[top photo: Mr Patrick Chiow (far left), who proposed to Ms Rebecca Foo 11 years ago in a cable car, with her and their children Livia, eight, Joelle, six, and Kristen, two.]
Singapore's cable cars are quite an engaging ride. And it is not just because of the fabulous view.
Those gently swaying cabins transporting visitors on bench seats and in claustrophobic confines across the sparkling harbour between Sentosa and Mount Faber have been the scene of countless nervous men pulling out a ring and popping the question. Many a girlfriend, in response, have broken the eerie silence of the enclosed gondolas 90m above the water with a teary 'Yes'.
But now, the romantic rides are coming to a temporary halt. The cable cars, which have been running for 35 years, will swing out for a last time in August.
A new, swanky ride will reopen in the second quarter of next year after a $36-million makeover that will take the experience to new heights. The ride will be 20m higher, with bigger gondolas that have spruced up services such as special sound systems. There will even be VIP cabins adorned with Austrian Swarovski crystals.
The cable-car system started in 1974, but it only soared as a place to propose when, 11 years ago, pastor Patrick Chiow asked his girlfriend Rebecca Foo to marry him.
They were one of the 71 couples taking part in the ride's first Valentine's Day Dinner inside its cabins in 1998.
'As the saying goes: Love is in the air. So a proposal in the air seemed fitting,' says Mr Chiow, 43, about his proposal to Ms Foo, 38, a housewife who looks after the couple's three daughters.
More than just setting his life off in a new direction though, he also set off a trend. Countless couples have made their life-long decision the same way.
Take Mr Ang Chwee Hock, 30, who successfully proposed to sales co-ordinator Joyce Lee, 29, on Wednesday night.
The animator popped the question over a $98 two-hour dinner in a cabin going round the stations. 'I wanted to propose over dinner, but not just any ordinary dinner and learnt about the cable car's sky dining through friends.'
It is not just young lovers who have poignant memories of having a high time.
Self-employed Cheryl Khong, 28, recalls her first experience of riding the cable car when she was around five years old. 'I was very excited, but I wasn't scared because I had seen the cable car many times when passing by the old World Trade Centre. My parents would point it out and say: 'That's the cable car. We'll take you there one day'.'
Apart from bringing smiles to many Singaporeans, the cable cars have also been a popular tourist attraction.
But the ride was initially just a necessary mode of transport. Apart from ferries plying the waterway, the $5.8-million cable car was the only link to the resort island. That was before the bridge linking the two islands was completed at the end of 1992 and driving into Sentosa was allowed six years later.
The lowest point in the cable cars' history was in 1983 when a passing oil rig snagged the overhead cables, sending two cabins into the water and killing seven people.
The upcoming revamp is the first time the entire cable-car system, ropeway and cabins are being replaced simultaneously.
When the new ride is ready, it will be carrying the world's first-and-only seven-star VIP Jewelled Cabin, a four-seater gondola adorned with Swarovski crystals.
Its glass floor will be aglow with Swarovski crystal diamonds; large leather chairs will have armrests covered in black crystal fabric and passengers will be star-gazing through a Swarovski diamond glass-panelled roof. A DVD player with 19-inch LED screen, a fridge and a high-end Bose sound system complete the opulent features.
Each of the other 67 streamlined metallic black and chrome cabins will be equipped with large panoramic windows, level walk-in for easy access for wheelchairs and prams, an MP3 music system and a removable table with cup-holders.
As for the current batch of cabins, cable-car operator Mount Faber Leisure Group says it is considering donating them to tourist spots so that people can view them.
Surprisingly, the group has also received inquiries from the public about buying the cabins as memorabilia.
Imagine having a cable car in your living room. Perhaps those seeking to propose in a cable car can buy one to rehearse in.
frankiec@sph.com.sg
This article was first published in The Straits Times.
