K. Hell back to K.L.
Life is much better these days with the haze gone. Went out on Saturday night to roam the KL streets, to see what the city folks are up to after the choking episode. The first place I went to was the pride of KL, the landmark, and it's very near my place, only 5 minutes' drive away.
The Petronas Towers, in Kuala Lumpur City Centre (KLCC) was built in 1996. The towers were crowned with the controversial 73.5 metre stainless steel pinnacles which officially made the buildings the world's tallest - and sparked off a passionate debate half way across the world on whether the previous holder of that title, the Sears Tower in Chicago, should relinquish the honour.
With the pinnacles, the Petronas Towers stand at 452 metres surpassing Sears Tower by 10 metres. The pinnacles feature aviation lights and facilities for cleaning the exterior cladding of the upper floors.
The multi-billion-ringgit Petronas Towers are built on a site where punters made and lost fortunes on horse racing. The Selangor Turf Club was the venue for thousands of would-be millionaires every race.
A New York-based architect, the renowned Cesar Pelli, winner of the American Institute of Architects Gold Medal, designed the towers and he included the unique feature of a skybridge connecting the two towers on the 41st and 42nd floors.
The Petronas Towers also hold another record - they have the largest number of double-decker elevators in the world with 29 in each tower. Made by Otis, theyare also the first double-decker lifts in Malaysia.
The towers are part of KLCC, which include the Exxon-Mobil Tower, the Maxis Tower, the Mandarin Oriental Hotel, Suria KLCC shopping center, the newest KL Convention Center, and other skyscrapers around the perimeter of the KLCC park.
Malaysia's pride & joy
Then, I decided to go to Dataran Merdeka, another well-known landmark in KL. Passed by Chow Kit along the way and took a picture while waiting for the traffic lights to turn green. As you can see in the picture below, there's a bridge and white canopy at the back of the traffic lights. This is the monorail, the latest addition to our rail system in the city. It connects most places in the city center.
The Chow Kit junction & Monorail Station
And then, I reached my destination - from an ultra modern building to an old historical building - the Bangunan Sultan Abdul Samad. Also known as KL's Grand Old Lady, it is just across the Independence Field (Dataran Merdeka). This Grand Old Lady is very pretty, especially at night, which is the reason why I was there, hehe! Even though she is more a hundred years old already, she needs no makeup. Her blemishes and wrinkles are not visible and dozens of photographers snap shots of her daily from various angles and leave with good memories of having been in her presence. This building was constructed between October 1894 and April 1897, under the supervision of A.C. Norman. It is the beloved symbol of KL.
At night, the Bangunan Sultan Abdul Samad which now houses the Supreme Court, is lit up by hundreds of bulbs turning the area into a fairyland of lights. On Saturdays, the area is fenced off and turned into a pedestrian mall. Often, people buy food and drinks at the pasar malam which is held every Saturday at nearby Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman and have a feast on the road or on the Padang ground. Anybody wants to join me next Saturday?
Pretty night sight
The Padang on Saturday nights also turned into "Starlight Cinema". This is free, unlike the one in Bukit Jalil. But you don't get good movies lar. Lol! When I was there, there were families, couples, friends sitting on the field, enjoying the movie which was being shown.
So, what is this place called Merdeka Square all about? Let's go down memory lane. This was the place where the Union Jack of the British colonial power was lowered and the Malayan flag raised at midnight on 30 August 1957. Some 20,000 people were there to witness the historic moment.
Just before midnight, the banks of floodlights were turned off and there was a hush as everybody turned to look at the giant clock on the tower. When the clock started chiming at the first stroke of midnight, the lights were switched on and the police band played God Save The Queen as the Union Jack was lowered. Immediately after that, the band played Negaraku as Tunku Abdul Rahman, who became the nation's first Prime Minister, saluted the Malayan flag which was being raised. Shouts of "Merdeka! Merdeka!" resounded throughout KL in the first few minutes of Independence Day.
Night picnic-cum-dating-cum-movies-cum-chit chatting
Yet another landmark of KL is found just at the back of the Padang - the Selangor Club. It's the white building with black borders in the picture below. In the late 19th century, the Selangor Club was where the action was - everybody who was anybody was a member. It was where white planters and colonial administrators quenched their thirst and where bored womenfolk held their gossip session. It was the meeting place for romantic trysts, and where one could find out the latest news.
Founded in 1884 to meet the needs of the Europeans, the Selangor Club was formed as a social and cricket club featuring the all-important bar, with reading rooms and billiard halls. Acting Resident Rodger, who had energetically pushed for the formation of the club, became its first President while Venning was the first secretary.
The Selangor Club a.k.a. the Spotted Dog
This beautiful building is located at the end of the Padang. It houses history of Malaysia prior to our independence in 1957. I've been there once, many years ago but am not sure how it looks like inside now.
The National History Museum
The Petronas Towers, in Kuala Lumpur City Centre (KLCC) was built in 1996. The towers were crowned with the controversial 73.5 metre stainless steel pinnacles which officially made the buildings the world's tallest - and sparked off a passionate debate half way across the world on whether the previous holder of that title, the Sears Tower in Chicago, should relinquish the honour.
With the pinnacles, the Petronas Towers stand at 452 metres surpassing Sears Tower by 10 metres. The pinnacles feature aviation lights and facilities for cleaning the exterior cladding of the upper floors.
The multi-billion-ringgit Petronas Towers are built on a site where punters made and lost fortunes on horse racing. The Selangor Turf Club was the venue for thousands of would-be millionaires every race.
A New York-based architect, the renowned Cesar Pelli, winner of the American Institute of Architects Gold Medal, designed the towers and he included the unique feature of a skybridge connecting the two towers on the 41st and 42nd floors.
The Petronas Towers also hold another record - they have the largest number of double-decker elevators in the world with 29 in each tower. Made by Otis, theyare also the first double-decker lifts in Malaysia.
The towers are part of KLCC, which include the Exxon-Mobil Tower, the Maxis Tower, the Mandarin Oriental Hotel, Suria KLCC shopping center, the newest KL Convention Center, and other skyscrapers around the perimeter of the KLCC park.
Malaysia's pride & joy
Then, I decided to go to Dataran Merdeka, another well-known landmark in KL. Passed by Chow Kit along the way and took a picture while waiting for the traffic lights to turn green. As you can see in the picture below, there's a bridge and white canopy at the back of the traffic lights. This is the monorail, the latest addition to our rail system in the city. It connects most places in the city center.
The Chow Kit junction & Monorail Station
And then, I reached my destination - from an ultra modern building to an old historical building - the Bangunan Sultan Abdul Samad. Also known as KL's Grand Old Lady, it is just across the Independence Field (Dataran Merdeka). This Grand Old Lady is very pretty, especially at night, which is the reason why I was there, hehe! Even though she is more a hundred years old already, she needs no makeup. Her blemishes and wrinkles are not visible and dozens of photographers snap shots of her daily from various angles and leave with good memories of having been in her presence. This building was constructed between October 1894 and April 1897, under the supervision of A.C. Norman. It is the beloved symbol of KL.
At night, the Bangunan Sultan Abdul Samad which now houses the Supreme Court, is lit up by hundreds of bulbs turning the area into a fairyland of lights. On Saturdays, the area is fenced off and turned into a pedestrian mall. Often, people buy food and drinks at the pasar malam which is held every Saturday at nearby Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman and have a feast on the road or on the Padang ground. Anybody wants to join me next Saturday?
Pretty night sight
The Padang on Saturday nights also turned into "Starlight Cinema". This is free, unlike the one in Bukit Jalil. But you don't get good movies lar. Lol! When I was there, there were families, couples, friends sitting on the field, enjoying the movie which was being shown.
So, what is this place called Merdeka Square all about? Let's go down memory lane. This was the place where the Union Jack of the British colonial power was lowered and the Malayan flag raised at midnight on 30 August 1957. Some 20,000 people were there to witness the historic moment.
Just before midnight, the banks of floodlights were turned off and there was a hush as everybody turned to look at the giant clock on the tower. When the clock started chiming at the first stroke of midnight, the lights were switched on and the police band played God Save The Queen as the Union Jack was lowered. Immediately after that, the band played Negaraku as Tunku Abdul Rahman, who became the nation's first Prime Minister, saluted the Malayan flag which was being raised. Shouts of "Merdeka! Merdeka!" resounded throughout KL in the first few minutes of Independence Day.
Night picnic-cum-dating-cum-movies-cum-chit chatting
Yet another landmark of KL is found just at the back of the Padang - the Selangor Club. It's the white building with black borders in the picture below. In the late 19th century, the Selangor Club was where the action was - everybody who was anybody was a member. It was where white planters and colonial administrators quenched their thirst and where bored womenfolk held their gossip session. It was the meeting place for romantic trysts, and where one could find out the latest news.
Founded in 1884 to meet the needs of the Europeans, the Selangor Club was formed as a social and cricket club featuring the all-important bar, with reading rooms and billiard halls. Acting Resident Rodger, who had energetically pushed for the formation of the club, became its first President while Venning was the first secretary.
The Selangor Club a.k.a. the Spotted Dog
This beautiful building is located at the end of the Padang. It houses history of Malaysia prior to our independence in 1957. I've been there once, many years ago but am not sure how it looks like inside now.
The National History Museum
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