Sungai Siput & Lion Hill

Whenever i drive to Sg Siput i will always look upwards to check if 'Lion Hill ' has changed . Nope. Its like its watching over the town all the time.

Generally Sg Siput is a nice and clean town. The roads are wide and and the area is well maintained and tidy. You will notice this once you pass Kanthan and the LaFarge cement factory. Its a pleasant drive all the way up to Kuala Kangsar.

This is the Sg Siput railway Station on Jln Stesen. Its off the main road. The landmark to this junction is Fajar Supermarket. The building is the usual Railway station design.

But the station is neat and tidy.

The station is still in its original condition but its bright and cheery.

This is the Post office on the same road. (The railway station is on the right of the photograph)
The catholic church is at the back of the post office.

The building is decades old.

But inside there is air conditioning and its a pleasant environment.

St John the Baptist Church ...is situated on Jln Gereja...where else.. which runs parallel to Jln Stesen. There are Indian and Malay stalls along the road.

But whenever you look upwards from wherever you will see Lion Hill.

I recall going up Lion hill sometime in the eighties. The trip was organised by the Malayan Nature Society. (The colors on my photos are fading so i'm posting it in black and white.)

On the trek towards Lion hill.

There was a steep ladder there which would take you almost to the top. And there was aHindu shrine there then. Seems the ladder and shrine are gone now.

The shrine . Imagine meditating atop here. Must have been tranquil.

The view from the top.

The MNS members. Lion hill is in the background. How time flies.

Yup. That was good Sunday. Been there ..done that.

cheers.

Tuck Kee Restaurant ...tar pau....

Was in the Pasir Puteh / Pinji area few evenings back and passed by this place.....Me and the family eat here sometimes and would order some of their grilled meat before the main meal arrives. Thought i'd tar pau some today.
These guys have their price list very visibly displayed.
They have a digital weighing machine. This is what i asked for and this was what it cost.
This is what is available.
Neat working area. I always like the stainless steel.
Had this as one of the dinner dishes. Be sure to ask for the 'tao cheong sauce ' as well as the chilly sauce.

cheers..

kk

Taman DR....along the Kinta River

While taking shots of Gunong Cheroh last Saturday I strolled into Taman DR from the side of the Kinta River. This park should be 50 years old this year ( maybe more) . Its original name was Coronation Park. The trees here look very mature. Below is a shady row of trees between 2 fields.
A view from atop the riverbank.The skating ring is on the right.
Sun shining thru at 930am.
A place to sembang2
Mature tree.
Old tree.
A view of the State Secretariat from the riverbank
Jogger stretching under the overshadowing trees on the walkway.
Scouts from the nearby Poi Lam school on patrol.
Yellow birds singing & playing in the trees.
Egrets along the river bund. These birds must have come from the Kinta Nature Park at Batu Gajah. ( the park is located along the Kinta River along the BG to Tg Tualang road)

This is a nice stretch of walkway along the river.

The Kinta River and Gunung Cheroh...the beginnings of Ipoh ?

To many Ipoh residents Gunong Cheroh is a huge limestone outcrop next to the Kinta River and in the heart of town where the Thaipusam celebrations are held every year. As with most hills around Ipoh , you will find temples located within them. Viewed from afar the temples located there are tiny in comparison to the size of the outcrop.

This is the Subramaniar Temple

The statues of these deities blend in with the surroundings

But Gunong Cheroh in the 19^th century was a landmark on the Kinta River. At a time when there were no roads the only means of communication between Ipoh and the outside world was by way of the Kinta River. The journey to Ipoh would start from Teluk Anson (now Teluk Intan ) on the Perak river.

Food and supplies would be loaded at TA for delivery to miners and agents at Ipoh using flat bottomed boats which would be poled upstream. There were 2 principal mining areas then and 2 main landing stages…
1) Gopeng . Its port or landing stage was at Kota Bahru. And
2) Papan. Its landing stage was at Batu Gajah.

The whole journey from TA to Ipoh would take well over a week.

As the river beyond G. Cheroh was too rocky for boats to pass the journey would be completed using elephant or bullock cart.

The return journey would see a load of tin being carried down river for shipment to Penang.
Assuming a boat was reaching towards Gunong Cheroh this is probably the view they would see ie the bare faced limestone cliffs protruding above the river.

Even after ‘ Kinta Valley railway joined Ipoh and Teluk Anson in 1895‘ sampans were still used to carry food and merchandise to the town.

As this was the furthest point upriver it naturally evolved for Ipoh to be the distribution point serving the needs of the mining communities around Ipoh and Kinta.

For Ipoh a landing point affirmed by ‘FW Douglas…. was one at Kampong Paloh on the east side of the river ( new town) belonging to the Dato Laxamana’

Below is a heritage map of Ipoh which clearly reflects the growth of Ipoh around the banks of the Kinta River be it temples and mosques, banks , association houses or places of entertainment

This Heritage map of Ipoh Town was published by the Perak State Govt.

ref marker #’s

34) The Straits Trading Company warehouse. It was a collection center for tin ore.

Banks

12) The Mercantile Bank
13) The Chartered Bank
17) The Hong Kong & Shanghai Banking Corporation.

Places of worship
42) Guan Yin Temple
54) Paloh Khoo Miu
64) Masjid Dato Panglima Kinta

Associations

31) Tat Loo Club & Perak Chinese Mining Association.
46) Han Chin Pet Soo – the Hakka tin miners clubhouse.
71) Chinese Association Buildings

Entertainment

16) Dramatist Hostel.The Theatre used to be next to it.
28) Panglima Lane better known as 2^nd Concubine Lane.Panglima Street runs parallel to this lane.
47) Lam Looking Bazaar and Celestial Cabaret.

Flowers ...in any weather .

Flowers have the ability to brighten up any location despite the weather condition , heavy rain or hot sunshine. The next three photographs were taken after an evening shower which we have been having lately.

Red ginger flowers looking refreshed after a shower.Small red flowers that fell onto a black driftwood log.Red flowers seem to stand out after a shower.
Same location. The red flowers, black log and violet flowers make for a cooling combination.
The next batch of photos were taken this morning around 10 till 113oam around the pomelo orchard areas at Tambun/Ampang area.

Even this 5 angled vegetable ( see ling tao) has its own flower.
Hibiscus flowers growing wild.There were a few of these bushes around. Coincidentally there was a Jalur Gemilang next to this bush.Makes you want to salute.haha.
A close up shot. The lighting was perfect.This hibiscus bush was with a bush with those yellow flowers in the right hand corner.
Wild flowers growing along the roadside. The hills behind are the main range
Same location but looking east towards Tambun.
Whoever is growing these flowers has a good flair for mix n match.

cheers!