Moving Out Day

Just off East Coast Road on the south side of Singapore, you’ll find a row of coloured little houses, the only ones of their type in the world. Adored by Instagrammers, tourists and locals alike, these conservation houses are an eclectic mix of traditional local architecture and Western influence.

The properties stand beside a former sea wall, where the beach used to be before land reclamation. Painted in bright Peranakan colours of blue, pink, yellow and green, they are raised off the ground to protect against the rising tides of the past. (What a fitting venue then to dream up our idea of life on the sea!)

Previously known as Longkang Besar, which translates as Big Drain Road, we’d always revel when the heavy monsoon rains arrived to fill the large open drain that ran down our street and out to sea. This small cul-de-sac lane that sits hidden in the heart of Joo Chiat is a welcome escape from the hustle and bustle, and our visitors were always surprised at how quiet our house was, despite being nestled in the throng of such a booming global city.

But more than that, it was our neighbours that made it a pleasure to live here. Every six months we’d close down the street for a pot-luck gathering of gossip and laughs with the neighbours, whilst the kids would freely ride their bikes in the street and run from house to house, echoing the kampong (village) vibe of days gone by.

Packing up our life here in Singapore has not been an easy task. Eight years of stuff and things to be sorted, culled and sold. Garage sales, trading possessions and donations in kind. The lives of four people packed down into boxes and suitcases, ready to ship across the oceans for a life at sea.

How lucky we have been to live in one of these unusual little terraces for the past four years. And how sad we were to say goodbye to all of our friends who shared this little slice of paradise with us.

We are heavy with memories of bringing our children home as newborns to this house. Of first steps, first words, and first days at school. Of dinner parties, BBQs and kids’ birthdays. Of working from home, child’s play and tropical storms. Of dreams created and realised.

Goodbye, East Coast Road.