KLJJ #031 - Around Petaling Street

Please click the photo above to play the daily videoA bright Sunday morning in Kuala Lumpur, and an easy walk with Robin Wong and Azul Adnan, starting at Kwai Chai Hong. I had imagined it might still be relatively quiet at that hour, but clearly half of Kuala Lumpur had the same idea. The lane was already busy, which rather changed the mood from peaceful morning stroll to gently navigating around people taking photographs of one another.

From there, we wandered through Petaling Street without any particular urgency. The light was already quite strong, throwing hard shadows across the old shopfronts, signs and narrow streets. It was one of those walks where the photographs were less about finding anything dramatic and more about watching people move through patches of light, catching reflections, small gestures and the usual brief moments that disappear almost as soon as you notice them.

We eventually made our way towards the River of Life, where the streets opened up and the pace naturally slowed. Nothing particularly extraordinary happened, which was perhaps the point. Just a sunny Sunday morning, good company, familiar parts of Kuala Lumpur seen slightly differently through a camera — and a reminder that sometimes the pleasure of street photography is simply being out there and paying attention.

Hotel Malaya

I noticed this hotel right in the middle of China Town (Petaling Street) for some time and had been curious about it. Never stayed there or anything but along some of my photowalks, I tended to pass by the old art deco-inspired building.

But last weekend when I passed by along during the Scott Kelby Photowalk, I was surprised that the hotel was closed. In fact, the entrance looked like it was about to be demolished. Maybe a renovation was in the card since the location of the hotel was really central. Backpackers and tourist on a budget would love such a place!

Would definitely be watching what would happen to the place. I did some searches on the web, but the returned were all about the past review on the hotel - which I would diplomatically labeled as "mixed". No entries talked about renovations or demolition. It was just that Agoda and the likes had stopped taking bookings, and that was about it.

A Quick Breakfast

I had an hour or so to spare after my ward round this morning before leaving for the airport. The boys were still in bed, so I called Puan Anita up telling her to get dressed and we had a quick drive towards Petaling Street for breakfast at the rustic Merchant's Lane.

It was the first time that Anita been there and she was really impressed. She spent most of the times taking photos and messaging her friends about the place. I would not be surprised if they would be spending a few mornings there in the coming weeks.

The place was still relatively empty when we arrived within half an hour of opening. I took her to the seats at the back, more secluded and more cosy. We had a lovely coffee and meal, and it was a shame that we had to leave so soon. I had a plane to catch ....

Merchant's Lane

Even the name stroke a cord. This is the new cafe - opened in the last couple of months, located at Petaling Street. It was at the quieter end of the street, towards Bulatan Merdeka, located right next to Advanced Tertiary College.

Nicely tucked away on top of a stationary shop, if could prove to be tricky to find as the sign leading up the stairs were pretty small.

But once you got into the cafe, you would surely be charmed by the rustic surrounding and ambiance. You might mistaken to be in either Penang or Melaka. An old pre-war building, a converted shophouse - apparently it used to be a brothel! - with the exterior and anterior walls preserved.

The ceiling was opened up letting in natural light making the place appeared bigger and cosier. There was the main part where the coffee counter was located with an open seating area, but should you venture towards the back, there were more seating, and this time it was out in the opened. A pretty unique find and from now on, I would definitely be sitting at the back!

I stopped there to join my KLickr friends during the recent photowalk, and I would definitely be taking Anita along the next time. She would definitely love it.

How was the food? The menu was still pretty basic, and they were heavy on the breakfast and comfort food. I ordered some fried salmon with wasabi mayo. It was really nice, plus a hot mocha. A definite retreat away from the hustle and bustle of town life.

There were parking lot right opposite as well if you plan to drive in. In my case, I was on foot all the way from Central Market with the rest of the gang. Certainly a great little cafe with plenty of potential. It would sure to generate plenty of Instagram photos and Swarm check-ins. Highly recommended!

Pasar Karat KL

Karat literally translates to "rust" in English. We were not talking about diamonds here, but sure enough Pasar Karat is a flea market near Petaling Street in KL, and one could unearth some gems from time to time!

Some dubbed it "Market of Thieves" and certainly one can't help but wonder why such term was coined when you walk around the market. They were filled with antiques and certainly some stolen goods as well.

How to get there? It ran parallel to Petaling Street (KL Chinatown) in the middle of town, within walking distance from Central Market, and it formed part of the route for our #WWPW2015 - Scott Kelby Worldwide Photo Walk - the other day. It opened every Saturday and Sunday as early as 6 am, and one had to get there early to get the best bargain.

We entered the market from the Jalan Sultan entrance, making our way into Petaling Street proper. When we arrived there at almost 9, the place was already packed. They were all makeshift stalls and tables, the wares being left displayed in the open for us to bargain on the price. The main stalls by the entrance were selling proper antiques. The deeper you go, the dodgier the business were until right at the back where you suspect that those were all stolen items.

But it was all in good spirit. The sellers were pretty approachable, but be sure to ask their permission before you take their photos. They can be a bit touchy. After all, it was their turf.

After walking for around 20 minutes, talking to some of the sellers, we sat by a coffee stall to have a drink. According to the owner, Pasar Karat had been around since the early 80s. It used to be exclusively Chinese but in the last 10 years, foreigners came into the picture, and with that some rougher characters. There were always some plain clothed policeman around patrolling the area and see if there are any disturbances. One had also had to be wary about your pockets, and make sure you keep your personal belongings to yourself. But generally speaking the place were quiet peaceful.

I didn't buy anything since I couldn't bother to carry them on the rest of my walk. Certainly not a place I would come alone. Safety in numbers, that was the key. The vendors could tell if it was your first time there, and how good could you bargain.

The items sold there were also rather dodgy especially the electronics. One could get an 32Gb SD card for around RM30, but one couldn't guarantee if you can safe more than 4Gb of data on the card if you know what I mean! Watch out for bargains that were too good to be true! And everything has a price!

As for photo-ops, certainly there were plenty to snaps. There were some nice looking murals on the walls and the patron there tended to be characters as well. But be sure to ask permission before you snap. More likely than not, they would say yes. And if they say no, move along. Just google "Pasar Karat KL" and you would sure to get the directions to the place. Happy hunting!