Part 3 Let's Get Wet

On we marched. And soon we were onto series of corridors away from the rows of shophouses. The Chow Kit wet market was actually smaller than I thought. It used to be bigger, but the back half - towards Menara Safuan had been cordoned off for development. A new market was recently opened in half of the space and these certainly looked more organised. It looked like the old market would be slowly phased out in the future, a sort of upgrading.

These are certainly fresh. Not the likes that you find at the supermarkets.Look at these maize. I could sink my teeth into them ....Going bananas!My fellow photographers getting stuck in as well ....Not sure how they taste like, but they sure smelt nice!You might wonder if the place had lost it charm with the relocation. Personally I felt that the charm had left the place some years back. There were a couple of reasons for this, first the generational change of the vendors, and secondly the people that made up the vendors now.

In the wet market, the majority of the stall owners were still locals, but they were of the newer breed. They do not run their own business anymore but rather letting the place out. As a result, the people manning the shops were no longer locals. They were Indonesian mainly, and as a result, the produce and the people actually coming to buy the produce were not locals anymore.

Let's be honest, I couldn't tell if they were bargains to be had here ....I was told that the fresher the fish, the clearer the eyes looked. These were certainly clear ....Hoofs anyone?Super fresh coconut milk!I remember that the meat and fishmongers were mainly Malays and the Chinese mainly sell fruits and vegetables. The Indian would mainly occupy the dry part - in shop rows - selling spices and the likes. Chow Kit used to be a one-stop centre where everything went and you could find anything there. Obviously time has changed. And I was left to reflect at the cafe at the exit of the market when I sat down to enjoy my breakfast with the other photographers. How time has changed …..

The entries were compiled here.

The Walk Part I

The turn out was very good. A quick head count at the starting point tallied at around 60. Weather was nice. It rained in the early hours, and the pavements were still wet. The sub had already started to pierce through the thick morning Kuala Lumpur cloud when it was time to start off at 9.30 am.

It was a Saturday, 5th October 2013, at Restoran Sahara on the north end of Chow Kit. The sixth instalment of the Scott Kelby Annual Worldwide Photowalk, the KL chapter was organised and lead by the ever irrepressible Ripi. Maps and email storm galore prior to setting off, to make sure every participant for the picture. And he started things off with the pre-walk preambles and briefing.

Then came the obligatory group photo. Best to take it before we set off because the group will start to disperse and shrink before long. Fariz obliged with his 5D and wide angle setup. All smiles!

Young and old, there was space for everyoneFariz set up the group photo for us this yearThe group started to pair up and heading out in groupsSome were still trying to find their bearingsTime to rolloutThe route this year snaked through Chow Kit wet market, exiting on the opposite site - near Menara Safuan - before heading into the Town Center along Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman towards Maju Junction and Medan Tuanku. There were a few gem here. Plenty of old shophouses plying the trades since the 70s with the owners having plenty of story to tell. The place had certainly passed its heyday.

Next, we passed by the main shopping district of Jalan TAR before the roads were blocked for the weekly Pasar Malam - the block started at 3 pm and we were well early. We then took a sharp left towards Jalan Bonus and Semua House. Walked along Masjid Indian and the new bazaar - creatively named Bazar - before reaching Masjid Jamek where we grouped for lunch at one of the cafe by the LRT there.

Getting wet in the wet marketColourful indeedThey certainly looked freshRolling out againBy the time we reached that particular checkpoint everyone was already comfortable sitting around. Lebuh Ampang and Chinatown was not far off for those still energetic - or have a spare battery pack. My X-Pro1 battery started blinking red once I hit the 350 frame mark. And it was time to call it a day.

Not after a spot of lunch though. And on the subject of food, we set off from a restaurant - Restoran Sahara - and I stopped at Cafe Safuan, Cafe Capital, Restoran Kudu bin Abdul and at the end CoffeeBox Cafe. So, you get the picture. It was food, drinks and chit chats along the way, plus stops at cafe, shops and stalls talking to the vendors taking in the feel of the place.

I just realised that Jalan TAR was filled with hardware shopsOld and rustic charmPlotting our next destinationDone and dustedIt was just before 3 pm when we said our goodbyes. Some of us had other engagements to attend to for the rest of the day, while some like myself, it was family time.

More on the walk here.

After the Walk

It turned out to be a nice day weather wise and the wall went on without a hitch. I started my day as planned with an early ward round. I was driving back towards the city by 8.15, and parked at KLCC. Took the LRT and Monorel towards Chiw Kit, and made it to the starting point well before we set off.

Around 60 photographers turned up. There was even a family - Mum, Dad, Daughter and Son - who came. Got to meet friends old and new. Quite a gathering. And the trend now was towards smaller gears and smartphones. Of course there were the D3s and 5D Mark IIs. But there were not as many as before.

Some of them ordered breakfast but it was clear the restaurant couldn't cope with our orders.

As usual, we did the obligatory group photograph at the starting point. The route this year was from Chow Kit Monorel station, setting into the chow Kit wet market, exit on the opposite side and walk towards Maju Junction and Masjid India.

Then we would congregated at the end at Masjid Jamek where we would have lunch.

Tea when I reached homeI ended up eating long the way. How could I resist, there was Restoran Kudu along the way. And the stores along the way .... I was full by the time I reached the destination. That didn't stop me ordering more drinks afterwards.

It was a great day out. I snapped over 300 frames which explained why my battery was almost dead. Took the LRT back to KLCC, and I was home by 4. Tired, I actually took a nap before uploading the photos into the computer. Hmmm .... Post-processing fever coming tonight ......

More entries on the walk here.

How's the Water?

At least the crisis about water had died down and the talk about town was the petrol hike last night. And the talk was loud, the natives were restless, the barbs traded in Facebook were pretty vicious, some civilised, but some less so.

All in all, the hike was seen coming, with the devaluation of Ringgit against the US Dollars. It was just unavoidable. Just a matter of time. But the main beef was the domino effect that it created. Some unscrupulous party would use this as an excuse either to gain political mileage or help service their profit margin.

One hope that the hike would not double the price of my teh tarik or roti canai. And the pay for the middle class would incrementally go up accordingly as well. On a personal note, I have no choice but to use my car.

Parkamaya

For the last few months, I have been trying to figure out what was going on on the third floor of Fahrenheit 88 in Bukit Bintang. The advert outside the building indicated that there were rows of shops there, called Parkamaya with a Japanese motif. Interesting I thought, but I never had the time to venture there.

A couple of weeks ago, I saw another advert in the local newspaper as part of KL Fashion Week, basically showing pictures of the place. That got me interested again.

Since I got some time last weekend, I headed over there to take a peek. Yes, it was basically a bazaar but it was nicely laid out and the items there were reasonably priced.

Unfortunately, I was not in the mood to carry any shopping that afternoon. I was keener to cruise around taking shots and stopping for quick meals. After all shopping were for girls..... lol!

For a Sunday afternoon, the place was subdued and there were hardly any customers. The place was tucked away on the upper floors making stumbling into the shops hard. You really had to make an effort to find the place or otherwise you'd miss it. It would've been much better if the bazaar was on the ground, or even the basement. And this was despite Fahrenheit erecting plenty of billboard showing where the place was located.

I just got a sneaky feeling that the place would not be around for that much longer. So, if you happened to be around Bukit Bintang vicinity in the coming months and you have some spare change, do give Parkamaya a visit. The place might be gone before you knew it .......