Friday, March 27, 2009

.: Sketches in life :.


Stesen Keretapi Tanah Melayu.

There are quite a number of buildings bedecked with Moorish architectural elements in Kuala Lumpur. The Stesen Keretapi Tanah Melayu, [Malaya Railway Station] also known as Stesen Keretapi Kuala Lumpur [Kuala Lumpur Railway Station] located at Jalan Sultan Hishamuddin [formerly known as Victoria Avenue] embodies parallel Moorish structural designs; large chatris to Masjid Jamek.

Other influences are from the Mughal/Neo-Saracenic/Indo-Saracenic [also known as Indo-Gothic] and Western architectural styles that include
several forms of horseshoe and cyma reversa [curved-in arc flowing into a curved arc] arches. This building was the brainchild of Arthur Benison Hubbock.


The station was built in the 1900s to replace the Resident Station, serving as Kuala Lumpur's railway hub for the Federated Malay States Railway and the Malayan Railway till 2001. Since then, KL Sentral had taken on the role for these services. Presently, the station caters to the KTM Komuter and goods services.

In the last right-hand picture is the Heritage Station Hotel, formerly known as Station Hotel. In conjunction with Malaya's 50th Independence Day in 2007, the station was officially reopened as a Railway Museum; cultural centre.

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The train station brings back memories aplenty. It was the main transportation we used to travel from the South to Kuala Lumpur. The days when dad would hoist me up the train, mum shrieking at dad to get me away from the edge of the platform, brother and sis urging me to plead my parents to buy us McDonalds...

One of the few places to reminiscence my childhood years, where thankfully each day I'll pass it on my way to and from work. The birds souring high above the towering majestic building, never once has it failed to sketch the pleasant sentiments of a once lived past.


Life.
10.36am Malaysian Time

7 comments:

BMW said...

Very nice pictures. I have an interest in architecture as well. In Chicago we have many older buildings. Thanks for the comments on the pictures. I have been so bad with updating, lol! Hope all is well.
-Ihssan :)

Hajar Zamzam Ismail said...

What a pretty train station!

Hajar Alwi said...

Ihssan:: LoL~ We each have our bad updating moments! Btw, you did take a handful of fantastic photos. :)

Hajar Zamzam Ismail:: ^^ Yeah! Almost always I'll hear foreigners asking the locals, "What's that humongous building?", "It's our railway station.", "Awesome~!".

Lisa B said...

Beautiful architecture, thanks for sharing your pictures and the history.

Hajar Alwi said...

Gladly. :)

b said...

are you an architecture student

Hajar Alwi said...

Welcome B. I'm not. :) I have an interest in architecture though.