May 21, 2011 at 12:00 pm
For those of you who do not know what Rafflesia is, it is the largest flower in the world, and is only available in certain regions in South East Asia, in particular Malaysia. It is rather rare, and was named after Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles. While being the largest flower in the world, it has the unfortunate distinction of being one of the smelliest as well, which gave rise to its moniker, corpse flower or meat flower. It is quite a unique plant in nature, and due to its rarity, it is also a major tourist attraction.
The Rafflesia in full bloom
A recent article in The Star mentioned that the Kelantan state government has decided to preserve a piece of land in Gua Musang that has Rafflesia plants in the area. There are also plans to turn this area into tourist attractions that offer visitors a close look at this unique flower. It might sound odd that people would travel so far to see such a flower, but the truth is that it is quite impossible to predict when or where the flower will bloom, as most of the plant is hidden from view. And as we all know, the harder something is, the greater the appeal. Combined with the fact that the flower decays quite rapidly after bloom, getting a glimpse of the Rafflesia can turn out to be a moment that is remembered for a lifetime.
Have any of you seen a Rafflesia in bloom in real life? Could you stand the smell, or rather the stench? Tell us how it was.
Read the full article below:
The Kelantan government will gazette 440ha of land in Lojing, Gua Musang to preserve the thriving Rafflesia plants there. Senior state exco member Datuk Husam Musa said the area had to be preserved to stop development from wiping out the plant species.
“The area has 16 Rafflesia hot spots and based on Universiti Malaysia Kelantan studies, the area has the potential of becoming a major tourist attraction.
“At the same time, the orang asli community living in the area could also make a living by doubling as tourist guides,” he added.
Husam said the state government decided to gazette the area after a few executive councillors visited it recently and saw the importance in protecting the species from extinction.
Meanwhile, Mentri Besar Datuk Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat said the state had agreed in principle to have an open tender for private companies to build a RM159mil sports complex in Bukit Merbau, Pasir Putih.
Apart from a sports complex, he said the developer would also be required to build a stadium with a 40,000 crowd capacity and a mosque.
“This sports complex project will eventually become a ‘sports city’ where mixed development will take place on the 60ha land approved by the executive councillors,” he said after chairing the state exco meeting here yesterday.
Nik Abdul Aziz also said development on the land would start after approval by a committee on the specifications and the concept, adding that the land would be developed through a private initiative.
He said although the area was far from the state capital, it was in a strategic location as the East-West Highway project would be built close to the sports complex.
Source: The Star
Photo (c) Graham Racher
Rafflesia In Kelantan
May 21, 2011 at 12:00 pm
For those of you who do not know what Rafflesia is, it is the largest flower in the world, and is only available in certain regions in South East Asia, in particular Malaysia. It is rather rare, and was named after Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles. While being the largest flower in the world, it has the unfortunate distinction of being one of the smelliest as well, which gave rise to its moniker, corpse flower or meat flower. It is quite a unique plant in nature, and due to its rarity, it is also a major tourist attraction.
The Rafflesia in full bloom
A recent article in The Star mentioned that the Kelantan state government has decided to preserve a piece of land in Gua Musang that has Rafflesia plants in the area. There are also plans to turn this area into tourist attractions that offer visitors a close look at this unique flower. It might sound odd that people would travel so far to see such a flower, but the truth is that it is quite impossible to predict when or where the flower will bloom, as most of the plant is hidden from view. And as we all know, the harder something is, the greater the appeal. Combined with the fact that the flower decays quite rapidly after bloom, getting a glimpse of the Rafflesia can turn out to be a moment that is remembered for a lifetime.
Have any of you seen a Rafflesia in bloom in real life? Could you stand the smell, or rather the stench? Tell us how it was.
Read the full article below:
The Kelantan government will gazette 440ha of land in Lojing, Gua Musang to preserve the thriving Rafflesia plants there. Senior state exco member Datuk Husam Musa said the area had to be preserved to stop development from wiping out the plant species.
“The area has 16 Rafflesia hot spots and based on Universiti Malaysia Kelantan studies, the area has the potential of becoming a major tourist attraction.
“At the same time, the orang asli community living in the area could also make a living by doubling as tourist guides,” he added.
Husam said the state government decided to gazette the area after a few executive councillors visited it recently and saw the importance in protecting the species from extinction.
Meanwhile, Mentri Besar Datuk Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat said the state had agreed in principle to have an open tender for private companies to build a RM159mil sports complex in Bukit Merbau, Pasir Putih.
Apart from a sports complex, he said the developer would also be required to build a stadium with a 40,000 crowd capacity and a mosque.
“This sports complex project will eventually become a ‘sports city’ where mixed development will take place on the 60ha land approved by the executive councillors,” he said after chairing the state exco meeting here yesterday.
Nik Abdul Aziz also said development on the land would start after approval by a committee on the specifications and the concept, adding that the land would be developed through a private initiative.
He said although the area was far from the state capital, it was in a strategic location as the East-West Highway project would be built close to the sports complex.
Source: The Star
Photo (c) Graham Racher
Tags: Corpse Flower, health tourism, kelantan, Meat Flower, rafflesia