Our monthly series of articles investigating the sites and activities of Singapore has thus far ventured near (Asia's Convention City, the immediate neighborhood of the 2010 ICA Conference) and far (Bangkok, Thailand and Angkor Wat, Cambodia-sites of ICA's postconference tours). This month, we pick up in the heart of the city of Singapore, at its liveliest and poshest spot: Orchard Road.

Once upon a time, the strip was literally a road that cut through a series of nutmeg orchards, lined with the mansions of the plantations' owners. It began to transform in 1917, when the Singapore Cold Storage Company opened a food market on Orchard Road. Soon after came another market and some car-repair services, followed by a department store, entertainment complexes, and eateries. By the 1970s, Orchard Road had become the city-state's center for popular and consumer culture. The following decade, the government constructed three stations for the MRT-Singapore's mass transit system-along the road, increasing its accessibility and, therefore, its popularity.

Today, Orchard Road bursts with shopping centers and retail outlets, high-end apartments and hotels, offices, and tourist attractions. The street itself underwent an SGD $40 million beautification process last year, and thus has been fitted with new street lamps, planter boxes, street tiling, flower totem poles, and green space. It is such a fixture in Singapore that the city district based around the road is simply known as "Orchard" (also the name of the northernmost of the street's three MRT stations).

Orchard Road is a one-way street, running southeast from Tanglin Road-the primary corridor for the nearby Tanglin district-which becomes Orchard just outside the campus of the Singapore Institute of International Affairs. Appropriately, at that spot are two large shopping centers: Tanglin Shopping Centre and Delfi Orchard Mall. The latter is one of the flagship shopping venues of Orchard Road: It includes over 70 stores, among them beauty shops and spas; clothiers for men, women, children, and maternity; toys; music and language schools; a gymnasium; hobby shops; restaurants; jewelers; bridal stores; and other specialty retailers.

All told, there are 24 shopping malls on Orchard Road, including Ngee Ann City, the largest in Singapore; Lucky Plaza, which primarily caters to the island's Filipino population; and ION Orchard, with the flagship Singapore stores for six high-end retailers: Prada, Giorgio Armani, Louis Vuitton, Dior, Dolce & Gabbana, and Cartier. Indeed, the retailers at Orchard Road tend in general toward high-end and unique specialty shops; another Orchard mall, the award-winning Centrepoint, is famous for its stores that specialize in all sorts of unusual themes-- classical music and high-end food among them. (The Centrepoint also includes Cold Storage, the supermarket that was the first business on Orchard Road.) However, the Far East Plaza is a favorite of college students because of its low-price food and clothing outlets.

Orchard Road is also the entertainment hub of Singapore. Within its many complexes are a theatrical and performance stage, arcades and bars, and three enormous cineplexes with a total of 30 screens between them. One of the shopping malls, the Cathay Cineleisure Orchard, is a spectacular entertainment center known simply as the "Cine." The Cine is designed with a movie-set theme, so that concourses and entrances to the stores look like backdrops for various film studios. Until recently, it was also the largest Cineplex in Singapore, with 12 massive screens that were recently voted the best in the nation. But that's just the core of the complex; in addition, there is a multilevel food court, youth-oriented shopping, a karaoke lounge, an arcade, and e-gaming center.

That said, one of the liveliest and most visible amusements of Orchard Road is the thick crowd of street performers that line it from end to end. The street is notorious and beloved for its volume and variety of buskers. Every few meters, one is likely to encounter music from both individual guitarists and full-on bands (one favorite is the 15-piece Brazilian percussion band Sambiesta); portrait artists; dance troupes; acrobats and gymnasts; jugglers and sword swallowers; and even comedians and magicians. Though their venues don't say so, the performers take their work very seriously and often give professional-caliber performances; if you enjoy what you see, take a moment to leave them a tip.

There's also no shortage of street fare when it comes to dining on Orchard Road. Just as dense as the performers are the popular kiosks of ice cream and chestnuts, as well as ethnic tidbits from India, China, Mongolia, Indonesia, and the Phillipines. But of course there are plenty of restaurants and cafes on Orchard Road, ranging from fine dining to trendy joints to cuisine as casual as the street hawkers (McDonald's, Burger King, and Starbucks are everywhere to be found). In fact, Straits Kitchen-the restaurant on the ground floor of the Grand Hyatt Singapore hotel-specializes in recreating both the flavors and the atmospheres of the street but in a clean, comfortable indoor setting. At the other end of the spectrum is Din Tai Fung. The Taiwanese restaurant, located in the Paragon Shopping Center, has been named one of the World's Top Ten Restaurants by The New York Times newspaper; it focuses on simple dishes prepared in simple cooking styles, including the signature dishes of steamed pork dumplings and chicken soup.

Finally, two of Singapore's most prominent tourist attractions are located on or near Orchard Road. Adjacent to the street's north end lies Singapore Botanic Gardens, a 157-acre, 64-hectare park containing six gardens, three lakes, and a rainforest. The most popular attraction is Singapore's National Orchid Garden, which displays over 3,000 varieties (both primary species and hybrids) of the national flower. To the south is the Istana, the official residence and office of the President of Singapore. Built in 1869 as the home of the British colonial governor, the mansion is rarely occupied by Singapore's head of state and is instead used for ceremonial purposes (although the President does work in his office in the mansion, and the Prime Minister's office is in an annex to the main building).

Orchard Road offers a taste, if not a full feast, of the finer things in Singaporean life. For anyone who wants a day out on the town shopping or partaking in the city's entertainment, or even visiting the local attractions, this famous street is a must-visit.