Fantasy, Gore and Horror in Singapore’s Haw Par Villa
Theme parks are the usual must-sees for family fun but looks like Singapore’s Haw Par Villa offers something you’d better call as “bloody” entertaining. Once you go in, expect to see what Chinese mythology is all about and don’t even dare go out without seeing all 1000 statues and 150 dioramas.
The Haw Par Villa is a Buddhist amusement park brought by the Tiger Balm brothers, Aw Boon Haw and Aw Boon Par. The park was known before as the Tiger Balm Gardens, which was first built in Hong Kong (already shut down) by Boon Haw and later in Singapore by Boon Par. All statues and dioramas are based from Confucianism, Chinese mythology and Buddhist cosmology so expect a freak show around the area, from monkeys with guns to a smiling woman-headed crab.
The highlight in all these oddities is the collection of dioramas inside the Ten Courts of Hell where you’ll see how people are judged and tortured in hell. See a scene where a man gets his heart cut out for disrespecting elders, a man getting dipped in magma for robbery, and another getting stir-fried in a giant wok for rape. It’s like watching Saw in another world with tortures done for people who’ve heavily sinned.
This place is popular among parents and elders who want to show a bit of graphic discipline to naughty kids, but this is something that’ll probably attract those who want to freak themselves out.
