Studio Jalan Ampas, while it lasts.

Blamed it on the Grammy’s cause we got stucked in front of the cube box rather than updating our Singapore short trip. Congrats to Robert Plant & Alison Krauss, it's undeniable the best album of the year. Performances by the artists really stole the show from the predictable results. Enough on Grammy's, let's start the update on our journey...

Finally, kitaorang sampai Singapore pukul 9.00pagi hari Ahad. Walaupun naik train ni makan masa yang lama, but we still enjoyed it. Price for train ticket RM38(katil atas), RM43(katil bawah), tapi take our advise, buy return ticket it’s more cheaper, otherwise they will charge you SGD if you buy one way ticket. Actually, kitaorang pun baru tahu, return ticket is cheaper. We made mistake coz we thought we could get flight ticket on the way back. Remember, cheaper return ticket please..

Sampai je kat Tanjong Pagar station, we had scrumptious breakfast.. Yummmy!! lontong Singapore sedap… Price SGD2.50each + Nescafe SGD1.00each, okaylah.. not too bad… Lepas tu we walked to Tanjong Pagar MRT station (since we have been here quite a few times, so we managed to find it) Top-up our Ezlink card SGD10.00 each (one day pass is also available at SGD8.00). Stopped at Boon Keng station and took a cab to Jalan Ampas. Lebih kurang 10minit and SGD5.00.

Sampai je kat situ, terasa sayu sampai hati diaorang tak jaga tempat tu. I wish they had it at our place. Dari luar tak nampak sangat tapi we tried to peek and saw the studio inside. Suddenly I recalled the scene from Seniman Bujang Lapok where they came for audition. We took some photos thru the gate and we got some. Since there’s nobody around, we went to Boon Teck Road where the artists’ quarters were located but they’re gone. Shaw Plaza and Shaw Corner are there. See?! That’s what I meant.

We went back again hoping there will be somebody to let us in. Rezeki kami agaknya, there’s this pakcik called, Pakcik Senin happened to come out from the gate. After we explained to him our intentions, he called someone inside, Abang Atan who is taking care of that place. Apalagi happy betul kitaorang, dapat masuk dan ambil gambar puas-puas. Dalam perkarangan studio, lagi terasa sayu.. you can see all those places dalam filem-filem Allahyarham Tan Sri P.Ramlee.

Menurut Abang Atan, there’re a few interested parties wanted to buy this land, but they refused to sell it off. They said someone will revamp the place, till now no one comes. I believe it will cost a fortune to revamp the whole place, but compared to what they have contributed to them it’s definitely worth every cent! There’re other actors like Aziz Sattar, S. Samsuddin, etc have come to visit. Through the photos, I’m sure it will tell you the story even more.

Remember last scene from Madu Tiga, jambatan yang P.Ramlee terjun tu? Dekat situ je sempat jugak la Faizal posing ala-ala "Abang Jamil". Dalam sedar tak sedar we spent almost 2 hours at that place. Even there’s nothing much left to see, we felt this is one of the best discovery for us. Studio Jalan Ampas has proven to be the best place to launch the careers of many legendary film stars during The Golden Age of Malay Cinema. Even foreign stars like Ava Gardner and John Wayne visited the studio.

Sayang sekali, tempat ni dah terpadam dalam sejarah Kota Singapura. For those who loves P.Ramlee’s movies and appreciate the legends , make your way to visit this place while it’s still around. Lebih kurang tengahari, kitaorang dengan berat hati meninggalkan Studio Jalan Ampas sebab tak tahu berapa lama lagi tempat ni dapat bertahan.

Disebabkan train terakhir ke Kuala Lumpur pukul 10.00malam, we spent the rest of the time pusing-pusing kat Orchard Road. Ana, macam biasa tak lepas peluang ke Hard Rock Singapore for latest pin collections. Pukul 6.00petang kaki dah mula lenguh, bahu pun dah penat we made a move to train station.

Sementara train nak sampai, had our dinner there again.. price nasi ayam black pepper SGD4.00 and soto SGD3.00 not bad kan… Tapi yang paling best sekali kitaorang dapat jumpa another living legend, Ramli Sarip. Faizal yang paling happy dapat tangkap gambar dengan dia. FYI, abang Ramli kata there will be Sweet Charity Reunion Concert kat Singapore in May, KL maybe in June. Yeaahhhh..

Tepat pukul 10.00 malam, train bergerak dari Tanjong Pagar. Disebabkan our mistake earlier on, we had to take seating coach from Singapore to JB, and changed to Sleeping coach from JB to KL. Remember! Buy return ticket next time. He..he... and we slept all the way after Woodlands checkpoint.

All together, our trip spent RM290 for 2 person... ok tak?! 

*Interested on Jalan Ampas photos, feel free to email us.