Take The Path Less Ordinary

History that hark back to anything earlier than 1800’s is half guess work and half facts. Corrections are expected. However, as one go on foot around KL city and soak in its demeanor, old buildings and historical sites provide a glimpse of its past and we’d safely say that from 1900’s onwards, KL was a collective effort of people who decided to call KL their permanent home.

Kuala Lumpur, the country’s capital, is said to be a “city tin built”. Kuala Lumpur literally means “muddy river mouth” in Malay. The sleepy hollow perched at the junction of Klang and Gombak rivers started out on one reason - tin. But fate has other ideas.

If KL’s time line is taken as starting from 1850’s, it would be hard to write anything about KL without mentioning Yap Ah Loy’s unflinching effort in building and defending the quaint river town.

Yap Ah Loy and co-founder Raja Abdullah - a Bugis Raja from Indonesian Riau islands, the son-in-law of Sultan Abdul Samad, the ruler of Selangor - sailed up stream Klang River and docked at Gombak river junction. Today, that landing spot is landmarked by the rustic Masjid Jamek. They trekked their way to Ampang and established sites for tin mining.

Yap Ah Loy (left) is often credited as the founder of KL

Nonetheless, there are historical writings that suggest KL was also co-founded by a Sutan Puasa, a Malay of Mandailing clan origin from Indonesian Sumatra, who lived in Hulu Ampang and according to Mandailing oral tradition, Bukit Nenas (literally meaning Pineapple Hill) - where KL Tower now proudly stands - was previously named Bukit Gombak. Back then, spiky pineapples were planted on hill slopes by Mandailings to deter enemy from trespassing.

Right - Sultan Abdul Samad (seated in the center) ruled Selangor, the state where KL is located

Profitable mines of early KL resulted in numerous disputes that ended up in war between 1863 to 1873. Through Raja Asal, who was residing in Damansara, the Mandailings stepped in and sided Yap Ah Loy and by 8th November 1873, the battle was over and peace restored.

In 1880s’, British Resident of Selangor, Frank Swettenham, was largely responsible for re-organising and modernising Kuala Lumpur. The construction of buildings, roads, railway and sanitary infra-structures was spearheaded in 1890’s. Kuala Lumpur became the capital of Federated Malay States in 1897 and remained as capital after Malaysia’s independence. KL went on to attain the city status in 1972.

Although very few spot in modern KL nowadays can be said to represent Malaysia, KL remains the seat of centralised power and relentless population growth. You cannot understand Malaysia by just knowing KL. But without knowing KL, you can’t predict what’s ahead for Malaysia.

Trailblazing KL in one day

The city’s ghostly past lurks everywhere and the best way to experience KL is to surf between past and present.

KL is ideal for walking.

Structure your stay around Jalan Ampang, Jalan Sultan Ismail, Bukit Nenas, Merdeka Square and keep your eyes peeled for beautiful Moorish-styled buildings that tell KL’s zesty past. All one need is to dress down in summer clothes, walking shoes, hat and bring along lots of “anything goes” attitude. The heart of KL isn’t hard to comb as the hub has more English speaking residents than most Asian cities and public transport like the rail lines are all over the place. So puh-leeasse, you do not need a tour package.

Let us pave the way for you. You can thank us later. To start, find your way to one of these city rail stations first …

1. Pasar Seni
2. Masjid Jamek

(If you are not sure how to get to these stations, look up KL Rail Connection Diagram. It is a concise and colourful diagram to help you ace KL inside out. Also, you might want to get some tutorial on how the rail system to connected to other places like KL Sentral, airports, seaports and intercity train station)

Study the map we have designed below and work your way along the dotted trail indicated.

We have scripted the trail to start at Pasar Seni and ends at Masjid Jamek train station for public transport convenience. You can trip it in reverse order, we have no quarrel with that, or you can even start from Plaza Rakyat which is connected to Pududraya bus hub. The trail will waltz you through interesting historical sites, inner city life and of course, good food.

Lastly, keep your eyes peeled for buildings around the trail. Architecture aficionados would appreciate little juicy bits in shophouses and offices that walk one right through 1880s to modern day.

Early architectural styles were adapted from southern China and later incorporate Western touches. A typical shophouse in olden KL is normally narrow and long, combining owner’s business premise and living quarter. Prior to 1880s, all shophouses were built from wood with attap roofings. Later, concerned about fire hazards, local municipal authority required all shophouses to be re-constructed in brick with tiled roofings.

If you look carefully, construction can be grouped into 3 styles, namely Art Deco, Neo-Classical and Utilitarian.

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If you didn’t know (take heart, most Malaysians don’t either), Masjid Jamek is the spot where Yap Ah Loy and Raja Abdullah, the founding partners of KL, first landed and started the ball rolling. This is where KL originated.

Today, the mosque’s ground is the only place in KL where coconut trees still survived the onslaught of modernity and give the place a countryside feelin’.