Wednesday, October 17, 2018

Construction everywhere in Singapore - what to admire and how and why to take a photograph

Construction is taking place everywhere in Singapore. Some cities are like that.In Europe, London, England has major railway cities under renovation with the addition of Crossrail. In Spain Torremolinos was forever under construction and reconstruction.

In Paris France, Notre Dame was under scaffolding when I went to see it. Throughout Europe every cathedral managed to put up scaffolding on the day I arrived to take a photo. I could create a book about cathedral scaffolding.

In Madeira the biggest hotel on the island was being constructed next to the casino hotel where I stayed. I had the sea view to the left, the building site to the right.

In Asia, Singapore is no exception. A constantly expanding city, with underground railways planned five or ten years ahead, with the terminal buildings. This new complex is being built beside Clementi station. The scaffolding looks like a giant spider's web.

In another of my posts you can see the covered walkways which are being built all over the city from the railways stations, old and new, out to the schools, shopping malls and offices, housing estates.

The bamboo scaffolding which I used to see all over Singapore as well as Asia in the 1990s seems to be being replaced by metal. 

Disadvantages Of Building Sites
I took a look at this and thought, that's dreadful. A new development opposite Thomson community Centre in Singapore caused a member of Toastmasters to say, "The noise from that construction site is going to affect the noise level at our meetings."

However, I thought:
1 That's a challenge speakers must overcome.
2 Conference centres need sound baffling walls for meeting where speakers are on stage.
3 I saw a re-building of a house in the Cashew area of Singapore, where the construction site was draped with material bearing the words, sound barrier.

Buildings sites - don't you hate them! Noisy, dirty. I open the balcony sliding door in Singapore and the balcony gets covered in dirty every day. The furniture near the window is covered in dirt. And I am nowhere near a building site.

On second thoughts, I was impressed by the design of the repetitive patterns of the contruction site at Clementi. It was mesmerizing. Won't it be wonderful when the work is over and the new building emerges.

On every building site in Singapore you can see the name of the construction company. Estimated date of completion. Who to ring in an emergency.

I have the upmost admiration for construction site workers. They work amid, noise, dirt and danger to create the beautiful and functional buildings we all enjoy. They carry heavy loads and work at great height. Toilets and restaurants are not available in their workplace until they literally build what is needed for our future convenience and comfort.

Photos
The saying goes, 'If you can't beat them, join them'. If the construction site intrudes, admire it, and find a way to photograph it. If I were to go back and I had time, I would look for one of the workers to photograph, or a telling sign.

Think of it as a photo opportunity. I have taken photos of warning signs. A wealth of opportunities of watching workers and workplaces.

Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker.

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