The Beautiful Hill 2 of Bukit Brown Cemetery  is resplendent  history:  tomb stones carved in China with facial relief so expressive they will speak to you through  your guide Yik Han, whilst your other guide, Peter Pak will reveal hidden in  green nooks,   tombs guarded by Angels and Sikh Guards. And if you are lucky macaques may swing above in the canopy of trees  and birdsong fill the air, as  Hill 2 overlooks  a beautiful valley. Sadly the proposed highway will sliced through here. So enjoy Hill 2 while you can.

Tombs of note on Hill 2 can  be found here

This tour’s highlight is however  the newly cleared and cleaned up tomb of Lee Kim Soo , an early manufacturer of match sticks.

Lee Kim Soo's tomb reveals swirls and geometric lines after clear up (photo Rosalind Tan)

Debut of Lee Kim Soo on atBB tours (Photo: Khoo Ee Hoon)

Volunteer guides, Peter and Yik Han, were joined by other Brownies on this May 12 guided tour.

The tour: Video here. (Credit: Albert Ong)

Peter Pak guiding (Photo: Ang Yik Han)

Yik Han, Peter, Keng Kiat and the tour participants (photo: Suki Singh)

And the horses and riders are back, after a break during Qing Ming (Photo: Suki SIngh)

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Also on the same day, after guiding, the volunteers aka Brownies helped some descendants re-unite with long-lost relatives:

A tomb find (Photo: Suki Singh)

Ms Teresa has found her grandfather, whose tomb Ah Lim helped to rebuild. On the same day, she found her grandmother too:

A tomb find (Photo: Suki Singh)

Miss Teresa is re-united with her grand mother. This find was done with the help of Suki, Peter Pak, Chew Keng Kiat. Miss Teresa thanks the Brownies sincerely from the bottom of her heart.

Tan Ka Po finds his ancestors, with guide Peter Park (Photo: Khoo Ee Hoon)

In the meantime, the descendants at what is commonly called the “naked angels’ tomb” finally turned up to solve the mystery of who this man was. We discover his two other wives are buried in front of his tomb. Now to find the other relatives.

Raymond engaged to find a tomb (Photo: Khoo Ee Hoon)

Raymond hikes up a hill to find a tomb (Photo: Khoo Ee Hoon)

Raymond disappears into the bush to find a tomb (Photo: Khoo Ee Hoon)

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The Bukit Brown area is about 233 acres  in extent, bordered by Lornie Road, Lower Thomson Road and the Pan-Island Expressway. It lies just to the south of the Central Catchment Forest, being separated from it by Lornie Road and includes one of Singapore’s oldest Chinese cemetery. With >100,000 graves, Bukit Brown is also one of the largest Chinese cemeteries outside of China.

The volunteers, also known as Brownies, do research, plan the logistics and organize tours to help raise awareness of what is to be lost. Today’s Brownies were: Peter, Catherine, Raymond, Victor with his wife Doris, Keng Kiat and our honorable Sikh guard, Suki. Not in the photo: Yik Han (pictured below) and the photographer Ee Hoon.

Brownies (Photo: Khoo Ee Hoon)

Brownies Keng Kiat and Yik Han (Photo: Khoo Ee Hoon)

((Compiled by Claire Leow, with information provided by Suki Singh and Khoo Ee Hoon.)