New activity for this Sunday,  Eco Stations with Beng Chiak of Nature Society, hunt down  ants and insects and understand their relationship to plants and trees, how trees host other living things and nature’s self help system! Check out  more details here

Eco-Stations (photo NSS)

Family Day,  we did it last Sunday on March 11 and we now know we can do it even better. Up sized buffet  of activities from guided tours to treasure hunts, to arts and crafts, haiku composing for all ages  and nature gems for the whole family. Adults must be accompanied by children for treasure hunts!

Please read handy tips for a more enjoyable day, there will be a quiz before you can join – just kidding – but do, DO read it for safety precautions!

The pied piper who will return your children but only if your go along! (photo Victor Yue)

The Guests of Honour (photo:Peter Pak)

The storyteller Bala spins a tale of "The Giving Tree" (photo: Catherine Lim)

The event begins at 9 am and will end by 12.30 pm.

Report to the Skih Guard for registration (photo Catherine Lim)

Tours will be done differently, instead of one long guided tour, there will be 4 stations to stopover and participants may drop out  anytime they want to sample other delights. Student volunteers will usher participants from station to station in 2 rounds of tours one starting at 9 am and the second at 9.30 am. They will also point out directions to  those who want to return to the roundabout.

Please download this map and take note that the 4 stations covered in the route are  group 1, group 3, group 4 and group 12. Constraint by time  guides may not be able to cover every tomb in each group. The estimated schedule if you visit every station is  2 hours. This is the timetable with estimated times and guides :

9.oo at Sikh Station –  introduction by Catherine (Second tour  starts at 9.30  am if there are more than 10 people and follows the same schedule as tour 1)

a)9.15  at group 1  – by  Peter (second tour eta 9.45)

b)9.50 at group 3 – by Raymond (second tour eta 10.20)

c).10.30 at group 2 – by Yik Han (second tour 11.00)

d) 11.10 at group 12 – by Charles, this last station will be capped by a short uphill (easy) to the jewel in crown Ong Sam Leong’s family grave site and group photo. ( the second tour  eta 11.50 will be led  Catherine and Peter )

This gives you some idea  what some of your guides look like:

Catherine - needs to be fed, along the way if possible

You can 't miss Peter - he's a barrel of fun

Charles (left) Raymond (right) - The Tomb Whisperers, the most knowledgeable.

For the treasure hunts starting at 9.30am, look out for :

Claire, one of the movers and shakers of the volunteer corp

Your Emeritus Zoo Keeper of Bukit Brown – She is responsible for collecting “animals” for the treasure hunt and the design.

Yes, Ai Loon loves animals!

Watch this space for more details of Family Day activities  by  co-organisers: SOS Bukit Brown and Nature Society, Singapore