Singapore Hotels & Malaysia Hotels
About Singapore Malaysia

MULTICULTURAL SHOPPING 3

For Chinese goods, however, nothing beats Yue Hwa, 70 ELL Tong Sen St. (65/6538-4222). This five-story Chinese Emporium is an attraction in its own right. The superb inventory includes all manner of silk wear (robes, underwear, blouses), embroidery and house linens, bolt silks, tailoring services (for perfect mandarin dresses!), cloisonne (enamel work) jewelry and gifts, lacquerware, pottery, musical instruments, traditional Chinese clothing for men and women (from scholars' robes to coolie duds!), jade and gold, cashmere, traditional items, art supplies, herbs, home furnishings-I could go on and on. Plan to spend some time here.

Over on Arab Street, shop for handicrafts from Malaysia and Indonesia. I go for sarongs at Hadjee Textiles, 75 Arab St. (65/6298-1943), for their stacks of folded sarongs in beautiful colors and traditional patterns. They're perfect for traveling, as they're lightweight, but can serve you well as a dressy skirt, a bedsheet, beach blanket, window shade, bath towel, or whatever you need-when I'm on the road I can't live without mine. Buy a few here and the prices really drop. If you're in the market for a more masculine sarong, Goodwill Trading, 56 Arab St. (65/6298-3205), specializes in pulicat, or the plaid sarongs worn by Malay men. For modern styles of batik, check out Basharahil Brothers, 99-101 Arab St. (65/6296-0432), for their very interesting designs, but don't forget to see their collection of fine silk batiks in the back. For batik household linens, you can't beat Maruti Textiles, 93 Arab St. (P 65/6392-0253), where you'll find high-quality place mats and napkins, tablecloths, pillow covers, and quilts from India. The buyer for this shop has a good eye for style.

I've also found a few shops on Arab Street that carry handicrafts from other countries in Southeast Asia. Memoirs, 18 Baghdad St. (k 65/6294-5900), sells mostly Indonesian crafts, from carved and hand-painted decorative items to scored leather shadow puppets and unusual teak gifts. For antiques and curios, try Gim Joo Trading, 16 Baghdad St. ((0 65/6293-5638), a jumble of the unusual, some of it old. A departure from the more packed and dusty places here, Suraya Betawj, 67 Arab St. (665/6398-1607), carries gorgeous Indonesian and Malaysian crafted housewares in contemporary design-the type you normally find for huge prices in shopping catalogues back home.
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