Kuala Kangsar is the Royal Town of Perak and is full of charming buildings. Our first stop was the Ubudiah Royal Mosque. This is a gorgeous looking building, made even more special when you learn that the architect was a British man called Arthur Benison Hubback! He also designed the Ipoh railway station and the Kuala Lumpur railway station.
The mosque was commissioned by the 28th Sultan of Perak, Sultan Idris Murshidul Adzam Shah I Ibni Almarhum Raja Bendahara Alang Iskandar Teja, and was completed in 1917, one year after his death. It has been expanded over the years and was being repainted inside while we were there. You can get a sense of the scale of this building by comparison with those around it.
There is also a burial ground to one side, with the yellow clothe-covered burial markers indicative of royalty.
There were other interesting buildings around the mosque...
Our next stop was the Istana Kenangan, or Palace of Dreams. This was originally built in 1926 as a temporary mausoleum and is now the Perak Royal Museum.
Visitors were only allowed on the ground floor of hte museum where you could learn about the history of the Sultans of Perak. For me though, their paraphernalia was out-shone by the building itself. There was music playing which was quite atmospheric, but there was no information in English in the mseum.
The Palace of Dreams is a stones throw away from the Sultan's Palace which hides behind high imposing walls.
Now since I am writing about our road trip, I thought I really should mention Colonel Sanders! Sometimes our British digestive systems long for something safe to eat and the abundance of KFC restaurants in Malaysia is a blessing. They had all the new arrangements for social distancing, their food is always good, and their toilets were hygienic. But, they don’t have diet drinks and ordering anything other than a set meal was problematic, but a little patience got us there in the end. So thank you KFC!
One of the followers on our Malaysian Travels FB page suggested we look at the Malay College Building and a rubber tree. The Malay College was indeed a stunning colonial-style building.
Nearby, situated on the side of a huge playing field which I assume was once the Padang, were these other old buildings, such as the SMK Clifford (school).
And this is the Pavillion Tower, built in 1920 as the resting place for Sultan Iskandar Shah after polo matches.
And this is one of the oldest rubber trees in Malaysia, grown from seeds from Kew Gardens in England. According to a marble plaque in front of the tree: "The rubber tree was introduced into the country in 1877 and planted in Kuala Kangsar. Since then, it has become an important crop in Malaysia. A wide range of quality rubber-based products have been made for the benefit of mankind.”
Thus ended our day trip from Taiping, and what an interesting mix of things to do and see today.
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