So after doing the pre-search for Kampong Glam, I finally went there now having already mentally prepared myself.

When approaching Kampong Glam, you would definitely see the shophouses first as the whole perimeter of the area is lined by them. No matter where you come in to enter Kampong Glam, you will for sure be greeted with a row of shophouses.

Some of the shophouses that you find: As you go deeper into the area, you will come to this famous street, which aligns nicely with the Sultan Mosque. Both sides of the street are filled with eateries selling Middle Eastern cuisine and some other shops selling unique items like textiles and fragrances.

And of course, the main feature of Kampong Glam, the Sultan Mosque, with its shiny golden dome high above everything else in the area.

The Sultan Mosque. Probably the tallest structure in Kampong Glam

Moving into the right lane and you will spot something that is not a shophouse. It is the old Temenggung palace, now converted into the Malay Heritage Center.

The Malay Heritage Center, which used to be the palace.

The Architecture

As mentioned in the previous post, there are 4 main types of architecture found during my research. So I decided to look for these 4 different styles.

Art Deco Shophouse Style

It took me a while to look for this one as the main features are hidden behind the signboard, but what gave it away is the “striped” pillars.

Late Shophouse Style

This one was not hard to find as it was the most decorated and detailed amongst all the shophouses.

First Transitional Shophouse Style

This was quite hard to find as it was across North Bridge Road and I would not expect it to be there, at the famous Zam Zam store!

Early Shophouse Style

These few shophouses, eventhough colourful, was a little out of the way and was furthest from the center.

Trades of Kampong Glam

So based on the research that I found, I tried to look for the different trades in Kampong Glam. There were a lot of different kinds of trades that can be found around Kampong Glam, but most of them are located along Arab Street. There you can find mostly carpet traders and tailors who also sell different kinds of fabrics.

There were a few shops selling carpets of different designs and shapes

On one side of Arab Street, you can literally find a whole row of fabric shops.

Alot of the fabric shops also offers tailoring and can be seen having mannequins outside

Another type of shop that you can find are perfume shops.

Modernisation of Haji Lane

Most of the things you see in Kampong Glam would seem old and dated, very traditional. However, if you go towards the famous Haji Lane and Bali Lane, you will find more modern shops such as boutiques, hipster cafes and bars.

The sign that you see at the entrance of Haji Lane

Towards the other end of Haji Lane, there are more pubs, tattoo parlours and more graffiti works on the walls, which have been an attraction by itself for tourists and occasionally for locals too, making it a photo spot.

Some of the photos of pubs. It’s considered empty as I went there on a weekday lunchtime. It would be more crowded in the evening and weekends.

And some of the graffiti works that you can find filling up the walls of this section of Kampung Glam: