Little India

Little India is a neighborhood in Singapore that is as historically significant as Chinatown. We got a taste of it on Saturday when we saw the Day of Atonement Procession, but our tour guide today, Mohan, was of Indian descent and was able to give us a better tour.

He led us through a small market, since we had a limited amount of time, so that we could see the difference between the Chinese markets and the Indian markets. There wasn’t as much red in the Indian ones, and they weren’t decorated up for New Years, either.

The shops in Little India had a lot of gold in them. The custom is, when a couple gets married, the bride supplies a dowry to her new husband. Often, much of this is in the form of gold jewelry.

As might be imagined, the spices and foods are somewhat different, too, although to the western eye (and nose), it’s all so different that it’s hard to tell how one is different from the other (Chinese v. Indian).

In the market, the ladies were shown how to put on a Sari, the wrap that goes around them. We learned that there are significant ceremonial times that women get special Saris, like western women get new dresses.

One is when you are married. This is put away like a wedding dress, but comes back out later to be worn during a ceremony held in the 7th month of pregnancy. Later, it’s worn again at their funeral.

One significant advantage of this garment, as the guide pointed out, is that it is all one long piece of fabric. Thus, if one “expands” a bit after marriage, or during pregnancy, the same garment continues to fit.

Not bad to be able to say that you can fit into your wedding clothes on your 50th Anniversary, is it?