After Hours @ My Geylang with Cai Yinzhou

Geylang has always been associated with a slew of vices. This tour however, hopes to change mindsets and reduce the number of stereotypes surrounding the red-light district and its diverse communities. Explore the neighbourhood with Geylang boy Cai Yinzhou, who will walk you through the issues foreign workers and prostitutes face.

Meet Yinzhou, founder of Citizen Adventures!

I started Backalley Barbers in 2014 when I found out my migrant worker friend could not afford a basic haircut. To date, we have given thousands of haircuts and the initiative has really grown to be much more than a simple haircutting service. It is now really about building an inclusive community and creating opportunities for the stories of migrant workers and other marginalized communities in Geylang to be shared with other Singaporeans.

This edition of Backalley Barbers will take you through Geylang’s lorongs after hours and these communities will relay their lived experiences in Geylang. I hope the tour brings you a more nuanced understanding of Geylang and help you realise that there is much more than meets the eye to this fabled red-light district.

More about Citizen Adventures

Citizen Adventures, founded by Cai Yinzhou in 2014, designs experiences to help Singaporeans understand neighbourhoods as ecosystems formed through the interactions between people, memories, infrastructure, policy and discourse. The organisation currently offers tours of Geylang and Dakota Crescent that unpack the social issues neighbourhoods face. They are also active in the community, providing weekly haircuts for migrant workers while organising adhoc welfare events for them.

Details of the Programme

• Language: English
• Dates:

• • Fri, 10 Sep: 2200 to 0030
  • Sat, 11 Sep: 2200 to 0030
  • Fri, 17 Sep: 2200 to 0030
  • Sat, 18 Sep: 2200 to 0030
  • Fri, 24 Sep: 2200 to 0030
  • Sat, 25 Sep: 2200 to 0030
  • Fri, 1 Oct: 2200 to 0030
  • Sat, 2 Oct: 2200 to 0030

• Meeting Point:

• • Start Point: Aljunied MRT POSB ATM (60 Sims Dr Singapore 380060)
  • End Point: Near Lorong 24A Geylang

• Please arrive 20 minutes before the event for registration. Our facilitators will be wearing our event t-shirt.
• Parking is available at event vicinity.
• Venue is not wheelchair accessible.
• The event will proceed rain or shine.

Who should come?

• Participants must be 13 years and above to participate.

What to bring?

• Participants should bring along an umbrella, hand sanitisers, insect repellent, and a bottle of water.
• Participants are encouraged to dress comfortably and wear covered shoes for hiking/trekking.
• Participants are encouraged to bring their own earphones (with a standard 3.5mm audio jack) because we will be using radio guides for the tour!
• Asthmatic individuals are encouraged to bring their inhaler.

COVID-19 Precautions

• All hosts and facilitators in this tour programme are fully vaccinated or have taken a Pre-Event Test (PET) in the past 24 hours
• Facilitators in this tour or programme are trained in basic first-aid.
• All participants must complete TraceTogether, a health declaration form and temperature taking at the start of the event.
• All participants must wear their masks properly throughout the event.
• All participants must maintain a one-metre distance from other participants during the event.
• All participants will be issued with coloured stickers and be divided into smaller groups. Participants must stay with their groups and not intermingle between the groups

Disclaimer

• All ticket sales are final. There will be no refund if you wish to cancel your tickets.
• By agreeing to participate in the event, participants are responsible for any injury, loss or damage due to the negligence on his/her part or of the children under his/her charge.
• Participants must abide by the house rules set out by the host. Facilitators will brief participants at the start of the programme.
• Videos and photographs may also be taken during the event. By registering for this event, you give My Community full rights to use the photos for marketing and publicity.

For updates:

• Follow us at @mycommunitysg on Instagram and @myqueenstown on Facebook.
• Visit mycommunityfestival.sg for all our latest updates.

Event Venue & Nearby Stays

Aljunied MRT Station (EW9), 81 Lorong 25 Geylang, Singapore, Singapore