Chijmes

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Sight Address : 30 Victoria Street, Singapore 187996, Singapore (Formerly Convent of the Holy Infant Jesus) (Downtown Core) Edit

Detail InformationEdit

CHIJMES (pronounced “chimes”, Chinese: 赞美广场) is a historic building complex in Singapore, which began life as a Catholic convent known as the Convent of the Holy Infant Jesus (CHIJ) (圣婴女修院) and convent quarters known as Caldwell House (古德威尔屋). The complex is located at Victoria Street in the Downtown Core, within the Central Area, Singapore’s central business district.This complex of convent buildings has a Gothic-style chapel. It was used as a Catholic convent for 132 years, with Caldwell House constructed in 1840–1841 and the chapel in 1904. The chapel, now a multi-purpose hall, is known as CHIJMES Hall (赞美礼堂), and Caldwell House, now an art gallery, have both been gazetted as national monuments. The complex has been restored for commercial purposes as a dining, shopping and entertainment centre with ethnic restaurants, shops and a function hall, providing a backdrop for musicals, recitals, theatrical performances and weddings.

Chijmes Chapel, Singapore

HistoryEdit

In October 1852, four French nuns arrived in Penang after having travelled overland from their native country in caravans. Reverend Mother Mathilde Raclot, leader of this group, was to become a key personality in the early history of the Convent of the Holy Infant Jesus on Victoria Street.On 2 February 1854, the nuns sailed to Singapore from Penang on a mission to build a school for girls, now known as CHIJ Secondary Toa Payoh. On 5 February 1854, they reached the island’s shores and took up residence at the first convent quarters, the now gazetted Caldwell House.The nuns began taking in pupils only ten days after moving in, establishing the first CHIJ school in Singapore. Reverend Mother Mathilde staffed her school with sisters from the parent Society, the Institute of the Charitable Schools of the Holy Infant Jesus of Saint Maur. She dedicated 20 years of her life turning the convent into a school, an orphanage and refuge for women. Two classes were conducted, one for fee-paying students and another for orphans and the poor. Slowly, the nuns managed to restore the house into a simple but austere residence.The Gate of Hope at CHIJMESThe first chapel of the Convent, which had been built around 1850, was in such a bad condition that it was necessary to build a new one. At the end of the 19th century, the Sisters started fund-raising by various means for the new chapel. The old one was becoming so dangerous that the Sisters decided to celebrate mass in Caldwell House.Father Beurel acquired all the nine lots of land between Victoria Street and North Bridge Road, originally belonging to the Raffles Institution, that would constitute the entire convent complex. He presented them all to Reverend Mother Mathilde.After being granted land in 1849 for the formation of Saint Joseph’s Institution, Father Charles Benedict Nain, a priest at Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul, tried his luck once more for the building of a school for girls. He was refused but, undaunted and after returning re-inspired from his voyage to France in 1852, he was engaged as an architect for the construction of the chapel at the Convent of the Holy Infant Jesus and, on behalf of the Roman Catholic community, was in charge at the same time of the construction of the extension of the Saint Joseph Institution. The construction of the chapel started in 1901 and it was completed by 1904. Father Nain was highly involved in the worksite. He is the author of all the fine architectural details found in the chapel.Much of the knowledge about the daily activities of the convent comes from seven volumes of diaries that were meticulously kept by convent scribes. These diaries cover over a hundred years of convent history, from 1851 to 1971; they are handwritten in French and entitled Annales de Singapour. From their observations, it is known that life within the convent walls was anything but sedate. Apart from daily chores, the nuns also had to organise and attend mass, grade papers, maintain the buildings and the grounds as well as raise money to support their activities.

Must SeeEdit

Popular

Visiting TimeEdit

Daily 24 hrs.

Closed OnEdit

N.A.

Best Season to VisitEdit

June to July and November to December.

Best Time To VisitEdit

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Time Required for SightseeingEdit

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Ticket Required : No Edit

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Guide Required : No Edit

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Dress Code (If Any) : No Edit

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Restaurants NearbyAdd / Edit

Capella ; Capella, #01 -29 CHIJMES, 30 Victoria St. Singapore 187996 ; Ph/M – 65 6334 9928 ; Food Serve – Restaurant:-italian cuisine · contemporary italian · ala carte · mushroom · tomatoes.

How to ReachEdit

Taxi : Taxis are generally very hard to get during peak hours (Mon-Fri 7:00am – 9:30am and Mon-Sat 5:00pm – 8:00pm) and on rainy days. If you are at a hotel, have conceirge call you a taxi. If you are out about town and have access to a cell phone- calling for a taxi will cut your wait time by 20 to 30 minutes. All taxis are fitted with meters; all are air conditioned; the majority of the taxis are 5-seaters; about 90% of taxis have radiophones; call booking is done via GPS or digital voice dispatch. All passengers must fasten their seat belts by law.
For taxi Booking fee is SGD $2.3. Minimum fare for taxi is SGD $3 for first 1Km. Fare above minimum fare until 10Km is SGD $0.55 per Km. Fare above 10Km is charge SGD $0.628 per Km. Taxi Waiting charges per hour is SGD $17.6. Peak Hours charges is diffrent.

Bus : Public buses run daily from 5.30am to midnight. Extended night services cost slightly more (a flat rate ranging from $1.50-$3.00). Otherwise, most fares depend on distance travelled and range from 67 cents to $1.58 for air-conditioned comfort (almost all public buses in Singapore have air-conditioning today). There are also “feeder” bus services that charge a flat rate of 67 cents. Each bus should not take more than 15 to 20 minutes to arrive at the bus stop.

Train : Singapore MRT system is very well connected to different parts of Singapore and very clean! If you have the time and plan to explore around little Sunny island, get the the Singapore Tourist Pass!
It runs 6am-12mn, fares start at S$1 (70cents in EZ link). Tickets can be purchased in all MRT stations. You just have to insert your money through the ticket machine. Rush hour’s usually 7am-9am, 11am-2pm and 4pm-7pm.

Air : Changi Airport is the country’s main airport. From the airport there are a number of ways to get into the city:
Taxi is easiest – simply follow the signs after clearing customs. Meters are always used in Singapore and prices are reasonable. A trip to the city during the day will be between $20-$30 including $3-5 airport surcharge. An additional 50% surcharge applies between midnight and 06:00.
Limousines charge a flat $50 to anywhere in the city and are a pretty good deal after midnight, as you can skip the queue and avoid the surcharge. The same pricing applies to chartering van-sized MaxiCabs, which are good for large families or if you have lots of baggage.
Shuttle – Shared six-seater MaxiCab shuttle service to designated areas/hotels costs $7 and can be booked in advance or in the arrivals hall. 6AM-2AM, every 15-30 min.
Subway – MRT trains run from a station between T2 and T3, but you’ll need to change trains at Tanah Merah to a city-bound train: just exit through the left hand side door and cross the platform. The 30 min ride to City Hall station costs $1.90 plus a refundable $1 deposit, and trains run 05:31-23:18.
Bus – Bus terminals can be found in the basements of T1, T2 and T3. 06:00-23:59 only. Fares are less than $2.00, exact fare required (no change given) if you pay cash.

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