Wonderful that today is an alignment of Asian festivals. Happy Tamil New Year, Happy Thai New Year or Songkran and Happy Vaisakhi (or Baisakhi), the important holy day for Sikhs.
Saw these statues of a family at a Hindu temple in Rawang, a town on Federal Route 1. Will see if I can also drop by at a Sikh temple that is on-route later.
Sony Alpha a7R, ISO 400, f7.1, 1/400 sec.
One of the things I decided from the get-go was to proceed come rain or shine. It would be impossible to find a continuous stretch of sunny days with the vagaries of our weather.
If it shines, the camera will absorb the colours. If it rains, I get to capture the wet landscape and activities. After all, this is documentary photography and I will go with the flow.
For this cinema in Rasa town, the show didn’t go on. Sad to see a building from 1957 left dilapidated and forsaken. Even sadder to see what looks like an equally old tree by its side; beheaded.
Rasa is the first town on the route that hit me as a dying town. Many of the buildings there are from 80 to 100 years ago but are are left abandoned. I have to find out why.
Olympus OM-D, ISO 200, f7.1, 1/200 sec.
This is one of my favourite pics and was captured during a previous trip. Autumn at the Sungai Liam Waterfalls in Ulu Yam.
The lonely spot is only about 15 to 20 minutes from Federal Route 1 via Ulu Yam Bharu. It is literally the backyard of Klang Valley.
Olympus OM-D, ISO 125, f5, 1/200 sec.
Chinese folks from elsewhere go to the Ulu Yam area for one main reason. To try the famous Hokkien ‘lor mee’ there. It is a dish of yellow noodles cooked in a sourish vinegar broth. Although the dish originated in Ulu Yam Lama, several other restaurants at Ulu Yam Bharu serve it.
Apart from the now third-generation original shop in Ulu Yam Lama, the other popular ones are Aik Koon and Hock Lay in Ulu Yam Bharu. The former was closed when I was in town looking for food, so I settled for the latter. Fermented acetic acid isn’t exactly my cup of tea; so I asked for another recommendation besides lor mee. The head waitress suggested their signature dish of Shrimps In A Coconut, which she claimed is their creation.
The prawns are cooked in coconut juice (coconut water) and not santan (coconut milk). As a result, the mild curry prawns have a very distinctive fragrance and unique sweet taste. It comes with a tom yum-like dip that is spicy and sour. Excellent fare and reasonable pricing from Hock Lay Restaurant.
Waitress is also talkative, informative and cooperative. She helped me move my food and gear to a darker and cooler corner after I finished photography at a brighter side. Although this dish has no pork in it, the restaurant is not halal. Sony Alpha a7R, ISO 100, f4, 1/250 sec. The nearest decent hotel is The Leverage Business Hotel in Rawang. Available from MyCen Hotels at http://www.mycen.my/
Sitting by a roadside tea stall somewhere between Serendah and Ulu Yam, I thought for a moment I was on Pangkor Island. There was a golden sunset, a coconut tree and a pack of motorcyclists.
Nevertheless, there was also a telltale sign to remind me of my actual location. Those are electric wires that overhang the track of the Electric Train Service. It runs parallel to Federal Route 1, for most parts, between Rawang and Tanjung Malim.
Along the way, I might look at some of the new stations, remnants of a few old ones and its historical impact on the landscape.
Panasonic GM-1, ISO 250, f5, 1/500 sec.
