Little India

Tekka Centre at 665 Buffalo Road, 10am, is a full-spectrum Singapore: marigolds, mutton, gold, tailors, and the wet market that still feeds the neighbourhood. This is not a preserved precinct. It is a working one. Serangoon Road was one of the earliest roads on the island; the cattle trade is gone, the spice and sari shops are not. The wet market starts around 6.30am; many grocers thin out after 2pm. The centre as a whole is typically 6.30am–9pm; stalls keep their own clocks, and some popular kitchens rest Mondays. Eat after you have walked the floor, not instead of it.

Do the market, Sri Veeramakaliamman Temple at 141 Serangoon Road (gopuram from the street; typical hours 5.30am–12pm and 5–9pm, midday rest like most South Indian temples — the morning session ends at noon (confirm on srivkt.org), a garland stall and a banana-leaf lunch. That is a complete visit. The House of Tan Teng Niah at 37 Kerbau Road is the eight-minute pastel detour everyone photographs and almost nobody goes inside — it is a private house, look from the street. The Indian Heritage Centre at 5 Campbell Lane holds the migration story if you want it indoors — Tuesday–Sunday 10am–6pm, last admission 5.30pm, closed Mondays including public-holiday Mondays unless the centre says otherwise. The galleries open at 10am; the English docent tour is at 11am (extra Friday 2pm; Saturday, Sunday and public holidays 2pm; Tamil first Saturday 11am; Mandarin second Saturday 11am) — confirm the desk (indianheritage.gov.sg). Official MRT door is Little India Exit E, which is not barrier-free. Citizens and PRs enter free; tourist adults S$10, concession S$8, children under 6 free. Walking tours earn their fee for the clan houses and the cattle-trade lanes between the shops.

Sri Srinivasa Perumal at 397 Serangoon Road, a few blocks north, is the National Monument where Thaipusam begins — official hours morning 6am–12pm and evening 6–9pm — the morning session ends at noon (sspt.org.sg). Farrer Park (NE8) is closer than Little India Exit C for that gopuram. Sakya Muni Buddha Gaya Temple — the Temple of 1,000 Lights — sits at 366 Race Course Road: NHB historic site, 15-metre seated Buddha, founded 1927 by a Thai monk, typically 8am–4.30pm, free, Farrer Park then a short walk (roots.gov.sg). It is a working temple, not a museum; shoulders and knees covered. Abdul Gafoor Mosque at 41 Dunlop Street is the other National Monument on this grid — Tamil and Baweanese, onion dome, restored (roots.gov.sg); it is a working mosque, not a museum, so modest dress and stay out of prayer. Jalan Besar MRT (DT22) Exit B is the Dunlop / Veerasamy door if you are coming from the Downtown line. Farrer Park MRT (NE8) is the northern stretch: more textile, less tour. Mustafa Centre further up Serangoon is 24 hours and a warren — useful, not the point. Evenings are neon and a second dinner. Dress modestly for temples. Bring cash for the small stalls.

Where to eat

• Tekka Centre, 665 Buffalo Road — typically 6.30am–9pm; wet market from about 6.30am, grocers thin after 2pm, stalls keep their own clocks. Hawker after the floor, not instead
• Allauddin's Briyani at Tekka is the Michelin-selected plate if you want a named stall
• Banana-leaf rice with your right hand — Komala Vilas on Serangoon Road is the vegetarian institution; Banana Leaf Apolo and Muthu's Curry are the louder rooms. Pick the one full of families
• Fresh sugar-cane or lime juice from the market
• Ng Ah Sio Bak Kut Teh, 208 Rangoon Road, Hong Building — Teochew white-pepper, official hours daily 9am–9pm, last order 8.30pm (ngahsio.com). Farrer Park (NE8), not Little India Exit C. Morning is traditional. It is not Song Fa and it is not Founder on Balestier