While in Falim some time ago, our friend Charlie stumbled upon this curious building (picture above).
Not to be confused with the ‘lions of Hugh Low Street’ – but they DO somehow look similar.
These ‘lions’ have been ‘living’ in Falim since 1906. We wonder what this building was BEFORE it became Syarikat Electrik Kong Ah. Anyone knows?
Perhaps someone out there used to live here? We await your thoughts and comments…..
The above pictures were taken inside Falim House, which was once the abode of Foo Nyit Tse. Much of the old furniture and trimmings have been preserved – which attracted the production crew of the local drama Sybil. The pictures below were taken at the set.
For Sybil, Falim House was used as the home of the Japanese Officer; the picture on the right shows Sybil being held captive, with a Japanese soldier on guard.
Like Falim House, we hope such heritage buildings in and around Ipoh be preserved / maintained….
Foo Nyit Tse started off as miner, under Foo Choo Choon; he later opened his first mine in 1898. In the 1920s, Foo Nyit Tse (who by then was a well known mining Towkay) built Falim – ‘a self contained housing estate, with a large num of low cost terrace housing and 40 shop houses’. Falim, which means ‘beautiful forests’, is located along Lahat Road; between Ipoh and Menglembu.
Here we have Falim House – Foo Nyit Tse’s mansion, which was built across the road from the shop houses. It was at this very mansion that Towkay Foo entertained the Who’s Who of Ipoh society back then. The picture above is the front view of the mansion; notice that on either side of the porch, there is a red, stone lion.
This picture is a side view of the mansion; on the left of the picture, seems to be what once was a courtyard – perhaps Towkay Foo had open-air parties too?
We thank Leong Yew Kee for providing us with these photos.
