When I first receive the project brief and read through the approaches, I was contemplating to do number 2: Visit a place or an area in Singapore that you are less familiar with, have not been for quite a while or have never heard before. I was thinking of Sungei Buloh or Chek Jawa and perhaps do a project about nature and human interaction. However, I pondered for quite a while and I reread the brief a few times – “What is Singapore to you? Have you taken time to look at this place intently?” Then it struck me that “Have I even look at myself intently yet?” I realised then that throughout my childhood and years growing up I have not pondered too much about my roots and my identity. Hence, I have decided to take a turn and change my direction to a root finding / finding identity kind of project.

After finding my general purpose for the project, I began to look back at the various approaches. I feel that number 4: “Have a conversation with your family member; are there life stories, tradition or experiences about Singapore that you might find?” was the best suited for my project. After briefly asking my mother about her family and roots, I was surprised to find that I actually have Penarakan roots, something I really did not know about at all throughout my years of growing up. As for my father, he is a Teochew with a typical Chinese culture. Considering between the 2, I decided to explore more into the Peranakan culture instead.

Prior to looking for a suitable candidate to talk to or interview, I decide to make a trip to the Peranakan Museum to have a better understanding about their way of life. The architecture of the museum was rather intriguing and there were many sections in the museum, such as wedding, dinner, funeral, accessories etc. There were numerous interesting artifacts that caught my eye as well. After the visit, I tried to recall relatives of the older generation who possibly have a closer connection to the culture itself and most probably lived through the period where the culture was more prevalent. Not long after, I came up with a plausible candidate, my 90 year old grandaunt who is a nyonya.

I interviewed with her and learnt quite a few things about my ancestors and their way of life, especially my great grandparents.