Kulai’s ‘floating dragon’ a labour of love

Enthralling sight: Visitors snapping pictures of the ‘floating’ 200kg bamboo dragon at the Guan Yin temple in Putuo Village, Kulai.

KULAI: A 200kg “floating” bamboo dragon at a temple here has attracted throngs of visitors.

An average of 12,000 daily visitors flocked to Putuo Village, some 10km from Kulai town, for nine days from Feb 10, the first day of Chinese New Year, said its marketing manager Alston Lim.

“The main attraction at the village this year is a dragon woven from bamboo, which took about six months to complete.

“The 12m-long dragon – about the width of two badminton courts – hangs from steel wires at the main hall of the Guan Yin temple within the village grounds, so it looks like it is floating mid-air,” he said when interviewed.

Thousands of visitors have been showing up daily even on a weekday like Monday due to the festive season, coupled with the ongoing school holidays.

“About 80% of our visitors are locals from all over the country while the others are tourists from Asian countries such as Singapore, Vietnam, China and South Korea as well as European countries.

“We expect the crowds to keep coming until March,” he added.

Lim said the installation, said to be the only one of its kind in Malaysia, was designed by the village’s committee in conjunction with the Year of the Dragon.“It was crafted to life with the help of an Indonesian artist. It was also the artist’s first time taking on the challenge of making a dragon closely related to Chinese mythology.

“It took him five months to painstakingly weave the dragon before shipping it to the temple for finishing touches, and eventually hoisting it up,” he said.

The village, which includes a 8.9ha bamboo valley, an old folks home and a cafe, is also in the midst of transforming the temple in tandem with the bamboo concept.

The renovation is expected to be completed by the middle of the year.

“This is in line with the bamboo theme that runs through the village. Our bamboo valley is also decorated with various elements for visitors to enjoy and take photos with, making it a tourist attraction for people from various walks of life,” said Lim.

During the festive season, the village is open daily from 9am until 6pm. However, it will be open until 10pm this Saturday and Sunday.