvind spends his afternoons at his next-door neighbour's flat. There, the only child is big brother and little brother to the neighbour's three children.

"I love my neighbours! So next year, I want to have a party with them and provide food for them to say thank you for being my best friends," he says.

10. Painting the flag on her face

"You cannot do that! Later, your principal will scold you." "Why cannot?" A mother, 36, sighs, trying to convince her seven-year-old daughter that she cannot go to school with the Singapore flag painted on her face next year.

11. Naming his brother 'Singapore'

His little brother is coming next year, says a seven-year-old who gave his name as just Benedict. "I said, 'Mummy, It's Singapore's special birthday! So we can name the baby Singapore!'"

What did she think of that? "She said, 'Singapore is a country, not a human.'"

12. Have a young 'un

Corporate communications manager Jean Koh, 27, got hitched in May last year after a five-year relationship.

"Next year will be a good year to make a baby," she says. When asked if the Jubilee Baby gift pack was an extra draw, she says, channelling her inner kiasu-ness: "Of course!"

13 'Just come visit Pa'

He casts a lonely figure at the void deck of a flat in Redhill, curls of smoke wreathing the air around him as he puffs away on a cigarette.

What's your name? "Don't tell you." Age? "Older than Singapore."

How do you want to celebrate next year? "I want to see my children. This year, they are all overseas, all busy. So next year, they must come back to Singapore and see me. Just come visit Pa, okay?"<div class="embed">[[nid:130107]]</div>

Song & Dance

14. Learn National Day lyrics

"When I was young, I thought there was this part in (the song) Home that went 'This is home, coli (bra in Malay)' instead of 'surely'. So I'd giggle," says hospitality executive Khairul Azhar, 28. "Next year, I'll memorise all our National Day songs and sing them properly."

15. Flash mob

A massive flash mob dressed in red and white, dancing to remixes of National Day songs. "The final pose would be people arranged to make a giant Singapore flag that can be seen from the sky!" says Ms Wu Jiezhen, 25, of The Hidden Good, a civic initiative to capture good deeds.

16. A music gig with local acts

Local folk-pop outfit The Sam Willows dedicated to Singapore's 49th a rendition of Kit Chan's Home, which Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong has praised as a "beautiful interpretation". Frontman Benjamin Kheng, 23, says, for next year, "we'd love to do a National Day music gig with other Singaporean acts".

17. A song contest

"We always hear people complaining about National Day songs now. Eeyah, why like that one?" says undergraduate Jessica Tan, 21. "I'm guilty of that, too." So next year, she and her friends might hold a mini-contest, writing and composing a National Day song of their very own. Her strategy? "No rapping!"<div class="embed">[[nid:130107]]</div>Places

18. Cycling around the island

Mr Andrew Tan, 46, slaps his thigh. "You should touch it! It's all muscle. No fat, because I cycle every day."

The project manager cycles from his home in Chinese Gardens to his workplace in Clementi. Next year, he plans to bike from one end of the island to the other with friends. "I want to take the time to look at the different estates and enjoy our country."

19. Visit Pulau Ubin

Mr Thomas Ang, 65, would like to visit Pulau Ubin for the first time in his life.

"I heard it's nice, quiet. Like kampung days," he explains. "I've gone to Batam more times than to our Singapore islands. To makan, okay! I go there to makan!"

20. Explore Singapore

Travel writer Hendric Tay, 26, tells Insight from South America, where he has been touring since May: "Singaporeans are generally well travelled, but we often do not explore our own country enough."

For new experiences of Singapore, he suggests really exploring the nooks and crannies of our island - or even seeing the country through the eyes of a tourist via a Lonely Planet itinerary.

21. Take photos with Stamford pose

"We have to make this a thing! Stamfording? Rafflesing?" says marketing executive Amanda Lee, 25. Visit places of interest around the island with a camera and a friend, she says. Then, take up this pose: arms crossed, gazing into the distance - just like the Sir Stamford Raffles statue.

22. Fly a kite

Mr Henry Low started learning to make kites, like the traditional Malay wau, two years ago.

"It keeps my fingers young," says the 60-year-old, flexing them. "Looks young, right?" Next year, he plans to make one in the shape of the Merlion or the Singapore flag. "Then I'll go to Marina Barrage with my grandsons."<div class="embed">[[nid:130107]]</div>Culture

23. Watch NDP for the first time

"It's always, wah... Plane! Parade! Fireworks! So I stopped watching 20 years ago," says Mr Sonny Yap, a 48-year-old fishmonger. "But now, 50 years, it's going to be a big deal. It's going to be special, right? So I'll watch. Maybe I'll even apply for tickets to watch live and get the goodie bag."

24. Hold an exhibition

Mr Lim Meng Jin, 34, has been asking people - including his track idol C. Kunalan - what being Singaporean means to them, and uploading their photos online for his We The Citizens project.

Next year, he hopes to hold a photo exhibition and launch a book on the project.

So, what does being Singaporean mean to someone who's asked this question over and over again?

"Being Singaporean means I can dare to dream without fearing to fall - and do it wearing berms."

25. A Singapore collection

Designer Kenny Lim, 37, of local fashion label Depression, says a collection to commemorate the big occasion is in the works.

"We will probably go back to the humble T-shirt, because of Singapore's weather. Maybe 50 T-shirts themed around Singapore?" says Mr Lim.

But will this mean sacrificing the monochrome aesthetic of the brand, which is also available in Hong Kong, Japan and the United States?

Mr Lim says: "We'll not be so literal and use white and red. In sticking to our colour palette, we can come up with something progressive to show a different side of Singapore."

26. Write a book for Singapore

Heritage blogger Yeo Hong Eng, 68, has been commissioned to publish his second memoir.

His first, The Little Red Cliff, was published last year.

"My second book is to be published next year and is already about 75 per cent completed. It will feature my experiences living in Kampong Chai Chee," he says.

27. A local show marathon

Self-confessed TV junkie Melissa Tan wants to hold a marathon session watching old videotapes of Under One Roof, Growing Up and Triple 9 with her friends.

"Those are the quintessential Singapore shows for me," explains Ms Tan, 25. "Also, can I do a quick shout-out? James Lye, come back to showbiz! I miss you!"

Meanwhile, film buff Reena Guo, 27, also wants to hold a marathon of her own - but in film. Referring to films like Eric Khoo's 12 Storeys and Jack Neo's Ah Boys To Men, she says: "We should be more proud of our local productions."<div class="embed">[[nid:130107]]</div>28. 50 Shades of Grey, S'pore-style?

Barista Christine Tan, 29, spotted hunched over a book at the Jurong Regional Library, says: "Write a local version of 50 Shades of Grey! We always say Singaporeans are too conservative, right?"

So, something like: "He asked her breathily, 'You want the rotan... or the feather duster?'"

"Yah, exactly!" she says. "Not bad. You want to co-write?"

29. Celebrate history

The nation's big 50 coincides with the 178th anniversary of the Chungshan Association of Singapore, which has about 300 members here.

The association will this weekend play host to a global convention with clansmen from places such as Australia and Trinidad and Tobago.

Next year, another big party is on the cards. President Choy Meng Chun, 57, says: "We will have a combined celebration. During our preparation for this convention, we were fortunate to recruit new members... It is our intention to groom this new blood to take over the leadership of our association."

30. Design a Singapore game

Even North Korea has its own driving game, Pyongyang Racer, notes game developer Tan Zhen Yang, 27. "With Singaporeans swept up by the mobile games fever, it will be nice if a Singapore-themed game can take root."

31. Icons over the years

It will be timely to look back and celebrate the best of Singapore's arts scene through a year-long showcase, says Mr Tay Tong, 50, of TheatreWorks, who is a 25-year veteran in the scene.

Be it in music, theatre, dance, literature, the visual arts or film, this will not only acquaint our youth with Singapore's classics, but also "remind us of our rich creative pool, (allow us to) revisit the artistry and remind us that we do have it".

32. An Ah Beng/Ah Lian party

Ms Sylvia Chan, who founded production company Night Owl Cinematics with her husband Ryan Tan, would love to throw a 50th birthday bash. The dress code? Ah Beng/Ah Lian.

"We will blast Hokkien oldies and eat chee cheong fun and chicken rice," says Ms Chan, 26. "To deter those 'act atas (upper class in Malay)' people, the code to enter will be any popular Singlish phrase, like 'bo jio' (Hokkien for "Why didn't you ask me along?")."

33. 50 push-ups in 50 seconds

To celebrate Singapore's Golden Jubilee and the new Individual Physical Proficiency Test, Mr Bryan Chan, 30, volunteers himself for 50 push-ups. That's all?

"To make it more impressive... in 50 seconds? While singing Count On Me Singapore?"

34. Let her flag fly

"I don't hang the flag. Very leceh (troublesome) lah! But... okay, see how next year," says

Madam Susan Chia, 67, waiting for the bus

in a pair of flip flops and a Raffles Institution T-shirt.

"I think the town council did so last time. But I don't know where I put it. If I want to hang it next year, I have to buy, ah?"<div class="embed">[[nid:130107]]</div>Movements

35. One Singapore

Ilo Ilo director Anthony Chen, 30, has brought along a huge Singapore flag to an African safari park where he is spending Singapore's 49th National Day.

"I don't have fancy ideas for next year," he tells Insight. But he hopes every Singaporean will come together and hold hands in unity - even if it is just for a minute.

"That simple gesture will be rather moving and a real feat," he says. "My simple wish for the country moving forward is to be one of compassion and big hearts, and perhaps this might be a small step in that direction."

36. A street birthday bash

Ms Corinna Lim, 50, executive director of the Association of Women for Action and Research, suggests closing the civic district for a "street party organised by the people, for the people" as a non-ticketed alternative for those unable to snag tickets to the Parade.

It will be "similar to the Night Festival - our diverse food traditions, music blaring from every corner, the streets blocked off", she adds.

37. Celebration of Happiness

Chief executive officer of the Singapore Environment Council Jose Raymond hopes to have a "Celebration of Happiness" over the whole of next year.

"I am very sure that there are 365 things (or even more) which we can be truly happy about, whether they are daily acts or policies which have made us happy over the last 50 years," he says.

"It is important for us to remember and recognise that there is much for us to be happy about. If I were to play with the SG50 brand, I would like to call this campaign the 'HAPPYSG50'."

38. TED-style seminars

Mr Tong Yee, 40, of social enterprise The Thought Collective, wants to hold talks for youth on key issues facing Singapore in the next 50 years.

"These lectures will first be introduced online through 20-minute TED-style videos," he says, referring to the popular global technology, entertainment and design talks held worldwide periodically.

Then, live seminars will flesh out the key points. "These lectures will serve as thought leadership and be a call to action for the younger generation to have them see that they are indeed Singapore's new pioneer generation from 2015 to 2065," he says.

39. Building a narrative

Flipside, also launched by The Thought Collective, will highlight both positive and negative stories about Singapore and Singaporeans for a more "authentic Singapore narrative" that acknowledges every story, good or ugly.

"There seems to be no point in telling stories that are negative or that do not reveal the best of us," says Mr Tong. "But this we do in hopes of reversing the cynicism of people who no longer trust the 'sanctioned' positive narratives."

40. Open up

Ms Narelle Kheng, 20, vocalist and guitarist of The Sam Willows, hopes for a campaign to encourage Singaporeans to open up.

"You have to go up and talk to random strangers or do a good deed," she says. "With social media, it will be easy to organise and it will be a fun way to bring Singapore together... Or a treasure hunt!"

41. Paint the town in national colours

Vocalist-keyboardist Sandra Tang, 22, also from The Sam Willows, wants to paint the town in national colours to commemorate Singapore's big day. "We should have a massive street party where we throw red and white paint at each other and paint 50 trees red and white to mark that milestone," she says.<div class="embed">[[nid:130107]]</div>Nostalgia

42. Pioneer generation stories

Copywriter Poh Wee Koon, 26, wants to embark on a personal project to talk to people above 50 years old.

"They have first-hand experience of a pre-Independence Singapore," he says. "It will be great for young Singaporeans like myself to connect with them and hear stories from the horse's mouth, before this part of our heritage passes on with the generation."

43. Reminisce about old games

Media analyst Hu Yee Kai, 28, wants to see childhood games "that do not involve a screen" like hopscotch, five stones and block-catching make a reappearance.

"Maybe teams can be formed and

pitted against one another, just like before," he says.

44. A trip down memory lane

A 72-year-old retiree, bent over a cup of kopi at the Golden Mile Food Centre, says in Mandarin: "Singapore has changed so quickly in the last 10 to 20 years."

Declining to give his name, he says he will celebrate Singapore's future by looking through old photographs, visiting heartland sites where he has many fond memories, and catching up with old friends.

45. Vintage car show

Mr Patrick Tan, a zesty 60-something businessman in the automotive line, says car-crazy Singaporeans will certainly be enraptured by a vintage car show.

"Not just any old collector's car - they must be vintage pre-war ones," says Mr Tan, who owns a 1928 Essex.

"Vintage cars, when properly taken care of, can still run on the roads very well," he adds.<div class="embed">[[nid:130107]]</div>Freebies please?

46. Free entry to attractions

Singaporeans already get free entry to museums, but air steward Danny Quek, 26, hopes for more.

"The zoo, bird park, even the Science Centre are places I've not been to since I was a student!" he says. "If free entry was given to Singaporeans at least for August 2015, I'd take my whole family along."

47. Give... er, get... $500

"Give $500 hongbao lah!" says cabby Ricky Teo, 53.

Moments later: "Oh, you mean I do something ah? Not the Government? Then what I want to do for Singapore's 50th birthday is... get $500 hongbao lah! Ha ha ha!"

48. A better ride

Be it to work or play, hairstylist Chris Ngo, 33, takes public transport every day.

He says: "It will be nice if Singaporeans can get free rides for a week! I was in Taiwan this year and children below 12 could ride the train for free there over on Children's Day (on April 4)."

49. Get cake, eat cake

Pet Lovers Centre managing director Ng Whye Hoe, 42, believes a birthday bash cannot do without a cake.

"I think all Singaporeans should be given a cake voucher to redeem a slice of our National Day birthday cake... if there ever is one." 50 More holidays!

"We should have 50 more public holidays in 2015, all falling on Fridays or Mondays," litigator Adrian Tan, 48, says.

"It's once every 50 years. I think we can afford it," says the steering committee member of the Speak Good English Movement.

He adds, in jest: "It has nothing to do with the fact that lawyers' billing rates are doubled on public holidays."

asyiqins@sph.com.sg

waltsim@sph.com.sg

This article was first published on August 9, 2014.
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