The leaning tower of Teluk Intan
The leaning tower of Teluk Intan is the Malaysia equivalent of the world famous Leaning Tower of Pisa in Italy. It is located in the centre of the town of Teluk Intan, Perak. The tower is slanted leftward similar to Tower of Pisa. It is 25.5 metres tall and from outside, it looks like a 8 storey building. In actual fact, you will find out as you go inside that the building is divided into 3 storeys.
The tower is located in the center of a square surrounded by Jalan Pasar, Jalan Selat, Jalan Bandar and Jalan Ah Cheong.
The tower was built in the year 1885 by Leong Choon Chong, a Chinese contractor and was originally used as a water tank to store portable water during dry season for the people living nearby. It is also used as a time keeper of the town as there is a huge clock on top of the tower. The clock was made by J.W. Benson of Ludgatehill London and the cost of building it was contributed by the local people. The building itself is made of bricks and wood.
The pagoda style structure has been greatly influenced by Chinese architecture because the majority of the population of the town at that time was Chinese. Each storey has a height of 5 metres and you will need to go up 110 steps to reach the top of the tower. The reason for the leaning are because of the soft ground on the base of the tower and the weight of the water tank.
Getting Here
If you are using the coastal road from Kuala Lumpur, go towards the direction of Kuala Selangor. You will pass by the town of Pasir Penampang where you can detour and have your seafood here. Further up north, you will pass the towns of Sekinchan and Sabak Bernam. Follow the signage to Teluk Intan and you will reach the leaning tower after a drive of approximately 2 hour plus from Kuala Lumpur.
The opening hours of the tower is 8:00am to 5:00pm from Monday to Friday and 9:00am to 6:00pm during weekends and public holidays.
