This is SG

This is SG Peeling away the layers of our island one story at a time. Real Moments. Real People. Real Singapore. Tag or to get featured!

02/06/2026

For many Singaporeans, these weren't just games. They were how we spent our afternoons, how we settled disputes, how we turned void decks and playgrounds into entire worlds.

Flag Erasers that had to be in pristine condition. Playing Orh Yah Beh Yah Som to split teams fairly. Using HDB blocks as the place for Block Catching. Collecting Kuti Kutis in all shapes and colours. They were the games that everyone somehow knew.

The rivalries, the teamwork, the pure joy of playing until your parents called you home. At the heart of it all, these games defined our childhood memories.

29/05/2026

In a city of six million, it's easy to feel like part of the background. Jeff Lai () sketches the people most of us walk past, then hands them the portrait. No strings attached. Just a moment of connection in a paper-and-pencil form.

What started as an April Fools' challenge in 2022 became something he couldn't put down. He's still an introvert. He still gets nervous every time. But the reactions keep him going. There's something about watching someone hold a drawing of themselves for the first time. Not a photo, not a filter. A portrait that took time, attention, and the quiet belief that a stranger deserved to be seen.

22/05/2026

You might have seen him around. Orchard Road, Marina Bay, wherever there's a crowd and a little open space.

Juggler H has been doing this for 20 years. He kept going, refining his craft and getting better year after year. Even when the COVID-19 pandemic hit and the crowds disappeared, he didn't walk away. In fact, he came back stronger, sharper, and more fired up than ever.

He's a testament to what passion can build when you refuse to let go of it. With a genuine love for putting a smile on people's faces, he’s become a familiar face across Singapore’s public spaces, never needing a stage to prove it. And through it all, he’s had the unwavering support of his son and family cheering him on every step of the way.

20/05/2026

Next stop: Punggol.

Its name traces back to the Malay word for hurling sticks at fruit trees to bring them down. Before the waterway and the flats, this stretch of northeast coast was farmland and fishing villages along the coast. Today, it's one of Singapore's youngest heartland towns, built around water and still growing into itself. Morning joggers along the waterway, families at the container park on weekends, neighbours crossing paths at One Punggol without planning to. A town shaped as much by the people who chose it early as by what's still being built around them.

14/05/2026

The epok-epok, the karipap, the thick-shelled Chinese curry puff. Three versions of the same idea, each shaped by a different community over generations.
Food historians trace the concept back to colonial Southeast Asia, with influences from the Portuguese empada and the British Cornish pasty. But once it arrived here, something else happened entirely. Not through any grand cultural exchange, just neighbours living side by side, each putting their own spin on it and passing that down through generations. Same simple idea, and yet every version became something entirely its own.

Editor’s note: Thank you for the feedback on the mispronunciation of “epok-epok” in our earlier version. The pronunciation has been corrected in this updated video.

13/05/2026

Shopping for groceries. Reading labels. Identifying objects. Simple tasks most of us take for granted become complex challenges for persons with visual impairment.

Led by Associate Professor Suranga Nanayakkara and co-founder Kian Peen Yeo, NUS researchers developed AiSee, a wearable AI device that helps persons with visual impairment identify objects in their environment. Users simply face an item while wearing the device and receive real-time identification through open year speakers, a design choice that keeps their ears unobstructed so they remain aware of their surroundings.

Its discreet form factor means it draws no unnecessary attention, allowing users to navigate daily life with confidence and ease, exemplifying Singapore's commitment to inclusive innovation where technology empowers rather than isolates.

07/05/2026

Same place. Twenty to fifty completely different sketches 🎨

Almost every Saturday morning, Urban Sketchers Singapore (USkSG) gathers at a different corner of the city to slow down and draw what they see. No skill requirement, no sign-up, no agenda. Just people from all walks of life, some who have been drawing for years and others just starting out, united by a shared love for on-location sketching and Singapore.

Mdm Tia, an art and design educator with an architecture background, founded the Singapore chapter of this global Urban Sketchers movement. Since 2009, their monthly sketch walks have been building a community that pays close attention to the city's beauty and character.

05/05/2026

No one taught us this. We just… all do it.

Waiting for the whole table before eating even though the food is getting cold. Walking on the left so you don't block the escalator. Texting "OTW" when you've barely left the house. Making three rounds at the food court before committing to anything. Taking the longer route home just to stay in the aircon a little longer.

The little things you've probably noticed about each other. Different backgrounds, same habits.

30/04/2026

The epok-epok, the karipap, the thick-shelled Chinese curry puff. Three versions of the same idea, each shaped by a different community over generations.

Food historians trace the concept back to colonial Southeast Asia, with influences from the Portuguese empada and the British Cornish pasty. But once it arrived here, something else happened entirely. Not through any grand cultural exchange, just neighbours living side by side, each putting their own spin on it and passing that down through generations. Same simple idea, and yet every version became something entirely its own.

Over three episodes, Caitanya Tan went out looking for the moments and stories that make Singapore what it is, and found...
29/04/2026

Over three episodes, Caitanya Tan went out looking for the moments and stories that make Singapore what it is, and found no shortage of them. From the cross-cultural experiences that shape everyday life here, to the everyday innovations we barely notice anymore, to the quiet stories of people who found a way when things did not go as planned.

Thank you to everyone who tuned in and shared their own stories in the comments along the way!

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