About
Laidback and affluent, Siglap is a residential area comprising mainly landed property and condominiums. Like Holland Village, Siglap is lined with cafes, pubs and coffee shops that make it a popular place amongst Singapore 's Easterners. The crowd here is young and educated, with a good mix of expatriates and locals. Siglap is generally not a busy area, but it tends to get crowded at night and on weekends. Parking in Siglap is a jittery affair – traffic wardens and parking attendants are permanently stationed in the area. Getting a parking ticket or a traffic fine in Siglap is normal and always unpleasant.

History
The word “Siglap” is derived from the Malay phrase Si Gelap, or “the dark one”. The district came to be called this because it is rumoured to have experienced a heavy thunderstorm when its founder first arrived in the area. In the 1800s, Siglap was a village of pirates.

The coastal region of the Siglap district, however, is relatively new. Like the Marine Parade area, this region was built on land reclaimed in the 1970s. The older apartments in this area used to provide housing to civil servants and have since been privatized.

The Residential Area
Siglap's residential area comprises landed property and condominiums, many of which overlook the sea. Condominiums such as Mandarin Gardens and Lagoon View offer an unobstructed view of the South China Sea and easy access to East Coast Park. Other condominiums that lie in the heart of Siglap are less accessible but quieter.

There are many schools in the Siglap area, including Sekolah Indonesia Singapore (the Indonesian School in Singapore), Global Indian International School 's East Coast Campus and Opera Estate Primary School. The only shopping mall in Siglap is Siglap Centre, a small building that is ideal only for purchasing basic necessities.

You find an obscure Muslim cemetery at the peak of Siglap, which is rumoured to be haunted. It holds the tomb of Sheikh Ali, a descendant of ancestral Malay kings and princes.

Dining, Recreation and Lodging
Siglap is one of the centres of dining for Easterners. Here, you find rows of shop houses containing coffee shops, cafes, restaurants and pubs. Some of the more popular dishes in Siglap include the duck rice, the beef hor fun, the nasi goreng pattaya, and the vadai. Restaurants in Siglap serve Indian food, Indian-Chinese fusion cuisine, Cantonese food and Western cuisine. The area is also the location of The Cheesecake Café, which is extremely popular among Singaporeans.

Backpackers can stay at Fern Loft Hostel, which is homely and affordable. Guests of the hostel are entitled to a free drink at the bar downstairs, named Georges Café, which claims to serve the best steak in the East.