KL KrashPad - Chow Kit Kita (Part 1)

Remember in my earlier posting I mentioned that I followed Fahmi Reza and his charges from KL KrashPad on their walk-about on August 7, 2010.  This post is the first of a series about that.

 logo courtesy of Fahmi Reza

Among the aims of the project are to map the people, the culture/religion and the history of the Chow Kit area. This will be undertaken by a group of children between 13 to 15 years old, with some adult supervision/advise provided by Fahmi and gang. 

Why would I be interested?  Chow Kit is famous for all the wrong reasons, yet I grew up in the area 'untouched' by all the vices associated with it.  (Any vices I acquired or display has nothing to do with the area.)  I was aware of the 'goings on' in some nooks and crannies , but the majority there were pretty much normal, decent folks who went about their lives just like anywhere else.  So when someone comes up with a project to dispel the 'dark myth' associated with the area, why should I not be interested?

Anyway, back to KL KrashPad and the Chow Kit Kita project.  About a dozen children, between 13 to 15 years, have been selected as the pilot group.  I was informed that the group was supposed to be multi racial / cultural, but as the visitors to the Pad are predominantly from one ethnic group, they will have to do.  The adults facilitating this group, however, are a mixture of ethnicity, religion, cultures and backgrounds - truly Malaysian.

The session started with an introduction, briefing and some small training to prepare the group for the walk-about.  The session was friendly and informal, and the 'adult' facilitators don't look very much older than the participants.  I was the only 'uncle' there.


It's interesting, when you have a group of children who have only been with their own ethnic/religious/cultural grouping both in school and the community they are from, there is a bias in favor of their own kind; but get them exposed to other ethnic/religious/cultural groups, and what begins as a curiosity is soon replaced by excitement and acceptance when they realize that we actually are not so different, one from another.  Kudos to Fahmi and team.

The children ready and raving to go.  This shot is also to show a little of the ambiance of the KrashPad, catering to the teen crowd.

The walk about commences...

... let by Fahmi.

First stop and first lesson, "do you know what is the name of this street?" Every one got it right, but when asked who it was named after...

 from google images

... every one of the children agreed that it was named after our first Prime Minister.
The Putra World Trade Centre (PWTC) and Putrajaya are among places named after the Tunku or his full name Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra al-Haj ibni Almarhum Sultan Abdul Hamid Halim Shah.  The Tunku is also known as the 'Father of Independence'. 

from google images 

Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman is named after our first King.

Colonel Paduka Sri Sir Tuanku Abdul Rahman ibni Almarhum Tuanku Muhamed was our first Yang di-Pertuan Agong.  Something I didn't know, which I found in Wikipedia, is that he was the 8th Yang di-Pertuan Besar of Seri Menanti and the 2nd Yang di-Pertuan Besar of modern Negeri Sembilan.

The road was re-named after His Majesty in 1963.  Prior to that it was known as Batu Road, possibly because it was the main access road to the tin mines in Batu which I recon was in the area of today's Jalan Ipoh/Selayang/Gombak (think Batu Caves).

The last time I saw a tin dredge in operation in KL was in the 1970s in what is now Taman Danau Kota, off Jalan Genting Kelang. 

 

Nasi Kandar Pulau Pinang at Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman

It's been a while since I've had nasi kandar, so I decided to have some for lunch. I gathered 2 of my colleagues and took the monorail to the Medan Tuanku station.  From there we walked to Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman.

 

Even at a quarter past twelve, the queue was long.

 

 

 

We joined the queue and inched patiently along.  Photo above is of Aidi and Norman at the front of the queue.

 

 

That's what we had.  The green chilli is for that added 'kick' to the nasi kandar.

 

Of course, don't forget the pappadam.

 

This used to be a typical 'kopitiam' (Chinese coffee shop) when I knew it in the early 1960's.  There were some stalls selling various food items like noodles and such, with the owner just taking care of the drinks. Then this 'Mamak' set up a small table to sell his nasi kandar in the kopitiam.  

One thing led to another and before long, this became 'Restoran Kudu Bin Abdul'.

In case you're wondering what nasi kandar is, Wikipedia has this entry:

Nasi Kandar is a popular northern Malaysian dish, which originates from Penang. It is a meal of steamed rice which can be plain or mildly flavored, and served with a variety of curries and side dishes.

The word Nasi Kandar, came about from a time when nasi [rice] hawkers or vendors would kandar [balance] a pole on the shoulder with two huge containers of rice meals. The name has remained and today the word Nasi Kandar is seen on most Tamil Muslim or "Malaysian Mamak" restaurants and Indian-Muslim stall meals.

The rice for a nasi kandar dish is often placed in a wooden container about three feet high, giving it a distinctive aroma. The rice is accompanied by side dishes such as fried chicken, curried spleen, cubed beef, fish roe, fried prawns or fried squid. The vegetable dish would usually be brinjal (aubergine), okra (lady fingers or "bendi") or bitter gourd. A mixture of curry sauces is poured on the rice. This is called 'banjir' (flooding) and imparts a diverse taste to the rice.

Traditionally, nasi kandar is always served with its side dishes on a single plate. Nowadays, small melamine bowls are used for the side dishes. Nevertheless, the curry sauce mix is always poured directly onto the rice.

The most famous nasi kandar stalls in Penang are Kassim Restaurant and Line Clear. In Selangor, one chain of nasi kandar restaurants is Restoran Syed. In recent years, several chain restaurants have appeared such as Nasi Kandar Nasmir, Pelita Nasi Kandar and Kayu Nasi Kandar. Purists have disputed its tastiness compared to the original Penang versions. In Perlis, the rice is coloured yellow with herbs and the dish is referred to as "nasi ganja", though in fact no "ganja" (cannabis) is actually used in its preparation.

Kuala Lumpur - Saturday morning from atop the HopOn-HopOff

I've recently got myself an SLR camera. Last Saturday, I joined Agip and Pot to go on a photo hunt of KL. Meeting place, Pertama Kompleks - I wanted to check out some filters for my camera.

While waiting, I saw this kiosk operator sweeping fallen leaves from the top of the kiosk.

A crashing noise, I turned around to find that the girls had dropped the accessories they where hanging up to display.

A lone cyclist, back from the Chow Kit market.

Every time a bus stops, many sales assistants and the like will be getting off and crossing the street.

I suppose that the 9 0'clock hour is when many go to work even on a Saturday.

Construction workers at the nearby MARA building under construction.

Washing away the dirt every time a lorry leaves the site.

Unloading fresh goods, probably for a food outlet at the Kompleks.

We were supposed to walk along Jalan TAR, photographing people, but we saw this stop and decided to take the Hop On Hop Off bus instead.

Worker trowing debris from some renovation going on inside the building.

Another worker doing the same.

A security guard looking after the parking in front of a hotel along Jalan Raja Laut.

It's good to start business on a clean slate... or a clean side-walk.

Bus stop opposite the Federal Theater. Going to work, shopping or visiting?

Another bus stop along Jalan Ipoh.

Waiting at the entrance of the Perkim Building, Jala Ipoh.

Stunt to impress his son or adjusting his mirrors in traffic. Along Jalan Ipoh.

Agip taking photo of me taking his photo.

Pot posing....

Keeping Titiwangsa Lake Gardens clean.

Taking a break...

Exercise in the morning is good...

Repairs to the pavement. Near the KLCC Park.


Guess we were not the only photographers that morning....

...near the KLCC Park.

Security guards at MATIC, Jalan Ampang.

A red light is a good time for a quick chat with a friend....

....and a little bite to eat. At the Jalan Ampang / Jalan Sultan Ismail junction.