At the heart of Bukit Bintang is Kuala Lumpur’s trendy megamall, the Pavilion. It houses 430 retail outlets spread luxuriously around its 1.37 mil square feet of prime commercial-residential space. Fashion boutiques like Burberry Prosum, Gucci, Hermes, Hugo Boss, 4-stories of Esprit, Versace and Prada also find home in this sprawling lot. But what is currently gaining rabid attention is its eye-catching Crystal Fountain, the tallest Liuli Crystal Fountain in Malaysia.
The Crystal Fountain is made up of 3 gigantic bowls that were crafted entirely in Shanghai, taking the bloom of its national flower – the Hibiscus (Gumamela) – as its inspiration! Since its inauguration last July 4 – with the presence of the Minister of Finance himself - Dr. Ng Yen Yen – the iconic structure has since become a national landmark.
While killing time, waiting for a movie’s screening time at the Berjaya Times Square, I took a walk along Jalan Imbi and its tributaries until I found myself right in front of the mall, and was entranced by the changing fluorescent lights of the fountain. Everyone around me couldn’t help from taking photographs, it became the centrepiece of an already eye-candy of a mall. Right behind it is a sleigh and some reindeers made of tiny Christmas lights. I wasn’t aware of this fountain until then.
In an article from KL Lifestyle Magazine (I got my free copy when I went to see KLCC Aquaria), Ms. Joyce Yap – CEO Retail for Pavilion KL – offered that they wanted a landmark that will be easily identified with the mall. She explained, “A garden may have been too elaborate (and KLCC Suria’s surrounding gardens is hard to top). And a statue – hard! The water feature of the fountain provided the soft feature to complement the property.” She said that the fountain had the capacity to draw attention and many were compelled to toss coins into the fountain. I was not! There was a red cordon surrounding the fountain. The coins will however be collected from time to time, then donated to charity, which is a great idea. The mall officially opened in October 2007, but despite its relatively young "shelf life", it has already won several awards, including a Retail Category Excellence Award as well as the Best Shopping Mall!
I say, it is high time that KL should acquire a new tourism itinerary. I am not too fond of shopping unless it concerns DVDs (I got several from a specialty DVD shop at Berjaya Times Square) and pasalubongs (gifts), but I had so much fun roaming the fountain grounds, watching ecstatic revellers take their own mementos of the crystal fountain. I had so much fun I didn’t make it inside the mall that night! LOL! I had to scurry off as a movie I wanted to watch was gonna start its screening elsewhere!
The ground where the mall stands used to be a girl’s school, but when the campus was vacated in 2000, ground work for the mall started. It consists of 6 shopping precincts – Couture Pavilion, Centre Court, Connection Centre (cinema, fitness, videoke), Gourmet Emporium (food court), Seventh Heaven (spas and beauty salons) - and a row of street-front boutiques. Opening hours are from 10 AM to 10 PM daily, 7 days a week.
Changing colors every couple of seconds, the Crystal Fountain is Malaysia's tallest Liuli Fountain!
Sleigh and a reindeer. Waiting for Santa to visit a cosmopolitan muslim city?
A stolen shot inside the sophisticated cinema hall of a Pavilion cinema. Camera's aren't allowed, but not cellphone cams. Besides, I wanted to document the seats, not the movie being shown.
Pavilion's Centre Court. This photo only courtesy of wikipedia's jyi1693.
What is a Liuli?
"This ancient Chinese art of Liuli was discovered incidentally about 2500 years ago when Fan-Li, a well-known government official at the time, was making a King's Sword for his emperor. Ever since then, Liuli can only be owned and made for the royal families in China.
- Liuli is very well known for its mix of colors and flow of light as it always seems very mystical in its nature.
- Liuli Stone is similar in its chemical composition as Crystal and glass, but it is not as clear in its translucency. Its hardness is close to Jade.
- The ancient way of making Liuli is being preserved until today. The mixture of colors are done naturally during the process, thus, no two Liuli are exactly the same in the flow of its colors.
- The process of making Liuli is to heat up the Liuli stone in high temperature until it melts. Then the liquid is mixed with other natural ingredients and then poured into a mold. The natural ingredients added will cause some chemical transformation of Liuli and form its unique flow of color and light.
- The bubbles inside the Liuli are naturally formed during the process. Collectors of Liuli especially appreciate these bubbles as they will reflect light and add to its beauty.
Check this out for an animated view of Pavilion's Liuli Fountain - http://www.liuli.com/news/liuli_fountain_Malaysia.html
To every wanderlust and to my friends, Happy Holidays! May everyone welcome the new year with love, peace, hope and the purest form of happiness that only kind hearts deserve! Safe travels, everyone!
This is the Eye in the Sky!
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