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Monday, 15 February 2021

CNY Fun at Asian Civilisation Museum and National Gallery Singapore

It was a school holiday on CNY Day 4 and since I was able to take off-in-lieu, I brought the kids to the Asian Civilisations Museum for the first time. I really enjoy bringing my kids to visit the museums because it's air-conditioned, interactive and best of all FREE! 😁


The area surrounding the museum is also perfect for beautiful family portraits or snapshots of your OOTDs!




The Asian Civilisations Museum (ACM) is located along the Singapore River, next to Cavenagh Bridge. 


I had pre-booked our tickets online but when we arrived, the staff at the front desk didn't even look at my booking; he just scanned our ICs and allowed us to go in.

We started our visit at the Galleries on Level 1, which tells the story of trade. The Tang Shipwreck Gallery displayed the artefacts that were retrieved from the a shipwreck off Belitung Island. 

Some of the more interesting artefacts include beautifully hand-painted bowls and plates. I was particularly fascinated by the cups that come with 'built-in straws', which are made of small tunnels and a hole in the bottom to allow the water to be sucked up through the opening at the top. It's impressive that the idea of drinking through a tube has already existed so many years ago.


We also visited the Maritime Trade gallery, where we got to see various artefacts that were traded many centuries ago. 


I love how intricate and detailed the art is!



We headed to the galleries on Faith and Beliefs and Scholars at Level 2. It was a nice exhibition with various interesting things to see. 


The museum also had a special section where you can interact with the art by downloading the ACM app. 



You can see the art piece coming to life! The kids were very intrigued! 


We were supposed to visit the galleries at Level 3 next but weren't able to as the kids started to complain of hunger. We proceeded instead to Prive, which was located within the museum itself. 



I think my kids are beginning to associate museums with yummy 'atas' food seeing as we also had a great dining experience at Food For Thought at the National Museum! I enjoyed my lobster spaghetti while the kids loved their kids meals and mushroom soup πŸ˜‹




The kids wanted to have ice cream at Prive earlier but this Mummy convinced them to get the $1.20 cheap-and-good ice cream from the traditional ice cream push cart at Cavenagh Bridge.
 

I love how the price and taste of traditional ice cream from the push cart has not really changed after so many years! We all enjoyed our ice cream! 

When the kids had finished eating, they spent some time playing with the large mirror spheres just outside the ACM. I managed to capture many nice photos as the weather was very good! 😊



As the National Gallery of Singapore, previously the Supreme Court, was just a 5-minute walk away, we brought the kids for a visit since the last time we had visited was 5 years ago.


The kids really enjoyed the Keppel Centre for Arts Education when we here the last time as it is probably the only art gallery that is set up just for kids!


An Ink-credible experience awaits at the Art Playscape this time! The kids were able to 'draw' with ink by interacting with the various interactive screens! Some screens recognised hand movements, some feet and one even recognised sounds! 



The kids had a lot of fun legitimately jumping around! 

The kids also explored Dayung Sampan, which was more suitable for preschoolers. The Littlest had the most fun in this exhibit! 






While the Littlest played, the older kids checked out the various activities in the rooms. They got to make a spirograph, paper boats and even observe a robot make ink art! 





There was also a Small Big Dreamers special exhibition located outside the children's gallery. In the shape of a giant rambutan, you just won't miss it! 



Entry to the exhibit is free but you will need to buy the materials at $5 a packet if you want to participate in the activities. We bought a packet for the kids to share so as to support the museum. There were activity sheets, a pencil, a coloured pencil, a mask and a pair of gloves inside the pineapple-shaped paper packet! The kids enjoyed drawing their masterpieces and hanging them on the wall. 



The Littlest was too young to participate so she spent her time playing among the spindles of the giant rambutan instead.


The giant rambutan is actually a room where the kids can design pineapples by waving their hands in front of an interactive screen. 



The camera takes a photo at the end of the session which you can download and keep. 



We really had a great time at the museums! I'm already planning our next museum visit 😊

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This post is part of my MadPsychMum Fun in Singapore Guide to all things exciting for kids! 
Check out other fun playgrounds and attractions in Singapore! =)


You can also keep up to date with our fun adventures on Instagram via our hashtag #mpmfuninsg!