1960s murals
Old Chinatown life.
Renek78 — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Slleong — CC0 · Diviana Jackson — CC BY 4.0 · Renek78 — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Slleong — CC0
A small back lane behind the shophouses of Kuala Lumpur's Chinatown, neglected for decades until it was restored in 2019 in a joint project of the local authorities and community groups; ten pre-war shophouses were restored and the lane became an open-air gallery. Malaysian artists painted murals on its walls showing everyday life in 1960s Chinatown: two children at play, a woman leaning from a window and a couple on a bridge. Beside some of them are codes you can scan with your phone to hear audio stories about the place. You enter through a gateway topped by its name in Chinese characters and hung with red lanterns, and inside are a small red wooden bridge, cafés and shops. Entry is free, and it is open from the morning until around midnight. It is a short stop on a Chinatown walk, steps from Petaling Street, the Guan Di Temple and the Sri Maha Mariamman Temple. It fills with photographers at weekends, so come on a weekday morning.
Old Chinatown life.
Codes to scan with your phone.
A red entrance for photographs.
Between Jalan Petaling and Lorong Panggung, Kuala Lumpur's Chinatown
Sri Maha Mariamman TempleA twenty-two-metre gateway tower covered in hundreds of painted carved figures r3 minutes walk4.5
Guan Di TempleOne of the oldest Chinese temples in Kuala Lumpur, founded by the Cantonese Kwon4 minutes walk
Petaling Street (Chinatown)A street under a long green canopy, lined with stalls of bags, watches, clothes 4 minutes walk4.0
Central Market (Pasar Seni)A pale-blue Art Deco building from 1937 that was once the city's fish and vegeta6 minutes walk4.5
Kuala Lumpur Old Railway StationA railway station that looks like a Mughal palace: white domes, little turrets, 7 minutes walk4.3It is a small lane that needs fifteen to thirty minutes, worthwhile if you are in Chinatown but not a trip on its own.