Taiping Map (Taiping, Perak. Malaysia), Taiping Town, Visit Taiping

Welcome to the best Taiping Blog. (Most famous and visited) Since 2009. This website gives you all the information you need to know about Taiping.

It will be enhanced accordingly depending on my mood lah... boleh tak? aha...
In other words you get the best of taiping here. If you are using HP to read this, do click here to see the best food in taiping. You will never go hungry, and this will give you good reasons to stay in Taiping longer. This site is best view on computer or laptop. More good info and cool pictures available.

I am also trying to put a little humour into this site and hope that you will enjoy the ride as you go along. Life is short friend. In 2018, Taiping was voted top 3 as the most sustainable city in the world. This is an awesome achievement. Keep up the good work Taiping kakis. Bagus.

Enjoy it lah. Hang boleh ke ni?
Every Malaysian must visit this town! (Wajib and no buts pls. lol). The best place to enjoy your holiday and to live (Come back retire la...).

Hope you enjoy this site and brings good memories back to Taiping kakis. I know some have teary eyes already while reading this (So romantic, dun get too emotional ya. relex la). lol.
It gets better as you read further. You can also contribute by recommending some good makan places. The food here is second to none. Platinum standard. Not just Gold standard. lol. 

Anyway if you or your friends in Singapore in need of a good Badminton coach, you can email me at xtremexn@gmail.com
I am the best and longest coach in Singapore here. Do forward to your friends.
Thanks!!

Click here to view my latest video on how to walk up to the Maxwell hill. Share with hikers. Also search for Larut Matang Hash House in fb for hiking info.

Introduction to Taiping, Perak. Malaysia. Visiting Taiping

This website is dedicated to those who are visiting or born in Taiping. View using web version on a PC is better. Its aim is to inform you The best of what Taiping have to offer even though if you are local..

Broadcasting Taiping to the world on historic and new sites! Designed by Taiping faithful who enjoys the life in this great town. While jogging up Maxwell Hill, one of the resident said, do you notice that the air is fresh and different from the city? I paused a while to have a small thought and really felt appreciated with the freshness. A great place for cheap and good food. Lodging is within 5 minutes walk. Some of the pictures are from other Taiping Sites whom I believe won't mind me using it. You can also use mine. No one site is perfect. We strife for perfection! BTW, I will add more information and pictures when there are new suggestions. Hope it brings good memories back to you!

Taiping is a beautiful town situated in the state of Perak in MALAYSIA. Formerly known as Klian Pauh, it was renamed Taiping to commemorate the end of the Larut War in 1874. With the signing of the Pangkor Treaty on the 20th of January 1874, Taiping emerged to be the major town in Perak. Taiping comes from the Chinese word Tai-Peng which means ETERNAL PEACE. And indeed with the decision of the British government to make Taiping into their administration center, the once slow-paced town has been transformed into a busy and developed town compared to the others in that era.

Together with progress comes a string of historical firsts that has made Taiping into one of the oldest town in Malaysia. Today, more than 100 years later, Taiping unfolds the history of the making of this modern nation. Taiping was once a thriving mining town and used to be the capital of Perak. Its disused mining pools have been cleverly turned into the beautiful and famous Taiping Lake Gardens. Other attractions include the hill resort Bukit Larut (Maxwell Hill); Taiping Zoo, which was the first zoo in Malaysia. 

Taiping receives the most rainfall making it the wettest town in Peninsula Malaysia. The average annual rainfall is about 4,000mm in Taiping while the peninsula’s average is 2,000mm – 2,500mm. Taiping have the sea on it's west and hills on the east. These factors produces Relief Rain or 'Hujan Bukit' in Malay where the air gets cool when it raises up , condenses and becomes rain. The other side of Maxwell Hill such as Kuala Kangsar is drier due to it being in the Rain Shadow where cool air depleted it's moisture as it decends into warmer temperate. Malaysia should be smart enough to create water reservoirs to counter dry spells which happens every year.

How to get there: Taiping 302km north of Kuala Lumpur. It is about an hour’s drive from Ipoh via the north south highway. West Coast Expressway is also available from KL. Penang is just 1 hour drive up north. There are frequent bus services from all major towns in Peninsular Malaysia and even from Singapore. But if you prefer, you can get there by trains.

Suggestions and good comments welcome. I need volunteers to help enhance it. Am not an expert in html coding. Appreciate your help. Do put a link from your website to this site and send me some nice photos if you want to contribute to this site. Thanks again for coming and do recommend your friends to visit this site.

There are arguments about this list of firsts but Taiping is still regarded as a city rich in history. So, your days should be full of places to visit. Among the firsts are:

Singapore 1st President studied in King Edward 7 Secondary School, Taiping
Malaysia 1st Famous Fashion Designer is from Taiping. Tepuk tangan lah... sepak nanti... lol.
Open tin mining activity in the peninsula (1844)
Coronation Swimming pool — Kolam Renang Kemahkotaan (1870)
Taiping Airport (1929) - Amelia Earhart was here in 20th June 1937.
Artillery warehouse (1870)
Magistrate court (1874)
Balai penghulu (1875)
Port Weld (1877)
Police Force team (1879)
Resident’s house (1879)
Hill resort — Bukit Larut - Maxwell Hill (1884)
Rest house (1894)
Mosque — Masjid Tengku Menteri (1897)
Government offices (1879)
Telegraph and post office (1880)
Lake gardens — Taman Tasik Taiping (1881)
Hospital, private and government (1880)
Club — New Club (1881)
Railway station and warehouse (1881)
Market building — Taiping Market Square (1884)
Museum — Perak Museum (1883)
Prison — Penjara Taiping (1879)
Railway track — from Port Weld to Taiping (1885)
Turf club — Perak Turf Club (1886)
Anglican church — All Saints Church, Taiping (1886)
English School — King Edward VII School (1883)
Clock tower — Menara Jam Besar (1881). 1st Police and Fire station.
Esplanade — Padang Esplanade (1890)
Malay newspaper — Seri Perak (June 1893)
English newspaper — Perak Pioneer (July 4, 1894)
Tamil newspaper — Perak Verthamani (1894)
Armed Forces — Malayj States Guides (1896)
Ceylon association (1899)
First Night Safari Zoo in Malaysia
First city in Malaysia to be awarded most sustainable (2018)
Only age-friendly town in Southeast Asia by WHO (2019)

Oh, the sexy Extreme  racket is also a design from Taipingnites. Support la fren. Can add me to your facebook (below). Kawan-kawan mah.... lol

Be proud friend. Tepuk tangan hang kuat sikit la. I tak dengar la... lol.

By the way, if you need to buy, sell or rent properties in Malaysia (in KL, PJ or anywhere), do contact me at xtremexn@gmail.com. Best one stop property or real estate service. Let's help each other. Thanks.

Famous Taiping schools.

Note: You may put comments in there to remind you or your frinds of happy moments.
King Edward VII (2) Primary School. The one at lake garden. Next to Tmgs pri.

Phui Choi Primary Chinese School (Kamunting).

TMGS Primary School

Klian Pauh School.

More Taiping Schools

Many great people are from these Taiping Schools. Even the very 1st President of Singapore comes from King Edward 7 School, TAIPING. Be proud my friend.

Hua Lian Secondary School. Recently voted the best school in Malaysia. Bagus.

TMGS.
Teknik School. (Kamunting)Little conservative school. One of the oldest.
Pokok Asam Primary School below.
Some top students in the Perak state studied here. This is a new goto school for Taiping folks. Thanks to the great teachers. This is a very old picture of the school. It has been renovated and well maintained now.
The school is very clean now since having a new headmaster Ms Ong LC. Further below is a new look of the school from a drone angle. The video below gives you more information about the school since the covid 2021 years. Well done. Hho liao ah. Bagus.

Taiping schools

Located at Station Road in Taiping town, the King Edward VII School was formerly known as the Central School. Opened in 1883, it was the first English school in the state. It got a name-change when it reopened in 1905 and has remained one of the most scenic schools in the state, thanks to the 100-year-old Flame of the Forest trees on the grounds. Did you know that Taiping breeds a lot of tigers? Blame it on the school lah. lol. Click below to see the School's rich history.

The school is proud to have a world class band. KE 7 has a great school song as well. Some call it the "Tiger School". There is a real stuffed tiger somewhere inside the school. Used to be in the library. Motto is Magni Nominis Umbra. Some say, "Once a Tiger, ALWAYS a Tiger!" (Not Thai girl ya. Cheh.). A bit of hormone injection. Was studying in this school in the 70s and 80s. Many great teachers were there as well. Among Longest Serving ones are Mr Long Heng Hua (Principal until 1984) who came up with "Greater Than Before" slogan, Mr Ravinder Singh (Used to be teased as Junjung; hope you don't mind. You kena whack from him?) and Mr Thong Yoke Seng (Afternoon principal), Mr Yeow (Badminton Coach), Mr Jayapalan (Football), Pak Yew (Rugby), Mr Foo, Mr Lim, Mr Tan Kok Siang, Pak Razak, Mr Leow and the popular Ms Ong (sisters). In 1984, this school had its best performance by winning the state title in Rugby, Football and Hockey. Of course there were many sporting and academic achievements over the years. Any names I miss ka kawan? More about King Edward 7 School here. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/King_Edward_VII_School_Taiping

Click below to hear The famous school song. Not many schools got their own songs. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sIHiciIx-eY

Famous Singaporeans like The 1st President Mr Yusof bin Ishak and Mr Chan Sek Keong (Chief Justice) studied here also.

King Edward VII Primary School (I). Many great Tigers studied here. There is a great badminton court where I used train regularly during the mid 80s. Great sound while smashing. BOOM BOOM Phong Phong sound. lol.

Convent Secondary Girl School. Some of the boys like me used to sneak in to play badminton at their open air courts. Kinda showing off to the girls. Gatal ni. Are you one of them also?

Darul Ridzuan Secondary School. Located near Aulong. Some of my great friends are from this school. Has a nick name called "Ta tou lei wan"; meaning "hit until you're dissy". Also have a great nick-song like "Gotta Move On" disco song from the 80s. Are you dancing now?

Hua Lian High School.One of the Famous Chinese Secondary School. One of the first school to have 3 badminton courts. Some Taiping Open Badminton events were held here initially in 80s.

Hua Lian Primary School near Aulong. All the great chinese educated studied here. Use to have challenges between HL 1 and HL 2.

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

St George Secondary School. One of the great and respected school. The primary school is just opposite or near to the football field. Some tease them as Georgie Porgie Pudding and pie... (kidding la, blame my primary cikgu). My Bros studied here as well. Dr. Toh Chin Chye completed his secondary education at St George's Institution. He was a prominent member of Singapore's first generation of political leaders after becoming independent in 1965. 1st Archbishop of Singapore Gregory Yong studied here.

Sri Kota Secondary school.

Iconic Taiping. Interesting places to visit in Taiping. Taiping place of interest. Must visit Taiping.

Clock Tower at Taiping Kota road. The bell is now working effective 30th Aug 2018. Bravo!

Some of Taiping famous landmarks. All the famous areas are within 5 minutes drive. You can even cycle around the town. Good exercises and keep your good heart healthy and pumping. Links to the map locations are provided.

The Perak museum is located along Jalan Museum, it was built in 1883. The country’s oldest museum has displays almost 3000 artefacts on zoology, pre-history, economy and ethnology. It contains an impressive collection of archaeological treasures like ancient weapons, aboriginal implements and ornaments that reflect Perak’s rich historical heritage. Half day visit.

Statue of Col. Robert Sandilands Frowd Walker, on the grounds of the Perak Museum. Col Walker was the British Resident of Selangor and Perak who was much admired by both the Malay and Chinese community for settling labour troubles as well as for his hospitality.

The great Historic Museum. First in Malaysia.

British 2nd world war memorial. One the way to Maxwell hill. No one is discriminated. All races are buried and recognised here. Just go there and see it nearer. It will warm your heart and feel proud to be in a multi-racial society. Pass to your friends. This is what Malaysia is all about.

One for all and all for one. This is the true team spirit.

The Taiping Zoo is still the best in Malaysia. Night Safari is also the first and best. However, it can still be improved. Interesting news about the zoo is that, it claimed to have the biggest crocodile in the land. The museum also claimed that it has the bull elephant skeleton that derailed a train in the past with full speed impact! Singapore Zoo is good, but of course, it is more expensive due to the amount of money invested.

Taiping was formerly the British administrative centre in the state during colonial times. The town was built after the feuds over the tin mines of Larut had been put down. In those days, tin mining was a lucrative business and exporting the ore out of state was a common activity. The Taiping Railway Station was built in 1885 to facilitate the transfer of tin to Port Weld in Penang which was then the main point for shipping it out of the country. Before the “iron horse” came into service for this purpose, elephants were used to carry the ore along jungle trails. With the arrival of the locomotive in Malaya – this was the first train put into service here – travel time was greatly shortened to a few hours from two to three days. Did you know that the current site of the town’s railway station is not its original location? The old station formerly sat on the land which is today occupied by the King Edward VII Primary School. When the railway line was extended at the turn of the 20th century, the station was moved to accommodate the expansion. From then till the 1980s, the tracks remained at the old site until they were removed, and the platforms dismantled to make way for roads.

Taiping Train Station during those good old days. Great memories of family reunion and departures from this area. Balik Kampung and Going away from kampung to find a better life. So Romantic.

The new Taiping train station is below. Looks cool.

Famous Bismillah restaurant.

City hall building below. Opposite to high court.

The Well known Chinese Recreation Club. Has been enhanced since 90s to have pools and more facilities. They even have chess competition here. Breeding of great minds. 2 badminton courts inside.

Esplanade. A place for people to play football, hockey and rugby. I played here representing clubs like Kwang Tung and Sanyo. Some great football matches played here with the likes of Penjara and Polis. Behind it is the Taiping Town Hall which also hosted a few of Taiping Badminton Tournaments. The famous ones like the Mens Doubles Olympic Silver Medallist Cheah Soon Kit played here in Taiping a number of times. Even Datuk Lee Chong Wei came to Taiping to play in exhibition games.

Used to be Cathay Cinema before the 90s. Now a video game arcade or what else. Time changed.

Used to be Lido Cinema till the 1980s. People packed in like sardines to get tickets. James Bond movies, Back to the future and Star wars were shown here. Used to have a famous laksa shop inside. Now it is being torn down. Sad case. Below is the origanal Lido cinema. Which was your last movie here?

The famous Young Man Hindu Association Hall. Many great local badminton players played here. 2 great courts. Need to maintain lah deh. lol

Taiping is also a temporary home to the famous Chinese revolutionist Dr Sun Yat-Sen in 1914. A brief history of his story is below. I bet many of you are not aware of this. The location is just near to the famous Aun Tong Coffee mill in Asam Kumbang.

History of Dr Sun in Taiping.

Places to visit in Taiping. Must visit places in Taiping.

The great cool waters of Burmese Pool. Becoming more commercial now. Hopefully those administrators can keep it clean always. Many people drowned during rainy seasons due to strong water current. Never swim in a river during or after rain! Need to walk upstream about 5 minutes from the parking entrance. If you drive from lake garden, turn right just after Kamal Lodge. There should be a sign to Burmese pool. This is a nice place to relax and have a cool dip. Something will schrink after jumping in of course... right? (sejuk2) lol.

Taiping lake garden is a MUST visit place. In fact, it is the Icon of this lovely Taiping town. Just drive around and also walk around it. The scenery will captivate your heart. Felt like a paradise. There are so many nice and historic places here. Don't forget the usual popular places like the Taiping Zoo (Best in Malaysia), Night Safari (First in Malaysia), Museum, Maxwell Hill (Bukit Larut) and the famous foods. This is certainly a place for gastronomic orgy.

Taiping Lake Garden - Clouds edited (Nice ka?). If you need photographers for your wedding or other business, can contact me lah. I refer you some good ones.

The Museum is below. Picture is edited. Nice sky. Rain always. haha.

The Fireman Hives. BOMBA as some call it. Where you are on fire, just call 999. They will arrive in a whisk. Centrally located. Just a little Icon. Everything can be reached within 5 minutes. There's a famous food court just behind it. Just next to the new Taiping Mall and Novotel.

Famous St Louis Catholic Church. Lots of wedding bells rang here. Just next to Convent school. hmm I wonder why some of the Catholic churches specifically don't really improve their sound system... Time to upgrade bro... There's also a new badminton hall just behind the church. If you want your kid to join the Taiping badminton coaching academy, let me know. There is another old nearby hall hidden in the Indian temple called TNS. The video below is another rubber court arena near Tupai road on the way to pokok asam

The All Saints Church above is the oldest in Malaysia. The only building in Taiping that has timber roof tiles (shingles). Keeps cool. Still have the chimney flute organ inside.

One of the famous hotel near new club which is close to the lake garden (Casuarina Inn). Many functions held here as well. People jogs pass this area which is near to the club. Many wedding photo sessions taken here. Nice columns. Maybe closed. Hopefully someone maintains it well.

The famous Taiping Clock Tower Icon below is in the heart of the town.

1931 view below towards pokok asam.

Below is the new Botanical Garden at Waterfall road towards Maxwell hill.

Other hotels you can pick. Cheap la... (from singapore point of view la, aha..). Louis hotel, Novotel Hotel Lagenda Hotel, Old Rest House converted into hotel. Hotel Furama at 30, Jalan Peng Loong near to lake garden or Cathay cinema. Sri Malaysia Hotel at the lake garden near Taiping Prison (Masuk jail kawan). Legend Inn near Convent School. Panorama Hotel located in the middle of the city opposite the famous old clock tower. The Lake Garden by the name of Flemington with a sky-bar and Grand Baron being the latest hit in Town. fyi, many closed due to covid.

Most famous Chinese Kwang Tung Association. Used to be famous for their Football team and Tae Kwon Do lessons. National champions are bred here. Dun pray pray. Lantern show is also available during Moon cake festival period. Sept-Oct. Ask the locals on where it is held.

The original purpose of the Taiping Public Library building was as a bank. Formerly the Chartered Bank of India, Australia and China (now the Standard Chartered Bank), which first opened a branch in Taiping in 1888, this building was later converted into the public library. The public library is located at Kota Road. Below is the Historic Land office which is near to it.

Other fresh rivers or small waterfalls would be Austin pool or Batu 1/2. Nice to have picnic there. Tapau some spicy food and drinks there. Check out the real cool coronation swimming pool as well. Fresh water pool. Everything just shrink when you dive in. lol. Children pool is available. Suggestion; they should build a waterfall in there. Below is the Austin Pool. Slightly smaller and deeper. About 10 minutes walk into the jungle.

Quite deep pool here. Careful if you are not a strong swimmer. 24 footer pool. Need me to coach you? lol. Butterfly stroke kacang putih ok? lol.

Sounds funny, but believe it or not. This is now the hottest place for prosperity. People are flocking in from Singapore, Thailand and the world over just to get a touch on these boars. Maybe Phua Chu Kang will come one day. The Indian temple called Om Sakthi Sri Jada Muneesvarar Alayam is at Zenith Park. It will appear in the evenings only.

The claim is one touch and you will prosper. lol. So, you can try lah, no need to work already. Can retire there. Once you make good money... give me 10% will do lah... I recommend you mah...right? lol. Oh. This is in Kamunting area. Some of my buddies stayed there and one of them really kena toto leh. You should be able to see Tesco or shopping centres along the way.

Bukit Merah Resort. Nice place with modern water fun park for children (spoilt brats right?). People fish for Arowana here as well. Try your luck lah. Windy and serene. About half hour drive north from Taiping. Check the map. Don't overshoot to Penang ya. Batu Kurau also have very famous award winning durians. I eat till cannot tahan. Even CEOs of big company q for it. I sapu first before they get it. Leave them with shells only. lol.

Please click on 'older posts' below for more great stuff like yummy food and lake garden !!!