Zoo Johor Bahru 9 Aug 2013

After Hutan Bandar, we went to the Zoo Johor. The Zoo Johor is located at Jalan Gertak Merah. It is at the heart of Johor Bahru.

It is situated near to the Royal Museum and the Johor Bahru Palace Grounds. Still, the nearest landmark to the zoo is a mosque named Masjid Abu Bakar.

Zoo Johor is considered as one of the oldest zoos in Malaysia as it was built in the year of 1928.

There are more than 100 species of animals living in Zoo Johor including some endangered species of them animals. They are gorillas, elephants, flamingos, horses, lions and much more.

Once we walked in the zoo, immediately there were few pelican birds welcomed us. The zoo is not really clean and not well organized with clean food selling around the stalls during our visit there.

Probably it is weekend, there were so many visitors. Most of them were the foreign workers, such as Bangladeshis, Indonesian, Burmese, Cambodians, Indian, Vietnamese and Pakistanis. The crowds is really big.

This is probably one of the favourite spot for them to take a break and relax after the hard working life, and considered cheap too the entrance fees is just RM3. Besides that, can see local families bringing their children here too. There are animal shows for the entertainment too.

Overall, we felt that the zoo was poorly maintained, as most of the animals looked tired and bored. They need more attentions and cares from the zoo keepers, and a proper environments for them to live in! Hope that they can improve to a better and comfort living environment.

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Hutan Bandar Johor Bahru 9 Aug 2013

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We do not know that in the middle of the city of Johor Bahru have such a lush and greenery place for its urban people to stroll about in the midst of the most busiest part of the city.

Hutan Bandar Johor Bahru covers an area of 50 acres situated at Jalan Tasek Utara and Jalan Yahya Awal, Johor Bahru, about 1.5 km from city centre. It is a ‘Family-Oriented Recreation Park’ where included harmoniously integrating the topographical structure water source, as well as indigenous flora and fauna with spaces for activities and facilities.

This recreational park is special because the original appearance is maintained as removal of trees in the area was kept to a minimum. The result was, this valuable piece of land kept its physical and aesthetic values, providing scenes of beauty and serenity for all.

It consists of a few elements to fulfil the needs of a concept of a 'Family-Oriented Recreation Park', in amidst the shooting, comforting and harmonious atmosphere of nature, and to accommodate to the needs of Johor Bahru's growing population.

Laman Tembusu
The Landscape Department of MBJB is located here. This department handles all the enquiries as booking of facilities in Hutan Bandar.

It is situated just near the entrance of the Park. It consists of the offices, meeting rooms, function halls, and a large Koi Pond at the centre of the courtyard area.

We spent some time here, looking and took photos of the Koi inside the pond. There were other visitors as well, I think most are locals spending some quality time with their loves one here.

Food Court
Also known as Gerai Atap Berlian, which offers variety of foods and drinks from it 16 stalls. While enjoying the food you can enjoy on the greenness surrounding at the food court.

The food stalls located at the entrance of the Park, which near to the parking areas for convenience of the visitors.

We did not go as we had our breakfast near the down town area in the morning. It looks a bit wear off from far during we drove in to the parking area. Heard that the food is good and delicious. May be next round of visits we can come back again.

Children Adventurous Park
This is the centre of attraction for the whole family to relax and enjoy themselves especially during weekends and public holidays.

The playground concept was to educate and stimulate the minds and physical of the children an teenagers.

The main attraction includes Swimming and wading pools for children, Maze, Sand Pit, Netscape Ground and Reflexology Pathway.

Lake Area
Comprises seven lakes situated close to one another and being the main attraction to those who love water activities especially fishing.

The lakes are the gems in the middle of the green forest. One connected to another. We can see people were sitting at the lakeside with their fishing rods.

Camping Site
Facilities offered here are chalet, changing rooms, public lavatories, mini hall, surau, camping are, jungle tracking and BBQ facilities with reasonable price.

During our visits, we can see some school students were here too. I was thinking they must be planning on some outings or activities here.

After the Hutan Bandar, we headed to the Johor Zoo.

Johor Old Chinese Temple 9 Aug 2013

We woke up a bit late this morning as we were so tiring after yesterday trip to Legoland Malaysia, where we almost spent a day at there. We had our ‘morning walk’ around the Jalan Wong Ah Fook area, find our way to Jalan Trus. For a convenient shortcut, you can take the steps and walkway next to Public Bank Tower. We came to this Johor Old Chinese Temple.

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Johor Bahru Old Chinese Temple known as Old Temple by the locals, is a Chinese temple located in Johor Bahru, Malaysia. Located at downtown Johor Bahru of Jalan Trus, the temple is flanked by modern skyscrapers. It is in the middle of The Puteri Pacific Johor Bahru Hotel and Pasar Seni.

This temple is one of the oldest structures in Johor Bahru. This 130 year old Chinese temple is the symbol of unity among the five different Chinese dialect groups (Teochow, Hakka, Hainanese, Hokkien and Cantonese), each of whom favour a different deity with is own statue in the temple. The temple also has Kwan Yin (Goddess of Mercy) and Weather God statues.

The temple was built during the 19th Century by then Head of Ngee Heng Company led by Tan Hiok Nee and various Chinese community leaders. Although there are no actual records regarding the completion of the temple, the plaque and the century-old bronze bell located in the temple shows that the temple is around 130 years old.

In 1995 / 1996, it underwent a major renovation at a cost of MYR1.5 million. Much of its cultural aura was preserved, and important relics such as the century-old bronze bell, joss stick pot and wooden tablet remain.

It organise annually Johor Bahru Old Chinese Temple Chingay – Parade of the Deities. Thousands of people in Johor Bharu from all walks of life, young and old alike, are lined up in the streets to watch and participate in this event, which starts in the evening and ends after midnight. They are going for about 15km parade around the city.

The Chingay Parade has grown in recent years to become a massive street parade, boasting a stunning array of dancers, street floats, jugglers, percussionists, lion and dragon dancers, clowns and acrobats, among others.

Roads will be closed and traffic will be at a virtual standstill. Public transport will be rerouted and many businesses will close early. Schools will dismiss afternoon sessions early for students to get home quickly, so that they can join the throng who will converge in the heart of the city.

During our visit, it was quite quiet inside the temple, may be it was too early. Anyway, hopefully next round, would take more photos of this historical temple.

Legoland Malaysia 8 Aug 2013

Legoland Malaysia is a family holiday destination with more than 70 hands-on rides, slides, shows and attractions and designed for families with children aged 2-12. It is the first of its kind in Asia and offers adventure, education and fun for action-packed day trips or as a short break destination.

The children were excited and finally came to this Legoland ever since it opened last year here at Johor Bahru Malaysia. The colourful entrance is where all our fun begins!

 

1. Lego Technic

We decided and plan our adventure to start at the Lego Technic first, where everything is action-packed.

We started our first ride is Project X. It is a racy, crazy and 18m high roller coaster with steep inclines and sharp bends. We were surprised that Annabelle also would like to have a ride.

Initially we were planning as 1 adult accompanied 1 child, but Annabelle insisted she sat in front with Issac. In the end, when the ride started, she got scared and wanted to change the seat. She was crying and shouting all way long. After we had our ride, she just cried all the way.

Annabelle stopped crying after she saw the “spinning big cup”, and laughing. Technic Twister is a fairly standard spinning fairground attraction. Spin the wheel to control how crazy we want our ride will be. It was really fun!

Aquazone Wave Racers is a fast spin round in a skimming above water. Moderate splashing expected. We did not play this as we were afraid that all of us would get wet and the fast spinning would make us feel dizzy.

Further up we can find Lego Academy and Lego Mindstorms. These are rooms with plenty of Lego bricks and Technic pieces for kids to get their hands on and build stuff, and are in fully air-conditioned rooms. Outside of the are some robots which made by small pieces of Lego bricks and pieces.

 

2. Lego Kingdom

The highlights in this zone are the two roller coasters, The Dragon designed as a fire-breathing dragon through the Middle Ages, but get ready for the twists and turns along the way, and, a milder version, the Dragon's Apprentice for the park’s younger guests.

Due to earlier experience, Annabelle refused to ride and the rest of us just get along with her decision and do not ride on the thrills roller coaster. Other attractions include Merlin's Challenge is a high speed up and down carousel which put parents and children into a spin, we did not go also.

Royal Joust (a tame simulated horse ride for younger kids), this Annabelle and Issac got line up for their rides. It is so beautifully done on the greenery landscape, as the parents were waiting and can see their children riding on the horse, coming to their ways through the beautiful nicely field of flowers.

Forestman's Hideout is a kid's playground with slides, bridges and so on. Basically, a playground for the younger children. We did not go there either.

 

3. Imagination

Here we watched a 4D Movie in the Lego Studio called Spell Breaker and Legends of Chima which is one of 4 films that are shown in rotation. It was enjoyable and a chance to rest in air-conditioned comfort for a while. The shows were really fun and excited, there were water splashing or sprinkling, the wind blowing till your bones shivering, our seats were shaking all the while, etc.

Also in this zone is the Observatory Tower which provides a revolving 360 degree view of the entire theme park from a height of 50 metres. We were having fun too to see the view of the entire Medina.

Other attractions here include the Kids' Power Tower to prove your strength to gain a beautiful view over the park, Daddy and Issac had went to try. It really test their arm strength just to pull yourself up to the top.

Duplo Playtown is an interactive playground with farm, hospital, slides, and more!  A child size city for the youngest to explore. Duplo Express is a mini train ride which are aimed at toddlers and younger kids, and ride around the Duplo Playtown. Both Issac and Annabelle are too big for these playgrounds. They are not toddlers anymore!

There is a Built & Test air-conditioned creativity corner room for the kids to create their LEGO Models.

 

4. Land of Adventures

Fun activities here include the Lost Kingdom, which is an indoor ride journey into the forgotten worlds of Pharaohs.

But watch out! You never know what lies ahead…

On which you get to test your shooting skills using laser blasters. We did bought the photos from the Lego shots here.

Beetle Bounce bouncing of the life of the kids!!! It is a tower which bouncing up and down. Issac was very brave and immediately he said to us that, he wanted to have a try on this big ‘hammer’!

Dino Island, a log flume ride which you should only go on if you don't mind getting soaked. Annabelle and Mummy did not go for the ride as she did not want. Only Daddy and Issac go for the ride. They were having fun on this splashing ride!

 

5. Miniland

This is probably my favourite part of the park. It is a number of beautifully made scale models of famous Asian landmarks, all built from Lego bricks.

The buildings replicated in Lego include Petronas Towers and KL Tower, KLIA, Sultan Ibrahim Building, Johor Majestic Palace and Tanjung Pelepas (Johor), Fullerton Hotel and Clarke Quay (Singapore), Taj Mahal (India), The Forbidden City and The Great Wall of China, Angkor Wat (Combodia), Purah Tanah Lot (Indonesia), Patuxai (Laos), Karaweik Hall (Myanmar), Bolinao (Philippines), Wat Arun (Thailand), Hoi An (Vietnam) and many more.

 

6. Lego City

This popular zone includes Rescue Academy where families race each other to put out 'fires' in a burning building.

Boating School (battery powered boats), Legoland Express (train ride around the park) and the Driving School where children can acquire and road safety skills while driving battery powered cars around a road layout complete with traffic lights, road markings and traffic signs. On completion of the driving lesson children can obtain a driving license with photo for an additional charge of RM25.

We just skipped this section, as at that point of time, there were too many children and adults to queue for the games.

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There are plenty of shops scattered around the park selling Lego sets, gift items, snacks and drinks.

Dining outlets include Pizza Mania, Market Restaurant and Jungle Café.

It was almost raining when we were finishing our tour or visit. We felt that the timing were just nice.

The children were having fun, but us as an adult as well ^^

Galleria@Kotaraya Johor Bahru 7 Aug 2013

As we walked from our hotel towards the Jalan Tan Hiok Nee, just behind the Arulmigu Sri Rajakaliamman Temple, there is a big shopping mall. Well, it is located in the heart of Johor Bahru, Plaza Kotaraya, a five- storey podium shopping complex with a gross area of approximately 546,530 square feet.

The re-branding exercise involved a name change from Plaza Kotaraya to Galleria @ Kotaraya. Post its refurbishment, it will emerge as an iconic as well as a new destination of shopping in Johor Bahru City. Well, it is now.

Galleria @ Kotaraya has become a Lifestyle Mall targeting the middle market, suitable for since its rebranding in July 2012. It includes a Food Hall, Fashion for Ladies and Gizmo for men as well as IT and Gadgets. The retail mix consist as local as well as popular brands complimenting its new image.

Not only does the mall provide vibrant shopping experiences and pleasurable services, there is more Galleria@Kotaraya could offer with its feast for mouth- watering range of treats , it’s also imbues this experience with choice of events, performance and exhibits showcasing one of the best in Johor’s culture and arts.

We had our lunch there during we visited there. In the evening, we had an evening walk around the mall area. It is during Hari Raya Aidilfitri seasons, thus all the decorations are related to the joyful festivals.

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Arulmigu Sri Rajakaliamman 7 Aug 2013

Arulmigu Sri Rajakaliamman is the first glass Hindu temple in the world and the only one in Malaysia. Temple called “Glass” because it’s decorated with glass inside and outside. The temple looks really beautiful, especially on a sunny day with blue skies, when glass shines. I do not take much photos as during that time, there was an ongoing prayers going on, and a lot of Hindus flooded to the temple.

It had been told that it was started in 1922 as a humble shelter. 74 years later, in 1996, the temple was rebuilt and reopened. Few years later a chairman of this temple Guru Bhagawan Sittar got the inspiration to decorate temple with glass. Transformation of the Arulmigu Sri Rajakaliamman temple with glass fittings started in 2008 and was completed on January 3, 2009. Since 2009, it has become one of the major attractions in Johor Bahru.

Outside the temple, there was one row of small shops selling prayers items, fresh flowers, etc. We do not go into the temple, we shall go in next time if we come back in the future.

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Johor Bahru Chinese Heritage Museum 7 Aug 2013

Next on our Johor Bahru Heritage Trail, housed in a four story shophouse on Jalan Tan Hiok Nee, is the Chinese Heritage Museum. The Museum is housed at a 4 storey building previously occupied by the JB Tiong-Hua Association since 1948, along Jalan Ibrahim, facing JB’s popular water front.

Visitors could also enter the museum via the rear entrance at Jalan Tan Hiok Nee. The museum charges a RM5 entrance fee; as for students and senior citizens, it is only RM2 per person per entry.

The well-renovated 4 storey building adopts the state-of-the-art modern technology for its effort in saving energy bills, using sensors to turn on and off the lightings at every floor.

The first, second and third floor showcase the history of Chinese immigrants into Malaya in the 1800s and 1900s, the founding of the triads, clans and eventually associations of the ethnic Chinese area groups, (Hokkien, TeoChew, Cantonese, Hainanese, and Hakka). Records of the well-known Chinese Clan heads, and their beneficial, philanthropic deeds (Like building the Foon Yew Chinese schools, temples and clan houses etc.) were documented well to brief visitors of the tough founding years.

The museum also displays photos of the then livelihood when early Chinese immigrants by the ship loads arrived at the peninsula to find jobs waiting for them in tin mines, rubber plantations, and other agricultural fields ( cash crops like pepper and gambir), as well as other minor industries. As years went by, some of them and their descendants became big time traders and large land owners, and eventual tycoons.

The pictorial displays showed that Ngee Heng triad leader Tan Kee Soon had helped Temenggong Abu Bakar (1833-1895) to quash some disturbance in the Muar district, thus enabling the latter to become effectively the ruler (The Sultan) of the state. Abu Bakar was challenging Tengku Alam (son of his uncle Sultan Ali) for the throne after the death of Sultan Ali in 1877. He was not satisfied with the title of Temenggong or Maharajah. Eventually The British Empire accepted him as the sultan. And, how was the structure of the Ngee Heng Kong Si were like in the old days, including some of their customs, traditions, etc.

The museum also recorded the invasion of the Japanese Imperial Army into Singapore during the Second World War, as Johor Bahru stood strategically close to Singapore, separated by the Johor Straits and was linked by the causeway. The Japanese Occupation of Malaya (Including Singapore) inflicted unprecedented, massive misery, suffering and devastation to the people during those turbulent, desolate warring years (3 years 8 months). A pictorial poster features the contribution of the Chinese in Johor in fighting the Japanese by raising funds and taking up the arms.

The top floor of the 4 storey museum devotes its exhibiting space totally for the chronicle of Dr Sun Yat Sen, (1866-1925) the father of republican China. This great man of modern China was known to have visited Johor Baru during his many travels overseas to appeal for support and funds to overthrow the despicable, rotting Empire of Qing Dynasty and its draconian Manchu ruler.

There was some doubt about the actual occurrence of his visit; but since Dr Sun was confirmed to have visited Singapore (Penang too) and Johor Bahru was just a causeway away, it was likely to be a true event. Dr Sun probably had a hard time to convince the then Johor Chinese chieftain (Known as Kapitan during those years) Wong Ah Fook to join him fighting for a republican Chinese nation, as Wong was a conservative loyalist to the Qing Empire.

Upon Dr Sun’s earnest appeal followed by his numerous visits, many brave, eager Malayan Chinese were inspired to leave for China to become revolutionaries to fight the corrupted, diminishing Qing Empire. In their endeavor to pursue a just democratic nation, many of them lost their lives while in action.

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The JB Chinese Heritage Museum has a detailed pictorial display of the martyrdom of revolutionaries from various parts of Malaya (and Singapore) before 1911 (This was the year when the Manchurian regime was overthrown).

I enjoyed this museum which showcases the early days of Chinese settlement in JB - the history, culture, traditions and occupations of the various Chinese communities who have made Johor their home. The children too, enjoying the visits as they were learning through the displays.