The group of pictures, taken of the same family over more than two decades, show the gradual yet impossible-to-ignore changes undergone by early Chinese immigrants. [Photos by Zeng Yu/For China Daily]

"The story of these immigrants progressed on two parallel narrative lines: one was about settling down; and the other was about reaching back."

Chu Kin Fong, a licensed tour guide and third-generation Chinese immigrant, has made it her job to take visitors - especially from the Chinese mainland - to Chinatown in Singapore.

The area, in the southern part of the island, is where Chinese immigrants once congregated, on both sides of the Singapore River.

"The majority of them worked as porters. But some ran restaurants or barber's shops," says Chu.

Life was never easy, she says. In fact, Chinatown is also known locally as "niu-che-shui", meaning "ox-driven water cart".

In the old days, Chinese immigrants, with no fresh water to drink, used ox carts to ferry water from other parts of the island.

However, according to Chu, the hardships endured were in a way mitigated with the formation of associations, which were essentially mutual-help groups based on the area in China where the immigrants hailed from.