Ho Ann Kiong Temple saga

The year of the Tiger bring a lot of story for 200 years old Ho Ann Kiong temple. On my previous post I mentioned the Temple was badly burnt and on the eve of Chinese New Year some denizen of Kuala Terengganu was begging for alms at the temple. Last Sunday, the Hokkien committee is organizing a fund-raising to fund the restoration the temple. See the news below.

Today it was reported that the political master in the State decided not to extend any financial assistance for the temple. Theses irked some of the Hokkien community.

Unlucky for the Hokkien Folks..this is not an election time. If it is, truckloads of building materials had been send to the site.

Ho Ann Kiong

Fire destroyed a 200 year-old Ho Ann Kiong temple(1810) in Kampung Cina, Kuala Terengganu at 9.30pm, 22nd Febrauary. The temple was also serve as a community centre for Hokkiens in Kuala Terengganu.

Beside the temple is a budget hotel- Hotel Seri Malaysia which was built on the land of the former Malay farm Market-Kedai Binjai.

The temple was a centre of a storm during the Chinese New Year for the citizen of Terengganu, that is supposedly well off with riches from petroleum income. See the following report.

Buletin Online: Sketsa Menyedihkan Tahun 2006 Berulang Kembali

Note: The per capita GDP of Terengganu is way above the country average. Yet it has amongst the highest poverty rates in the country.

Floating Mosque

Tengku Tengah Zaharah Mosque

Tengku Tengah Zaharah Mosque

Tengku Tengah Zaharah Mosque

Tanjung Bungah Mosque, Penang.

Putra Mosque, Putrajaya

Tengku Tengah Zaharah Mosque which is situated about 4Km from Kuala Terengganu Town Centre, is built on a floating platform on a lagoon by the mouth of Sungai Ibai . It is also known as the "The Floating Mosque" due to its unique design that creates an illusion of itself as floating on water.

This magnificent and unique Mosque are named after one of the matriarch in the Terengganu Royal house was designed by YM Raja Datuk Kamarul Bahrin Shah, a very well known Malaysian architect who himself a Prince coming from the Terengganu royal house.

Before the Crystal Mosque was built at Taman Tamadun Islam, this mosque was the iconic point of interest when visiting Kuala Terengganu.

The floating mosque concept was adopted by another two mosques; Masjid Putra in Putra Jaya and floating mosque in Tanjung Bungah in Penang.

The New Bridge

With the plan bridge of Teluk Pasu-Pulau Sekati-Muzium Losong(refer to the map), Kuala Terengganu will have three bridges crossing the Terengganu River. With a cost of RM200 million, the bridge will be at least twice the cost of Sultan Mahmud bridge.

From the experience of constructing the Sultan Mahmud bridge, I believe the new bridge will be completed in 2016 i.e. planning take 3 years and construction take another 3 years.

I hope the construction will have participation from non-locals to avoid another Stadium Sultan Mizan calamity.

The bridge will make the Muzium and Taman Tamadun Islam more accessible since the road leading to the bridge has to be upgraded.

Sultan Mahmud Bridge

It is the main bridge in Kuala Terengganu. The bridge cross the Terengganu River spanning three islands; Pulau Besar, Pulau Tengah and Pulau Duyung Besar.

It was constructed in 1987, the bridge was officially opened by the late of Sultan of Terengganu, Almarhum Sultan Mahmud Al-Muktafi Billah Shah in 1990. Toll collection for the bridge was abolished in 1999 by the then PAS state government following an election promise.

The bridge was proposed in 1984 and the design of the bridge was done by Wan Mohamad & Khoo Sdn Bhd in collaboration with Pacific Consultant International.

The bridge structure was built by SPDPK Shapadu Shimizu Marubeni for a cost of RM63.1 million. SPDPK is Syarikat Perusahaan dan Pemborong Kemaman Sdn Bhd.

Replica of Kul Sharif Mosque, Russia

Once left in ruins, the reconstruction of this mosque following the collapse of the Soviet Union is reflective of Kazan’s 1,000 year long history and its design is reminiscent of the historical surrounding of the Kremlin.

The reconstruction of the “Kul-Sharif” Mosque according to the project of the group of

architects of the firm “Tatinvest-grazhdanproyect” (A.V. Golovin, A.I. Ishakov, I.F.

Saifullin, A.C. Sattarov, M.V.Safronov, S.P. Shakurov) started in 1996. The contest for the developing of the project, which was held by the Architects’ Association preceded to the creating of its final variant. The Mosque is located in the western part of the Kremlin.

Replica of Al-Hambra Citadel, Spain

It was built chiefly between 1230 and 1354 in the reigns of Mohammed bin Ahmar, the first Nasrid King and they formed a great citadel of the Moorish kings of Spain. After the expulsion of the Moors in 1492, the structures suffered mutilation, but were extensively restored after 1828.

The Alhambra is a true expression of the once flourishing Moorish civilization and is the finest example of its architecture in Spain. It comprises remains of the citadel, the so-called palace of the kings, and the quarters once used by officials. The halls and chambers surround a series of open courts, which include the Court of Lions containing arcades resting on 124 white marble columns. The interior of the building is adorned sumptuously with magnificent examples of the so-called honeycomb and stalactite vaulting; its walls and ceilings are decorated with geometric ornamentation of minute detail and intricacy, executed with surpassing skill in marble, alabaster, glazed tile, and carved plaster.

Replica of Suleyman Mosque, Turkey

The Suleyman Mosque was built on the order of Sultan Suleiman I (Suleiman the Magnificent) and was constructed by the great Ottoman architect Mimar Sinan. The construction work began in 1550 and the mosque was finished in 1557. The Süleymaniye was ravaged by a fire in 1660 and was restored by Sultan Mehmed IV. Part of the dome collapsed again during the earthquake of 1766. Subsequent repairs damaged what was left of the original decoration of Sinan (recent cleaning has shown that Sinan experimented first with blue, before turning red the dominant color of the dome).

During World War I the courtyard was used as a weapons depot and when some of the ammunition ignited the mosque suffered another fire. Not until 1956 was it fully restored again

Replica of Mosques in Africa

Agadez Grand Mosque, Niger

Built in the 16th century when the city was at its height, this mosque is made of dried earth and is topped by a pyramid-shaped minaret spiked with 13 rows of stakes to strengthen the structure. This mosque is located in Air Massif District Mid Niger.

The Great Mosque of Qairawan, Tunisia

The most is the oldest Islamic monument in Tunisia, was built in 670 by 'Uqba ibn Nafi. Little remains of this early mosque which was rebuilt more than three times until 862 when it reached its present form under the Aghlabid ruler Abu Ibrahim Ahmad. The plan of this building became a model for later Tunisian mosques.

Mohammad Ali Mosque (Alabaster Mosque), Egypt

Also known as the Alabaster Mosque owing to the extensive use of this fine material, this mosque was built by Mohamed Ali whose reign is known as the beginning of the Egyptian renaissance. The mosque is situated in Al-Qalan Region in Kaherah, Egypt. It was designed by a Greek architect named Yussuf Bushnaq. The design was based on Sultan Ahmad Mosque (The Blue Mosque) in Turkey. It was built in 1246 and completed in1265.

Aleppo Citadel, Syria

The Citadel is a large medieval fortified palace in the centre of the old city of Aleppo, northern Syria. It is considered to be one of the oldest and largest castles in the world. Usage of the Citadel hill dates back at least to the middle of the 3rd millennium BC. Subsequently occupied by many civilizations including the Greeks, Byzantines, Ayyubids and Mamluks, the majority of the construction as it stands today is thought to originate from the Ayyubid period. A great deal of conservation work has taken place in the 2000s by the Aga Khan Trust for Culture in collaboration with the Syrian Directorate General of Antiquities.

Mausoleum of Abu Nasr Parsa, Afganistan

Built in the 17th century in Timurid style, the shrine in this octagonal structure is dedicated to an eminent theologian, Khwaja Abu Nasr Parsa who was a spiritual leader of the Naqshbandi order. Khwaja Abu Nasr sits in the middle of Balkh Central Park