Central Market (or popularly known as CM )

A little bird told me...........






Once a thriving wet market during the early days of 1900's, it was being transformed into what we know today as the Cultural Market -Pasar Seni in our local language.

1970s- was the building boom and many of Malaysia's historic buildings have been demolished. The adaptive reuse of the wet market took place in 1985 .
At that time, a group of concerned Malaysians and expatriates were in the process of forming the country's non-governmental organsation for the conservation of heritage buildings to be called Badan Warisan Malaysia (Heritage of Malaysia Trust). The main objective of Badan Warisan Malaysia is to promote the preservation of those buildings deemed by the council of the Badan to be part of the heritage of the country for the benefit and education of Malaysians.
CM - the 50+ year old wet market of Kuala Lumpur was saved from demolition at the last minute and converted into a cultural market.
CM- marks the earliest example of a private developer otbtaining the lease of a large state-owned property, retaining it, and reusing it for commercial purposes.

To retain its typical Art Deco architecture, and the spatial quality of the large single-storey box, the new shops were arranged in discrete clusters, away from the surrounding walls and roof. Upper level shops and restaurantes were linked by three bridges and a hydraulic lift was introduced in the centre of the mall. Small kiosks selling arts nd crafts reused the old wet market concrete stalls on the ground floor and artists were invited to set up their easels.

"TO ACHIEVE ... STOP LOOKING FOR A QUICK AND EASY SHORT CUT !
TO ACHIEVE ... START PUTTING FORTH THE DILIGENT, SUSTAINED EFFORT THAT WIL CREATE
REAL VALUE " Ralph Marston

Cleaners in the sky !

A little bird told me..........

Petronas Twin Towers

Question:.. How do you keep the world's tallest twin buildings gleaming bright and clean in the Malaysian sky, especially if there are 32,000 glass panes from pavement to peak, always waiting to be soaped and wiped ....

Let's do some mathematics here...

With 65,000sq metres of stainless steel cladding and 77,000 sq metres of vision glass, the external maintenance of the 452m towers- designed by Cesar Pelli & Asociates of the US- must be a nightmare of a job !
There are 14,873 wall units per tower, not including the 56 units on each pinnacle, 302 units at the Sky bridge and support columns, and 950 units at the podium facade.

Each tower takes 5 months to clean, which is undertaken twice a year.Cleaning hours are from 7am-11pm for the towers, and 7am-6pm for the skybridge and columns,Suria KLCC links and the podium facade. Frontage area are from 10pm -6am
The cleaners covers eight (8) floors a day.
All surfaces are to be washed with a neutral detergent and scrubbed with a soft 3m nylon pad. Scrubbing must be done in the direction of the grain of the surfaces, which is vertical. Drying is with soft lint-free cloth (like the "good morning"
towels)

Those contracted to work in the KLCC premises have to attend a compulsory 45min briefing every 6 months.
The emergency procedure allows for the 2 towers to be evacuated within 31minutes. It takes only about 90sec by the utility lift to get from P1(Parking Level 1 at the Suria KLCC side) -to the top of the tower.

With so much calculation involved, if you are not a maths wizard, just go for the KISS formula (KEEP IT SHORT AND SIMPLE) .. It certainly is an enormous job just keeping both the towers spick and span-


"BEE BUSY...Doing what you love to do .."

Loke Yew

A little bird told me.....

JALAN LOKE YEW





such a familiar street name in KL! Jalan - in our local language refers to STREET.
Named after Mr Loke Yew who arrived in Malaya at the age of 13.
Who is this man and what were his contributions to Kuala Lumpur?
- Born in San Wui - Southern China in 1845 as Wong Loke Yew
Dropped his surname and became known just as LokeYew- coz he believed it brought
him luck !
- struck it rich when he discovered rich tin deposits in Kling Bahru.
Besides owning numerous tin mines, also owned rubber and coconut plantations, also
dappled in supplying provisions to British troops, monopolised liquor sales,
managed a pawn broker and held licenses to run gambling tables.held properties
investments in Singapore and Malaya.

- was one of the founders who established Victoria Institution.
- also help established Tan Tock Seng hospital in Singapore.
- was one of the leading man in establishing the Kwong Yik bank in 1915.

His family established Associated Theatres Ltd which was renamed Cathay Organisation..also helped built Singapore's first skyscraper Cathay Building in 1939.

He bought over the Loke Mansion in Jalan Medan Tuanku (currently abandoned)in 1892 from tin miner Chow Ah Yoke. He upgraded and renovated the mansion making it one of the most pretigious residences in Asia then.

Today, Jalan Loke Yew is known to KLites as the home to many low cost flats- namely LOKE YEW FLATS,and UE3 a shopping complex .

ref: Sat Metro-Jun02 2007

"WE HAVE TWO EARS AND ONE MOUTH ! THINK TWICE ! SPEAK ONCE ! "
-

Lion Dance

A little bird told me ...............

According to myth, lion dance was conceived to scare away the evil spirt of Nien during spring.

Lion dances, which are colourful and acrobatic is deeply rooted in Chinese culture and identity dating back at least a thousand years. Originally a court dance, performed only in the Forbidden City of Beijing, to entertain the emperor, it slowly made its way out until it was adopted by the common people.

Accompanied by crashing cymbals and heady drumbeats , it is believed that the lion dance brings luck and prosperity. Besides being perfomed during Chinese New Year, it is also performed at official openings of buildings and at launching of businesses, where a bunch of sang choy (lettuce) is tied to a string from the ceiling.
The lion dance performer leaps and catches the lettuce with its mouth, then chews it, spitting it out to the left, right and centre, symbolising luck, prosperity will be in abundance throughout the year, spreading far and wide .

There are 2 distinct types of Mou See-
a) the Northern
- closest to its original form in the royal palace.
- reddish -orang in colour.
- Its fur is thicker and almost covers the players entirely to keep them warm
during the cold weather.

b) Southern
- weather being warmer, materials used became lighter

LION HEAD
All new lion heads must undergo the traditional "baptism" ritual of Tim ching , or doting the lion's eyes to give it life. A red dot made from Cho Sah (mercury oxide) grounded into a paste with water is painted at the centre of the new lion's eyes. Can only be done by elders, monks or respected figures such as village head.
Special prayers are also recited to invoke the blessings of the gods and ancestors, and the lion dance troupe must Keng Lai, or pay their respects to their ancestors before any performance.

Lion dance is closely related to kung fu, because its movements require strength, power and agility. Age is not a matter but martials arts skills are required as it emphasises the performer's character, behavior and discipline.

ref: NST FEB 22 2008

" The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort.
but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy ! "
Martin Luther King Jr

Christchurch - Malacca

A little bird told me........


The Christchurch,was once situated within the fort walls of the A Formosa. It was the former Gereformeerde Kerk (Dutch Reformed Church). To the Dutch people of Malacca, the church was simply known as the Benedenkerk, meaning the "Church down the hill"
Build to commemorate the centenary of the Dutch occupation in Malacca, construction began in 1741. It took workers a staggering 14years to build this magnificent new Church, finally completed in 1755.
The Christchurch is a simple rectangle, 82ft long, 42ft broad and the ceiling is 40ft above the ground. The ceiling beams were each cut from a single tree and they support the span of level ceiling.
The robust pews were hand crafted in 1753 and each pew was "owned" and reserved for a particular family.

In 1838, the Dutch church of Malacca ceased to be the Dutch Reformed Church and the Bishop of Calcutta, in India consecrated the church to the rites of the Church of England with the consent of the Malacca Dutch community. It was renamed the Christ Church. However, ownership of the church continued to be held by the Malacca Dutch community in the name of its trustees.

During the Dutch rule , it was painted white. However in 1911, the Christ Church and the Stadhuys were painted red by the British.

ref: History of the Dutch in Malaysia - Dennis De Witt

" If you see a friend without a smile, give him one of yours ! "