Jalan Pudu - Still there...

In addition to food outlets i.e. restaurants and stalls, there are also a number of budget hotels along the street.

 

  

  

  

  

This must have been a higher quality hotel but seems to be abandoned now.

 
 

There are also many clinics along this stretch.  Most streets have maybe 2 or 3 clinics, here the number is 2 to 3 times that.

 
 

  

There's even a free clinic here.

  

This clinic displays the 1Malaysia logo.  I wonder if there is a doctor there or is it manned only by an attendant and a nurse like the government 1Malaysia clinics.

 
 

I also noticed 2 medical labs here.

 
 

A Chinese Kongsi is also here.

 
 

This is one establishment that I want to check out on a week day.

 
 

When I think of barbers I'm mostly thinking Indian, but here's a Chinese barber...

 
 

...next door to an Indian one.

 
 

There's an old cake shop / bakery ...

 
 

... and a poor man's banker - a pawn shop; with a clinic next door.

  

This 'run-down' building houses a culinary institute, or so says the sign...

 
 

... and it also hides a match making agency.

 
 

Not to forget, there are also a number of used car dealers here.

 
 

  

As we reach the Pudu Fire and Rescue Department, we'll turn into Jalan Pasar.

 

 

 
 

 

Jalan Pudu - Our walk continues...

There are still many pre-war shop-houses along Jalan Pudu.

 

  

  

The buildings are in various states of upkeep - some being well maintained while others have been allowed to deteriorate.

There are also many Chinese restaurants and stalls along this street.

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

This was the eve of the Lunar New Year and it was in the early part of the day, thats why the restaurants appear closed.

   

  

  

  

  

Even in the midst of what is a predominantly Chinese population, Nasi Kandar is also popular.

 

 

Jalan Pudu - begining with Pudu Jail

According to Lam Seng Fatt (Insider's Kuala Lumpur) the Cantonese name for Pudu is 'Poon San Pa' which means 'half-jungle' which describes the conditions back then.

Let's start with the Pudu Jail or what's left of it.

While the cells have been emptied some years back, it is now being slowly demolished.

 

  

The painting on Pudu Jail's wall is possibly Kuala Lumpur's most prominent work of art; yet the artist is uncelebrated.

 .....

In 1985, when the prison authorities wanted to brighten up the drab wall of the prison, they decided to give Pha Tee (a drug addict and at that time serving time for possessing stolen goods) the opportunity to prove himself.

.....

His work was a naive view of lush jungle scenery, beach scenes, blue skies, cotton-woolly clouds and flowers, It seemed so innocent that it was hard to believe it was the work of a career criminal.

- Insider's Kuala Lumpur by Lam Seng Fatt

I came across this interesting piece in the 'Selangor Journal':

...in 1895, on the completion of the Pudoh Central Gaol, all prisoners sentenced to detention for any longer period than seven days will undergo their sentences at that gaol; extra-mural labour will be forbidden and strict discipline will be enforced, with the object, among others, of reducing the number of second convictions by rendering a sojourn in the institution as undesirable as possible...

- Selections from the Selangor Journal 

edited and introduced by John Gullick 

(MBRAS Reprint No. 26)

I wonder if the 'reducing the number of second convictions' was successful.

 

Next door to the Pudu Jail, through a side road, is a Surau or Prayer room.  Not many people outside of the area are aware of its existence or that Friday Congregational Prayers are open to the public.

 

  

I have attended Friday Prayers at this Surau on a few occasions (I was introduced to this place by a friend who used to work in the area) before the Masjid along Jalan Hang Tuah was built.  It used to be packed, with worshipers actually having to use the tarmac beside the surau.

 

This quaint little building is along Jalan Pudu, after the Pudu Jail.

 

I didn't know that the Eurasians had an association of their own here in KL.

 

 

 The rear view of the Berjaya Times Square seen from Jalan Pudu.

Jalan Bukit Bintang... shopping, shopping and more...

A taxi driver once told me that the area is called Bukit Bintang (literally star hill) due to the many cabaret stars who resided here during the heydays of the BB Cabaret. I'm not sure if that is true, but this is still a popular shopping destination, especially with the many shopping complexes or malls here.

Let's begin at the junction of Jalan Bukit Bintang with Jalan Pudu. This was the location of 2, then famous, cinemas - Cathay and Pavilion. Both have since been demolished and in its place is this car park.

On the other side is an old hotel the Emerald. Bormas, that popular photocopy centre we saw in Jalan Ipoh has an outlet here.

Across the road (Jalan Pudu) on an elevated level stands the Kuala Lumpur police contingent head quarters.

Further along Jalan Pudu is the (in)famous Pudu prison known locally as the Pudu Jail. At one time it boasted on having the world's longest wall mural.

There are a number of budget hotels along this short stretch.

They are brightly painted with eye-catching bill boards.

In addition to some motor repair and accessories shops there is also this business from a bygone era.

I do wonder who their clients are.

There are all types of business operating along this street. Here we see a mini market.

The Royal Bintang, may be considered a new comer in the hotel business.

The green building at the end of the road is the Sun Complex. Some colorful stories are often told with regards to the ongoings at this place.

Here you have 2 convenience store chains operating outlets side by side.

The circular construction on top was probably the first revolving restaurant in Kuala Lumpur or maybe Malaysia.

The Federal Hotel, which boasts the revolving restaurant, was the first luxury hotel built to house the international guests who came for Malaya's independence day celebrations.

As is typical anywhere in this country, food is never a problem. Organic food is also available here.

This seems to be a new franchise restaurant chain.

Another old hotel along this street...

... the Malaysia Hotel.

This was the place of numerous massage parlors that offered more than just a massage. These days, however, they have become more respectable, at least that's what I can deduce from the sign boards.

I thought that this was a man wielding an axe. When I later saw it un-wrapped, it was a 'teh-tarik' man.

With the influx of tourists from the Middle-East, its no wonder that many restaurants serving Middle-Eastern food has sprung up in the area.