The photo of Jalan Ibrahim* in my banner shows a slice of life in Johor Baru during the early 50’s when motorcars were rare and streets were still free from vehicular traffic.
Jalan Ibrahim is a familiar street because my school friends and I frequently walked along this road to go to the town library that was housed in a building next to the main Post Office.
We were regulars at Johor Central Store to browse for books, buy stationery and collect my subscription of Jackie magazine. When we had extra pocket money, we would have a dosai at Kerala Restaurant or enjoy refreshing ice-kacang at Ee H’ng, a corner provision shop with a café.
As a travel writer, I may venture beyond the borders of Johor and Malaysia but Johor is still my home. Here's where I grew up and know like the back of my hand.
So I have lots of fun travelling back in time to explore the Johor I once knew in nostalgia stories about My Johor. Thanks to my dad who had a hobby in photography, I have a huge collection of photos to use with My Johor stories.
Now as I am often invited to experience cafes, restaurants, hotels and spas for my articles, I will share insights into the old and familiar as well as the exciting sides of the new Johor I discover.
Welcome to Peggy Loh – My Johor Stories which is home to selected articles of mine published in The New Straits Times and elsewhere and also original material that you will find no where else but here. Readers who have been following my stories will find the best of what you already know in this blog and can look forward to more of what you love here.
Here's how my stories are organized:
By The Way
you won't believe this but...
Journeys
Souvenirs and stories from my travels
Did you Eat?
Because I know a few places you could go to
Memories
Of the way we were
Portraits
I remember you well
Here's how my stories are organized:
By The Way
you won't believe this but...
Journeys
Souvenirs and stories from my travels
Did you Eat?
Because I know a few places you could go to
Memories
Of the way we were
Portraits
I remember you well
Growing from newspaper columns to a blog, some popular posts and exclusive stories have been compiled and published in the My Johor Stories series of books, now available from MPH bookstores nationwide and online from www.mphonline.com
My Johor Stories: True Tales, Real People, Rich Heritage was launched on 15 July 2017. On the first week of its launch, this title went to the Number One spot of the MPH Non-Fiction Bestseller list and stayed on this list for weeks and months. At year end, this title was counted among The Best of MPH in 2017.
In December 2018, its sequel was published. My Johor Stories 2: Interesting Places and Inspirational People featured stories about inspirational people and heritage trades, a truly precious memento for these families because I had documented their stories for posterity.
Since 2019, I have been working on the manuscript for Book Three to complete the trilogy of My Johor Stories in a bumper book of precious stories on Johor and Johoreans. Looking forward to sharing a further update when the book will be ready for readers like you.
*This archive photo is obtained courtesy of Johor Heng Photo Studio which is still located at Jalan Ibrahim.
