Who Switched Off Chong Hwa Traffic Lights?

Since the road widening and the building of the overheard bridge near Chong Hwa School in Jalan Gombak, someone switched off the traffic lights there. This stretch, which is quite dark at night, is highly dangerous and several times already, we have noted, that there were near misses. Cars speeding along the thoroughfare fail to see cars turning into Jalan Chong Hwa. Can City Hall be kind enough to put back the traffic lights so that no life is lost?

Instant Trees

There you have it. Instant trees. This one is on the divider along the now widened Jalan Gombak. God knows what species is this or if it is planted for aesthetics or for shade. The base area is certainly too small for comfort and should the tree survive, dont you think the roots might surface and damage the road? Think about it.

Bridges Too Far

If you have been travelling via Jalan Gombak, I am sure you will see many bridges being built with the road expansion. There is one near Ong Tai Kim, one near Chong Hwa school and one near the Fourth Mile surau. While all are done with good intention, has City Hall thought of the old folks who might be using them to cross the now widened road? Can any climb without breaking their kneecaps?



One of the bridges seen being hoisted up recently.

Who Knows Where Gombak Wet Market is?

White elephant.

If you pass by Jalan Gombak, you will see this structure. It houses the Gombak Wet Market. It was built in the 80s so that the morning market traders would be trading from a proper place. It was City Hall's plan to move all morning market traders operating from the roadsides into a better place.

However, the plan backfired. Few traders wanted to move in. Word has it that their reluctance was due to the fact that pork was not allowed to be sold here. Today, this modern market houses a City Hall materinity clinic, a Bank, and a miss-mash of various market traders with still plenty of stalls not taken up.

There is an escalator to the upper floor but it is only switched on on certain days. You get a handful of traders selling from meat to vegetables and the lobby area is used by traders selling tidbits. It's a real shame. If not for the bank operating here, the building would be empty.

The Lian Hin Rubber Smokehouse

If you pass by Jalan Gombak into Sentul, you will see this blue building which looks like a pagoda. This is the Lian Hin Rubber Smokehouse. Until the 70s, and early 80s, this is where rubber sheets were smoked and dried before they could be exported. People who lived nearby remember the stench of rubber sheets on their clothes and at that time, not many people were vocal enough to complain. After several years, they grow immune to the smell. Today, thankfully, this building is no longer used to smoke rubber sheets and hence you dont even know it exists as there is no more stench from it.

Best in Wangsa Maju - Ah Siew Chicken Rice in Gombak

The stall owner's name is Ah Siew and has been operating for over 30 years. Since the day he started, with his brother actually and who have now moved on, the recipe has not changed. The rice still has that smokey feel because it is prepared using coal fire.



Located at Gombak 4th Mile, opposite the mosque, you will see a small hawker centre. It is about 50 metres from the International Islamic College Hostel. Here lies one of the best chicken rice stalls in the whole of Gombak and Wangsa Maju combined.


Now, the difference in this chicken rice are plenty. For one, the sauce is great. The chili is so damn hot and the chicken - available in steamed or fried - and char siew, is way out of the world. You can try it of course before you believe me.

Kuan Ti Temple Gombak Holds Inauguration \Ceremony

FOR four days fom Dec 13, today, the Kuan Ti Temple, also known as Ju Xian Miao, at Jalan Gombak will be celebrating its inauguration.

This almost 50 year old temple has recently been refurbished at about half a million ringgit and sculptors from China were brought in to do the refurbishment work, which included extension of the compound, a new gateway, a concrete theatre and other internal work.

It should now be one of the most beautiful temple in Jalan Gombak, perhaps even rivalling that of the Thean Hou Temple.

In the olden days, this temple is famous for assisting the sick and needy. Consultation was in the form of two mediums going into trance and holding a divining rod (Y-shaped branch). Those who are sick or in trouble would ask the mediums in trance for assistance and the divining rod would write the prescription on a drum of rice. The inscribed words will take the form of instructions to undertake or medical herbs to purchase and consume.

There is a statue of Kuan Ti, said to be made from wood, in the temple which is even older than the temple itself. It is believed that the founder of the temple had brought the statue in from China when the first Chinese settlers came to Gombak.

Rumous has it that the statue disappeared during the times of turmoil only to reappear when peace trancends such as during the Japanese occupation and during the Emergency. The Kuan Ti was believed to have returned to heaven to assist in calming the world in times of strife. How true this is up to you to take it.

The temple six months ago, while it was being renovated. The two chaps are the Chinese craftsmen undertaking the job. Look at the 'jade' pillars in front of the main door.

Gombak Road Expansion On Its Way

One side of the road has been scraped and tarring would have begun in a few days. (Note: The rubbish bags being left on the new road area. This is one filthy habit Gombak residents cannot do without. You will find garbage in bags strewn by the road or hung on lampposts. Now you wont be amazed if they call Gombak people 'Ulu')

After months of waiting, the road expansion at Jalan Gombak finally is on its way. The tarring of one side has begun, after the divider have been constructed. The lampposts have been moved and this is a good sign.

From what we have observed, from Gombak 5th Mile onwards to the junction to Sentul, one side of the road has been tarred.

Work is also being undertaken from there to Chong Hwa school.

Hopefully, the roadwork will end when school reopens.

I will keep you posted.

Cheap Food - Taman Teratai Mewah

See this restaurant? No it is not a Japanese seafood or sushi joint. Very much Chinese in fact.

It is highly popular in the evenings on weekends when people eat out. Why it is popular is obvious - food is good and portions are big. Check out their Hokkien Mee and fried rice. You will agree that the extra pork-fat fritters make for good taste!

The restaurant is located along the Gamblers' Row - near the SportsToto, Magnum and Damacai outlets in Teratai Mewah, in Setapak Garden.

Gombak Road Widening - Updates

Tarring of the trunk road leading from Setapak to the upper reaches of Jalan Gombak has begun downstream from Gombak Fifth Mile (Pasaraya Ong Tai Kim). The road shoulders have been tarred sporadically, and this presents an even more dangerous situation for bikers. Loose gravel and uneven road shoulders are a fatal combination should the biker hits the dirt at high speed. Let's hope the contractors will complete the road fast before Chinese New Year!

Jalan Gombak - Dark As Hell At Night

Because of the extensive roadwork for the expansion of Jalan Gombak (and Genting Kelang) all streets lamps from Jalan Chong Hwa till Sungai Mulia (5th Mile) have been rendered light-less and at nights, especially on rainy nights, you can't see a thing. Don't believe me, see the picture below.


Where got lights?


For a sub-urban road, bikers riding without lights and old people crossing the roads are a common sight. So are the many foreign students who are fond of dressing in black. Unless they look at you from the dark and flash a toothy smile, you may chance on them too late and hit a tragedy.

So, if you are driving along this stretch, please go slow and if on rainy nights, go extremely slow and keep your eyes on the road. I just hope the MP will take a ride here one of these nights and hurry the contractors in installing the lights. The pitch darkness is dangerous to all and sundry.

What's that blue building at junction of Jalan Gombak-Sentul at Fourth Mile Gombak?

Anyone above 40 who lived in Gombak would remember this building, if they had already forgotten the stink that wafts in the area each time they pass by.

If you had grown up in the 70s in Gombak, chances are that you will remember this terraced building. It has a blue zinc roof and you could see lattices within the building. Back then, whenever you pass by this junction, you would thumb your noses and stop breathing in. Why? Because this building literally takes your breath away!

Actually, you stop breathing for a while because of the stink that wafts from the building. It is actually a rubber sheet smokehouse by the name of Lian Hin Rubber Smokehouse. Rubber sheets are hung out to dry in this building and people staying under the building's shadow will never forget the stink the smell left on their shirts. Kids staying here, who returned to school after long holidays, often became the butt of jokes of their schoolmates for the pungent smell that seem to emanate from their uniforms.

Today, I dont know what this building is for but the smell is no longer there. This building is left as a historical landmark of the business that thrived in the 70s in Gombak. From what I was told, it was also the shelter for Chinese families during the May 13 riots.