Research: The National Museum of Singapore- exhibition on the 1960s

The exhibits include items which were commonly found in the 1960s as well as scenes of the life replayed in black and white providing a view into the vibrant cultural and entertainment scene of Singapore in the 1960s, including a view of the different “worlds”: Gay World, Great World, and New World, which played a big role in keeping Singaporeans amused and entertained.

Scenes from the 1960s including a glimpse into the different "worlds" are replayed in black and white

Cigarettes: 

- Cigarettes could then be purchased individually over the counter and this would be taken out of a tin

- There were no restrictions in the past about minors not being able to buy cigarettes

An example of a cigarette tin

Metal Player’s Navy Cut ashtray commonly found on the marble topped tables of coffee shops.

A Smith Corona typewriter - commonly found in the offices of the 1960s and 1970s

as compared to the computers we all use today

There are also pages from the newspapers of the era to browse through, providing an insight into a turbulent and violent decade in Singapore’s history, as well as images of a time some half a century ago, which provides an appreciation of how it once had been before Singapore became the clean and sanitized world that is the Singapore that we now know.

Soft drinks were sold in glass bottles as compared to now where the soft drinks are all sold in cans

A close-up of a photograph of a satay seller by Lee Sow Kim taken in the 1950s

Life was pretty hard unlike nowadays where everything is done sitting in the office.

Sarong kebayas were being debated over if they could be counted as a Singaporean identity

http://thelongnwindingroad.wordpress.com/2010/06/27/a-trip-back-in-time-to-the-singapore-of-the-sixties/

My summary:

In the past, people, ladies in particular, used to wear the baju kurung and although the people were of different identities, they all used to wear the traditional baju kurung- even though it originated from a Muslim country and it was only native to the Malay immigrants. This showed that the culture was integrated between different races so as to achieve a common identity.

Now, we also see traces of the common identity amongst Singaporeans in terms of the clothing we wear. Almost everyone, you can see, is sporting shorts and t-shirts even in places such as Orchard Road. Due to the heat and the hectic weather we see, it brings us together to wear common clothings!

- Mani