DRIVING out of Kuala Lumpur along the highway, one could see limestone hills framing the scenic countryside.
SLOW-PACED: Kampar town with a mountain as the backdrop.
If occasional industrial chimneys and machinery did not punctuate the hilly contour, one could actually imagine a legendary princess flying through the air in the misty morning!
We were making our way towards Kampar just as the sun rose a little higher above the hills.
Would there be gold in Kampar as its name suggests in Chinese – kam pou or precious gold?
“It’s always a delight to drive to Kampar,” our friend exclaimed chirpily.
She loves driving up and down the peninsula for as many years as she can remember. She could be in KL in the morning, Ipoh in the afternoon and Penang in the evening! But Kampar will always be in her heart because that’s where her beloved late husband came from.
A much travelled Kampar man, he had taught her all the best things in life – and especially food in the secret corners of not only Malaysia but Asia as well.
“He really loved food and friends,” she recalled.
In no time we were in Kampar to soak up its pristine beauty – the large expanses of water, the legacy of the mining era and the greenery-covered hills. We had left the scarred limestone hills behind.
WATERWAY: The Kampar River
Slumber no more
Kampar awakened after new businesses sprang up recently with the setting up a university – Tunku Abdul Rahman (TAR) University and Koley TAR.
In the 1990’s, most businessmen, gripped by uncertainty, were bemoaning that the opening of the North-South Highway would sideline the small and sluggish tin-mining town. The highway was proclaimed to be a factor that would pull Kamparians away. Then what would be left behind?
But as if blessed by a good spirit, Kampar sprang up again at the turn of the 21st century. The return of the good times brought the smiles back to the faces of Kamparians as younger Malaysians began investing in new properties in the little town.
These days, there is excitement in the air.
The Kinta Valley was a bastion of tin mining, wealthy miners and busy markets until the collapse of the tin industry. However, out of the industry a town sprang up. And thanks to the tin ores taken out of the earth by dulang washers, and later by tin dredges, Kampar was born in 1887.
In the early 1900’s, the Chinese migrants who became rich from tin-mining, were great supporters of the Chinese Revolution, led by Dr Sun Yat Sen. Some migrants not only donated large sums of money but also laid down their lives for the New China. Monu-ments in Guangzhou speak volumes of the Malayan sacrifices.
Rejuvenation underway
Most Chinese Kamparians are of Cantonese descent. Today, the 70,000-odd population (majority Chinese) are happy their town is becoming well-known again amidst a rapid process of rejuvenation and makeover.
Fishing and trekking, fish and duck farming, kayakking, cave exploring and various other popular activities have started to form a new industry on the abandoned tin mines and ponds.
Kampar is becoming a sought-after venue for weekend family outings and good food. Just barely two hours from KL, the town is considered a good getaway from the hustle and bustle of the city.
Historical tales can be gleaned from documents and oral accounts, making Kampar a place with a good past and a good soul.
A friend once said: “If the majority of people of Malaya live in the belly of the peninsula that is Kuala Lumpur, then the Kinta Valley is the heart of the peninsula.”
That’s remarkably spot on!
Interesting events
Legend has it that Ngah Jabor who was involved in the murder of JWW Birch, the British Resident of Perak, founded a new settlement in Kampar.
He escaped sentence because his relative, Raja Idris, became the Sultan of Perak (they shared a wet nurse when they were babies) and presided over the court case.
Another interesting historical event was the Battle of Kampar from Dec 30, 1941 to Jan 2, 1942.
About 3,000 British soldiers, fighting alongside Indian troops, defended the Kampar area against more than 6,000 Japanese invaders. The battle slowed down the Japanese advance but many lives were lost. That was one well-documentated war action on Malayan soil.
As we stood looking at the low tide of the Kampar River, we also visualised the ancient history of traders who came to this place from as far a Riau Islands in the 19th century.
While Chinese junks sailed up the river and brought both migrants and goods from the Far East, other images of Malays, Indians and Orang Asli intermingling on the jetties and river banks emerged from the shimmering reflections on the water.
From a distance, we could hear a passing train chugging down the tracks. Indeed, many students from Kuala Lumpur take the same train to study for a week in Kampar and return home for the weekend. It’s good to see the famous Malayan Railways (Keretapi Tanah Melayu or KTM) continuing to ply the Kampar-Ipoh route from KL – a two-hour ride from the nation’s capital.
Special attractions
After taking in the sights, we quickly headed towards the best of Kampar’s attractions – food at the open air market next to the Kampar River.
YUMMY: Tasty meehoon soup with yong toufoo.
The char kway tiau in Kampar is quite special. The man who fries it is even more so. That’s why the queue of customers is so long that some have to drink two cups of Kampar kopi-o before their orders arrive. A one-hour wait is quite normal. But nobody is complaining. Indeed, the Kampar char kway tiau man could well be the only Malaysian noodle stall operator who fries pasta sitting down.
A must-buy product is, of course, Kampar chicken biscuits which have been around for ages. One other favourite is the roasted duck of Kedai Kopi Kawan Baru at Jalan Sungei Pari.
Just outside the open air market can be found the special glutinous chicken rice, cooked in a pot and placed on a plastic wrap on a trolley.
The hawker would ask: “Curry?”
This is, of course, the special glutinous curry chicken rice (similar to loh mai kai) of Kampar. It’s only for takeaway via a truly stand and deliver service. You can take it home or eat it at the open air market.
It’s a good thing there isn’t any No Outside Food sign at the market. Otherwise, it could appear quite unfriendly to travellers who come all the way from the city to sample the special cuisine Kampar has to offer.
TEAMWORK: This husband-and-wife team has been plying their ware for more than 50 years with a specially converted tricycle.
Someone mentioned beggar’s chicken and herbal chicken but we had neither the time nor the appetite to eat any more food!
Education in Kampar
As we drove around the town, we were introduced to the beautiful schools. Our friend regaled us with the history of Kampar’s places of learning.
Two Methodist missionaries’ names came up. Foremost was Rev Horley, the “founder builder” of the famous Methodist Anglo-Chinese schools from Singapore to Ipoh. He built the Kampar Anglo Chinese School in 1902 and also ran the Methodist schools there.
Today, these schools and his legacy continue to be the driving force for the education of Malaysians.
Perhaps, not many know a German Methodist missionary Luering had served in British North Borneo among the Dayaks. But after leaving Borneo, he did his main work in Perak in then Malaya.
Well-known as a linguist, Luering preached in 25 different languages. He spoke fluent English (albeit with a strong German accent) as well Cantonese, Hakka, Foochow and Hokkien.
The Foochows of Sitiawan remember him fondly as one of the missionaries who brought the Foochow pioneers to Kampung Koh (in Sitiawan).
He helped plant 20,000 rubber trees. With the assistance of Rev Ling Ching Mi, Luering also set up a church and an Anglo-Chinese school.
The community became the largest settlement of Methodist Chinese in the Malay peninsula. The experimental relocation proved to be a success for both the government and the Methodist church in establishing a foreign community in Malaya and a church within it.
Luering’s collection of books can now be found at the Library of Southeast Asian Studies of Goethe-University in Frankfurt, Germany. Besides excelling in the theological and linguistic fields, he was also learned in botany and zoology.
Luering was probably the first European to speak Sengoi, an Orang Asli language, after coming into contact with the tribe in Perak.
A lively note about women also came up as we drove around the town. It’s nice to know that a Malaysian woman loved by many, Datin Seri Paduka Endon Mahmood, the late wife of former Prime Minister Tun Ahmad Bedawi Abdullah, spent her childhood in Kampar. Born in Klang, she was attended Kampar’s Anglo Chinese School.
Endon’s father worked as a mining assistant in the Department of Mines and was subsequently transferred to Perak to help oversee about 60 mines in the district of Kampar. She later attended St Mary’s secondary school in Kuala Lumpur.
The limestone hills, serene pools, good food and friendly people of Kampar have helped nourished our souls. A good history and continuing peace and prosperity have definitely re-established our hopes in the town for the future.
As we left Kampar, we felt we had a treasure trove of golden memories to bring home with us.