Haji Lane

This guide to Haji Lane in Singapore's Kampong Glam district follows the pilgrim-brokers who once ran lodging houses here for Muslims travelling to Mecca, arranging transport and paperwork for thousands arriving from across the archipelago. It traces the lane's quiet decades after air travel replaced the old sea routes, and the café that in 2001 drew a different kind of traveller back to its shophouses. Listen for how the murals and boutiques layered themselves onto the century-old facades.