Pulau Ubin

is the island where my mom grew up on;

where my roots took hold.

This is our story.

since DECEMBER 2025

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The Writ of Ketupat Elections for 2026 has been issued—with Weaving Day for KE26 scheduled for Friday, 20th March.

Weave an informed decision by learning more about the parties and their candidates, as well as previous ketupat election results, here.

Coming Soon

A house in Kampung Sungei Durian, Pulau Ubin, is about to be restored.

Here's our story of #restoring6j into Ambin Ubin.

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SEAS The Day 2025

On 7 Sep, we had a splashing good time running our Ambin Ubin booth at the Punggol Regional Library in celebration of SEAS The Day 2025!...

Sep 17, 2025

Our first Ambin Ubin exhibit outside of Pulau Ubin! TIYA Conference 2025 Gallery Walk

Hey! Here's wan more blogpost! On Sunday, 24 Aug, Ambin Ubin had its first booth outside of Pulau Ubin at the Tzu Chi Humanistic Youth...

Aug 29, 2025

"Where Have U-bin?" Storytelling at Central Public Library

Hey! It's been a while since the last blog post here, several months actually. Before I go on to talk about today's topic, thought I'd do...

Aug 29, 2025

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The Writ of Ketupat Elections for 2026 has been issued—with Weaving Day slated for Friday, 20 March.

KE26 will witness a contest between incumbent Mak from the Ketupat Pasar Party (KPP) and opposition Wan from the Ketupat Bawang Party (KBP). The KPP has won in three of the previous elections, and another through a weave-over as the Ketupat By-Election 2025 was uncontested. The KBP has yet to win in any election. Mak won with 57.38% of total ketupats weaved in KE25.

Who are you weaving for this #KE26?

What if I build a kampung house on Minecraft instead? It should be easy, right? There won't be any regulations that could restrict me from doing that, right?

The "azan'—Muslim call to prayer—is made five times a day to inform Muslims to perform their five daily obligatory prayers: Subuh/Fajr (pre-dawn), Zuhur (noon), Asar (late afternoon), Maghrib (sunset), and Isyak (night).

In the past, before the azan was called, mosques around Singapore would first beat the "beduk" (large drum) to indicate the prayer times. Today, the azan is called indoors in mosques, with the exception of Sultan Mosque which is the only mosque permitted to call the azan through loudspeakers in Singapore. Additionally, the azan is also broadcast over radio on Warna 94.2FM.

I also perform the azan at the end of my heritage hikes at the former site of the Pulau Ubin Mosque to invite participants to immerse themselves in what would have been a soundscape of the expunged Kampung Surau.

BREAKING: The Writ of Ketupat Election 2025 has just been issued. The race will witness a return of two contenders, Wan from the KBP and Mak from the KPP. Who do you think shall be the weaver this time? Comment down below which party you're weaving for!

I finally got to eat the daun sirih, which my grandfather was renowned for farming on Ubin, and it's pretty life-changing. But sirihs-ly though, you should at least try the daun sirih once in your life

Crikey🐊! With crocodiles re-emerging in our waters (and headlines), I ask my mom for her thoughts on these reptilian reports—and how this affects our practices.

Growing old with my ancestral island. Taken 20 years apart at the same Murai Hut on Pulau Ubin.

I was a little kid back then and my mom was just introducing me around to where she grew up, and now here I am conducting talks and walks to share this story and more with people from all walks of life. Alhamdulillah, may Allah ease my affairs in keeping our Ubin Orang Pulau identity alive and relevant in our ever-changing and rapidly modernising Singapore.

When you want to surprise your mom for Mother's Day so you have to call in the expert Cik Kamsah Hamidah instead. Happy Mothers' Day to all mothers (and potential mothers)!

Every Hari Raya eve, I engage in friendly competition with my mom to see who could weave the most ketupats for Raya. This year however, we make it a little bit more ... election-y.

I was invited as a panellist for the MOE EMAS Symposium 2024 to speak about the roles and responsibilities of content creators and social media. Here are some highlights that would answer the age-old question, "How would Wan as a Malay teacher look like?"

It's also been an honour for me to share alongside other wonderful content creators such as @fadh.fadzil and @kakfifiandmimi . Special thanks to MOE for the opportunity!

I attempt to bake ondeh-ondeh tarts but without my mom's help 🫨

Hari Raya is the time of year to revive our culinary heritage! This year, I'll be preparing some of our family's traditional Raya recipes and documenting for all of us to try out hehe.Happy trying!

We have lost more Ubin Orang Pulau in the first 2 weeks of 2024 than all of 2021 and all of 2022. I urge the descendants of the Ubin Orang Pulau to start documenting the stories of their forefathers before it is too late.

I asked my mom and Pak Ahamad Bin Kassim — 2 "Anak Ubin" (children of Ubin) — on their experiences growing up as an Ubin Orang Pulau. Come hear their memories and aspirations for their island home!

WAN MINUTE: Reel fishing at Pasir Ris Park 🎣

Foraging for remis/lala — in 'wan' minute 🐚

"Do you think more can be done to bring more attention to our Orang Pulau community on these forgotten islands?" Thank you CNA938 for featuring me and my Ubin story last night! Here's a soundbite from yesterday's session.

It has been more than three decades since this dish was served, but today my mom and I got to try out my late grandmother's signature dish on Pulau Ubin, "Boren Rendang" (Haddon's Carpet Anemone cooked in coconut milk, seasoned with herb and spice mixture)!

Back on Pulau Ubin, the Ubin Orang Pulau would traverse the sandy shores of Chek Jawa during low tide to forage for these anemones as they were such a delicacy to the coastal/islander community. Using some skill, they would uproot the anemone almost effortlessly from the seafloor and bring it back for preparation. In the past, ashes from burnt firewood would be used to absorb the mucus off the anemone and this process might take hours. Another cycle of cleaning by boiling the anemone takes place to remove any remaining mucus found in it.

Afterwards, the anemone would be chopped up, coated in turmeric powder before a quick round of frying. The rendang spice and sauce is then prepared with a hint of lemongrass and turmeric leaves, followed by a generous portion of coconut milk. Once the oil has surfaced (pecah minyak) and the sauce has thickened, the fried anemone would then be added into the mixture to braise and simmer. And just like that, the traditional cuisine for the Ubin Orang Pulau, especially for my family, is served.

In the name of God, Most Gracious Most Merciful, may this traditional cuisine of the Ubin Orang Pulau be conserved and celebrated, so that our future generations may still be able to carry on the culinary traditions and culture of our ancestors.

Humbled to have the revival of WUJ Project Gotong Royong featured on @beritamediacorp last Saturday! I'd like to thank all the volunteers who came down to make the "inauguration" a success and it's nice to finally be back to give back to the Ubin Orang Pulau community after 3 years of pandemic.

My mom and I were interviewed by the Singapore Malay news where we share about the kampung life on Pulau Ubin, and how WUJ has been helping to immortalise the memories of her Orang Pulau community. Thank you @beritamediacorp for sharing our stories.

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Malay KamPUng Heritage Walk

Join Wan (now a licenced Singapore tourist guide!) in this descendant-led journey through the Malay kampung and learn about the cultural and natural heritage behind the Ubin Orang Pulau community!

This walk was previously known as WUJ Heritage Hike from 2020 - 2025.

Project Gotong Royong

Show off your gotong-royong spirit as you assist our community in upkeeping their beautiful kampung houses and courtyards!

In Memoriam

We remember the Ubin Orang Pulau who have left us.

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