Tag: federal route 1

War And Peace

The Larut War of the early tin mining years took place during the second half of the 19th century. Running battles between the Cantonese-dominated Ghee Hin clan and the Hakka-dominated Hai San clan continued until the Pangkor Treaty in 1874.

Near the end of the protracted war, some Hokkiens fled central Perak and settled in more peaceful Tanjung Malim. In the early 1900s, they built two rows of shop houses that formed what is the old town today. A few of these ancient buildings still stand.

Sony Alpha a7R, ISO 100, f6.3, 1/250 sec.

A Bolt Of Lightning

A girl cycling past an old shop wall with a big crack. It looks like wall art featuring a bolt of black lightning. Something else hit the town dwellers.

Tanjung Malim people seem to be unusually curious and conscious about the presence of a stranger with a camera. And I don’t even use a neck strap or a big camera.

A few stopped cycling, walking and even driving just to watch me work. At this spot, several courteous pedestrians and cyclists crossed the street to avoid getting into frame, thinking I wanted to shoot the wall alone.

During my walkabout, some came forward to talk instead of me approaching them. One guy ran after me to tell me there is a interesting building in the opposite direction.

Good people.

Sony Alpha a7R, ISO 100, f5.6, 1/250 sec.

Time To Talk

Mr Wong is the proprietor of a watch and clock shop in Tanjung Malim town. The family business is now more than 60 years old and I asked him about changing trends. They used to sell Rado, Omega, Timex and Tissot. The current top selling brand is Casio.

But a more important question: Why is the time displayed on a analog watch or clock at a shop always set to 10:10? The answer is simple.

At 10:10, the hands are in an optimum or ideal position where it doesn’t block the manufacturer’s logo (typically at 12 o’clock) and date window (typically at 3 o’clock).

Love the old-fashioned wooden strip blinds on the shopfront. This kind of sunshade, also known as bamboo chicks, are made and sold by another shop in Tanjung Malim town.

Sony Alpha a7R, ISO 100, f11, 1/320 sec.

Border Moon

The best time to shoot the moon is not on a full moon as what most people think. The best nights start from tonight when the moon enters the ‘waning gibbous’ phase.

Because it is no longer fully lit by the sun, one can see the craters near the waning edge. The angle of the creeping dark side depends on whether you are viewing or photographing from the northern or southern hemisphere.

Olympus OM-D, ISO 200 f8, 1/13 sec.

The Barber

Much of my time on the journey, so far, was spent engaging the locals. Usually the conversations can get quite interesting and long. Some will even invite me into their homes or to a coffee shop for a drink.

As for shopkeepers, I try to keep the conversations shorter as I know they need to tend to business and customers. But there is one businessman who can (and have the skills to) hold a long conversation.

The guy whose career began at the top; the barber.

The ideal place and time to join in a conversation is at where a conversation is already going on. I stepped into the Hibiscus Indian Barbershop in Tanjung Malim town.

Kumar the cheerful barber was originally from Tamil Nadu in India. He has been here for eight years and can speak fluent Malay. His customer, Deen from Kelantan, works in Tanjung Malim.

Apart from the two seen here, he has six other kids and that prompted a good-natured chat about traditional aphrodisiacs and birth control (or lack of). Heh.

Sony Alpha a7R, ISO 500, f4, 1/60 sec.