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Cool Things To Do In Singapore For A First-Time Visitor
When I reminisce about a place I have visited, what I remember most vividly are not so much the attractions and experiences but the people I met there. For instance, I will always associate Singapore with Alvin Yapp, the colourful owner of The Intan, a private museum of Peranakan heritage.
We were late for the tour of the Intan organised by the Four Seasons Hotel Singapore, and there was Yapp in a colourful printed shirt, red trousers, and a jaunty hat at the doorway of his Joo Chiat Terrace home. With a joke and anecdote a minute from the moment we met, I knew that the evening would be an interesting one.
- Inside Singapore’s most personal Peranakan experience
At first glance, The Intan looks like any other private residence tucked away in Singapore’s Joo Chiat neighbourhood. Step inside, however, and it quickly becomes clear that this is no ordinary museum.
There are no glass display cases, audio guides or QR codes. Instead, guests are welcomed into Alvin Yapp’s home as though they were old friends dropping by for tea. “It was never meant to be a museum,” he says. “It was my private collection. Then people started asking to visit, and it grew from there.”
- Travel Weekly Asia Jul – Sep 26
The Culture Curator – Faces of Passion
A passionate collector who transfored his home into a living celebration of Peranakan Heritage –
- Owner Alvin Yapp has spent 30-plus years putting together one of Singapore’s most impressive collections
The Intan is a private home that houses one of Singapore’s most impressive collections of Peranakan (a group descended from Chinese settlers) artifacts. Owner Alvin Yapp has spent 30-plus years collecting 1,500 objects from Peranakan culture, most notably kasut manek (ornate beaded slippers worn by Straits Chinese women) and enamel tiffin carriers hand-painted in delicate floral patterns. Yapp’s post-war home is a labor of love, and it shows in the meticulous way that he has arranged every square inch of it. Visits are strictly by appointment only.
- Bigger isn’t always better!
The Intan is honored to be listed as the TOP 7 favorite small museums by Monocle correspondents around the world! Thank you Monocle for the wonderful belated Singapore birthday present.
