The Bottle Tree Village occupies the former Sembawang Sea Sports club, now renovated to fit a seafood restaurant, a small shop that sell small trinkets and such and a playground for kids. It sits far removed from the hectic city life, on the far northern tip of Singapore near Sembawang Park. Even the trip to get there is an ordeal in itself. A narrow gravel lined road through thick foliage, unlit by street lights or guided by reflectors, invites you into the ethereal darkness. And then in the distance you see a tiny light bobbing in the darkness, the torchlight of an old uncle that guides you to your parking space. Then, a sudden explosion of light, as you round the corner and the building reveals itself, bringing you back into a familiar civilization. The seafood restaurant was purportedly quite good so I gave it a shot. The ambience of eating outdoors was wonderful, under the night sky next to the seaside, the far-away lights of Johor across the sea. Never mind that I couldn’t see what was on my plate, the remoteness, the obscurity of place, it all sums up for the ultimate escape from the familiarity that is the city.
Thomas Wong
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