Terengganu Trip- Day 1: A Walk to Chinatown and a Lecture

 Kicking off our eventful Terengganu Tour, we headed to our bus at the early hour of 7AM on the 27th of May 2022. This was about to be our first real class trip, not counting any site visits done around Selangor and KL for design studio purposes, and the excitement was palpable. 

We went on an approximated 7 and a half hour bus trip, full of snacking, sleeping, and more snacking.

Reaching our hotel at long last, we quickly set our luggage and headed off to our first destination: Chinatown. I joined 3 of my friends on a brisk walk to our destination and took our sweet time appreciating all the details making the area as famous as it is.

The onslaught of lively, bright colors and murals were there at any given angle your eye could go to, and knowing that these one-of-a-kind contributions by artists, residents, designers, and visitors of the area gave Chinatown a distinctive air to it.

If I were to pinpoint the innovative aspect to Chinatown, it would clearly be how a normal neighbourhood, which could have been utilized just as any other one would, was treated in this special way that turned it into a local tourist destination, as well as a reliable, active centre for the Terengganu people.

Of course, one could not head to Chinatown without passing by the near beach, eating some seaside snacks, and taking pictures with friends!

After sunset, we gathered ourselves and headed off to our final destination of the day, Ar. Nasharudin's house, where we were greeted with a warm welcome. 

The lecture was given regarding multiple projects undertaken under the theme of rejuvenation and celebration of timber.

It was admirable to see the amount of thought and careful planning put into even the smallest of details in each of the projects, and how respected timber was, as opposed to being used as a mere aesthetic tool.