Squares

When I first arrived in Singapore, nearly two years ago, I had a (as it turns out horrendous!) job interview at Parkview Square. And got horribly lost. The reason is this:

In the UK (and other parts of Europe) when an address is in a Square it is.. well, an address in a Square. That is, a building situated in one of the many square open spaces which are bounded on four sides by buildings. The address you are looking for will be one of these perimeter buildings. (In the centre you might have a communal garden if it's private / residential, or a little park if it is public. In the summer, people all try to loll out in the sunshine with sandwiches for lunch in Central London squares.) Squares are old design features in Europe's urban fabric.

Golden Square, London

Pembridge Square, London

Trafalgar Square

In Singapore, however, a Square usually means a 'mall'. It is not an open space with perimeter buildings, but a building itself. The address you are looking for will be a unit inside the mall. I don't know if these buildings were erected on what was originally a square open space (but let's face it, a lot of architectural footprints are square!) or if they are just trendy-sounding brand names. Some condominiums are also christened 'square' simply as a branding exercise. So I suspect the latter.

Either way, I spent a great deal of time on my interview day, trying to find something which resembled a square open space; when in actual fact I was standing right under the banner for Parkview Square (a particularly ugly faux art-deco mall/office/hotel skyscraper!)

Parkview Square, Singapore

The giant mall that is Marina Square

You can click on the pictures to enlarge.

Additional photo credits: Hudson Property, Rightmove, Turismo Culturamix, SalesinSingapore.