Remember Amber?

April 1950

If you were rich in the 1950s and lived in Katong, you probably had a house in Amber Road, where many a rich Chinese towkay built beachfront tropical homes. But while a largely Chinese enclave, it happily co-existed with Kampong Amber, the quintessential Malay fishing village complete with houses on stilts and a tightly-knit community. Residents got their water from a well nearby. Hawkers thrived in the neighbourhood selling mee rebus and nasi lemak for less than three cents a portion. The villagers were pally with their prominent neighbours, notably the wife of Lee Choon Guan, for whom they would stage birthday celebrations every year. Kampong Amber was phased out in the 1970s and 80s along with other kampongs in Singapore, and now is the site of many residential high-rise condominiums.