A new exhibition next month, in celebration of Clifford Pier's 80th anniversary, will trace how the pier has changed from a humble pier into an upscale venue. SMU President Professor Arnoud De Meyer, who has lived in Singapore for about eight years and who is originally from Belgium, contributed his memories to The Fullerton Heritage. He made trips to Singapore about three to four times a year from 1984 to teach operations management to executives from developing countries. He visited Clifford Pier in 1987 when he took a wooden boat from the pier for a day-trip to the Southern Islands. Prof Meyer said: "I came out of the clean high-tech world in Orchard Road, where my hotel was, into an older part of Singapore - it was a lot messier back then."