Taiping War Cemetery 1 Jun 2016

The Taiping War Cemetery is actually on the way we went to the Taiping Zoo and Night Safari and the Bukit Larut.

We can see clearly see two lush fields lined with neatly-organized grave align themselves at opposite sides of the road.

It did give a feeling or sense of serene and peaceful here to whom ever is passing by this area.

This Taiping War Cemetery, was erected by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission sometime after the War.

During the Japanese Invasion, many soldiers from British and Gurkha regiments perished during a short but intense battle, culminating in a hasty retreat to Singapore.

When the war was over, a British major and his team were tasked with collecting the various dead buried across the country in forests and villages.

With the help of Aborigines (Orang Asli), about 900 soldiers were located and exhumed from their burial plots to be interred here.

Among the dead were soldiers of British, Australian, Scottish, Chinese, Malay and Gurkha origins. The graveyard is only one of two such memorial graves in Malaysia, the other being in Labuan (Borneo).

There are separate entrances to the two parts, the plots of Christian graves lying on the south-eastern side of the road and the Muslim and Gurkha graves on the opposite side.

In the Muslim and Gurkha section the Stone of Remembrance stands in front of a high bank which forms the north-western boundary.

The two small shelters in the cemetery have been constructed of local stone, and a low stone wall flanks the road on each side.

There are now 864, 1939-1945 war Commonwealth casualties and 1 Dutch casualty commemorated in this site, more than 500 of whom are unidentified.

We walked into the Christian graves and snap a few photos.

I can not imagine the family behind those soldiers whom were sacrificed in this cruel war back their homeland and waiting for their sons to return home. It must be heartbreaking. I did notice from the date stated on the tombstones, most of them were young, really young at their early 20s.

This was our last destinations of the day, which after this we went to town again to hunt for our dinner.

Taiping Old Clock Tower 1 Jun 2016

After our lunch at the Larut Matang Hawker Center, we just stopped at the road side to snap a few photos of this historical landmark of the Taiping old town.

The Clock Tower of Taiping is the iconic landmark building of the town. It was under threat to be demolished before being conserved as an important history of Taiping colorful past.

The Old Clock Tower of Taiping was built in the year of 1881. Originally made of wood, the structure was rebuilt with bricks nine years later, in the year of 1890. The actual building of the Taiping Clock Tower was in the shape of a square fort, part of which has since been demolished.

Between 1908 and 1950, the Taiping Clock Tower building as used as the town police station as well as the fire brigade. After that, it was left abandoned until recently, when it was converted into the Taiping Visitor Information Centre.

Red telephone booth at the entrance is standard public feature during the British Colonial days.

We did walk in to the Visitor Information Center, and did ask for the local map. I was so happy that I managed to get a Matang and Kuala Sepetang map which indicated places of interests.

All Saints’ Church Taiping 1 Jun 2016

After our visit to the Perak State Museum, we decided to go the All Saints’ Church. When we arrived there, the gate was wide opened.

I guess it is because this church had been gazetted under the National Heritage Building. The church allowed any visitors come in to visit this historical building.

The All Saints’ Church is one of the few churches located in the sleepy town of Taiping.

As one of the oldest towns in Malaysia, Taiping has one of the richest history among all the towns and states of the country. The All Saints’ Church is one of them.

The original church was actually built in 1887 which has since become a National Heritage Site.

In Taiping, the All Saints’ Church is actually one of the renowned 33 ‘Firsts’ here like its first railroad and others.

Belonging to the Anglican Diocese of West Malaysia, it was actually the first English church to be built in the Malay states during that era.

The All Saints’ Church has a unique design and architecture which was the works of an Australian architect, Mr. George A Lefroy.

It opened its doors in 1887 by the Bishop of Singapore and Sarawak, Right Revd. G.F Hose.

Located in the heart of Taiping town, it is still very much in its original form which was built using timber. The All Saints’ Church would then become the Parish Church of North Perak in 1907 and it would grow to become one of the prominent places of worship for its members ever since.

Located not far from the church is the All Saints’ Church (New Church) which was built in 2012. I think is to accommodate more people and mass or services at a time.

Just beside the old building, there is a small graveyard with some uniquely crafted headstones at the tombstones. Some of it was beautifully crafted, such as angels, roses ornaments, etc..

All these contains the graves of early colonial settlers, most of whom died of tropical diseases or failed to achieve the colonial pension needed to return home to Britain or Australia.

We were unable to walk into the Church itself as it was locked, we can only took the photos from outside the building. I was wondering how great it is at its previous time, the Church itself have been the place to His saints to worship Him for more than 100 years.

There is a bulletin board at the new church building showed some activities and services provided. We left to the town for our lunch after that.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Puchong Branch Primary Activity Days ~ Water Splash Day 4 Jun 2016

The kids are out of school, the weather is perfect, and it is time again for the Primary Activity Water Splash Day.

Well, this is not the first time we are having the swimming activity here at our house, but just this time more kids joined with us.

This time around we have the pretty girls from Sister Jing Jing: Livia, Hazel and little Vera; Brother Lynard’s Keifer and Jairuz; Sister Vivian’s Jesse and Jojo; Sister Jennifer’s Miguel and our Issac and Annabelle.

May be it is due to our home that have a wide range of water recreational facilities which made the adults and kids too feel very fun!

Such as adult swimming pool with gooseneck nozzles and Jacuzzis, a water reflexology path, a double loop water slide and a water playing area or lap pool with shower umbrellas. And, the children were so excited and eagerly jumped into the pool after our opening prayer!

Besides that, they love the safari theme which all the animals sculpture such as giraffe, elephants, crocodiles, deer and lions scattered around while they were walking through the lazy river float water.

They love the ‘dancing water’ which jump out from the floor nozzles too, and get themselves wet with the water splashing around!

They love the sand playground which have a little slide and swings, and even a gazebo too! There is a wooden bridge which connected the sand playground and the greenery strolling path surrounds the swimming pools.

We started the activity around 10.00am, after one and a half hour, we gathered all the children and came up to our home to take their bath, changed and had a small snacks which prepared by the sisters, together with all the children parents.

It is a fun activity with the Primary kids!

Perak State Museum 1 Jun 2016

After our visit from Bukit Larut, we went to visit the Perak State Museum. This was the only place of attractions which we did no manage to go during our last visit at the year of 2009.

This museum is the oldest museum in Peninsular Malaysia. It is located in the town of Taiping, about 85 km from Ipoh, the capital of Perak. It is also near the Taiping Jail and about 3 km from town.

Most of the museum’s earlier collections are ethnological and anthropological items. Geological, botanical and enthamobological collections make up additional specimens.

The Perak Museum is rich in ethnological, historical, archaeological and ethamobological collections. Some of them are classified as rare collections over a hundred years old such as animal species like the "binturong" and "pulasan", skeletons and scores of animal skeletons and smoked clay which are either extinct or extremely hard to find.

Most of these collections and artifacts are displayed in the museum’s four main galleries housed in an almost 120-year old building. It was built in 1883 and maintains an ancient British architectural concept of the Art Dico kind.

The Nature Gallery exhibits all kinds of animal, bird, fish, snail and herberium species, all of which are housed in unique exhibition cases aged over a hundred years old.

They are also placed in various kinds of dioramas which records a British-style presentation method while retaining a wild habitat environment that is both interesting and full of great ecstatic elements.

The Cultural Gallery displays collections and artifacts from various types of handiworks, handicrafts and weavings of the Malaysian people, especially from Perak, such as a unique weaving made by the Sultan of Perak’s mother.

Weavings of the "tudung saji" (food cover), "tikar pandan dan mengkuang" (pandan and mengkuang mats) as well as baskets reflect the artistic finesse in these handiworks. They are also unique, fascinating and full of ecstatic values that are increasingly hard to find this decade.

The Clay and Indigenous People Gallery is an abundant source of collections and artifacts.

Perak is one of the states which is home to a lot of indigenous people from the Proto Malay, Senoi and Negrito tribes. The Indigenous People Gallery in this museum is a window to displaying the great handiworks skills of the aforementioned tribes.

Of note is their astonishing display of creating clothes from wood pulp, their traditional musical instruments as well as their great sculptures and crafting arts such as mannequins and masks, adapted countless times in medical and magical ceremonies.

Clay works displayed by the museum are traditional industrial products such as "labu", "geluk", "belanga", "pasu bucung", "buyung", "kukusan" and "perasapan" all of which are well over 100 years old.

The museum also organizes moving exhibitions, especially to schools around the Taiping township and nearby towns, usually upon request by schools who are interested. Among presented topics are Glorious Taiping and The Perak Sultanate.

Currently the museum is having exhibition of Weights and Measures at their main hall. Varieties of measuring tools and weighting tools are displayed here.

In the grounds of the Museum there are a number of vintage cars on display.

Namely, a Rolls Royce Silver Cloud 1964, Rolls Royce Phantom 1972, Alvis TD21 Tourer 1960, and a more classic model made by the Star Motor Company in Wolverhampton, probably dating from the late 1920s.

There is also an Outdoor Exhibits outside the building.

It is include a carriage of the Perak State Railway Company, a 19th century steam engine used to power high pressure hoses in open cast tin mining operations, a Malaysian air force jet fighter and an old anchor reclaimed from the Straits of Malacca.

The weather was so hot and we left the museum. Not far away from there, is the Taiping Jail just across the road.

Bukit Larut (Maxwell Hill) Taiping 1 Jun 2016

We woke up early in the morning and heading to Bukit Larut for the tickets for the Land Rover 4WD to go up to the hill.

We did pack some ‘Loh Bak’ yesterday night during we have our dinner at the food court just next to our hotel, for this morning picnic! Even though it was cold, but I think should be alright, because the ‘Loh Bak’ mainly are fish cakes and some fried stuffed meats.

Bukit Larut or original name Maxwell Hill is one of the hidden and unknown gems to travelers who are looking for a retreat at a hill resort.

Located just approximately 9 kilometers from Taiping Town in the northern state of Perak, no other towns or cities in Malaysia can boast of a hill resort in such close proximity and accessibility as Maxwell Hill.

Although Maxwell Hill may be relatively unknown compared to other more popular places like Cameron Highlands, Frazer Hills, Genting Highlands and Penang Hill, it is Malaysia's oldest and smallest high resort, founded in 1884.

Maxwell Hill was named after Sir William George Maxwell, who was appointed the Assistant Resident of Perak in 1875, not long after British Resident J. W. W. Birch's murder.

At that time, the British were sourcing for rehabilitation and relax resort away from the tropical heat for its senior officers and also the wives of the officials and other high-placed gentlemen.

Bukit Larut stands 1,035 meters above the sea level and it is only accessible by two methods – by the government-owned four-wheel-drive (4WD) vehicles or by foot. Private vehicles without permit are prohibited from going up the hill; one of the reason is because of its dangerous cliff for inexperienced drivers.

The journey, 13 kilometers from the foothill to the top of Maxwell hill using the 4WD takes around 30 minutes. However, people are free to walk or hike through the many hiking trails up the hill, which can take up to three to five hours, depending on the stamina and ability.

We reached there early, and we were having our breakfast at the Malay food stalls just outside the sales counter office of the Bukit Larut. We had our nasi lemak and Milo.

Daddy went to the ticket counter to queue for the tickets. A return journey up Bukit Larut costs an economical RM10 for adults and RM5 for children.

Only tickets on the same day are sold and pre-reservation is not available. The ticket goes on sale at the ticket counter located at the foothill at 8 a.m.

However, there was already 4 families in the queue even before it is opened. We can see the tickets get snapped up really fast, and even more so during this school holiday season.

The 4WD operates daily and leaves every hour, from 8.30am. to 5pm. Of coarse, the operation schedule may change according to the weather condition and safety considerations. We were eagerly waiting for our turn for the 4WD.

The road up twists and turns through lush green tropical virgin jungle and lofty hills, with a total of 72 steep hairpin bends that adds to the thrill.

Along the way, we could see clusters of hikers conquering Bukit Larut. The journey up the hill will go pass three huts, popularly used by the trekkers as a resting spot before they continue their hike.

As the jeep takes us up the lengthy and headache-inducing hill road, the air gradually becomes cooler and you will hear the chirping sound of birds, squirrel and monkeys.

We can get to see different things as the jeep climbs higher, and one will certainly be impressed with the huge trees growing perpendicularly up from the ground and a few cascading waterfalls. Besides the captivating scenery, there was also the smell of fresh greenery all along the way.

If there is one thing that all of us would never forget on a visit to Bukit Larut, it would be roller-coaster ride like on the 4WD.

Honestly speaking, it was really hard to describe as a mixtures of scary, exciting and fun journey. It is pretty extreme to some, but a great and joyful experience to the others. Daddy was almost felt like throwing out at the end of the journey!

Sitting on the 4WF, we can feel that the driver is attempting to do a Tokyo Drift on the narrow road with the maximum speed up the hill. We were literally thrown all around the jeep! If we hadn't kept the tightest grip on the steel handles, I guess we would have gotten thrown into the cliff! However, the drivers are experienced and confident, they know every nooks and corners of the steep and windy road. It was indeed a scary but exciting thirty-minute ride, which caught us to scream and laugh at the same time as our buttock were slipping off the seats!

Midway to the top is the Tea Garden Guest House. Initially, I was thinking like the driver might stopped here for awhile for us to go down to visit The Tea Garden Guest House. The jeep did not stop, with a closer look I can clearly see it is now an abandoned building. Such a waste of the nice structures which was developed.

As the jeep whizzed up to the top, we continued to enjoy the cool, jungle air brought in by the morning breeze through the lush shady forest.

Our amazing roller-coaster ride was a well-worthy ride as we were welcomed by the fresh and cool weather at the peak.

As we arrived at the top of the hill, we can see that there is actually nothing much here but the cool and fresh air and the clear blue sky.

There are several centuries-old cottages at the top of Bukit Larut and in the old days, they had their individual personalities and names to suit them.

Today, most of these names have been localized and renamed, among them – The Hut (Cendana), The Cottage, Treacher (Tempinis), Watson's Rest House (Beringin), The Federal Bungalows (Sri Angkasa), Speedy's Chalet (Rumah Rehat Gunung Hijau), The Nest and The Box.

All of them are still standing although few have been renovated to suit the current visitors.

I think there used to be a small operated café there as we still can see the building itself and the dining chairs and tables around.

The others unfortunately, are in various stages of deterioration like the Tea Garden Guest House.

We were taking some photos and find a place where we can sit down and have our picnic. It was relaxing and fun too.

Along the way, we can see the plants on the hill also a bit different from the plants we saw at the foothill. There is a big children playground, and a timber wooden bridge linking to a high tower.

It is a great place of sight seeing and here, you will find the best panoramic view of Taiping Town. On a clear day, it is possible to see an enchanting view of the West Coast of the peninsular stretching from Penang to Pangkor Island at the summit of the hill.

Besides, there are many natural jungle trails which provide the opportunity to discover Bukit Larut untouched natural beauty and a close observation of the hill's various species of flora and fauna.

Bukit Larut features groves of evergreen and a wide canvas of vibrantly colored flora and fauna. Roses, dahlias, daisies, pansies, petunias, lupines, and marigolds abound in profusion here.

The cool climate also favors the rare mountain giant fishtail palm, many species of bracken-like ferns, and also the golden sunflowers which is reputedly the largest variety in the country.

The timing is just right after we wondered around the hill, around 11.30am the jeep came and brought up the 2nd batch of visitors here. And it is time for us to go down to the foothill. This time, we choose a different type of jeep whereby it was an open type. It was more fun and thrill than during we came up!

Bukit Larut is indeed an ideal destination for those wanting to escape from the heat and humidity of Malaysia's lowlands. Although it is the smallest hill compared to other hill resorts in the country, it still retains much more of the atmosphere of its colonial origins and offers a natural peaceful and quiet sanctuary for weary souls.

Taiping Night Safari 31 May 2016

Our initial planning was reaching Taiping earlier, so that we are able to visit the Taiping Zoo during the day time. Due to the jam on the highway, we were no choice but just opted for the Night Safari instead. Thought of never been any Night Safari before and it was just happened.

We were very exciting and looking forward to experience it. The time of this Night Safari was from 8pm onwards. It was just located near the Taiping Lake and it was very easy to be found, as 2009 we did come here before, but both Issac and Annabelle are too young to remember any of those experiences.

Upon reaching there, it had not much crowd and we were full of anticipation. We were taking photos and looking around at the entrance and the souvenirs shop.

From the response from the crowd, it should be very well worth visiting Night Safari while no much people around, as it is still early of the school holidays.

After gone thru the entrance, there was a photo booth there for the visitors to take their family photo if they like too. We did take a photos and the ready printed out photos and frame can be collected at the exit of the zoo later.

All of us just queue up for the mini train ride. We need to wait for about 15 min while waiting for the drivers and the trams.

There were quite a lot of people, thus we were at the 2nd tram. The ride started with huge happy thought. The driver did at the same time explained and introduce each animal.

According to the driver, the Taiping Night Safari is unique because animals which are active at night are displayed using special lighting similar to moonlight. Visitors will be able to experience this environment similar to wildlife habitats where the sounds made by numerous creatures can be heard.

To fully appreciate this experience visitors are required to minimize all sounds, even speech so that the sounds of the night creatures can be heard.

Reduced noise will also help to maintain the peaceful atmosphere of the Night Safari. Torchlights and flash cameras are not allowed to be used in the Night Safari as this will disturb the animals on display.

Then, after one by one, passing each left and right cage…The light of each cage was so dim, we could not even have a good look of what was inside it. What we saw only dark sight, and can hardly see the animals even the driver did pointed out to us.

It did stopped at a few stops, so that let us goes down to have a closer look at the animals. We did stop and see the snakes, and the safari theme where we were able to see giraffe, zebra, deer, etc.

The ride was fast and the path was dark too. Camera cannot even take any picture. After the ride, it stopped someway near the exit. The ride just took about 15 - 20 min. Then, we could take our own walk.

It was a huge disappointment for me. The whole zoo was really dark. The lighting did not encourage us to explore the zoo. It was very dangerous to walk too as we could not see properly.

Although it was Night safari, but for visitor's point of view, it should be well lighted up. The children too were disappointed on this too.

Only after half an hour, we just opted to go back to our hotel. We collected our photo frames and key chains at the exit and we left. The zoo management should upgrade its lighting.

This trip around, it really spoilt the good reputation that I have for the early year visit we had. I think we will be back for the day time zoo next trip.