Gopeng

Gopeng is a small town about 20 km south of Ipoh, which is the state capital of Perak in Malaysia. The town, along with a stretch of North-South Expressway, between Tapah and Gopeng is one of the most picturesque areas on the west side of Peninsular Malaysia. Gopeng is also well-known for a limestone cave, Gua Tempurung. The cave is located 5 km from the town centre. Gua Tempurung has become a popular weekend getaway for many local and overseas visitors.

Town Layout

In the central area of Gopeng, there is an old bus station. There are mosques, Buddhist temples, Hindu temples and a Sikh temple located near each other. The Gopeng Police Station is located near the Gopeng Post Office and a field. This area is considered the central area of Gopeng since the field is essential for the locals for various occasions, especially for local soccer matches and other special events. Central Gopeng is filled with old pre-war shophouses which are extremely valuable for conservation and perhaps tourist attractions.

The main settlements in Gopeng are Kopisan Baru, Lawan Kuda Baru, Taman Kinta,Taman Gopeng Baru, Kampung Tersusun Kampung Pulai, Kampung Tersusun Gopeng, Desa Lawan Kuda, Kampung Jahang, Kampung Jelintoh, Kampung Sungai Itek, Kampung Pintu Padang, Kampung Gunung Mesah Hulu, Kampung Gunung Mesah Hilir, Kota Baru Estate (a small railway station town) and Kampung Gunung Panjang.

Most of these settlements are located along the prominent, straight and long Jalan Gopeng connecting Ipoh to the north and Kampar to the south. Some of the villages are located away from the main road but are still accessible by various types of vehicles.

Transportation

Many of the residents here travel via private vehicles and there are intercity bus services daily. The Kinta Omnibus has long established en route from Kampar, Kota Bharu Estate, Batu Gajah, Gopeng and finally to the Ipoh Bus Station at Medan Kidd. There is only one known public bus commuter service in Gopeng. Express bus services from various locations will generally pick and drop passengers in Gopeng, many of these express buses are en route to Kuala Lumpur, Singapore and Penang to the north. Taxi services are also available in Gopeng, they are stationed at the Gopeng Bus Station.

Public Health

Although there are no public hospitals built in Gopeng, many of its residents depends on the smaller private clinics by various doctors, there are at least 5 to 10 local clinics in various part of the town including the rural settlements.

Demographics

More than half of Gopeng's population is Chinese (i.e., about 60%). The once booming tin mining industry attracted many Chinese immigrants to live and work in Gopeng. There are also significant numbers of people of Indian descent (mainly Tamil), Malay and Orang Asli (Peninsular Malaysia's indigenous people) living in Gopeng.

There are a significant number or Rawa descendants reside in Gopeng, these are the sub-genre of the Malay. From Gunong Mesah to Kampong Rawa, Jelintoh to Kota Bharu Estate, the Rawa people resides here for centuries, long before the tin mines were established. The Rawa people speaks Malay with a certain words and dialect resembles the Negeri Sembilan Malay community. Many would generally presumed that the Rawa people is the Jawa, apparently these two community are essentially different, culturally. The Rawa people and the Rawa dialect are thriving in almost every Malay settlements in Gopeng, very genuine and deep Rawa dialect could be found in kampongs located ouskirt the Gopeng town area.

It is believed that there are more than 100,000 people resides in Gopeng.

List Of Mosques In Gopeng

* Masjid Al-Azim Kampung Gunung Panjang
* Masjid Al-Mardhiah Kampung Sungai Itek
* Masjid Ar-Rahman Kampung Gunung Mesah Hilir
* Masjid Baru Gopeng
* Masjid Jamek Kota Bharu Kota Bharu
* Masjid Kampung Changkat Legong Kota Bharu
* Masjid Kampung Changkat Tualang Kota Bharu
* Masjid Kampung Redang Sawa Kota Bharu

Education

Gopeng has several schools such as:
* SK Gunung Panjang Gopeng
* SRK Gopeng Jalan Ilmu ("Sekolah Rendah Kebangsaan Gopeng Jalan Ilmu")
* SRK Gopeng ("Sekolah Kebangsaan Gopeng")
* SRK Sungai Itek ("Sekolah Rendah Kebangsaan Sungai Itek")
* SRJK(C) Man Ming Gopeng ("Sekolah Rendah Jenis Kebangsaan Cina Man Ming Gopeng")
* SRJK(C) New Kopisan Gopeng ("Sekolah Rendah Jenis Kebangsaan Cina New Kopisan Gopeng")
* SRJK(T) Gopeng ("Sekolah Rendah Jenis Kebangsaan Tamil Gopeng")
* SMK Idris Shah Gopeng ("Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Idris Shah Gopeng")
* SMK Sri Teja Gopeng ("Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Sri Teja Gopeng")
* SBPI Gopeng ("Sekolah Berasrama Penuh Intergrasi Gopeng")

There is a matriculation college, Kolej Matrikulasi Perak (KMP), located near the small town of Kota Baru Station, in the outskirt of central Gopeng. Located on a small hill in an oil palm estate, KMP is well known for its breathtaking scenery overlooking the Titiwangsa Mountains and numerous limestone hills especially on a clear day.

Famous residents

*Dr Sun Yat Sen, the leader of the historic Chinese revolutionary leader, stayed in Gopeng briefly during the period 1909-1911.

*Mr. Eu Kong Pui (1853-1892), founder of the traditional Chinese herbal medicine under the title of "Eu Yan Sang"

*Mohammad Nor Khalid, also known as Lat, is a famous Malaysian cartoonist. He was born in the small village of Kota Baru, ("not the state capital of Kelantan") on 5 March 1951. Most of his cartoons portray the daily life of Malaysians in various perspectives and are published in mainstream newspapers such as the New Straits Times. One of his famous Kampung Boy books was published by the French. Kampung Boy was also adapted into an animated series on local and international television.

*Rashid Maidin was born on October 10, 1917 in Kampung Gunung Mesah Hilir, Gopeng. He was one of the senior leaders in the Malayan Communist Party during the Second World War. He died at the age of 89 on September 1, 2006 in Sisakoin, Narathiwat, Thailand.

*Akil Hayy famous "Ustaz Rock" ex-singer for rock band (D'Riyadh) originally from Kampung Gunung Mesah Hilir.
*Amir ex-singer rock band (Sofea) originally from Kampung Gunung Panjang.

External links

* [http://www.gopengrainforest.com Gopeng Rainforest Resort -Get away to eco-nature holidays and adventures]
* [http://www.mandailing.org/mandailinge/histp.htm Some history related to Gopeng]
* [http://www.impressions.com.my/gua_temp/gua.htm Gua Tempurung - Weekend Escape in Gopeng]
* [http://www.mygopengresort.com My Gopeng Resort - Adventure And Holiday in Gopeng]