St Andrew Cathedral

ST ANDREW'S CATHEDRAL
11 St Andrew's Road,
Singapore 178959
Official Site : http://www.livingstreams.org.sg/

22 March 2008, Saturday, Cloudy Day.
I was out for some photo shooting and since I was near to Raffles City, I decided to visit this church.
This is my very first visit in this Church.
I've always like this church very much but has never enter it.
To my suprised, there are free guided tours around the church to explain about the history of the church.
Luckily, a tour just got started and I joined in the group.
Inside the church, many helpers were busy decorating the church with flowers.
The entire place is very well kept.

The Lectern : During worship services, bible passages are read from the Lectern. This Lectern is made in the shape of an eagle perched on a globe to represent God's word is to be proclaim to the world.


The East Windows & Lord's Table : In the east windows, the centre light is Sir Stamford Raffles dedicated to him in 1861, the north light is Sir John Crawford, Governor of Singapore (1823-1826) and the South Light is Maj, Gen. William Butterworth, Governor (1843-1855).

Christians would gather around the Lord's Table to eat the bread and drink the wine.


The lady in the black T-shirt and jeans was giving a guided tour of this church. She is very polite and all smiles. It was a pleasant visit with much knowledge gained about the church.

Brief History of St Andrew Cathedral (extracted from Church's Brochure)
1823 : Present site chosen for church by Sir Stamford Raffles
1834 : Foundation stone of 1st Anglican church in Singapore laid
1837 : First divine service conducted by the first chaplain, Revd Edmund White
1838 : St Andrew's was consecrated, but twice struck by lightning, declared unsafe and closed in 1852
1856 : Foundation stone of present building laid by Bishop of Calcutta
1862 : Present building consecrated
1870 : St Andrew's church became the Cathedral of the Diocese of Labuan and Sarawak
1909 : C.J. Ferguson-Davie became the first bishop of Singapore
1942 : Cathedral used as an emergency hospital before the fall of Singapore
1952 Completion of North Transept Extension
1973 : Cathedral gazetted as a National Monument
1983 : Completion of South Transept Extention
1989 : Construction of Baptistry
2005 : Completion of the Quiet Places Externsion : The Cathedral New Sanctuary and Chapel for all peoples

HongKong MissOut!

Updated Post on 6 April 2009

Me & Hong Kong...
I had actually wanted to visit Hong Kong this March but cancelled it because there was some flu virus going on.
Funny thing about me is that everytime I want to visit Hong Kong, somehow or another, somehting would happen and I would never be able to travel there...

First time I wanted to visit HK, I ended up booking for a trip to Maldives.

2nd time, I booked for a 8 days travel to HongKong with a BIG local travel agency at the Suntec City travel fair. Packed my stuffs, 3 days before departure, I called the agency to get my tickets, they then only told me that they were unable to get me my hotel. Said it was fully booked. How irresponsible! It's my first and last time to deal with this agency!

3rd time, a friend recommended an agency. I went there, all was well. Got all the informations I need and the service was good. So, the next day, I brought my passport & money to book for the trip! The lady at the agency was off from work. Aruggghhh...no choice, I'll went back 2 days later. Waited outside the agency as the lady was serving some customers. I decided to walk around the building first but when I came back half an hour later, the agency was closed for the day... All the holiday's moods gone. I decided I didn't want to go anymore!

4th time, this was what I've mentioned at the top of my post... Bird flu! So didn't make it this March !!!

I wonder should I try one more time? Or should I simply just chose another country for a holiday!Aha... whatever it is, I just hope that the next time I plan to visit Hong Kong, all will be well & smooth...

Post Additions on 6 April 2009 :
I was finally able to visit Hong Kong last month, end of March for 5 days.
I'm still in the midst of sorting out my photographs before I could post any here.
This trip was decided in a rush, about 2 weeks before the departure.
I would say it was a good and fun trip overall.
The weather was rather misty and cold but no rain while I was there.
Except that I was sick from day 1 to the last day of the trip!
I vomitted most badly on the 2nd day.... yucks!
Even till now, I'm still feeling unwell due to gastric, giddy and a little of breathless feeling...
But on the bright side, I got to see the Panda bears and visit Disneyland.
And I finally make it there! LOL!