The Kota Bharu Historical Belt

Being brought up in Kota Bharu town itself, I did not realise how interesting the town was until I had the opportunity to travel to other parts of the world and visited sites where tourist normally go to.

Kota Bharu has a number of buildings which capture the historical, social and cultural dimensions of Kelantan. Quite a number of them are located near Kubang Pasu, which I wish to refer to as the Historical Belt of Kota Bharu.

Masjid Muhammadi is the State Mosque and was built based on the same design as the Johor state mosque. This mosque symbolises the importance of Islam as the religion which has strong influence in the values of Kelantanese.

Masjid Muhammadi

Besides the Masjid Muhammadi is the building which housed the Majlis Ugama Islam dan Adat Istiadat Melayu Kelantan (The Kelantan Islamic and Malay Cultural Council) or Bangunan Majlis. The proximity of the Bangunan Majlis and Masjid Muhammadi reinforce the connection of Islam with the Malay culture as practiced in Kelantan.

Bangunan Majlis

In front of Bangunan Majlis is the Padang Merdeka or Independent Square. This is where the memorial for the First World War is located. Independent Square is also known as Padang Bank since a building which housed a bank in the 70's is located in the same row as Bangunan Majlis.

First World War Memorial at Padang Bank. Masjid Muhammadi and bangunan Majlis could be seen from this angle.

Istana Jahar is also located within this area. It was built in 1887 during the reign of Sultan Muhammad II. This was the residence of Sultan Muhammad III and few other sultans of Kelantan. Presently, Istana Jahar is the museum of regal customs of Kelantan.

Istana Jahar

Besides Istana Jahar is Istana Balai Besar or the Grand Palace. The Istana Balai Besar was built in 1884 by Sultan Muhammad II. Istana Balai Besar is presently used for special royal events. It also house the Royal Throne and Royal Regalia.

Istana Balai Besar

Bank Pitis or Money Bank is located in front of Istana Balai Besar. It was built during the reign of Sultan Muhammad III as the strong room to keep the state treasury and important documents. Pitis is the name of Kelantanese currency which was issued beginning in 1906 but was stopped when the British started producing coins for the Straits Settlement.

Bank Pitis

The Kota Bharu Arc was built when the Islamic Party took over the government in the late 1990s. The architecture symbolises the importance of Islam in the Kelantanese society. On the top of the arc is the replica of Quran, the holy book for Muslims.

Kota Baru Arc

Kelantan's Flood Measurement Landmarks

Being on the north-east of the Malaysian peninsular, Kelantan is exposed to the North-Easterly wind which normally brings heavy rains in the month on November until February. Flooding is quite normal during this period.

Two key points where the level of flooding is measured would be at Tangga Krai in Kuala Krai and Tambatan DiRaja in Kota Bharu.

According to Wikipedia, Tangga Krai or formerly known as Tangga Bradley was built in 1927 until 1929. It has 79 steps and is the first indicator of flooding since it  is located towards the south of the state. Normally, water from the remote areas of Kelantan would flow north, towards Kota Bahru on its way to the South China Sea.

It was quite ironic that I visited Tangga Krai because I had to kill time in Kuala Krai as there was a flesh flood preventing me to proceed with my journey to Kota Bharu. It was not only after 12 hours that the water receded and my journey was continued.

Tambatan DiRaja is located within the tourist belt of Kota Bharu. It used to be the pier where the Sultan of Kelantan would be watching water events, normally held to celebrate his birthday. During the flooding season, people in Kota Bahru would be watching the water level at this pier to have the understanding of the level of flood.

Dikir Barat at Senok Beach

I was invited to Datuk Khalid Ahmad's Aidil Fitri open house at his beach front house at Senok beach, not far from Kota Bharu, the capital of Kelantan.

In addition to the traditional Kelantanese cuisine such as Nasi Dagang, Nasi Kuning and Tapai, we were also served with grill oyster and chicken.

The highlight of the afternoon was a Dikir Barat performance by a local group.

Dikir Barat is a popular Kelantan past time activity, especially in the older days when there were less things to do. It is a sort of a group performance where they sing local songs in the Kelantanese dialect, headed by a lead vocalist. The only musical instruments used are the gong and percussion.

The Dikir Barat that was presented to us was performed in the way it is normally performed in the villages. No fancy outfit, and the group we facing each other is a sort of a circle.

When I was still at the primary school, I used to attend Dikir Barat performance which were held during the Sultan's birthday celebration. Normally, there would be few team competing with each other and the whole affair would end until early morning.

Kelantan Demystify

Kelantan, a state on the East Coast of the Malaysian Peninsular is a very interesting state. Right from the people, culture, politics, entrepreneurship and food, Kelantan definitely has been the discussion points in many occasions, formally or otherwise.

This blog is dedicated to discuss issues relating to Kelantan from my perspective as a Kelantanese who now lives in Kuala Lumpur, the capital of Malaysia. As visitors to this blog, you are also invited to share your thoughts, views and ask any questions regarding Kelantan, the state that is also known as the Cradle of the Malay Culture.