Road Closure for Chingay 2012

Chingay 2012 Singapore will be held on 3 February and 4 February 2012 from 6pm to 11.59pm.

During this event, there will be a full closure of Republic Boulevard and Raffles Avenue towards City (between Republic Avenue and Temasek Ave).

Chingay 2012 – Out and About in Singapore:Lunar New Year celebrations continue this weekend with Chingay 2012′s theme of “Love, Care and Kindness Everywhere.” Celebrating its 40th anniversary, Chingay 2012 will present its first-ever water parade along the F1 Pit Building’s waterway. Highlights include various dragon floats and international dance troupes, accompanied by spectacular lights and special effects. Let the merriment help you celebrate the Year of the Dragon!

14th January 2012, Saturday evening, I was invited to attend this year Chingay 2012
Parade Singapore media press conference and the full dress rehearsal of Chingay Parade 2012. During the press conference, Mr Nan Juay Hng (Chairman of Chingay Parade 2012, group director of people‘s Association) has unveiled the main highlights of the Chingay 2012 Parade performances this year.

Chingay 2012 Parade (妆艺) is a very special kind of celebration festival in Singapore as it includes not only Singapore but worldwide because it is also known as people’s parade of Singapore. Likewise, through Chingay 2012 parade, it is a part of celebration where people get along together and perform as a team regardless any age, races, sex, religion and culture.

This year, the theme of Chingay 2012 is “Love, Care and Kindness Everywhere” and with that, Chingay 2012 parade has lined up the performances along a 360-metres waterway with performers making a splash and creating spectacular stunts and exhilarating acts with water.

The streets of Singapore are to burst into life on February 3rd and 4th when the Chingay 2012 parade is held.An annual cultural extravaganza, Chingay 2012 sees lavish floats and performers showcasing the multicultural nature of Singapore, entertaining visitors with shows by local and international performers.

The name of the event means “the art of masquerade” in the Chinese Hokkien dialect, with the parade having grown in size and scope since its inception as a neighbourhood celebration in 1973, attracting 150,000 spectators in 2011.
This year’s Chingay 2012 centres on the theme of love, care and kindness everywhere and opens with a procession of amazing dragon floats, with subsequent events honouring Chinese culture, local community spirit and the hopes of children.
Central to the parade will be a 360-metre waterway that allows performers to demonstrate spectacular aquatic stunts.Tickets for Chingay 2012 range in price from as little as S$25 (£12.50) to $S60, with booking available online now.

Chingay 2012, a multi-cultural, spectacular, colourful and exciting parade of performers and floats, dazzling in front of your eyes. This year, Chingay 2012 will give all the spectators a very memorable experience with their extensive line up of performances, that is accompanied by lots of water splashing, along a waterway! On 14th Jan 2012, I was invited by Marina Bay Division of Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA), to the Media Preview of Chingay 2012. I had a great time photographing and documenting my wonderful experiences at the Chingay 2012 full dress rehearsal.

Looking into a brief history of Chingay 2012, it’s all about celebrating multi-cultural diversity and neighbourhood celebrations, dating back to 1973. Over the years, Chingay 2012 has progressed and transformed from a community heartlanders celebration and performances, into an international spectacle attracting both locals and international visitors and performers to Chingay 2012 in Singapore. Chingay 2012 Parade today is a very grand street and floats parade in Asia, showcasing our rich and vibrant multi-cultural society of Singapore, as well as embracing exciting cultures and colours from all over the world.

Chingay 2012 promises to be a splashing spectacular with the theme of ”Love, Care and Kindness Everywhere”, it will take you through a very colourful and dazzling performances, encompassing love, harmony, friendship, community diversity and spirit. On the night of Friday, 3 Feb 2012 – Parade Day 1 at 8.30pm or Saturday, 4 Feb 2012 – Parade Day 2 at 8.30pm, coming to you live at the F1 Pit Building (Next to Singapore Flyer), Chingay 2012 will light up the 2 nights!

Here’s some of the Chingay 2012 Highlights

Chingay 2012- Dragon Dramatics

Chingay 2012- Beautiful Cultures

Chingay 2012- Dreams Realised – Love Our Children

Chingay 2012- Engaging as One – Love Our Community

Chingay 2012- Triumph Over Challenge – The Grand Finale

Traffic arrangements for 2012 Chingay Parade

The Chingay 2012 Parade will take place at the Pit Building next to the Singapore Flyer on Friday, Feb 3 and Saturday, Feb 4 this year.

Republic Boulevard and Raffles Ave (in the direction towards the city) will closed from 6pm to midnight on both days.Public bus services 171, 195, 56, 75, 77, 960, 961C, 97 and 97E serving the bus stop before Temasek Ave will not be affected.

Those attending the Chingay 2012 Parade are strongly advised to travel to the venue by public transport. The nearest MRT stations are Promenade, Esplanade, and City Hall.ERP gantries on roads leading into the CBD will continue to operate as per normal, and motorists travelling on Republic Ave to Suntec City are advised to detour and travel on Nicoll Highway instead, to avoid incurring additional ERP charges.

Auxiliary police officers will be deployed to affected roads to assist motorists and regulate traffic, and vehicles found parking indiscriminately or causing obstruction on the surrounding roads will be towed away.

The Singapore Flyer will still be accessible to the public on both days.For more information, contact the Chingay Parade 2012 organiser at 6340 5012.