Today in school, we begin the day by singing the National Anthem. What was sung before Singapore gained independence and had her own anthem? The answer was God Save The Queen (or King, depending on the ruler of the day), so what does it have to do with this image?

This magnificent dragon float was taken at the old Esplanade in the 1950s, where it stood to commemorate the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II. Andy writes:

In the first week of June 1953 when I was only 13, Singapore celebrated the coronation in style. I recalled how my parents booked one of Adelphi Hotel’s uppermost rooms facing North Bridge Road so we could watch the coronation floats passing by below us. This event could have been the original concept for our annual Ching-gay parade.

A trip to the old Esplanade the next evening revealed the most fascinating sight that I had ever seen in the 50s. A dozen sampans at sea were carrying a beautifully illuminated sea dragon spouting neon lights (image 1) but from afar the illusion was so life-like and breath-taking. And this was a time before the advent of high technology and laser lights.

Andy reminisces about this decade in his post here.