200. THE SOUTHERN ISLANDS

 

Ferries to the Southern Islands leave from this Terminus - the Marina South Pier

Straits of Singapore is the body of water that washes the islands - it's clean...

The Sisters' Islands...a marine park is coming up here...

Lazarus and St John's are linked by paths...if not too sunny, the walk is pleasant...the islands are a favourite spot for picnickers and fishermen...it was crowded on St John and Lazarus, less so in Kusu as it's not pilgrimage season...

Kusu

Across the Singapore Straits, that's mainland Singapore...

Simple pleasures

Old and new jetties on St John's...the islands are works in progress - the area around Sisters' Islands is been turned into a Marine Park...

The largest island, St John's, was a Quarantine Island in the old days - for immigrants sailing in from China and India, for cholera-stricken crew and passengers, others afflicted with leprosy and beri-beri, as a POW camp during WW2, as a detention center for political prisoners, and as a drug rehab center...

Kusu, in a Chinese dialect is tortoise, it's some sailor's folklore that the island got named after the animal, although in original Malay, it's Pulau Tembakul...

The main attraction for devotees is this temple when they come over from the mainland to offer prayers and offerings.

In the same compound, there's a Muslim shrine where devotees ask for wishes to be granted...

Kusu before land reclamation, 1970...

A fervent wish to get a Singapore Permanent Resident status! On that yellow wall above are all the scribblings for everything and anything!

walk across to Seringat...

The original name of Kusu...

This small gallery shows the plan and the work that's taking place in the Marine Park in Sisters' Islands