DYING HILLS OF IPOH

 

        IPOH, a city guarded by towering giants, is where the roots of my family tree begin. Ipoh 

is a city 198 kilometres from Malaysia’s capital Kuala Lumpur (KL). I don’t remember much about my childhood there as my papa was transferred to the capital when I was about 3 years-old. Surprisingly, in 2014, Ipoh was listed as one of the nine top places to retire IN THE WORLD. 

        Well, I guess this could be one of the reasons why my parents moved out in the 1960s, as Ipoh then was probably too quiet to build a career.  My last post was on the concrete mushrooms reaching into the sky in KL. In Ipoh, it is the towering limestone hills that catches the eye. 

As kids who couldn't tell the time nor count the miles, we knew we had arrived in Ipoh when these limestone giants greeted us as we sleepily peered through the car windows.

YEAH ... "Popo" (maternal grandma) always waited for her precious rascals from the big city. The entire LEE family (aunties, uncles and cousins)  would be in popo's house too. The questions forever began with, "Why are you still like a kampung kai (chicken)?" "Kampung kai" means the person is scrawny like a country chicken, unlike the fat city ones fed on grains. 

These limestone outcrops have surrounded Ipoh like a shield for more than 250 million years. 

They are the guardians from whom you cannot hide. With their steep sides and over-hanging cliffs, they watch you from all around.

With caves and underground rivers, the limestone hills were formed from reefs beneath long forgotten seas. They provide a sanctuary for bats, snails and a host of unusual plant and animal life.

Alas … these natural monuments are unfortunately now being blasted and quarried to make cement. 

Ipoh’s natural heritage is slowly destroyed for commercial purposes. 

It will be a sad day when my great grandchildren arrive in Ipoh in the future and  

these gentle giants who have stood the test of time will no longer greet them.

The Mighty Melons, wait ... I am coming soon.