We Were At Chingay 2017!

Posted by May February 11, 2017

We Were At Chingay 2017!

This is Chingay's 45th year anniversary! To think this masquerade had been parading on our streets way before I was born. Its main parade site is usually in our heartlands but I think they have capped it to only the F1 Pit Building for 2017. I remember chasing after the floats with Ewan and Faye last year outside our home and timing ourselves such that we get a glimpse of it.

The word Chingay is equivalent to the Mandarin zhuang yi (妆艺), which means "the art of costume and masquerade" in the Hokkien dialect. I had to google this information because I was clueless what Chingay meant when Ewan asked me as well.

This would be our family's first experience at the stands watching as a spectator with numbered seatings and all thanks to @pafrenz for hosting the ticket giveaway! We won!

Before diving straight into this street party extravaganza, I am obliged to inform Sunday show's spectators on How To Get There and How To Get Home.

I told the husband with confidence that we should take the public transport. We would not have gotten a parking lot at Singapore Flyer [nearest to F1 Pit Building] by the time we arrive and I was not keen to walk the distance with the kids should we park at Marina Square. The carpark at F1 Pit Building was filled with cars but I suppose those were reserved for the parade's staff because it was closed to the public.

He listened to me and we took a taxi. We were caught in a traffic jam going to the parade and arrived only 45 minutes later [which would usually take a mere 15 minutes]. I cooked the children their dinner and had intended for them to eat at the stands. Since we were stuck and moving so slowly, they had their dinner in the cab.

We alighted at the driveway of Singapore Flyer and I felt smart that we didn't have to search high and low for parking and walk a kilometre to Chingay with kids who love to be carried. We were dropped off at the doorstep of our Green Sector, which was fantastic!

I had expected going home the same way. Calling GrabCar/Taxi from Singapore Flyer and we will be home in half an hour.

Little did we know, spectators are forced to walk out of the venue with only one route! We cannot walk over to Singapore Flyer like how we walked in when we arrived because it was barricaded. There was only one way out and it was this way:

We walked and walked and walked. Oh it wouldn't have mattered if it was just the two of us. But the children couldn't do the distance and daddy ended up carrying both. We finally reached the Float at Marina Bay Grandstand only to find ourselves stranded. Everyone is trying to hail a cab and not a single GrabTaxi answered to our call of plea as I clicked "Find Driver" a million times over.

I chose not want to drive because I did not want to walk that distance to Marina Square. In the end, we still walked to Marina Square. At that point, I was thinking, "If only we drove."

The Yangs finally succumbed to the bus. We were really left with no choice. We had to get out of that area and a bus [not a direct bus home] was the soundest choice. We changed to a cab after that and had the kids put to bed at 0000 hours. The latest they've ever gone to bed. Ever! Husband was not pleased at all.

Oh but I'm glad he ended the night with, "Chingay was fun. But. Not the public transport."

There were announcements that the nearest train station i.e. Promenade was very crowded so "Please Do Walk To City Hall MRT Station." *gasps*

If you own a car, just drive it and park at Marina Square.

The floats and performances were spectacular! Faye was spotted dancing to almost every song and Ewan was in awe at the kung fu show, lion and dragon dances.

The First Formal Chingay Parade in Singapore was mooted by the then-Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew who was also the chairman of the People's Association (PA). Chingay, with all its noise and gaiety, would compensate for the ban on firecrackers, a customary New Year practice to drive away evil spirits. Tonight, we had the honour of his son Lee Hsien Loong grace the ceremony with his wife.

I had a lot of fun singing to Rasa Sayang and to melodious "Xinyao" 新谣 songs! This year's Grand Finale Song "Rainbow in Our Hearts" 心中的彩虹 is an original 新谣 song composed by our Artist of the Year, Dr Liang Wern Fu.

My favourite float was the NS50! National Service is turning 50 years this year and the design is spectacular! The policemen and soldier emerged from the center of the float and rotated 360 degrees for all to see. The crowd roared and everyone stood to take a better shot of this float! Just when you think it's over, the aeroplane "flies" out [a short distance] and pyrotechnics ended its performance with a loud bang. LOVE IT! Even the tourists sitting behind us had lots to compliment.

I hadn't expected fireworks as Chingay's grand finale! So when it came up away in the distance behind us [from the waters], we felt all so lucky that we got the last row seats! We had the fireworks displayed right before our eyes with a view to die for.