Note: All facts in this post relating to the city’s colonial buildings are obtained from the Ipoh Heritage Trail link
There was no football Arsenal in action last weekend and having studied the fixture at some length beforehand, I decided to make a trip to Ipoh by the ETS (electric train service). The trip was almost postponed to this Saturday instead but I managed to finish my chores during the week so last Thursday, made my way to KL Sentral to buy the ticket.
It turned out that there have been changes to the train schedules and only two services remain: gold and silver. The platinum service has been terminated and the first service to Ipoh now departs at 0805 and as it now stops at most of the stations in between, it only reaches Ipoh at 1025. The gold service still costs RM35 per way (concessions are available for senior citizens, children, disabled people, pensioners and students). I bought the ticket for 0805 departure from KL Sentral and 1705 departure from Ipoh (both gold services). I had to pay cash for them though; for some reason credit card was not accepted (only on that day? Or for that service?). I don’t normally carry a lot of cash and thankfully had just enough cash to pay for my tickets. Phew.
I left micasa early on Saturday morning and took the bus to KL Sentral. The train left on time but somehow it didn’t quite manage to stick to the schedule and we only arrived at Ipoh at 1035. The train was pleasantly comfortable; there was a screen showing a movie (I didn’t recognise the cast though) - on mute but with the dialogue flashed across. I spent time reading and occasionally looking at the passing scenery.
We had to take the stairs across the platform to exit the station. There were some cabbies outside offering rides but I declined them. It’s always better to explore on foot and as I soon discovered, the trail wasn’t at all strenuous.
Now, the railway station itself is a beautiful building dating almost a century (it was built in 1914 in the neo-classical style and took three years to complete). It is often referred to as the Taj Mahal of Ipoh and I spent some time trying to capture it. There is a war memorial across the station in Station square; alas, to my dismay, it was cordoned off.
I crossed the main road and walked past the beautiful town hall (also built in neo-classical style in the same period as the railway station, and by the same architect, a Mr. A. B. Hubback). I turned left at the sign pointing to the Tourist Information Centre and was not amused to find it closed. 2012 is Perak Visit Year and yet its tourist info centres are closed during weekends? What, did they expect the tourists to come during the week then?
I made my way to the Padang, a large expanse of grass and walked along the perimeter to the other side. There were some students practising their band equipment in the shade. I walked past the Royal Ipoh Club (founded by a group of Europeans and is the oldest club in Ipoh) and up Jalan S. P. Seenivasagam (previously Clayton Road) and walked to the Church of St. John the Divine. I didn’t cross the busy road and took a snap from across. This church was, when built, the largest church in Malaya. It was converted into a noodle factory during the Japanese occupation.
I retraced my steps and walked past St Michael’s Institution (now a well-known secondary school). It was established a century ago in 1912 by Father J. b. Coppin and built in the Gothic style. The Indian Muslim Mosque is right next to it; it was built by Shaik Adam, a wealthy Tamil Muslim in the Moghul style following a dispute with the local Malay Muslims (tsk tsk tsk).
I turned to Jalan Sultan Yussuf (previously Belfield Street) and was immediately stuck in awe of the beautiful yellow building across the street. It turned out to be the FMS Bar and Restaurant (no longer operating). It was founded in 1903 by a Hainanese immigrant (FMS is short for Federated Malay States) and is reputed to be the oldest restaurant in Malaysia. The main clientele were European miners and planters.
I took a slight detour to Jalan Bandar Timah (Leech Street) to capture the old buildings there. Then I returned to Jalan Sultan Yussuf and stopped at a nut store to buy some mixed nuts.
You can view the beautiful Hong Kong and Shanghai bank building from here and I wasted no time capturing it. It was built in 1931 in the neo-Renaissance style and was the tallest building in town until post-Independence. You can imagine how successful it managed to attract and impress potential clients. At the next corner is the SPH De Silva Building, built at the turn of last century in the Renaissance style and one of the city’s oldest commercial building. SPH De Silva was known for decades as silversmiths. Directly across SPH De Silva is the Chung Thye Phin Building (built by the namesake who was the last Kapitan Cina of Perak). The building has long been associated with medicine.
I turned into Jalan Dato Maharajalela and came upon the Straits Trading Building (it now houses the OCBC Bank). The Straits Trading Company erected the building in 1907 in the Italian Renaissance style with a corner tower. The company bought tin ore from the mines and at its peak, handled half of all sales of tin produced in the state. Across the street is the Chartered Bank building (now occupied by StanChart). It originally opened is Ipoh branc in 1902 and provided credit to the Straits Trading Company and later the Eastern Smelting Company. Nearby is the Mercantile Bank building, an art deco building for the Mercantile Bank of India. It is somewhat sullied by adverts of the building’s current occupant.
I turned the corner to the Perak Hydro Building and around the next corner to the residence and law office of the Seenivasagam Brothers (I suppose he was the one the road is named after?) but before I could properly take any pictures, it started pouring. Indeed, I could feel the raindrops as I turned the corner and quickly made my way to the closed Tourist Info Centre to seek shelter. I could see the rain already gathering pace at Padang and pretty soon, the rain made its way to my side. I waited out the rain for almost 40 minutes. I had my novel, some food and water but my, I was pretty desperate to use the washroom. The need felt more pressing when one is stationary (at least to me).
The rain finally petered out to a drizzle and I ventured out to capture photos of the aforementioned buildings. Then I retraced my steps back to Jalan Dato Maharajalela in the drizzle and up some stairs to the Birch Memorial. If you recall your history lesson, JWW Birch was the first British Resident of Perak. He was probably famous for being assassinated at Pasir Salak in 1875. One of my old classmates back at school used to repeatedly boast, ‘You know the Sultan Abdullah who ordered the killing of JWWW Birch? He was my great-great grandfather!’ Yes, he who was banished, exiled to the Seychelles.
Anyway. On we continue in the present. I walked down Jalan Dewan (Post Office Road), passing the state mosque, down to Jalan Sultan Yussuf. There are some lovely old buildings on this road as I saw earlier, including Jan Sahib’s Office (he was the son of Shaik Adam who built the Indian Muslim Mosque). Jan Sahib came to Ipoh to join his father’s business. I then spent the next ten minutes exploring the streets and alleys including Panglima Lane (Concubine Lane). This street dates back to the turn of last century. The town houses then were renowned for opium, gambling and brothels before the lane was developed into a residential area where the concubines of rich Chinese tycoons were reputedly kept.
Having satisfied myself with the buildings and alleys, I made my way to bus stop next to the Indian Muslim Mosque. I wanted to take the local bus to Ipoh Parade but decided to perform prayers first at the mosque. Besides, I was getting really desperate to use the washroom by then. Opps sorry, too much info.
After performing prayers, I waited for the bus for about ten minutes. I observed the route and landmarks and concluded the mall was a manageable walk from the station. I had my lunch there and browsed some shops before returning to the station on foot in the fresh drizzle. It was an easy 15-minute amble and now somewhat familiar with the lay of that part of the city, I detoured here and there before reaching the railway station at 1630.
There was a film/drama shooting at the station but unfortunately I recognised none of the cast (I’m lousy with local actors/actresses anyway). The train pulled up at a quarter to 5 and we boarded it just before 5. We left promptly on time and arrived at KL Sentral at 1930.
So that was my Saturday train trip to Ipoh. It wasn’t bad at all. Will I return? Possibly but maybe not so soon. It’s amazing how many colonial buildings are left in Perak, reflecting its rich history.
