Malaysia: Portrait of a Nation. Wendy Khadijah Moore

      

      Malaysia

      Portrait of a nation

      Photography by Radin Mohd Noh Saleh

      Text by Wendy Khadijah Moore

       PERIPLUS

      Published by Periplus Editions

       with editorial offices at 61 Tai Seng Avenue, #02-12 Singapore 534167

      Copyright © 2003 Periplus Editions (HK) Ltd

       ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

       ISBN 962-593-989-X

       ISBN 978-1-4629-1461-6 (ebook)

       Printed in Singapore

      All photographs by Radin Mohd Noh Saleh except the following:

       pp. 12 (bottom left), 51 (left & right) by Tommy Chang; pp. 13 (bottom left), 28 (top middle & bottom right), 29, 32 (top & bottom), 34 (top), 35, 49 (top right & bottom middle), 51 (middle), 78, 94 by Jill Gocher; pp. 23 (top right), 24, 28 (bottom middle), 45 (top & bottom), 46 (right), 76 (right), 80, 81, 82, 84 (bottom), 88, 88-89 by Ravi John Smith; pp. 9, 10 (bottom), 12 (top left & right), 13 (top left); 23 (bottom right), 32-33, 40, 42 (top left), 46 (middle), 47, 67, 73, 75, 76 (left), 84 (top), 85, 86 by Arthur Teng; pp. 92, 93 (all) by Jacob Termansen; front & back endpapers, pp. 4, 8, 20 (top), 21, 23 (bottom left), 26, 27, 28 (bottom left), 30, 31, 36, 37, 48, 49 (top middle & bottom left), 52, 53, 56 (all), 64 (all); 72-73, 87(top), 90, 91 (all) by Luca Tettoni Photography; p. 74 by Ariel Tunguia.

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      This shadow puppet figure, Siti Dewi, is made from cowhide or goatskin, hence the name wayang kulit (“skin or leather theatre”).

      Spectacular sunsets staged on an island-studded horizon is one of the reasons Pulau Langkawi’s Pantai Tengah is such a famous resort beach.

Contents
The Land Where the Winds Meet
A Step Back in Time
Riches of the Tropical Rainforest
Malaysia’s Melting Pot
The Spirit of Art
Great Faiths in Unison
The Colours of Malaysia

      The Land Where the Winds Meet

      “Of course she had read novels about the Malay Archipelago and she had formed an impression of a sombre land with great ominous rivers and a silent, impenetrable jungle. When a little coasting steamer set them down at the mouth of the river, where a large boat, manned by a dozen Dyaks, was waiting to take them to the station, her breath was taken away by the beauty, friendly rather than awe-inspiring, of the scene. The gracious land seemed to offer her a smiling welcome.”

      – W. Somerset Maugham, ‘The Force of Circumstance’ (1953)

      Measuring up to a metre in width, the world’s largest flower the parasitic, leafless rafflesia, is found only in the rainforests of Borneo and Sumatra at altitudes of 500 to 700 metres.

      Kuala Lumpur’s skyline is dominated by the 451.9-metre-high Petronas Twin Towers, among the world’s tallest buildings, designed by Cesar Pelli and built between 1993 and 1996.

      Some places are not what they seem. Like people, some are easy to get to know, their personalities on show for all to see, and once known they remain constant, caught in a kind of timelessness. Others are more difficult to penetrate, not only in their geography but also in their psyche. At first you think you know them, but then they change again, chameleon-like, and by degrees they become stranger. For me, Malaysia is this kind of place. It has been like this ever since my first visit over three decades ago. It is a country that offers almost unparalleled diversity, from it geographical contrasts to its kaleidoscopic population. Here is travel in variety and depth of feeling.

      Immersed in Kuala Lumpur’s Blade Runner-like cityscape, I can marvel at the world’s tallest buildings, but also spy the world’s oldest rainforests in the hills beyond. I can cruise the superhighways and be numbed by the banality of concrete suburbia, then take an exit and emerge in an idyllic Gauguinesque village. I can spend the morning mall-crawling through designer boutiques and the afternoon exploring the crowded lanes of ancient port cities, or I can even escape to a tropical island and play “Survivor” or join the lotus eaters at some of this planet’s most exclusive resorts.

      At Penang’s tourist mecca of Batu Ferringhi, beachgoers don’t have to walk far to buy a locally made batik sarong.

      Malaysia