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Home » FeatureStory
These transit visitors are passengers of KTM Bhd trains which pass through Gemas 16 times a day from three directions – north, east and south. Every time the blare of air horns from approaching trains is heard, the otherwise quiet station comes alive. Cars, both private and hired ones, start to move along the queue on the one-way lane leading to the station, while the cook at the small station café hastily dishes up something hot and fresh for the passengers who’ll soon alight. As soon as the trains grind to a complete halt, everything picks up at a frenetic pace. People hurry around or mill around looking for passengers they have come to meet or looking for food to buy and eat on their journey. Even in the wee hours, Gemas station never winds down completely. Regular travellers passing through Gemas know that this is the best place to buy that special nasi lemak – still hot and wrapped in banana leaves — at only RM1 per pack. Like most of the transit passengers, the only face of Gemas I’ve seen and know so well is the railway station, its café and the nasi lemak sellers. The town remains largely a mere shadow with faint flickering lights. Historic Station According to the country’s annals, the Gemas train station is one of the oldest, completed 86 years ago by the Federated Malay States Railway, at a cost of RM98,920. However, the tracks connecting Gemas to the other stations were completed much earlier. That from Tampin was ready in 1906, the Gemas-Segamat link two years later and the Gemas-Bahau connection in 1910. Built on an area of 1,519 sq m, the station’s original structure was made of wood and plastered bricks for the walls, corrugated tiles for the roof and a concrete floor. Today, most of its original features, including the passenger platforms and tracks for goods train, are still intact. In fact, the station building is still in its original structure but has two significant exhibits at both of its sides. Besides the two 1946 North British Locomotive Company steam engines, Class 56 models, there is also an old refill cannon-shaped barrel placed on the main platform. These historical exhibits are part of KTM’s effort to preserve the station’s rich heritage. Since it sits at the confluence of the Y-shape tracks of the peninsular railway system, Gemas station is regarded as the country’s most important train station. As the major nerve centre of KTM operations in the peninsula, the station acts as an interchange to link railway lines from the east coast with those from the north and south. It connects trains from the south region starting from Singapore to destinations in the north like Butterworth and Padang Besar, passing through Kuala Lumpur, and to Tumpat and Gua Musang in the east. Stations in Padang Besar in Kedah and Sungai Golok in Kelantan are cross-border points to Thailand with the Haadyai station being the first link-up point. Sleepy Town Like the station, the town of Gemas remains untouched by modernisation and development. Except for a few blocks that make up the commercial centre and a recently rebuilt hotel, the rest of the town comprises pre-war buildings, some of which date back to the 1930s. The town centres around an odd-shaped roundabout with rows of old buildings forming a detached U-perimeter surrounding a cluster of slightly new buildings. A narrow, tricky road goes around these buildings. This three-arm traffic island leads to Tampin, Johor’s Gemas Baharu and to the railway station. The rebuilt hotel is probably the newest building in the congested town centre. It was apparently rebuilt at a cost of RM1 million after a freak fire gutted it. There are two hotels in the town centre, both less than 10 minutes walk from the train station or the bus terminal. However, within a 10-minute drive radius from the town, you will find slightly better choices of lodging. There’s Rumah Rehat Gemas (usually full) and the town’s only golf resort, Gemas Golf Resort, the only place where you’ll find Koreans or mat sallehs. Best of all, the rooms cost no more than RM80 a night. Drive towards the Negeri Sembilan-Johor border and about a kilometre from the border is Gemas Baharu – Johor’s answer to Negeri Sembilan’s Gemas. What do people in Gemas do for leisure and recreation? “Nothing much. We thank God for Astro,” says a local businessman who wants to know if we are doing a study on the town’s old buildings. After all, he says, the townfolk seldom see outsiders except for golfers, transit passengers and students. Kelemah River War Memorial Along the Jalan Tampin-Gemas road is the Kelemah River Memorial, shining amidst the dark green of an oil palm plantation. Located at Kampung Sungai Kelamah, about 10km from Gemas, it was built in memory of those who served in the Australian Battalion 2/30 and Japanese soldiers killed in battle on Jan 14, 1941 during World War II. The Australians had ambushed the Japanese who were passing through Tampin to get to Gemas, using the only access, a wooden bridge over Sungai Gemencheh. The battle lasted two days. The Gemencheh Bridge was blown up to stop the Japanese advancement. The remains of this historic bridge can still be clearly seen from a viewing platform built on the riverbank. Till today, there is a steady stream of visitors, mostly descendants of the Australian and Japanese soldiers and we had arrived only half an hour after a group of Australian soldiers who came to clean the memorial and pay their respect. Detour To Johol Passing through charming villages and small towns, the drive along Jalan Tampin-Gemas was scenic and tranquil. Pekan Air Mawang in Johol, one of Negeri Sembilan’s seven districts, is only 20 minutes off the main road. What drew us to this cowboy town was a special kuih, an exclusive item “owned” by the people of Johol who declare that apam johol is only made and available in their town. While it tastes rather like any other apam – a steamed sweet concoction of wheat flour and yeast — apam johol looks very different. Wrapped in a rambai leaf, apam johol is brownish in colour from the “natural” colour of sweet soya sauce while the rambai leaf adds to the flavour of the apam. The only apam johol maker in Pekan Air Mawang, Hatijah Kassim sells her kuih for 40 sen a piece. It is served with either salted grated coconut or sweet sambal tumis. Hatijah said her apam johol has “travelled” to as far as Kuala Lumpur, Johor and Terengganu while it is always the first choice of dessert at some official State functions. Hatijah of Jah Kedai Makan in Pekan Air Mawang can be reached at 019-320 2177. Famous Song Of Tampin “Kalau boleh, nak bising-bising macam pekan Tampin”. Loosely translated, it means “if possible, want to make a din like in Tampin”. This line comes from a famous Blues Gang song, Apo Nak Dikato, which is sung in a typical Negeri Sembilan dialect. Mind you, this is an 80s song. If the town was “noisy” then, what would it be like today? After the quiet tranquility of Gemas, Tampin does seem rather busy and chaotic, especially in the town centre where activities radiate from a small three-road roundabout. As soon as you take the turn from the roundabout, the peaceful kampung scene turns into that of a frenzied, busy town. Traffic starts to slow down and the sound of running engines and horns can be heard. Finding a parking space too is difficult. Adding to the busy scene are the multi-coloured buildings. One Town, Two States The main road leads on to Alor Gajah in Malacca. In fact the Negeri Sembilan-Malacca border cuts the main road in two, dividing the stretches of old, pre-war buildings. Besides the big signboard marking the border, the other visible difference between the two halves are the “treatment” of the buildings. Those on the Malacca side wear a uniform design of brighter colours, typical of other towns in the State. However, those on the Tampin side seem to have seen better days. Since the State border brutally cuts the town in two, confusion often arises, with schools, government buildings and public facilities “split” into two as well. Imagine students who have to go to school in another State. Even some of Tampin’s district offices are located on the Malacca side. Tampin Attractions Nevertheless, Tampin has a lot to offer visitors. Just strolling down the main street and gazing at the beautiful architecture of the old buildings is rewarding. Then there is the opportunity to shop and to taste Tampin’s delicious specialties. For recreation, locals go hiking in the Gunung Tampin Recreation Forest or enjoy a family outing at Dataran Tampin. As you head back to the North-South Highway through Simpang Ampat Toll, you can’t help seeing a giant monument in the shape of an envelope with an address that rings a bell. Nombor 66, Jalan Seremban, Tampin, Negeri Sembilan, is meant to be sung to the tune of a popular pop yeh-yeh song, Suratku Untukmu by popular 60s singer, J. Sham. At the height of its popularity, fans actually drove all the way to Tampin to look for house No. 66 while bags of fan mail arrived from all over the country and as far off as Singapore. This song shot Tampin to fame and local authorities decided to erect the envelope monument on a piece of land 300m from house No 66. That, in some way, marked the beginning of Tampin town centre.
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