Knocking On Kuala Lumpur's Past
By Zahra AlHadad
One of the stops for the Ketuk Pintu guided tour was Petaling Street, where one can find fake branded goods for sale interspersed among family-run and decades-old food and retail businesses.
KUALA LUMPUR, 17 NOVEMBER 2018 - There is a lot more to the hub of Kuala Lumpur than one might initially think; a long-forgotten past of those who shaped the city, shadowed by the newer high-rise buildings and tourist attractions of Petaling Street.
Ketuk Pintu: Developing Kuala Lumpur is a walking tour that aims to spread awareness about the founding history of Kuala Lumpur and the different communities such as the Malay fishermen, the Chinese tin miners and even the Cantonese speaking British officials who helped build the city that we know of today.
Hosted in conjunction with Urbanscapes Festival 2018, this particular event was part of the Ketuk Pintu Guided Discovery Tours in which various iterations of guided tours like "Childhood in Petaling Street" and "Through The Lens Of Time" were offered over three weekends from 3-18 November.
The "Developing Kuala Lumpur" version happened on 17 November and was led by Yew Kuan Yee, the founder of Life Soar, a resource company for students that helps them unlock their full potential.
The guided tour was limited to 20 participants per session and began at the entrance of Urbanscapes House before continuing through the heart of Kuala Lumpur.
Yew brought the participants through a route that covered the notable landmarks like the Chinese coolies depot, Jalan Sultan, the Tapioca Flour Factory, Pasar Seni and more, eventually ending back at the starting point.
Yew Kuan Yee takes the participants of Ketuk Pintu: Developing Kuala Lumpur on a guided tour of Jalan Sultan, which is now a street peppered with numerous modern cafes and street food stalls.
Along the way, Yew also pointed out various other structures and businesses that were integral to the shaping of Kuala Lumpur.
Among them was the very first police station in Kuala Lumpur, a 100-year-old tailor shop (famous for tailoring the suits of three generations of prime ministers), as well as the building for the Selangor Grocers Association Headquarters.
Although well-versed with the history of Petaling Street and it’s surrounding areas, Yew used a laptop screen to provide additional visuals and back up his explanations
He showed attendees images of the area in the past and introduced prominent figures like Yap Ah Loy and Frank Swettenham, effectively enhancing the experience of the tour in a manner that was different from others.
The attendees were able to experience the wonders and sights of places that fell off the well-worn tourist path.
Even for a native Kuala Lumpur city rat, the guided tour would have certainly opened eyes to a whole new allure of the area.
These tours were free of charge, with two sessions per day at 10am and 4pm respectively.
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