After visiting Melaka (in August) and Seremban (in September), Aric and I made another overnight trip, this time to Teluk Intan. We visited the town in 2014, see Journal 5-10-2014 and had seen all points of interest. This time it was a convenient place to stay overnight and visit a few other attractions in the neighbourhood. Our program had three targets:
The Elephant Memorial
The Pasir Salak historical complex
The grave of J.W.W. Birch
We started our trip on a Friday afternoon and reached Teluk Intan in about two hours. Before checking in at the Rick Resort, we first visited the Elephant Memorial. In 1894 there was an accident where an elephant attacked a train to protect its herd. The train derailed, the elephant died.
A memorial has been erected at the location where it happened. A signboard beside the road tells you where the trail starts and gives a description of the accident. It’s not much of a trail, but a very a short one. Not many people visit this place.
Here is the memorial.
The railway between Tapah Road and Teluk Intan opened in 1893 and closed in 1989. The tracks have been dismantled, but the railway bridge across the Bidor river is still there, now used for bike traffic. The map shows Teluk Intan in the 1940s when the railway was still operational. In the other picture the remains from a pedestrian walkway next to the railway are still visible.
Not far from the bridge we found this attractive mural. I am not happy with the proliferation of murals all over Malaysia, but this one is very appropriate and well-done.
We had booked a room in Rick resort. Our room was not large but had the luxury of a private jacuzzi.
After a short rest we went out again for dinner. There is not much special food in Teluk Intan, but we found a nice family-run Char Koay Teow stall, just along the road. Traditional preparation, using charcoal.
The main attraction of Teluk Intan is the leaning tower. It was brightly lit and many families were enjoying the evening. We spent quite some time there. Aric is trying to tilt the tower a bit more.
He had brought his drone.
The resort was also nicely illuminated. I enjoyed the jacuzzi with a beer.
The next morning we checked out and went to the town center for our breakfast. The Maharani hawker center is located on both sides of the street.
We had Ying Yong Glutinous Rice with Char Siew and Curry Chicken.. Interesting, but a bit heavy for breakfast. The stall owner was willing to pose with his food.
We had a look at the nearby Guong Dong temple, dedicated to Guan Yin (seated in the center). The deity is Caishen, the god of wealth, an important deity for Chinese 😉
Then it was time for the main challenge of this trip, finding the grave of Birch. I had found a webpage created in 2019, Jejak Sejarah: Menjejaki Kubur JWW Birch with a map. And Sabri Zain visited the graves about ten years ago, here is his report: Perak Expedition: Bandar Bahru. He gave me clear instructions how to reach the graves. Here is the map of the region with Sabri’s route in green and the 2019 one in red.
We decided to try Sabri’s route first (the green one). The plantation road was in reasonable condition, but very overgrown, scratching our car so much, that we turned back halfway. Then Aric got the brilliant idea, why don’t we walk to the graves. He had noted that a minor road comes quite close to the graves and that on Google Earth it looks like a vague trail is going in the right direction..
We found the trail location and parked the car there. It was actually a cattle trail, we had to walk carefully to avoid the cow dung, but it was not more than a 700 m hike before we reached the graves.
I found it quite impressive, so in the middle of nowhere.
The grave of Birch is in the center. Left of his grave is the grave of Innes, who died a few days later during a failed attack on Pasir Salak. According to Sabri Zain the other three graves are of a British private, a Sepoy and a Malay scout. I may write a separate post about the killing of Birch and the hectic weeks that followed.
William InnesJ.W.W Birch
Aric used his drone to take aerial pictures of the cemetery and the nearby majestic Perak river.
We walked back to the car and continued our trip to the Historical Center of Pasir Salak. When we arrived we were the only visitors, later a Malay group arrived. I had visited the center long ago and was not impressed. The architecture of the complex is nice, maybe a bit over the top. There are two monuments about what actually happened here. And there is a Time Tunnel as main attraction.
But the concept of Bumi Pahlawan Melayu (Land of the Malay warriors) which you see displayed everywhere in the complex is not appropriate, in my opinion. It suggest a continuous struggle for independence, from the Melaka sultanate until the formation of UMNO. It would have been better to concentrate on British colonialism.
The time tunnel is actually quite well done. I remember a “primitive” version when i visited the first time, dioramas depicting the various phases of “Ketuanan Melayu“. Now it is more high-tech and more balanced. Officially not allowed to take photos, but I could not resist the temptation. The Pangkor Treaty (1874) and the hanging of Birch’s killers in Matang (1876).
Here are the two monuments near the actual location where Birch was speared (while taking a bath in the river!). A British one (for Birch) and a Malaysian one (for his killers). The cannon is a so-called Rentaka, a bronze cannon, used by the Malays during the fighting.
Pasir Salak was the home base of Maharaja Lela, he had his stronghold there. In the picture you see a replica, but already ruined.
After this visit we drove back to Teluk Intan for lunch. The town may not be a haven for foodies, but there is one famous speciality, Liew Kee’s Chee Cheong Fun. Prepared with a variety of herbs, without a sauce. Aric bought 27 packs (at RM 8 per pack) to distribute them among family and friends ;-).
The shop has only limited seating capacity, so we went to the Glutton (!) Square Food court, where we ordered ABC and had a pack of CCF. Both delicious.
Before driving back to KL, we had a look at three more or less ruined buildings, indicated on this Google Earth map of Teluk Intan. The former palace of the Raja Muda, the Old Police Station and the Woo Choy Mansion. Also marked the Elephant Memorial, the Railway bridge and our resort.
In 2014 I had also taken pictures of these three buildings and I was curious how much they had deteriorated since then. As you can see, not much difference, the Palace (1922) and Police Station (1882) more overgrown with trees and bushes. The mansion was built in 1918 by “towkay” Woo Choy. It is private property, not inhabited but apparently well maintained.
The Palace (2014)2024The Old Police Station (2014)2024The Woo Choy mansion (2014) 2024
All three properties were thoroughly fenced, no trespassing possible, a big difference with Taiping.
The entrance of the mansion is from Jalan Speedy. You wonder why Captain Speedy is honoured in Teluk Intan? You can find the answer in my blog post In Defense of Captain Speedy 😉
When J.W.W Birch, the British Resident of Perak, was murdered by the Malay nobility on 2 November 1875 in Pasir Salak, it was of course clear that the British Empire had to hit back. The result was the Perak War. Not a real war, more a series of skirmishes. The Colonial Office just wanted to catch the people responsible for the killing (and of course also show its strength). In July 1876 the last perpetrators were caught or surrendered. In December the trial took place in the fort of Ngah Ibrahim and in January 1877 three of them, Maharaja Lela, Dato’ Sagor and Pandak Indut, were hanged in Matang.
Two years later British explorer Isabella Bird arrives in the Malay peninsula and writes a fascinating travelogue The Golden Chersonese And The Way Thither about her visit. I am a big fan and have written a post about her, Isabella BIrd & Taiping. When she arrives 16 February 1879 in Kuala Kangsar to meet the Resident Hugh Low, he is not yet back home. His Sinhalese clerk suggests that she could make a trip (by elephant) the next day to a nearby village. He says “”I’m going to take you to Koto-lamah; no European has been there since the war. I’ve never been there, nor the Resident either.” Read my blog about her adventure. Or even better, read letter XX from her book as she writes very well.
Kota Lama (as it is spelled nowadays), is a small village , a few km north of Kuala Kangsar. Wikipedia in its article about the Perak War mentions very briefly the Battle of Kota Lama Kanan .
I am also a fan of Captain Speedy and have read Gulick’s monograph Captain Speedy of Larut (1953). Speedy took part in the Kota Lama expedition, here is what Gulick wrote about it (page 71):
On 4 January 1876 troops of Ross’s column moved into the two halves of Kota Lama, which straddled the Perak River. Speedy, despite his differences with Ross, was in charge of the political side of the operation. He called on the inhabitants to surrender their arms and the troops then began a home-to-house search. At first there was no resistance and the British relaxed their watchfulness. Ross and a group of headquarters staff officers came up to watch the search. They were attacked by a party of Malays. There was a short but exciting melee in which Ross’s Brigade Major was killed. The attackers were quickly driven off.
In August 2020 I visited Kota Lama Kanan, now a peaceful kampung. Kota Lama Kiri is on the other side of the Perak River. A cannon is the only remnant of the battle.
Until a few weeks ago this was what I knew about the Battle of Kota Lama. Then Marianne Pillai, a friend of mine with an interest in heritage, sent me a link to an article about Captain Speedy, published in the Singapore Daily Times of 17 April 1878. Speedy, after years of being thwarted by the Straits Government had, had finally resigned and left the Malay Peninsula in December 1877. The article is a fierce defence of Captain Speedy. Here is the article outlined in red.
Not easy to read, I converted the text into a readable format and wrote a separate post about it : In defense of Captain Speedy where I also add some comments.
The description in the article does not differ a lot from the one given by Gullick in his book, with a few exceptions. One of them is the description of the battle of Kota Lama. The description given by Gullick is short: Speedy is in charge of the political side of the operation. According to the article the situation is much more complicated.
Captain Speedy was actually against an attack on Kota Lama. They might be notorious people, cattle-stealers and robbers, but they had nothing to do with the killing of Birch. However, Brigadier General Ross, who was cross with Speedy (Gullick p 68-69), forced him to join the expedition.
The description of the expedition in the article is different from other reports I have seen. The main difference is that apparently there where TWO parts of Kota Lama, on both sides of the Perak river. Kota Lama Kiri on the leftright bank and Kota Lama Kanan on the right left bank. (also nowadays there are two kampungs!). Therefore the British troops are split in two parts. Colonel Cox commanding the troops on the left bank with Maxwell as Commissioner, and Captain Speedy proceeding on the right bank.
Captain Speedy, not being one of the Commissioners, and having been telegraphed for the previous evening from Larut to participate in the proceedings, saw no alternative before him but to submit; and was desired by the Brigadier General to accompany the party who were to advance along the right bank of the river. The troops who proceeded to the village on the left bank, were commanded by Colonel Cox, accompanied by Mr. W.E. Maxwell, Asst. Queen’s Commissioner, and the course which was pursued was as follows.
Here is what happened in Kota Lama KiriKanan. A violent encounter! Gullick writes that Ross was disappointed not to have a fight. Might this fight have been provoked? The report below suggests it.
On our troops landing and advancing through the village, the Malays fled into the jungle, taking their arms with them, and it was then deemed advisable to put an end to the settlement by burning the village. Accordingly one or more of the houses were set fire to. Almost at the same time the General and his party landed, and one of the houses being soon after entered, it was discovered to be filled with the women of the village. These women being naturally alarmed began to scream, when the men who had been lying in ambush in the jungle, thinking their women were being insulted rushed in, and fired a volley upon our men, following this up by charging with their spears. In this skirmish the Brigade Major Hawkins, two Goorkhas, and some others met their deaths and one of the Queen’s Commissioners was carried of the field hors de combat although unwounded.
And here is what happened in Kota Lama KananKiri. A peaceful solution, managed in a diplomatic way by Captain Speedy. “Not a shot was fired” ,
Meanwhile on the right bank of the river the scene presented an aspect of rather a different nature. Captain Speedy had requested to form a cordon with this men round the village. This being done, Captain Speedy, accompanied by a few men, entered the village and advance to the houses of the head men, and told them that the British Government demanded that they should deliver up their arms. To this they demurred, but Captain Speedy represented that as their village was surrounded, submission would be their wisest course, and he guaranteed that no harm should be done them were they to yield, and the men eventually submitted. Not a shot was fired, not a threat used, and no ill feeling whatever had been displayed on the part of the Malays; on the contrary a friendly feeling was at once established, and while waiting for the party on the other side of the river to complete their proceedings, Captain Speedy occupied his Kota Lama allies in getting them to show him how they had trained their monkeys to climb, and gather the fruit from the coconut palms.
The writer ends his report as follows:
Yet for this successful policy he from first to last received no word of approbation, or gracious acknowledgment; on the contrary, the unsuccessful leaders of the other party, evidently stung by jealousy and dissatisfaction, persistently declared on any reference to the event that the men on the right bank of the river were of a peaceable disposition, and not hostile to the Government, and that no difficulty was to have been expected with them. Captain Speedy’s name was, moreover, invariably suppressed in all letters regarding the Kota Lama attack, a fact in itself sufficiently significant of the petty feeling which prevented a fair statement of the facts.
Reading this report I was of course very surprised. What is the true story? I started searching the Internet for more information. Soon I found a webpage, created by Sabri Zain, titled The Battle of Kota Lama, part of a collection of web pages about The Perak Civil War. Here is the introduction of Sabri’s webpage
McNair’s book Perak and the Malays is available online and interesting to read. In chapter XXXII he describes the attack on Kota Lama. He took part in the expedition himself, as he was the Commissioner and Maxwell the Deputy-commissioner (p 384) Here are a few quotes from the chapter.
Kotah Lamah — a place that had long been noted as a resort for the worst characters, and freebooters of the vilest description
On the arrival of the troops at Qualla Kungsa these people were not openly hostile
... it was determined to disarm the people
… the demand for arms to be given up was acceded to on being made by Captain Speedy
.. armed men were seen rushing off, in two or three instances, to the jungle.
General Ross and his party landed at the middle of the village, and were searching the various houses to see that they contained none but women and children
… they were assailed by a body of fifty or sixty spear-armed Malays, who had been hidden amongst the trees.
Compare these quotes with Gullick’s description, They are quite similar, possibly because Gullick used McNair’s book. But why does McNair not mention that the troops proceeded on both sides of the Perak River?
I searched further and finally found what I was looking for in the London Gazette, the journal of the British government, where the official dispatches are published. I found two that are relevant to the topic of this blog (there may be more).
The first one is a dispatch in issue 24296 written by Brigadier-General Ross, while the second one, in issue 24298, has been written by by Edmund.Garforth, the Commander of the Naval Brigade attached to the Laroot Field Force. Both dated 5 January 1876, one day after the battle. Here are the two dispatches, click on them to open the link where you can enlarge the image to make it readable. Garforth’s dispatch (right) starts actually on page 4 of the 24298 issue.
Here are a few quotes from the report by Ross, with my comments.
For long this village has -been the haunt of all the worst disposed and turbulent Malays. The Queen’s Commissioner, deeming it necessary to disarm the inhabitants and to destroy the houses of certain known leaders, I made the following arrangements.
The village is Kota Lama. From the start of the expedition the target was clear: punish the village and destroy it.
The village of Kota Lama is on the left bank of the river. Lieutenant-Colonel Cox crossed with his party in boats, and moved up the bank a little more than a mile, when he extended the men, the left of the line keeping close to the river, and skirmished through the village. Mr. Maxwell, Deputy-Commissioner, accompanied Lieutenant-Colonel Cox.
Captain Young moved his party in a similar manner up the right bank, to a village of the same name; his orders were to collect any arms, but not to destroy or injure houses or property, as the inhabitants have been well disposed. Captain Speedy, Assistant – Commissioner, accompanied Captain Young.
Here is finally the true situation, there were two parties proceeding to the two parts of Kota Lama, left (kiri) and right (kanan). One led by Cox with Maxwell, the Deputy-commissioner, the other one led by Young and Speedy. Ross mistakenly writes that Speedy was the Assistant-Commissioner. But he was not a Commissioner , he was the Assistant-Resident of Larut! McNair and Maxwell were the two Commissioners
The people of Kota Lama KiriKanan are bad, the people of Kota Lama KananKiri are “well disposed”. Does that make sense?
Major McNair, I, and my staff went with Captain Garforth’s party of the Naval Brigade. We landed on the left bank just above the village, and, leaving a few blue jackets in charge of the boats, we moved in the direction of the village, expecting there to find Lieutenant-Colonel Cox’s party.
So there were actually three parties. Ross himself with Garforth’s men, came by boat. Accompanied by McNair, the Commissioner.
… after about an hour and a half we came upon several houses .close to each other, the largest being occupied by women and children. It being necessary to ascertain whether any men also were in it, Major McNair sent in two of his Malay followers, and himself looked in. After satisfying himself that there were only women and children, he had just got down from the steps, telling those inside not to be alarmed as they would not be harmed, when we heard several shots, and from a jungle close by some 50 Malays rushed out upon us, a few with fire-arms and the rest with spears.
According to the newspaper article, the women started screaming, the men rushed out of the jungle to their rescue and the fight started. Doesn’t that make more sense?
The report by Edmund.Garforth is basically the same.
… at daylight on the 4th January, the following forces, under Brigadier-General Ross, left Qualla Kandsor for a village called Koto-lama, on the left bank of the Perak River, distant three miles.
Kota-lama is the village that the late Mr. Birch was stopped at by an armed force, and for some time has been harbouring the worst characters in this part of the country, and it was the intention to destroy the houses belonging to these men.
Again, from the start it was already the intention to destroy the village, “to teach them a lesson”
A portion of the force was marched up on both banks of the river, two villages being opposite one another, of the same name ; the one on the right bank was only to be searched for arms.
“Only searched for arms” because they were basically good people? It just doesn’t make sense. In the newspaper narrative Speedy’s diplomatic approach does. Speedy is not even mentioned in Garforth’s report.
Having landed with the Naval Brigade and rocket (leaving sufficient men to guard the boats), I was requested by the Brigadier-General commanding to search some houses for arms, which having accomplished I came up with him and his staff at the house of one of the chiefs, about 11. A.M.
In the report by Ross it is McNair who does the searching, telling the women not to worry.
About five minutes after this fifty or sixty armed Malays, who had evidently been hidden in the bush (which was very thick), made a sudden and most determined attack on our party. I had previous to this formed the Blue Jackets up as a guard to the Brigadier-General. The enemy immediately came to close quarters, using their fire-arms and spears, the latter with great effect.
According to Gullick (p 68) Ross was unhappy that there had not been any fight, blaming Speedy for the delay in reaching Kuala Kangsar from Larut. Now he gets his fight!
The two dispatches fit perfectly with the report in the Singapore Daily Times
My conclusions:
In my opinion the article in the Singapore Daily Times, based on the Pinang Gazette, is the most accurate description of what happened on the 4th of January 1876. There has never been a battle of Kota Lama KananKiri, thanks to Captain Speedy’s diplomacy. The battle of Kota Lama KiriKanan may have been provoked by the British colonial powers.
Of course the intriguing question remains, who wrote the four articles in the Pinang Gazette? The details about what happened in Kota Lama KananKiri, especially that the locals showed Speedy how they had trained monkeys to gather coconuts from the trees, suggest an eyewitness.
APPENDIX
Left and Right
What is the left bank of a river and what the right bank? That depends on whether you look upstream or downstream. Geography has “solved” this ambiguity by defining left and right bank of a river from the downstream perspective.
When you navigate the Perak River upstream. you will pass several villages that straddle the river and have a left (kiri) and a right (kanan) part. See the GE map.
The village names correspond to an upstream view! Although I was aware of the geographical definition, I assumed that the military campaign against Kota Lama used the same upstream perspective. After I published my post I communicated with Sabri Zain about it. He convinced me that the English military, reporting to the Colonial Office, would definitely use the conventional definition of left and right river banks.
Therefore I have edited the post and replaced Kota Lama Kiri with Kota Lama Kanan and vice versa. My conclusions remain the same. Thanks to Speedy’s diplomacy a violent conflict was avoided in Kota Lama Kiri and his role was downplayed in the official reports.
In retrospect I should have noticed my mistake earlier.
Isabella Bird crosses the river to reach the village where no European had been since the war.
Ross writes in his report, that Cox crosses the river in boats to reach the village.
So the village is Kota Lama Kanan, on the other side of the Perak river, as seen from Kuala Kangsar.
Yesterday the Chinese New Year celebrations ended with Chap Goh Mei on 24 February. Shopping malls try to outdo each other in elaborate and often spectacular CNY decorations. We visited a few. This year is the year of the dragon, so dragons everywhere.
On 1 February we went to the Curve, a shopping mall near to where we live. Relatively modest decorations.
The next day we visited the ExchangeTRX, a new, huge shopping complex in the center of Kuala Lumpur.
On Saturday our first CNY-dinner with Aric’s maternal family in Kepong.
The following day another CNY meeting with my Bukit Lanjan hiking friends, just around the corner from where we live.
On 7 February we visited the Pavilion shopping mall in Bukit Bintang. By far the most impressive decorations.
On Friday we went to Aric’s family house in Parit Baru for the CNY eve reunion dinner. Traditional steamboat, in multiple sessions because the (extended) family is huge.
Aric always creates his own CNY decorations around the house and this time he was particularly successful.
The theme this year was to wear traditional Chinese dress. The right picture shows Aric with a few competitors.
The extended family is huge 😉
On 18 February we went to Puchong for the celebration of the Hokkien CNY, another tradition.
The next day another CNY meeting with Aric’s maternal family.
On 22 February we went to Jenjarom to visit the Dong Zen temple. Usually a serene quiet Buddhist temple, but during CNY a famous tourist attraction. Huge crowds. This is the centrepiece, flashing lights with loud music.
Very colorful but a bit kitschy.
The main hall still has a different atmosphere.
On 24 February, early morning, we went again to Parit Baru. Prayers for the ancestors.
Before going back home we visited a local Datok Kong shrine near Aric’s family house
A busy three weeks 😉
Aric’s Zodiac sign is the dragon, so you should be able to calculate how old he will be this year. Here is our CNY wish.
NewspaperSG is an online digital archive of over 200 Singapore and Malayanewspapers published since 1831. It has a very useful search option, which I have been using regularly, see for example my post about Menggelumchor.
The 17 April 1878 issue of the Singapore Daily Times contains a long article about Captain Speedy who had left the Malay peninsula a few months earlier. I have marked the article below in red color.
The anonymous writer refers to 4 articles from the Pinang Gazette And Straits Chronicle. The NewspaperSG archive has a few volumes of the Pinang Gazette, but not from 1878, so the writer of the original articles is unfortunately also unknown.
Here is the article, split in parts. When you click on it, you will see that it is just readable but not easy.
That’s why I have converted the text into a more readable form below. Here it is, in blue italic. In between I have added my comments
The Pinang Gazette contains in of some of its recent issues a series of articles, four in number, giving what profess to be authentic details respecting Captain Speedy’s connection with Perak from the date of his taking service with the Mantri of Larut till his resignation on the 31st December last.
In 1953 the orientalist J.M. Gullick published a well-documented monograph about Captain Speedy: Captain Speedy of Larut ,covering the same period (and more). It is available online and very readable.
The object of the writer is to expose what he considers to be the unworthy treatment of Captain Speedy by the Straits Government and the Colonial Office. No startling revelations are made, but some details are given, a brief summary of which may be interesting as a piece of local history relative to the Native States.
The setting is clear, the writer of the articles is critical of the way Captain Speedy has been treated by the Government of the Straits Settlements and the Colonial Office.
Captain Speedy formerly served in H.M. 18th Regiment, and, during the Abyssinian Expedition, in 1867, acted as Interpreter to the forces on the staff of the Commanding General, Sir Robert Napier, now Lord Napier of Magdala. After the war he was appointed guardian or tutor of King Theodore’s son, Prince Alameida, and in 1868 he came out to Penang as Commissioner of Police.
The dates are incorrect. Captain Speedy arrived in Penang in 1871 where he became Superintendent of Police. And he did not resign in July of that year, but in 1873.
In July of that year he resigned that appointment and entered the service of the since notorious Mantri of Larut, upon an arrangement drawn up in due legal form, to the effect that in return for services rendered, Captain Speedy was to receive $500 a month, or £1,200 a year, and a tenth of all the revenues of Larut, for the period of ten years. As the revenues of Larut in 1874 and 1875, averaged about $200,000 a year, Captain Speedy’s tenth would amount to $20,000 or £4,000, which would have given him an income of over £5,000 a year, had his agreement held, and had not Sir Andrew Clarke interfered in the affairs of Perak.
The interference of Sir Andrew Clarke -> the Pangkor Treaty (January 1874)
The service which Captain Speedy undertook to perform was nothing less than to quell the disturbances of the Chinese factions among the tin miners, the See Quans and the Goh Quans, who fought each other for the possession of certain tin mines and the water supply, and had desolated the country as well as put an entire stop to trade. The Mantri himself, having supported the Goh Quans against the See Quans, and the former having been defeated, was obliged by the victorious See Quans to fly the country and take refuge in Penang.
The whole tin producing land of Larut covers a space of about 50 square miles, and the mines in dispute occupied an area of more than four square miles, their annual product being upwards of 2,600 tons. There is no doubt that Captain Speedy would have effected his object had he not been interfered with, and it is possible enough he might have become the virtual ruler of Larut, if not the whole of Perak.
“He might have become the virtual ruler of Larut” The writer is obviously a staunch supporter of Captain Speedy.
But his proceedings are said to have been viewed with disfavour and suspicion by the Penang Government, which gets the credit of doing all in its power to thwart him, and is accused of planning his arrest as an outlaw and on a charge of high treason.
Captain Speedy’s plan for restoring order and the authority of the Mantri of Larut was to enlist a disciplined body of 200 armed Sikhs for service in the country as Policemen. For this purpose, he proceeded to India in August 1873, and with much trouble and difficulty he succeeded, after six weeks of hard work, in securing, principally from the North West Provinces of India, upwards of 200 men, whom he engaged to accompany him to Larut, and whom he brought down to Calcutta.
According to Gullick (page 34) the Straights Government had notified the Government of India that Speedy was allowed to bring sepoys to Larut
Here, however, reports, promulgated it is said by Penang Officials from spite and jealousy, reached the ears of the men that Captain Speedy’s proceedings were illegal and would be opposed by the Government. The consequence was that half of them deserted or refused to fulfill their engagement, and demanded their traveling expenses back to their villages. About one hundred of them however remained staunch, and with these Captain Speedy embarked for Penang on board of one of Apcar’s steamers toward the end of September 1873.
Gullick (page 33-34) writes differently, that Anson, the Lieutenant-Governor of Penang, actually supported Speedy’s mission to India. No mention that half of the men deserted, Gullick calls it a rumour that more than about 100 men were planning to follow
On his arrival in Penang harbour he was warned by Mr, R.C. Woods, the Mantri’s lawyer, not to land, as it was possible a warrant might be issued against him on a charge of waging war against an ally of Her Majesty’s, and accordingly he started at once for Larut with the men in a small steamer belonging to the Mantri, being accompanied by Mrs Speedy and his brother.
Gullick also writes that Soeedy did not land in Penang but continued to Larut. However, there is no mention at all of a possible warrant or arrest, had he landed in Penang.
On arriving in Larut, Captain Speedy advised the Mantri to send a letter to the Chinese faction hostile to him, offering to reinstate them in their mines if they laid down their arms and gave security for their future good behaviour. No reply was received, and, after a delay of two months, active measures were taken,
Gullick doesn’t mention this act of diplomacy by Speedy
Captain Speedy advanced from his head-quarters, at Bukit Gantang, with two-thirds of his force and two six-pounder Krupp guns against a stockade 14 miles distant. This and four others were taken with ease in the course of a fortnight, and there remained only two more in the hands of the enemy. One was at Matang, the port of Larut river, and the other at Simpang, two and a half miles inland, and both were rather formidable from their position.
Captain Speedy was making his preparations for attack, when he was checked by the arrival early in January of Captain Grant, H.M.S. Aron, and Mr. F.A. Swettenham, with Mr. R.C. Woods, from Penang, with a message from Sir Andrew Clarke asking for a ten days’ truce and informing him of the new Government’s intention to take the settlement of affairs in Larut and in Perak in hand himself.
There followed the famous Pangkore Treaty, which altered all Captain Speedy’s arrangements and projects. He was offered the appointment of Resident of Larut, and to act temporarily as Resident of Perak on a salary of £2,000 a year. This he declined until he was requested by the Mantri to take the appointment. He did so, however, very reluctantly, for the appointment was altogether different as regards pay, status and influence to the one he had contemplated in the service of the Mantri.
Gullick (p 38) doesn’t discuss this refusal and reluctant acceptance , but he mentions that the £2,000 a year caused irritation with the government officials in Singapore, as it was much more than they got.
It is claimed for Captain Speedy, however, that he took to the duties of his new post with much zeal, and displayed much judgment and tact in his dealings with the natives, both Chinese and Malays, whose respect and confidence he succeeded in acquiring and keeping to the last from 1874 to December 1877. During the first two years of his administration, and up to the time he left in June 1876, on six months’ leave of absence, Larut flourished to a most surprising and unexpected extent. But it is alleged that he was all along treated in a jealous and unfriendly spirit by Straits Officials from the Governor downwards. One or two instances are given of his treatment by Sir William Jervois, and the following may be quoted:
According to the writer Speedy is doing very well in Larut, but is treated badly by the Straits government and especially by William Jervois (who succeeded Clarke as Straits Governor). Two examples are given. In the first one, Speedy acted professionally but still was reprimanded “in terms of the curtest nature”
–Almost at the commencement of the Perak expedition, before any active measures had been taken, Captain Speedy received a letter from the Ex-Sultan Ismail, asking his advice, as to whether he should attempt opposition to the British troops or offer the Government his services. Seeing at once that a communication of this kind should be forwarded without comment to head quarters, Captain Speedy without replying enclosed the letter to Sir William Jervois and shortly afterwards received an answer cached in terms of the curtest nature to the effect that he was never at any time, to hold communication with the native chiefs but to forward all such despatches direct to the Government.
The second example is a long, detailed report about the so-called battle of Kota Lama on 4 January 1876. Captain Speedy is against the attack on this village. They may be bad people but were not involved in the killing of BIrch.
– Again during the so called “war” — when it was determined by the Commissioners appointed for the time being, to attack the village of Kota Lama, on the Perak river, Captain Speedy’s advice that this attack should not take place was wholly disregarded, though he felt and represented strongly the extreme unjustice of the proceeding. He represented that the Kota Lama men were neutral, — that they had taken no part in the death of Mr. Birch, and that an attack on their village was quite uncalled for. The unblushing reply of the Commissioners was, that they were freebooters and turbulent, – that they had formerly been cattle stealers, and that it was desirable to give them a lesson.
The Kota Lama men had doubtless a reputation not undeserved, for a character, which as regarded their neighbours, was none of the most peaceable; but of any participation in the murder of Mr. Birch they were wholly blameless; and as the express object with which our troops were sent into the country, was to punish those murderers, and proclamations had been issued by the Government to the effect that the inhabitants who remained quiet had nothing to fear, by what right the Commissioners reconciled it to their conscience to attack Kota Lama can perhaps be only explained by themselves.
“… by what right the Commissioners reconciled it to their conscience to attack Kota Lama can perhaps be only explained by themselves”. It is clear that the writer agrees with Captain Speedy.
The following paragraph casts a rather negative light on the character of W.E. Maxwell, who succeeded Speedy as Assistant Resident of Larut.
A circumstance had, moreover, shortly before occurred, which was but calculated to inspire feelings the reverse of conciliatory toward the British in the eyes of these men. The Assistant Queen’s Commissioner, Mr. W.E. Maxwell, had, some days previous, gone up the river to a village a few miles north of Kota Lama, in search of a man named Rajah Abbas, who had about 4 years previously broken jail from Penang, and who Mr. Maxwell had reason to believe was living at the house of a Malay named Anjong. On reaching Anjong’s house, however, he found that Abbas had left a few days before. He then enquired of Anjong if he had given him any shelter and the man replied in the affirmative, saying that Abbas had come to his house and remained there for a few days. Hearing this Mr. Maxwell at once decreed Anjong to be worthy of death, and ordered him to be executed. Accordingly he was hanged then and there! to the nearest tree by the men of the Naval Brigade who acted as Mr. Maxwell’s escort.
Here is the description of the battle. It is so different from the “official” narrative, for example Gullick (page 71) that I have written a separate post about the Battle of Kota Lama. This “novel point of view” I have given a different color.
The attack on Kota Lama and Captain Speedy’s proceedings thereat are described as follows, and the description presents that ill-managed affair from a novel point of view.
Captain Speedy, not being one of the Commissioners, and having been telegraphed for the previous evening from Larut to participate in the proceedings, saw no alternative before him but to submit; and was desired by the Brigadier General to accompany the party who were to advance along the right bank of the river. The troops who proceeded to the village on the left bank, were commanded by Colonel Cox, accompanied by Mr. W.E. Maxwell, Asst. Queen’s Commissioner, and the course which was pursued was as follows.
On our troops landing and advancing through the village, the Malays fled into the jungle, taking their arms with them, and it was then deemed advisable to put an end to the settlement by burning the village. Accordingly one or more of the houses were set fire to. Almost at the same time the General and his party landed, and one of the houses being soon after entered, it was discovered to be filled with the women of the village. These women being naturally alarmed began to scream, when the men who had been lying in ambush in the jungle, thinking their women were being insulted rushed in, and fired a volley upon our men, following this up by charging with their spears. In this skirmish the Brigade Major Hawkins, two Goorkhas, and some others met their deaths and one of the Queen’s Commissioners was carried of the field hors de combat although unwounded.
Meanwhile on the right bank of the river the scene presented an aspect of rather a different nature. Captain Speedy had requested to form a cordon with this men round the village. This being done, Captain Speedy, accompanied by a few men, entered the village and advance to the houses of the head men, and told them that the British Government demanded that they should deliver up their arms. To this they demurred, but Captain Speedy represented that as their village was surrounded, submission would be their wisest course, and he guaranteed that no harm should be done them were they to yield, and the men eventually submitted. Not a shot was fired, not a threat used, and no ill feeling whatever had been displayed on the part of the Malays; on the contrary a friendly feeling was at once established, and while waiting for the party on the other side of the river to complete their proceedings, Captain Speedy occupied his Kota Lama allies in getting them to show him how they had trained their monkeys to climb, and gather the fruit from the coconut palms.
Here is the conclusion of the writer. Speedy did not get any words of gracious acknowledgment and in the official reports his successful actions were suppressed or downplayed
Yet for this successful policy he from first to last received no word of approbation, or gracious acknowledgment; on the contrary, the unsuccessful leaders of the other party, evidently stung by jealousy and dissatisfaction, persistently declared on any reference to the event that the men on the right bank of the river were of a peaceable disposition, and not hostile to the Government, and that no difficulty was to have been expected with them. Captain Speedy’s name was, moreover, invariably suppressed in all letters regarding the Kota Lama attack, a fact in itself sufficiently significant of the petty feeling which prevented a fair statement of the facts.
But neither time nor space would allow us here to enumerate the repeated instances in which the same spirit of narrow minded jealousy was allowed to militate against him.
A few more examples of the way Captain Speedy was badly treated:
Upon the appointment of Mr. Birch as Resident of Perak towards the close of 1874, Captain Speedy was definitely appointed ” H.B.M Assistant Resident of Perak attached to the district of Larut” with a salary of £1500 a year, and Lord Carnarvon promised to confirm the appointment but this promise was not fulfilled.
In July 1876, Lord Carnarvon recommended him for the appointment of Resident of Perak in succession to Mr, Birch, and asked for Sir William Jervois’ advice on the subject, but Sir William merely replied that he did not think him qualified.
In October 1876, when in England and on the point of returning from leave, Captain Speedy received a letter from the Colonial Office stating that his salary was to be reduced from £1,500 to £750 per annum, and he was told to judge whether it would be worth his while to return. This was a plain hint not to return to the East, but Captain Speedy returned nevertheless.
The Straits Governor William Jervois was the most negative in his opinion about Captain Speedy. That is also Gullick’s conclusion
On his arrival in Penang he received a message from Sir William Jervois to go to Singapore and the first thing said to him by Sir William was “Why he had returned, because he had telegraphed home to stop him”. He was then told that the appointment of Assistant Resident at Laroot was to be abolished, as Mr Paul held the title of Assistant Resident of Perak, having been appointed in the beginning of 1876, and that the only feasible plan was to send him to Durian Saba tang as Superintendent and Magistrate.
Ultimately, Captain Speedy returned to Larut on a salary of £1.000 a year, but in the course of two months and a half he was officially informed that his salary was again to be reduced to £850,and that he was to proceed from Larut to the swamp of Durian Sabatang.
Durian Sebatang is now Teluk Intan.
It is alleged that this last measure was adopted in pursuance of the settled policy of the Government Officials in the Straits Settlements since the departure of Sir Andrew Clarke, to drive him out of the service, in the hope that it would be finally successful.
And it was so eventually, Captain Speedy obeyed the order, but, after ten months’ residence at Durian Sabatang, he determined to resign, and at the end of 1877, he left Perak probably for ever.
Such is a condensed account of the authentic facts relating to Captain Speedy’s connection with the sate of Perak published in the Penang Gazette. The story is not a pretty one but we can offer no opinion upon it without having heard the other side
Is this the conclusion of the Singapore writer or the Penang one? Really a pity that the relevant records of the Pinang Gazette have not been preserved.
Since I wrote a blog post about Bukit Lanjan in March 2021, its hiking trails have been maintained and further developed by volunteers (Rainer, Pathman, Mark and many others)
Here is an example of a trail that I often walk. Clockwise, uphill using the trails, downhill the tar road to protect my knees. Click on the GE screenshot below to view the Komoot report of a recent hike, with many photos.
Halfway I have a coffee break at Sunset Boulevard, marked in the GE map. This location has been upgraded a lot with furniture and has become very popular.
Another location shown on the GE map is Rymba R&R. R&R stands for Rumah Rehat , the rest stops along the highway. Rymba Hills is a residential area, visible bottom left on the map. Over the past year this rest stop has been developed by Pathman, who is living nearby. Here are two pictures, one taken in April, the other one in November.
And here is the present situation. The plastic arm has disappeared 😉
When Pathman told me that he often came here in the evening to relax with a drink, I showed my interest to join him, as I am living “around the corner”. But we never managed to fix a date. Until this time! Not the two of us, discussing the meaning of life, but a New Year meeting of the Bukit Lanjan hikers. There were two options, starting with a hike at 4:30 pm, finishing 6 pm at Rymba R&R, or skipping the hike and meeting directly at Rymba R&R. The plan was that everybody would bring something to drink and or eat. Many people first wanted to hike, here is a group picture at Sunset Boulevard.
Some more photos of the hike. In the center is another interesting location, the Hard Rock cafe. Steep parts of the hiking trails have ropes.
In the meantime the non-hikers already came to the R&R
Around 6 pm the hikers arrived and the party started. There were drinks and snacks, Pathman had provided music and solar lights
It became a very pleasant gathering. We were very lucky with the weather, this time of the year there is often a heavy downpour in the afternoon.
I went back home before it got dark, because I didn’t want to take risks of stumbling at my age. So these photos (and quite a few others in this post) have not been taken by me.
As you can see, everybody is enjoying the New Year party.
Pathman created a YouTube video of the party. Enjoy!
On Sunday 3 December there were two major events in Aric’s family. His maternal uncle, David, who lives in Singapore, had come to Malaysia to celebrate his 80th birthday. He had invited the family for a birthday lunch. And the youngest daughter of Aric’s paternal uncle no 6 was going to get married and we were invited for the wedding dinner on Sunday evening. How to survive two sumptuous meals on one day?
The weekend started on Saturday evening with a pre-wedding party in Cheras where Aric’s uncle lives. Buffet style. It was a pleasant evening. As usual, I was the only Kwai Loh in the group, but by now I know most of the family members.
The birthday lunch took place in the Tropicana Garden Mall. Four tables. Sumptuous is an apt description of the lunch. Look at the menu, ten (!) dishes .
To survive, I decided to take only minuscule portions of the various dishes. And I also refused to have any alcohol, telling that I don’t drink before 6 pm, which actually is generally true 😉 . In the food collage only the Longevity Birthday Peach Bun is missing.
There was karaoke singing. Aric is a good singer, but rarely sings nowadays. I recorded his song, but he doesn’t allow me to share it here. Pity, click here for the original song, it was a popular 1959 movie, The Kingdom and the Beauty.
Of course there was a birthday cake and the singing of Happy Birthday To You.
David in the center with various combinations of family, relatives and friends.
And the usual group photo.
Then finally the cake was cut. A very nice birthday celebration
We came home and had a few hours to rest and recover before we went out again to the Hee Lai Ton Ballroom & Restaurant in Puchong. The wedding dinner took place in a big hall on the first floor, twenty tables.
Left the parents of the bride, right the entrance of the couple.
The food was delicious. but again I took only very small portions. And as it was after 6 pm, I had a few glasses of wine. This time I took picture of the dishes, not of what I put on my plate.
It was a pleasant , traditional gathering with a lot of Yam Seng toasting.
Here we are posing with bride and groom. One of the traditions is that the groom has to uncork a bottle of sparkling wine. A modern element was that here both bride and groom uncorked a bottle 😉
After filling the glasses they call the close relatives to the stage for a toast. That is basically the end of the dinner.
It was the end of a busy food-filled Sunday. But not yet the end of the weekend. David and his family had come from Singapore to Malaysia for the birthday celebration, but were also eager to have a look at our new penthouse. So we invited them for a get together on Monday evening. We had prepared drinks and snack food and they brought even more. It resulted in an animated party with a lot of wine 😉
A group photo at the end of the evening. The next few days we were recovering.
At first i considered calling this post Eat Eat Eat, because during this trip I had three sumptuous dinners with friends. But I also did more than eating, so I kept the title neutral. There were two reasons why I came back to Taiping so soon after my October visit. My friend LIew Suet Fun had [published a new book and I wanted to attend the book launch on 25 November. And Sharen, another friend, born in Taiping but mostly living in Switzerland, had asked me to join her to Taiping and be her “guide” .
I boarded the ETS not in KL Sentral this time, but in Sg Buloh. First the feeder bus to the Mutiara MRT station, then the MRT to Sg Buloh. For me a much better option. The MRT has now a special section for ladies only. In the ETS I always choose coach C, because the canteen is there 😉
I am very fortunate to have friends in Taiping who are willing to provide transport. Tung Lay Chun and Kar Seng usually pick me up from the station and bring me to my hotel. But first we had lunch, they know many nice eateries. This time they took me to the SSL Traders hotel in Kamunting, where the restaurant had a very affordable lunch promotion.
I had booked my usual room 201 in Furama, dropped my luggage there and went out again to visit my friend Goh Keat Soon. During my October visit, we had been looking for old heritage buildings, but shortly after he was admitted in hospital with a heart problem, now discharged and recovering. I decided to walk to his house. When you click on the map you can see the many pictures I took during my walk (no need to sign up or login)
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A few old buildings. The left bungalow, built in 1932 is in good condition and still inhabited. I had visited the interior during my August 2020 visit. The right house, in traditional Malay style, looks abandoned and will probably continue to decay . Taiping has many of these houses, and actually they are for me a big part of Taiping’s charm.
It was nice to meet Goh and his wife
On my way back I followed the Raintree Walk. As I took a wrong turn, the total walk was almost 5 k.
During my October visit I had invited Lay Chun and her “food gang” for a dinner and I did the same thing now. They picked me up from Furama and drove to the 83 restaurant in Pokok Assam. We where with 9 pax, ordered 7 dishes and the bill was RM 235.90 (about 46 Euro). Amazingly cheap
And the food was delicious. I forgot to take a photo of one of the dishes 😉
That was a well-spent first day of my visit. The next morning I was planning to have breakfast with my friend Foo, Chee Cheong Fun at the Circus Ground food court, near my hotel, but he warned me that the shop was temporarily closed. He suggested the Wan Li Xiang coffee shop, even closer to my hotel, where they also served CCF. We met there and the CCF was also quite good.
I told him about the book launch in the New Club at 10:30 am and he offered to drive me there. We share an interest in Taiping heritage, it was he who had drawn my attention to the 1932 bungalow shown above. On our way we passed the isolated tomb stones on the slopes of the ….. hill. There are actually three, the third one looks like being partially excavated. I have tried to find out who are buried here and when, but until now in vain.
We had still time enough to have a look at the Pillars, the only remains of what was once the Residency. Right a old photo of the Residency. After Ipoh became the capital, the building was used for other purposes (survey department?, public works department?) and apparently it was destroyed by fire, but when? Another mystery.
The book published by Liew Suet Fun has as title Musings from the Nest .For a number of years she and her husband Peter leased the Nest bungalow on Maxwell Hill from the Methodist Church. They transformed the bungalow in colonial style and made it a heaven on earth. I visited the Nest for the first time in 2017, with Aric and my Ipoh friend Hong, report here. The subtitle of her book “why can’t we stay here forever” applies to me, so I came back in 2018 three times, in April, July and December. I would have liked to continue, but in 2019 Suet Fun closed the Nest, because she was writing a book, then came COVID and a disastrous storm , destroying big parts of the access road to Maxwell Hill. Finally the Methodist Church, for reasons unknown to me, claimed back the Nest.
Peter started the book launch with a short introduction, after which Suet Fun explained how they became managers of the bungalow. She read a few passages from the book, followed by a Q&A session.
Of course the book was for sale (RM 60) and you could have it signed by the author. It was a nice event, for me especially interesting because I met people I had not seen for a long time. In the right picture Sharen talks to Safina and Grahame, who I last met in October 2020, before the Covid pandemic disrupted our lives.
After the event many people stayed for lunch and some chit-chat. One gentleman, Dr Ng approached me and told me that we have a mutual friend, George Tan, who had mentioned me several times. He introduced another friend to me, Dr Neoh and I asked him if he was a birder. I explained that for many years I had maintained a website Birding in Malaysia and that he was mentioned on that site as not only a birder but also a bird painter. He presented me with a calendar containing images of his paintings.
Of course a photo had to be taken. From left to right Dr Neoh , Dr Ng and Dr Stuivenberg 😉 .Malaysia and especially Taiping is a small world 😉
We ended this very agreeable event with a cendol at the famous Ansari Cendol.
I had suggested to Sharen, as her “tourist guide”, that we could go in the afternoon to Matang, visit the museum there, continue to Kuala Sepetang (charcoal kilns, mangrove forest) and finally have dinner in the Lemon Tree restaurant. The dinner plan was accepted, actually Mei, one of her Taiping friends, was going to invite us and host the dinner. For the afternoon she had her own plans, so I was “free” and had a lazy afternoon ;-). Later Sharen WhatsApped me : Pick up between 7 to 7:10pm. A lady by the name of Elaine & Teng Khoe..Please watch out for a red Honda Civic. Another example of the small world Taiping is, as I had met them already a few times earlier 😉
The dinner at the Lemon Tree restaurant was even more elaborate, with a total of nine dishes for 7 adults and 2 kids. From right, anti-clockwise Elaine, Teng Khoe, Mei, me, Sharen, Mei’s son David, one of the kids and David’s wife.
Delicious food, but of course way too much. Quite a lot was brought home tapau, Malaysian slang for take-away ;-).
Nice dinner, nice company. Of course I was not hungry the next morning. I had a simple roti canai in the same restaurant where I had CCF the day before.
I had suggested to Sharen to do the EV Heritage trip. This is an electric bus trip, taking 1 hour and 20 minutes, following a route along Taiping heritage locations, with an explanation by a guide. Starting from the zoo, three trips daily.
We walked from Furama to the Zoo, where we bought tickets. RM 20 for adults, RM 10 for Malaysian senior citizens. Quite expensive, but until 31 December you get a discount of 30 %.
No online/advance booking possible, only walk-in. As it was a Sunday morning, with many Zoo visitors, I was a bit worried that the tickets might be sold out. But it turned out that we were the only passengers, a worrying sign for the future of this EV heritage project 🙁 .
A nice surprise when we were waiting for the bus. A lady approached me and asked , do you remember me? It was puan Jamilah who I had met in March 2019, when she was working at the Galleria. She had heard (Taiping is a small world) that I was planning to do the EV heritage trip and decided to join. In the bus we met our guide Fendy
Here is the route followed by the bus, Click on the map to see the many pictures I took during the trip. During the trip Fendy commented on the various interesting locations we passed. There were three stops where we could walk around a bit
The bus is comfortable and can accommodate about twenty passengers. Our first stop was at the Raintree Walk, a pedestrian walk at the Taiping Lake Gardens. A few fallen rain trees have become tourist attractions and of course we had our pictures taken 😉
The next stop was at the clocktower, now the Taiping tourist office, where I had a short, pleasant meeting with puan Kamariah. In the pictures Sharen and I in front of the clocktower and with Kamariah and Jamilah inside the tourist office.
The third stop was at the Municipal Gallery, where we stayed a bit longer. Left a picture of Fendy, Sharen and Jamilah in front of the numerous rewards and certificates obtained by the Taiping Municipal council. In the right photo we are standing in front of the Telegraph museum next door.
The gallery building is still almost empty, but outside there are a few interesting heritage items, related to the railway history of Taiping.
What to say about the trip? It was certainly enjoyable, the explanations by Fendy were useful, and the company of Jamilah pleasant. But in the long term I think the project may fail unless some changes are made. Here are a few suggestions.
The starting point should not be the Zoo but the Galleria.
Online booking should be made possible.
Passing the heritage locations is going too fast. Instead of stopping at three locations it would be more useful to let the bus halt for a short while at many more locations, so the guide can explain a bit , while the passengers can take pictures (not leaving the bus)
It is a bit too expensive.
Sharen had her own programme for the afternoon, one of her relatives picked us up from the Zoo and dropped me at my hotel. I decided to have lunch at Prima and then walk a bit around town on my own.
Here are the former British government buildings, a beautiful creation by Francis Caulfield, completed in 1897, now housing the Larut, Matang & Selama district office. A real gem of Victorian architecture
Recently a few huge murals have been created in Taiping. During my visit in October I had taken pictures of two of them. Here is another one, on the walls of the Kwantung association, showing people playing golf.
As it threatened to rain, I cut short my walk and returned to my hotel via the Lake Gardens
That evening my third sumptuous dinner, offered to Sharen and me in the Soon Lee restaurant by the group of people I had invited two days earlier. The same happened during my October stay in Taiping, I hosted a dinner and two days later there was in return a dinner where I was not allowed to pay. It is a quid pro quo aspect of Chinese culture. Delicious food
The next morning I walked to Lian Thong for my roti goyang, half-boiled eggs on toast. Goyang in Malay means shaking. One of my favourite coffee shops, also a very attractive building.
Our train was leaving at 1:40 pm, so I had time to walk around town. First I walked to the ruins of the Perak Railway building, where I had discovered during my October visit that you still could sneak in despite the solid fencing. Nothing had changed. Same at the Rest House next door, you can just walk in and out. The authorities must be aware of this, why don’t they take action?
Outside PWD ruinsInsideOutside Rest HouseInside
I continued to the market, where I got a pleasant surprise. They had started rebuilding. It looks like it will not be a renovation but a replica, but at least something is happening. Will it be completed by August 2024, as promised by the minister?
Walking back to Furama I got a call from Yeap that he and his wife were meeting Halim, if I had time to join them. Of course I wanted to see Halim, who has been diagnosed with a serious illness, but still is full of energy. We have become quite close friends.
Yeap had offered to pick me up from Furama and drop me at the station. On our way, he showed me the remains of what was once one of the movie theatres of Taiping: the Mandarin Cinema. A huge building, abandoned since many years, but at least properly fenced off . A new discovery for me 😉
Then it was time to take the train back home. A nice trip with Sharen, although it was obvious that she didn’t need a guide for Taiping 😉
This time the main reason for my Taiping visit was to watch the Nine Emperor Gods procession, but there was (much) more. In April the iconic market buildings were demolished and last month the equally iconic Rest House was partially destroyed by fire. And of course there were friends to meet and Taiping food to enjoy. So I booked 3 nights in my usual Furama hotel and on 20 October took the ETS, arriving in Taiping around 1 pm. A comfortable way of traveling.
My friend Lay Chun picked me up from the station and first we had lunch in Prima, chicken rice.
She is a very active member of the Shun Tak Association, one of the many Clan associations in Malaysia. Left the Ancestral Home in Jalan Kota, now rented out to a restaurant. Right the Shun Tak gallery in Jalan Pasar, recently opened, More information about the history of the Shun Tak association can be found in this blog, written by Wong Tuck Ee, the secretary of the association.
The gallery is on the first floor and open by appointment only. Lay Chun had arranged a visit. Here you see the interior of the gallery Panels about the history decorate the walls. The spacious gallery can also be used for meetings of the association.
We met Miss Leong , the clerk, and walked around. Right a mahjong table. In the past members often came to the clan house to play mahjong.
The deity in the middle is Kwan Gong, the Chinese warrior god. Right the Ancestral Tablets.
It was an interesting visit, I signed the guestbook and gave a small donation after which I was allowed to ring the bell three times. It would be good to promote the gallery as a Taiping tourist attraction. I am thinking about writing a separate blog about the clan associations of Taiping.
After the visit Lay Chun dropped me at Furama. I have stayed in this hotel numerous times, almost always in this room 😉 . Feels a bit like home.
Lay Chun and her friends organise regular dinner meetings, in the past I attended a few of them. This time I told her that I would like to be the host for such a dinner party. That was accepted, Goh, a member of the “gang”, who lives next door to Furama, picked me up from my hotel, we drove to Matang, the Lemon Tree restaurant, where we met the other members and had a delicious dinner.
Me in the middle, next to me Yong (left) and Goh (right). We were 12 pax, had 9 dishes (pork, chicken, fish, duck, veggies etc) and the bill was RM 330. Unbelievable, so cheap.
The next morning I had breakfast with my friend Yeap in an Indian restaurant. I had dosai and asked a waiter to take a picture of us, but something went wrong. Nice breakfast place.
A few months ago a Facebook contact had told me about a remote Hindu temple, the Sri Ayyanar Temple, north of Kamunting. When I asked Yeap if he knew this temple, he said, sure, it is not far from my oil palm farm, I can bring you there. After our breakfast we drove there, the signage is no problem, but the road is untarred and the location is really in the middle of plantations.
The beautiful temple comes as a big surprise. Colorful, dominated by a giant statue of Ayyanar, a Tamil deity.
He is accompanied by horse riders, also huge statues. And there can be no doubt about it, the horses are stallions, not mares 😉
A few more pictures. Servants are supporting the temple.
Left Dakshinamurti an aspect of Lord Shiva as a teacher. Right the inner sanctum of the temple. Everything beautifully maintained.
Really an unexpected discovery. When I asked my Taiping friends, many of them were not aware of this gem, less than 15 km away of the town center.
Back in town, I walked around a bit. Next year Taiping will celebrate its 150th anniversary, many activities are planned. I had a look at two recent murals, one commemorating the Treaty of Pangkor (1874). the other one showing dulang washing (the panning of tin ore). They are huge, but I am not impressed. The Amelia Earhart one has more artistic value, but unfortunately, the pilot never landed at Tekah areodrome.
Lunch with Yeap and Halim in Yut Sun. The “new” branch, we first tried the original one, but there the Rajah Muda of Perak had just arrived with his entourage, we expected long waiting times. No Hainanese Chicken Chop for me this time, a simple egg and veggie on bread was enough.
In the afternoon I met my friend Goh, the photographer. He had published on Facebook pictures of old buildings, colonial bungalows but also simple staff quarters. I was interested. We drove around in Asam Kumbang, He took the photos many years ago and was not sure if the buildings still existed. This is what we found. Desolation.
Cleared land, the house must have been demolished not so long ago, One house still standing.
Later, back home, I opened Google Earth on my laptop and selected the “historical imagery” option. Left the situation in 2016, right in 2022. We were too late 😉 I have marked the locations “cleared land” and “house”. It was drizzling which added to the melancholic atmosphere.
20162022
We passed the Kempe Club, now closed. In 2019 I visited the club and was warmly welcomed by the seniors who gathered there to play mahjong.
In another part of Asam Kumbang we found a few monumental bungalows. Still standing, but for how long?
Also some simple quarters, a few still inhabited, others empty or already demolished.
We also passed the remains of the Tekah airport. Right a photo of the control tower and arrival hall when the aerodrome was still in operation.
I found the above picture in the Taiping Mall, where Goh and I had a coffee and cake.
After a short rest in my hotel, I had another dinner with a number of “gang” members, again in Prima. I had Bak Kut Teh this time. From left to right Lay Chun, Kar Seng, Dr Poh and his wife Rosalind.
Back in my hotel the reception told me that a procession for the 9 Emperor Gods would pass close to Furama. Although a bit tired, I went out to the Jalan Tupai where soon the procession arrived.
A few people had metal poles pierced through their cheeks. Look how the poles are decorated with led lights. Traditional customs combined with modern technology.
Really a day full of variety.
The next morning my plan was to have my usual Chee Cheong Fan for breakfast, but when I arrived at the Circus ground, it was sold out already. Instead I had Char Kway Teoh, another favorite of mine. Not bad.
Next I walked to 81, Jalan Kota, where I met my friend Bok Kin. Her husband is a descendant of Ng Boo Bee and the Ng family has a tradition of placing an offering table in front of what was originally Boo Bee’s townhouse. When the Nine Emperor Gods procession passes, the participants stop for a while at the table. A good location to take pictures.
Left the house altar and right the offering table. Waiting for the procession to arrive.
In 2019 I had watched the procession at the same location, I wrote a report The Nine Gods Emperor Festival about it. In the following years there was no procession because of the COVID pandemic This year it took place again, I had the impression that it was less elaborate and exotic than the last time. But still fascinating,
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Here is a collage of some video clips I took this time, Watch also the more spectacular video I took in 2019.
Here is a photo collection of the devotees who pierced their cheeks or had hooks in their back.
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After the procession was finished, we went for lunch, again to Prima, for the third time during this visit! I had fish ball noodles with pork intestines.
My first destination after lunch was the Rest House. Built in 1894 , one of the “Firsts” of Bander Warisan (Heritage Town) Taiping. Now left to rot. It has been fenced off but there is an obvious opening in the fence, for many years already. I am sure the authorities must be aware of this gap, that could easily be closed. Do they leave it open on purpose? Of course I walked in.
Left the opening as seen from the street. Right after entering, through the opening you can see part of KEVII. The yard is partly overgrown, but a clear path proves that people (squatters or drug addicts?) have been using it and maybe still do.
The part of the Rest House that has been destroyed by fire, a few weeks ago.
I could still walk in. And in an undamaged room there were clear signs that homeless people were still using it. As there is no electricity in the building, they may have to use a candle at night. Could that be the cause of the fire, just an accident?
Two pictures from the outside. The right picture is ironic, I took it on purpose.
Next to the Rest House, on Jalan Stesen, are two historical heritage buildings, one of them is the former Perak Railway Building (1885) . Ruined beyond repair, in my opinion, see my blog Taiping Bandar Warisan . After much of the interior had been demolished and/or stolen a few years ago, MPT (the Taiping town council) constructed a solid fence around the complex, to avoid further destruction.
Really solid, I thought, no way to sneak in. So I was shocked to discover that there actually still is an entrance, a jalan tikus (literally a rat road). You can see it clearly when you enlarge the above photo.
With some hesitation I entered. For sure, this complex was used by drug addicts, in the past I have encountered one. They probably still use it, I didn’t want a confrontation. As you can see, it is a regular makeshift wooden door.
I only stayed inside a few minutes, took a photo of the courtyard and didn’t examine the rooms. The courtyard is overgrown, with a clear path, more people must know about this. Leaving, I politely closed the door.
Final destination for the afternoon, the Pasar (1884/85). Two buildings, with Siang Malam in the middle. A few years ago closed for renovation. February this year, Siang Malam was under reconstruction. The exterior has now been completed, the interior is still empty. I heard on the grapevine that the former stall holders, temporarily relocated near the dobi line, like it there and may not be interested to return.
In February the Pasar buildings were still standing, but in recent months first the wooden parts have been removed and later also the metal structure. Taiping people were getting worried, but a minister assured that medio next year, when Taiping celebrates its 150th anniversary, the market would be restored in all its glory. There is some doubt if that is possible, and also if it will be renovation, or a modern reconstruction.
Here are two pictures, which I managed to take, not easy because here the fencing is very solid. Left the location of the veggie, beef/mutton and chicken market.. Completely clean. The right photo shows the location of the fish, fruit and pork market. To my surprise I noticed that a concrete foundation has been laid there. According to the grapevine again, the pasar is being rebuilt/reconstructed in Kelantan at the moment. Later it will be transported to Taiping. Can that be true? Why is there not more transparency from the authorities?
That evening I was invited by the same group of friends for another dinner, this time at Soon Lee restaurant, very close to my Furama hotel. Because I had hosted the dinner in Matang, this time I was not allowed to pay anything. Such a pleasant group of friends!
Another busy day. The next morning I woke up early because I had not yet visited the Lake Gardens and I was going to meet my friend Neal there. The Lake Gardens are beautiful, any time of the day.
Nice weather, I walked the Raintree Walk and met Neal there. We chatted about Taiping, its Heritage and the new Electrical Heritage bus
I invited him and his wife for breakfast at Lian Thong. Eggs on Toast (Roti Goyang) is a favourite of mine. Funny story: after we had ordered our breakfast, a lady customer came to our table and told us that she had ordered Roti Goyang, but could not finish it. Was I willing to take it? Of course I did, we cancelled our own order, and I had a free breakfast. I really love Taiping 😉 .
Walking back to my hotel, I stopped at the clock tower, the location of the Taiping tourist office. It is managed by the Taiping Tourist Association, who don’t have sufficient funds for repairs, maintenance and promotion. In my opinion a tourist office should be managed and funded by MPT itself.
They have leaflets and maps, but there could be more. Also, in my opinion the Heritage Bus should start from here, not from the Zoo.
I wanted to meet Puan Kamaria of TTA, but she was not in. Instead I chatted with Asraf, a volunteer of TTA, very interested in heritage. But only for a short while, because I had to hurry back to my hotel and check out.
Lay Chun and Kar Seng picked me up from my hotel and, after lunch together dropped me at the station.
A very busy, rewarding visit, I needed a few days to recover 😉
As far as I remember, I have never visited Seremban as a separate destination, it was always part of a trip. In Linggi adventure, 15-7-2008 my friend Liz Price and I ended our trip in Seremban, where we spent only a few hours before returning home. And in 2019, during a Trip down South, Aric and I visited the Centipede temple in the suburbs of Seremban.
Looking for heritage information about Seremban I found online this map, where the heritage points of interest are marked. There is quite a lot to see.
So we decided to visit Seremban on a 2D1N trip, similar to what we did recently in Melaka, starting on Friday, coming back Saturday.
One week before this trip, my laptop crashed. Aric did his best to repair it, but could not, it might be the motherboard. We brought it to the ASUS service center, where they said that it would take a few days to check what was wrong. Friday afternoon they messaged that they had replaced the motherboard, but that they needed more time to test the system. As I was worried about possible data loss, I was not in the best of moods when we left for Seremban.
Aric had booked a room in the Seremban Inn, in the center of the old town. A basic room, not even supplying a water cooker. Good that I had brough a bottle of whisky for my pre-dinner drink 😉
We had a seafood dinner in the Seremban Seafood Village. Delicious Seremban Baked Crab and Rice Wine Prawns. With Mouse Tail Noodles, Young Long Beans and Tea the bill was RM 203, a bit expensive, but really worth it,
We had heard about the Luna Lights Wonderland, held in Seremban until 24 September and decided to have a look. Supposed to be the biggest “light festival” in Malaysia. it was located in the Malaysia Park and very popular, it was not easy to find a parking place for our car. And even at 10 pm we still had to queue to get tickets.
Almost one million of led lights have been used to decorate the park. Here is a collection of photos.
There are different themes, fish, animals, space travel.
And romance 😉
A large part of the park is covered with lights, it took us almost two hours to explore everything.
The photos do not show that the lighting is dynamic, the colours are changing all the time. So I also took numerous videos. Here is a compilation, made with the iMovie app of my iPhone..
The next morning we went for breakfast to the Warung Bambam, which had positive reviews. Quite far from old Seremban, actually more in Rasah. Rural surroundings, we were surprised that it was very popular, we even had to queue a bit.
It was a pleasant surprise for me to find on the menu Roti Goyang with Kaya, which I had tasted for the first time in Kota Bharu. Of course we had to order it.
After breakfast we drove back to the old town to start our heritage walk. First we stopped at the Railway Station, constructed between 1904 and 1910, with its nice clocktower.
Next the Seremban Lake Gardens. A miniature copy of the Taiping Lake Gardens. I could not find information about its history. Not sure if it was in the past a tin mining lake, because the center of tin mining was Rasah.
We walked around a bit, not too long because it was a hot day. To me, the shape of the lake doesn’t look like the result of tin mining.
Next we drove to what is called the White House of Seremban, the former State Secretariat, a design of famous architect Arthur Benison Hubback (1912)
It housed later the Public Library and it now abandoned but still in good shape. Opposite the attractive building there is a nice fountain.
That it is in good shape can not be said of the District office and Surveying department, almost next to it. Also built in 1912 and the design looks almost identical to the State Secretariat, but I didn’t find any mention of Hubback being the architect.
It’s clearly in decay.
Although in 2006 the building got an official plaque that it was National Heritage! Reminds me of Taiping. Malaysia Boleh.
We continued to the Church of the Visitation, a Catholic church in the center of the old town with an interesting history. The building dates from 1934, but the parish is much older, 1848, long before Captain Murray started as the first British Resident in 1875.
We had now visited POI 1, 5, 8, 9 and 12 from the heritage poster (see above). many more to go. But the ASUS center messaged us that my laptop would be ready around 3 pm! And it was a very hot day. So we decided to cut our visit short, have lunch and then drive back.
For lunch we went to the Lee Koon restaurant, with a reputation for its fish ball noodles. Nice food and a very friendly staff.
On our way back home, we got an update from ASUS that it would be more like 4 pm, they had to do more testing on my laptop after replacing the motherboard. We passed the time at a nearby McDonalds , went to the ASUS center at 4 pm, they were still testing and it was only at 5:30 pm that we could collect my laptop.
It was a relief that basically everything worked, no data loss.
It was a bit of a funny trip, here is a GE screenshot with the places we visited
The last time that Aric and I have been on a touristic overnight trip, was in 2020. The Covid Lockdown started in Malaysia on 18 March 2020, but there were still limited options to travel. In July we made a trip to the Cameron Highlands and in August we visited Taiping.
In 2022 traveling became possible again, but Aric was busy with his laundry shop and could not take leave easily. Last week we finally managed to make a short 2D1N trip to Melaka. We have visited Melaka often, the last time was with our Chinese friend Dong Dong, in January 2020, before the pandemic started. So it was time to go again.
We left home on Friday 25 August at 5 pm, got caught on our way in a huge traffic jam and arrived in Melaka at 9 pm only. Not a very auspicious start 😉 . We had booked a room in the Cheng Ho Residence and that was a very good decision, as the hotel was located in the center of the old town.
After dropping our luggage, we went out again to explore the Jonker Walk, the popular weekend market of Melaka. Not crowded, more pleasant than I expected.
Looking for a place to eat, we first had a snack,; Baked fried cuttlefish. Not everybody will like it, it’s an acquired taste 😉
The tomb of Hang Kasturi is located along the Jonker street. He is one of the famous five Malay warriors, who lived in the 15th century and served the Sultan of Melaka. See below for the tomb of Hang Tuah, the most famous of them.
The entrance of the Jonker Walk, with the big stage, where often karaoke singing is performed.
There were still many hawker stalls open, although it was already past 10 pm. Aric selected a variety of dishes, stingray, scallops, oyster omelet and fried rice cake.
After our dinner we walked back, the pasar was starting to close. We passed the well-known Geographer bar (right picture), where I have enjoyed a beer several times in the past.
Melaka has a huge number of trishaws, their bright colors are almost painful to the eyes 😉
River views from the bridge, in both directions, also an orgy of colors.
Before going back to our hotel, we had a dessert of “smelly tofu“, another acquired taste.
The restaurant where we wanted to have our breakfast the next morning was on walking distance from our hotel. On our way we passed the Kampung Kling Mosque. As I had visited Melaka so often, I had numerous photos of all the heritage buildings, so I was lazy and hardly took pictures this time.
We had our breakfast in the Pin Pin Hiong Restaurant with oyster mee sua and a prawn omelet. Nice food, friendly service.
The mural art tsunami has not yet reached Melaka, as far as I have noticed this time. Here is a nice one, quite unusual.
After our breakfast we walked back to the town center with the church and the Stadthuys.
Of course I had also my picture taken with a Dutch windmill and a not very Dutch cow. The other picture shows the Chung Wah restaurant, famous for its Hainanese Chicken Rice. We have queued there often, but now we have discovered an even better place, see below.
The Heeren House looks very attractive and has always been on my list of Melaka hotels to try out , but it seems that it is now mainly a restaurant, with negative reviews about the hotel.
Back to our hotel, where we checked out. We stayed on the second floor and our windows opened to the air well. The interiors of the Baba House and the Puri hotel, where we have stayed before, is more interesting, but the location of Cheng Ho is perfect.
Arc had brought his drone and we decided to visit Bukit Cina to take drone videos and pictures, Before we climbed up the hill we had a look at the cenotaph, a memorial for the Japanese occupation. The other picture shows the Hang Li Poh well (the King’s well), with an intriguing history.
A few details of the Sam Po Kong Temple at the foot of Bukit Cina. The right picture shows a statue of admiral Cheng Ho who visited Melaka many times in the 15th century.
Finally we climbed up to Bukit Cina. A Chinese cemetery, very quiet during our visit, maybe because it was the month of the Hungry Ghosts ;-). On the top of the hill a monumental, symbolic grave is well kept
Many other graves are in disrepair. It adds to the atmosphere of the cemetery.
While Aric was “droning”, I enjoyed an (alcohol-free) Heineken beer.
Here is a drone picture of the old town center, with the Christ Church and the Stadthuys..
And this is the old town, surrounded by modern buildings.
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Before driving back home we visited the Makam Hang Tuah, in Tanjung Kling, about 10 km west of Melaka town.
Located inside a nice Muslim cemetery and well kept.
A giant grave. The signboards around the tomb tell the story of Hang Tuah .
On our way back home we had no real traffic jam. Hopefully many similar trips will follow, preferably a bit longer and better not during weekends.