Southeast Asia’s Museums Offer Visitors a Door to the Past — Don’t Miss These 4

David Geithner
4 min readOct 20, 2021

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Southeast Asia’s museums offer visitors a glimpse of ancient civilizations, blended cultures, and recent violent clashes. Depending on your interests, the following four offer unique experiences.

1. Peranakan Museum, Singapore

This former school building in the Colonial District of Singapore is situated close to the Raffles Hotel. It is a cultural center dedicated to the history, traditions, arts, and culture of the Peranakan community. The term Peranakan means “locally born,” but it is used almost exclusively for the descendants of 15th-century Chinese traders who married local women of Malay origin. They were also known as Straits Chinese, as they were primarily born in the British-controlled Straits Settlements of Singapore, Penang, and Malacca. Under British rule, they were also called the King’s Chinese in reference to their status as British subjects.

Many Peranakans retained their Chinese heritage but were generally from a higher socio-economic class than most Chinese-born immigrants. However, after they suffered financial losses during the Great Depression and World War II, few recovered, and the culture began to decline. Nevertheless, interest in Peranakans and Peranakan cuisine has revived in the last decade, thanks to a popular television drama series.

The architecture and interiors of the Peranakan Museum display the unique style and aesthetics of the Peranakans — a blend of traditional Chinese aspects with local Malay and, later, British influence. Authentically styled rooms maintain a collection of carefully curated artifacts, including a tablecloth made of over 1 million glass beads. The immersive displays will transport you back in time to a world of glamorous color and luxury.

2. Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum, Cambodia

Just a short drive away from Phnom Penh, the capital of Cambodia, are the infamous Killing Fields of Choeung Ek. But in the heart of the city is the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum, situated in a former high school that was turned into prison S-21 during the Khmer Rouge regime of the late 1970s. Under the reign of Khmer Rouge leader Pol Pot, the whole of Cambodia essentially became a concentration camp, and S-21 was the biggest execution and torture center. Roughly 14,000 prisoners were subjected to horrendous conditions here, and visitors can see their photographs and read the transcripts of their interrogations.

A visit to Tuol Sleng is a sobering experience and certainly not appropriate for children. Photography for personal use is permitted, and visitors are asked to dress modestly with legs and arms covered.

3. Ambarawa Railway Museum, Indonesia

Rail transport enthusiasts will enjoy the nostalgic collection of steam locomotives, wooden carriages, and other railway paraphernalia found in the Ambarawa Railway Museum. Situated in Central Java on the route from Semarang to Surakarta, the museum is housed in a converted railway station dating back to the Dutch colonialization of Indonesia. The original station was built in 1873 and acted as a transshipment point between the 4-foot, 8-inch gauge branch from Kedungjati and the 3-foot, 6-inch gauge line onward toward Yogyakarta via Magelang. Visitors can still observe how the two sides of the station cater to different size trains.

The museum was established in the 1970s. Lately, it has been receiving attention from the government for its historical significance and potential for tourism. In addition to locomotives of varying ages, visitors will see original railway uniforms, furniture, old telephones, and Morse telegraph machines. It’s even possible to ride on a cog railway between Ambarawa and the nearby village Bedono.

4. War Remnants Museum, Vietnam

Five hundred thousand visitors a year make their way to the War Remnants Museum in the heart of Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. Shortly after the fall of Saigon in 1975, it was opened as the Exhibition House for US and Puppet Crimes by the government of Vietnam. It became the Exhibition House for Crimes of War and Aggression in the 1990s as relationships between the US and Vietnam improved. Its current name was a diplomatic exchange in return for the cessation of economic sanctions that had crippled the country.

Outside the museum’s main building entrance are authentic examples of American military hardware left behind when Saigon fell. You’ll find an American Huey helicopter and an M48 Patton tank, for example. Inside the main entrance is an F-5A fighter. It’s an incongruous display given restaurants, banks, and offices flank them.

Inside are vivid photos of the atrocities of war: piles of bodies, weeping families, and destroyed cities and villages, as well as documentation of the anti-war protests that took place globally. Some of the original torture equipment used by the French and South Vietnamese is also on display.

Whatever your interests, the museums of Southeast Asia will offer something to pique your curiosity.

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David Geithner
David Geithner

Written by David Geithner

David Geithner is a senior finance executive who draws upon nearly three decades of experience to serve as EVP and COO, IMG Events and On Location.

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