Early Morning at Taman Tasik Titiwangsa

I seem to be more busy since falling out from the rat race.  There are more people clamoring for my time than before.  I'm also finding time for things I like to do which I could not do earlier.


One of my current daily routines is an early morning walk around the lake at Taman Tasik Titiwangsa (Titiwangsa Lake Gardens).  The view is fabulous.  I brought my camera along the other day and these are some of the shots I want to share.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There are a lot of people at the gardens at that early hour.  These include those who use it as a short-cut to get to their places of work; workers of the local authority (DBKL) who are there to maintain and up-keep the gardens; and people who use the tranquility offered by the gardens at that hour to exercise, to socialize (this is particularly true of the older visitors), and generally to have fun.

 

 

 

There is, however, another side to the gardens, which I feel is disheartening, that is the littering.  Based on my Bukit Tabur experience, I realize that people who take care of themselves are also the ones who will take care of the environment and everything else around them.  Those who 'couldn't care' are those with a low self-esteem and low self-respect.  Maybe some of the NGOs who are shouting about this and that 'rights' should actually be looking into these two aspects of Malaysian life.  

This reminds me of a Tamil song I heard long ago, where part of the lyrics translates something like: 'before you start demanding your rights (urimai), look at how well you are discharging your responsibilities (kadamai)'.

 

 

 

The above are just some of the 'less distressing' shots of the littering problem there.

One of the rules or by-laws of the park states: "No dogs allowed!"  So while there are plenty of stray cats around, you'll never see a dog at the gardens.

Hot Air Balloon - at Titiwangsa Lake Gardens 2

When the envelope (or ballooon) is inflated enough, the burners are turned on.  As the air inside the envelope begins to heat up, the Laws of Nature take over.

 

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

The balloon is a lot of hot air.

 

 

 The balloon is carried to the center of the field and then tethered.

In the interest of safety, the pilot first does a test flight by himself.

 

  

  

  

  

 

After a successful test flight, its time for a group photo.

  

All participants get their turn to fly in the balloon.

 
 

  

  

No one's too young or too old, its the willingness to have fun.

 
 

Its also a great opportunity for photography.

 

'Kanak-kanak riang' or 'Happy children' after they got their rides in the balloon.

 
 

The crew training is also about deflating, dismantling and packing the balloon...

 

...but first the balloon has to be brought down.  This is achieved by opening the vent at the top of the balloon.

 

  

  

 
 

  

  

The air has to be pressed out.

 
 

It then has to be compressed before being rolled to fit into its bag.

 

All ropes and attachments are rolled up in a specific way to prevent entanglement.

 

  

  

  

Load everything back into the van and we're done.

 
 

  

In typical Malaysian fashion, we always end up with food and drinks.

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