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There are 2 exits to the station, one just outside the Ampang Park Shopping Complex and the other across the the road. I choose the one across the road.
Ampang Park is one of the oldest (if not THE oldest) shopping complex in KL. In those days it housed an amusement park and cinemas, maybe not as sophisticated as today's newer complexes, but it was a big thing in its day.
Next door to Ampang Park are these 2 restaurants, one Chinese and one Thai.
Hotel Nikko is across the road....
.... with Citibank nearby.
The OSK building is on the same side of the road as Ampang Park.
The building houses the Bank Of China branch office. The bank had branches in Malaysia prior to the coming into force of the Banking Act 1973, which did not allow banks owned by foreign governments (51% or more) to operate here.
The Bank of China decided to close shop and many of their customers moved to other banks.
When India and Pakistan nationalized their banks, the Indian banks operating here merged together with local partners to form the United Asian Bank while Habib Bank Ltd. of Pakistan got local partners to form Perwira Habib Bank.
With the liberalization of the finance sector, the Bank of China has now returned to Malaysia.
Across the road from OSK is Wisma MCA, headquarters of the Malaysian Chinese Association.
The MCA is a senior member of the Barisan Nasional (National Front), the ruling party in Malaysia. The Barisan Nasional and its predeccesor the Alliance have ruled Malaysia since independence.
Currently the MCA is undergoing some leadership struggles, which hopefully should be resolved in the near future.
It was the Lunar New Year season, so Wisma MCA was decorated for the occasion.
Next door is Menara Altan, with the Celcom (a local telco) office block infront. This used to be the branch office of the D&C Bank when it was first opened.
The temple next door actually own the land on which Menara Altan stands. It was originally leased for 60 years from the temple. I'm not sure of the current status.
The above are some shots within the temple compound.
The temple was rather quite small then. When news that the temple was to be renovated first surfaced, there was a huge out-cry from the public as it was considered a heritage building. Things were quiet for a while when suddenly a hoarding was erected around the temple, and the original structure was brought down. In its place this new and larger (and I may add, more magnificent) structure appeared.
A sign of the times.
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