15 January 2010

Not fanatic about nature, I had never thought much of the Chinese Garden. But today, I had four youngsters bored in the throes of their year-end school holidays. Taking the cue from one of their school excursions last year, I promised them The Live Turtle & Tortoise Museum nestled within the gardens.

Slow Find

Arriving at the Chinese Garden MRT Station, a 5-minute walk on paved path led us to the back entrance. We then followed makeshift signboards, trusting our instincts in their absence at road forks. A leisurely 15 minutes later, including photo stops en route, a giant tortoise statue told us we were there.

Finding the obscure entrance, we settled our dues – $5 per adult, $3 per child and, optional, $1 per feed pack – and went in. The immediate clutter of more than 5,000 Testudine-inspired paraphernalia, including furniture, seemed tacky. Thankfully, this space quickly opened onto a deck lined with tanks of the real deal. The kids were already way ahead.

Amazing Diversity

The museum houses over 1,000 of the shelled creatures in more than 50 species, including some of the world’s rarest. We loved the Pig-nose Turtles for their endearing dopey-eyed expressions, the Snake-headed Turtles for their creepy serpentine necks, and the Indian Roof Tortoises for their pointed armours. We marvelled at a reconstruction of nearby Chinese pagodas – a three tortoise-high stack.

Image courtesy of The Live

Turtle & Tortoise Museum

Under the Boardwalk

The landscaped museum grounds were scattered with enclosures segregating different kinds of turtles and tortoises. The Alligator Snapping Turtles fascinated us most; they truly deserve their names.

On the flat boardwalk spanning the pond, kids and tortoises met – the latter to feed on the pellets tossed by the former. Several bold crawlers joined guests on the boardwalk or climbed the steep banks. One might have 

been seeking refuge away from its own kind, but one animal-lover in my brood decided that it was hopelessly lost and returned it into the waters.

What was intended to be a half-hour visit turned out to be two hours.

For More Info
The Live Turtle & Tortoise Museum
Tel: 6268 5363
www.turtle-tortoise.com