Small wonder, big feat: Kueh doing landscaping work around his miniature version of the Great Wall of China, which he built on his own at Rumah Sejahtera Kota Tinggi. — THOMAS YONG/The Star
KOTA TINGGI: He’s 69 now and retiree Kueh Kok Hua’s childhood dream of visiting the Great Wall of China has yet to come true.
Instead of feeling sorry for himself, he decided to build a mini replica of the ancient wonder at a small garden space of the old folks home, Rumah Sejahtera Kota Tinggi, where he lives.
It was a task that kept him occupied for the past three years.
“I do not have any family members. I had been staying alone before moving into the home four years ago,” he said in an interview.
Kueh said that he learned about the Great Wall of China during his primary school days.
“I remember my teacher showing me a picture of the Great Wall and I was amazed by it.”
Decades later, he saw a short video clip of the Great Wall of China while scrolling through his mobile phone.
“It is still as beautiful as ever,” he said wistfully.
And it gave him a “light-bulb moment”.
“Instead of wasting my time doing nothing, I decided to build a smaller version of the Great Wall in the garden at the home,” said Kueh, who used to take on odd jobs during his younger days.
He said he would ride his bicycle around the neighbourhood and befriended a contractor who was renovating a house not far from the old folks home along Jalan Kota Kecil here.
“I told the contractor to give me some of the small fragments of broken bricks and stones, instead of throwing it away.”
These bits of rubble were used for his little project, he added.
Kueh said there is also a nearby hardware shop whose the owner sold him bags of cement at RM1 per kilogramme.
He would use his own ang pow money to buy it.
“When I got all the materials that I needed, I began to start work on the replica of the Great Wall. I spent at least five hours a day in the late afternoon as it was not that hot then.
“I saw to all the details including the stairs and even the tunnel, which works to channel rainwater into a drain,” he said.
After three years working on it, Kueh said: “My tribute to the Great Wall of China is complete.
“Of course, I still wish that I can go to China and see the real thing, but I am happy that my small project is now completed and people can see it when they pass by the old folks home.”
