Singapore Botanical Gardens

Here is my favourite garden again but today we decided to explore the Bt Timah side of the garden, which is known as the Eco-Garden.



At this lake, you can see turtles sun-tanning around the wooden bridge & hardly any fishes. Koi & other fishes can easily be found in Symphony lake instead.








I love these wooden benches, I think they add a feeling of 'classics' to the scenery.







Up the slope on way back to the visitor centre & along the way, if you look down the slope, you can see many fruit trees like Jackfruits, Durians, Mangosteens, Starfruits etc. Should you decide to to go nearer the trees, be careful of the flys/mosquitoes there, they bite painfully:-(


What a good start for a day to begin with, enjoying the fresh air & scenery.:-)

Lian Shan Shuang Lin Monastery

莲山双林寺 commonly known as Shuang Lin Monastery, has its history dated back to 1898, 79 years after the British founding of Singapore.

It is the oldest Buddhist monastery in Singapore & its gazette as a National Monument, symbolizes its historical and architectural value.
It has a unique blend of architectural styles from Fuzhou, Quanzhou and Zhangzhou Counties of Fujian province, and Chaozhou County of Guangdong province in southern China.

As you can see from below location map, you could spend some time exploring & appreciating the temple's history & architecture.

Hall of Three Saints

Dragon Light Pagoda

Did you notice this before you take a walk round the Dragon Light Pagoda?



On certain days (if I recall correctly, is 1st & 15th of lunar month & special occasion like celebration days of GuanYin where a crowd is expected), you would be able to sample nice vegetarian dishes which the volunteers prepare for sale to public during lunch hours as part of their fund-raising effort for the temple at the canteen beside their Hall of Guanyin.

The temple is located at the Toa Payoh estate (184 Jalan Toa Payoh) so you may take MRT to Toa Payoh then take bus 238 from the Interchange & alight at Blk 27 Toa Payoh Lor 6.

ps. If you would like a guided tour, you may consider contacting Cultural Compass.

Buddha Tooth Relic Temple and Museum

The temple and museum always hosts different exhibits on its level 2 exhibition hall. Today, the Sand Mandala was completed & on display.

Completed Sand Mandala displayed on the 1st level main shrine which will be dismantled on the 26th March.

On its 2nd level of museum, a section of the hall has been devoted to a brief introduction on Tibetan Buddhism, Sand Mandala and the makers of the Sand Mandala from Kopan Nunnery (Nepal) while another section displayed different representations of Avalokitesvara (Guanyin) with brief explainations.




If you are tired after viewing the exhibition, you may drop-by its well-hidden tea house at the left end corner of the hall, Lotus Heart Tea House for a relaxing tea-break.

I am glad to know that with the completion of its theatre at Basement one, they had started a series of weekend Dharma Talk programmes.

For those interested in the making of the Sand Mandala, you may like to attend this coming Sunday (23 Mar)'s talk at 3-5pm.


Please always refer to their official website: http://www.btrts.org.sg/Eng_Index.html for latest activities.