Chek Jawa Wetlands-Pulau Ubin

I love visiting Pulau Ubin, a small undeveloped island just off Singapore's mainland where tropical jungle and kampong life still reign. I joined a trip to visit one of Pulau Ubin's most fascinating area; Chek Jawa.

As usual to get to Paula Ubin you get to the ferry terminal and wait for the next available 'bum boat'. The ferry terminal cat is an early indication of the change in pace of life 

Once on the island you can look back and see very contrasting lives - the old style floating fish farms with modern high rise developments behind.

Previously I've walked, cycled and kayaked around the island but Chek Jawa is at the farthest end of the island so taxis had been booked to take us, which I think was a good idea as it didn't look like these drivers were that bothered about moving. 

 Soon we were at our destination-Chek Jawa, a 100 hectare wetlands area made up of seven independent ecosystems- coastal forest, mangrove forest, rocky shore, sandy shore, sand bar, seagrass lagoon and coral rubble. At low tide the 'interdal flats' are revealed and with a guide you can go on to the flats and explore what is there. 

One of the special finds here are the Carpet Anemones, they have short, stubby, sticky tentacles, come in several colours and were fabulous. This one was about 30cms diameter and a lovely vivid green.

We were also shown a Horseshoe Crab

 a Volute a carnivorous bivalve                                          and a Volute shell with resident Hermit Crab

 

                                                                              a pretty Sea Star

and rather disgusting looking Sea Cucumber, I can't believe some people eat these!

                                        here are; from left, Sea Pens, sponge and dead coral

and of course lots of barnacles 

                   There was plenty of birdlife too-Sea Eagles, herons and egrets
                      

                                    We then left the flats and walks through the mangrove forest 

                         and saw Fiddler Crabs, the males have one large and one small pincer

                                                                                         Nipah Palm male inflorescence

and female inflorescence 

Mudskipper 

I climbed up to the top of the viewing tower and had a great view of the flats, the sea now starting to recover them

 Moving on into the coastal forest we came across an old Muslim Cemetery now rather neglected

and hearing a rustling above saw a pair of Oriental Hornbills feeding on red berries      

 

and below them a young Monitor Lizard basking in a shaft of sunlight

Back in the kampong, past the temple we stopped for a drink and snack at the only store

 sadly this time there wasn't time to eat at the seafood restaurant that serves fabulous food on a raised deck over the sea

    before getting the bum boat back to the mainland 

Bollywood Veggies

Last week I was invited to join friends on a trip to the northwestern part of Singapore to visit a place that is a bit of a legend in Singapore-Bollywood Veggies. It is a 10 acre organic farm run by a fearsome lady known as the Gentle Warrior, her husband, known as the Muse and a number of  Warrior staff.

The signs that greet you on arrival indicate the spirit of the whole farm venture

As the sign says "The Bollywood Veggie Tiger welcomes you to our precious Kranji Countryside"

 So we set off down the trails trying to recognise some of the plants and trees, luckily most were labelled as lots of them we hadn't seen growing before but of course knew their produce-nutmeg, longan, lemon grass and lots more.

Custard Apple

 Papaya

 Winter Melon

 The whole farm is organic and uses companion planting rather than pesticides to control pests and diseases. This means there is lots of wildlife and insects and of course mosquitos-which were happily feeding on us unfortunately

Wandering through the sustainable garden farm, fruit walk, longan and guava forest, banana and water plant area you can see and feel the love, care and knowledge involved in running this farm

 Banana flower

 Interesting signs appear throughout the garden

There were lots of birds flying about, here is an Olive-backed Sunbird on a Rojak flower, also known as the Torch Ginger

 A Changeable Lizard

 We visited Bollywood Veggies on election day in the UK, the sign below seemed particularly appropriate 

Soon it was time for lunch in the restaurant, called rather worryingly-Poison Ivy

 and chose the Warrior and the Vegetarian Platter-  all the dishes were made from locally grown or sourced ingredients and everything was delicious

There are more signs in the restaurant area

 and last stop before the journey back to the city was to the toilets, which even has it's own garden.

Bollywood Veggies is a great place to visit if you want to escape the city and learn a bit more about the plants and crops grown in this part of the world.

If you want to know more about Bollywood Veggies follow the link; http://bollywoodveggies.com