A GIRL FROM KLUANG WHO LOVES HER HOMETOWN IN HER WAY

Originated from Kluang, Low Jing Tong who’s born in 1995 is always passionate in promoting her hometown. This alumni from School of Communication, USM is currently working as an administrator at Kluang Days. 

She’s often being asked that what’s her occupation and the answer she’ll give is always a slashie. A person who thinks their day job isn't their real job often known as a slashie. Apart from being an administrator, she is also having other identities too.  

Nowadays, more and more of youngsters tend to move out from their hometown to pursue and studies and careers. Even after graduating, they would still prefer to stay in big city such as Kuala Lumpur, Penang and Singapore. As for Low, after graduating from USM, Penang, she has decided to go back to Kluang and settle down there. 

Low is always full of enthusiasm in promoting the humanistic tourism of Kluang. Compared with the natural landscape tourism, humane tourism is an experiential tourism activity that most places have not done yet. 

Therefore apart from working in Kluang Days, she also joined activities such as Kluang 2.0 and reach out to local media to let more people know about her amazing and wonderful hometown. 

Kluang Days is a special multidimensional event space in Kluang, Johor. Built exclusively as a gift to Kluangites, Kluang Days is located in a historical street right at the centre of the town. The space at ground floor is a unique cafe with local elements, whereas the space on the first floor is a wide event space for different possibilities.

KAMIKITA Market has collaborated with Kluang Days that hold an event at the back alley of Kluang Days that intended to bring small, handicrafts businesses together on one platform. The event was held for 2 days (17 and 18th December 2021). This platform is built hoping that it could let them show their products to the locals and reach out to more potential buyers. Low has also joined the event as one of the planner and organizer for the market. 

KAMIKITA Market is not only having stalls, but also various kinds of workshops such as arts, macramé, kombucha making, book fest, yoga session, jazz band and more. The reason behind this hard work is not only to promote their products, but also to let more people know about the local culture and and the same time promoting the humanistic tourism in Kluang to the public too!

As Kluang is getting more and more developed, Low thinks that there are always pros and cons in it. She thinks most of the locals don’t really know about Kluang. Through this enables local Kluangites get to know more about their hometown. 

Overdevelopment in Kluang has made the place more advanced but at the same time there are things that need to sacrifice too. Kluang train station has the main railway line that passed through Kluang and separates the town with other parts of Kluang, In the old days, there used to be the only one way to town.

Now, the tracks of the train has been dismantle for a better development and people can no longer see the busy train station just like in the past centuries. Low feels that it is a waste for such a train station that used to be so busy has now deserted and younger generations are no longer understand what are the meaning behind this. 

Low hopes that this the tracks in Kluang train station can be reserved and restore it to be one of the tourists spot just like the Jiufen old street in Taiwan.