AP - A young man in a white uniform stood on a wooden stool and wound the antique grandfather clock at the entrance lobby, a nightly duty. In the Writers Bar, the pianist played Noel Coward's I'll See You Again, as he does every day at 8pm.
Traditions stand strong at Singapore's legendary Raffles Hotel, which began a year of celebrations on Wednesday to mark its 120th anniversary with a tour by the resident historian and the cutting of a large white birthday cake.
"The Grand Dame is an integral part of Singapore's history, sharing times of prosperity and adversity," Robert Logan, general manager, told reporters before blowing out two gold candles on the cake with other employees.
"Raffles Hotel has certainly come a long way to achieve what she stands for today."
The 103 suite, three storey hotel stands on the site of the original 10 bedroom bungalow that opened as a hotel in 1887, named after Sir Stamford Raffles, the British founder of Singapore. It was restored in 1989-1991, retaining its distinctive colonial flavour as one of Singapore's few remaining historic buildings.
It has counted royalty, heads of state, authors and film stars among its guests.
Guests still dress up for the annual New Year's Eve fancy ball, which was first hosted in 1911. Many a tourist has cooled off in the Long Bar with a Singapore Sling, the cocktail invented there in 1915.
While the shopping arcade, restaurants and open air spaces are open to the public, much of the hotel proper is limited to guests only. Logan said tours would be offered in September to the general public, many of whom know the history of Raffles Hotel but have likely never seen inside.
Other anniversary activities include educational tours and a drawing competition for local students, special shopping and hotel packages, and the introduction of Personality Cocktails named after famous guest writers such as Somerset Maugham, Rudyard Kipling and James Michener.
Hotel historian Leslie Danker, who has worked at Raffles for 35 years, led a public tour on Wednesday.
He pointed out the silver wagon in the dining room that was buried in the garden for protection during World War II, the site below the Bar & Billiards Room where Singapore's last tiger was shot and killed in 1902, and dozens of pieces of antique furniture, including opium couches and an 85 key piano.
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