Jom Makan Angin!

Let’s Visit The East Coast! Those were the slogan printed on the banner hung high in the air near the Karak-bound Gombak Toll Plaza. Just last week, together with 5 other friends, we set on a trip to Kuala Terengganu from Shah Alam, for a holiday and to meet other Malaysian Bus & Truck Enthusiast (MBTE) forumnites. We left at around 9.30pm on SP Bumi Express new double-decker coach from Seksyen 17 Terminal, Shah Alam. The journey took around 8 hours and we reached our destination at about 5.30 the next morning. However, we disembarked at the bus depot as one of us wanted a first-hand look at how an SP Bumi Express depot looked like. SP Bumi Express is one of the most popular bus company in the whole of Terengganu.

SP BUMI Double-Decker – WRR 6789 by sks coach (Scania 420)

The upper deck seats up to 48 passengers whereas the lower deck seats as many as 12, with a total passenger capacity of 60, with a ‘2+2’ seating arrangement. For the more comfortable ‘2+1’ seating, it departs from the Putra Terminal in Kuala Lumpur. Tickets can also be purchased at the Darul Naim Express counters.

A freshly-cleaned bus

View from inside the Depot

SP Bumi Express’ Shah Alam -  Kuala Terengganu ticket (RM 42.00)

(Kuala Terengganu Town Bus)

In the later part of the day, we tried taking the Kuala Terengganu Town bus. To board the bus, passengers will need to go to Dataran Syahbandar which is located near the Kedai Payang Market. No fare is charged for all passengers. The route for this service covers areas from the Town to Losong Museum and the Islamic Civilization Park, as well from the Town to Chendering. The bus service started operations on January 1^st 2008, in conjunction with Visit Terengganu Year 2008. Its sole purpose is to attract the public to use this service in Kuala Terengganu. It is operated by Cahligas, a company of the Terengganu state government. The word ‘Cahligas’ has its own meaning. In the local Terengganu dialect, it means ‘active’ or ‘would not sit still’. The pictures below describes its interior finishings which incorporates traditional decorations, wood cravings, ‘songket’ weavings and ‘batik’, which are among the famous handicraft arts of Terengganu, and can be found on all eight Town buses. Four of these Nissan JA 450 S buses were assembled by Sumai Engineering with another four Hino RK buses assembled by Pioneer Coachbuilders.

(Interior Furnishings in the Town Bus)

(Batik Painting)

(Wood Carvings)

(Songket Weavings)

(Batik Patterns)

Sightseeing shots while onboard the Town Bus

(Keropok Lekor shop in Lesong)

(Terengganu Museum in Losong)

(The Islamic Civilization Park at Pulau Wan Man. The Crystal Mosque can be found here)

(Continued at Go East! Part 2)

This entry was originall published on http://nazmiedalhar.blogspot.com/2008/11/moh-ke-timur-part-1.html. Visit his blog at http://nazmiedalhar.blogspot.com.