Lau Pa Sat

1. Lau Pa Sat

2. The Architecture Lau Pa Sat is a famous food court also known as "Telok Ayer Market". Itis a 188 years old building located in Singapore's central business district. It was also the only market during the time of Sir Stamford Raffles, the founder of the city. Back in 1825, when Telok Ayer Market first opened, the building was held by wooden stakes, and was filled with street hawkers. After a few years, the market was considered as too small, and in 1836 it was demolished to be built in a bigger version of itself. The new market's architect, George Drumgoole Coleman, designed an octagonal building with ornamental columns at the entrance. However, the building needed to be rebuilt a few years later, in 1879, this time because of land reclamation. The octagonal shape and the ornamental columns were conserved but the wood that was used to maintain the structure was replaced by cast-iron. This material was imported from Glasgow in the United Kingdom, and used for the building's support but also for decorative reasons. Indeed, we can easily recognize the Victorian architectural style thanks to Lau Pa Sat's archways and curved roof.

3. The Food When it first opened in 1825, Lau Pa Sat was filled with street hawkers selling their food behind carts or shops. Nowadays, Telok Ayer is filled with small shops where we can buy take-away meals and eat it at one of the innumerable tables under the food court's roof. A lot of different gastronomies can be found there. Indeed, we can choose between a Japanese teriyaki and some Italian spaghetti. Most of the sellers' customers are Singaporean workers and students who enjoy street food as much as their ancestors did. Mara AVENEL & Charlotte DOUSSET