Carpacker 2015 – East Coast – #9 Noor Arfa Craft Complex

Continuing from the entry Carpacker 2015 – East Coast – #8 Chinatown Kuala Terengganu and Graffiti. For pre-travel, you can refer here.

From Chinatown Kuala Terengganu (CKT), we headed to the Noor Arfa Craft Complex. Meanwhile, I drove around Kuala Terengganu City to see the surroundings. Most drivers here aren’t in a rush, just laid back. That’s what I love the most. Honestly, I’m captivated by the tranquility in Terengganu. If fate allows, I’d definitely move and retire here. The people here are also very cool, their conversations never sound argumentative.

Around Kuala Terengganu city.

I don’t think sharing GPS coordinates for Noor Arfa is necessary because it’s already in GPS. Just search for “Noor Arfa Craft Complex.” It’s almost 10km away, but we got there quickly since Kuala Terengganu city isn’t congested.

A few hundred meters before turning into Noor Arfa, I enjoyed the view from the Kuala Ibai Bridge. For your information, the river water here is very clean because it flows directly into the sea, which is the South China Sea! Unlike the west coast of the Peninsula, where the flow concentrates in the narrow Strait of Malacca. The rivers here don’t even have a bad smell.

But the downside… if a tsunami comes from the Philippines, Japan, or Vietnam, it will really hit the East Coast. Such is Allah’s plan… there’s always something extra but at the same time, something lacking, nothing’s perfect.

Ah, we’ve arrived. This place is really big, living up to the name “Complex”. Let’s read a bit about the history of Noor Arfa:

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Noor Arfa is a pioneer of the much-acclaimed batik industry in Malaysia. The Noor Arfa story has a humble beginning in 1980 in a small atelier in Kuala Terengganu when the husband and wife team of Wan Mohd. Ariffin and Noor Hijerah started designing and hand-drawing their own batik cloth. The venture, known as Noor Arfa, is an acronym derived from the combination of the names of this young and enterprising couple. It was soon destined to grow by leaps and bounds to the multi-million dollar corporation it is today.

But success did not come without painstaking patience and hard work. Always improvising and striving for the best in batik designs, Noor Arfa won the admiration and recognition of the local community for their meticulous design and high-quality fabrics.

Already, Noor Arfa has achieved the status and rare distinction of being the largest batik producer in the country, with a distribution center spread throughout the nation. The factory itself occupies a sprawling 2.5 acres site in the Cendering Industrial Area of Kuala Terengganu. It houses not only the manufacturing facility but also one of Malaysia’s largest batik showroom at (Lot 1048-K, Chendering Industrial Area, 21080 Kuala Terengganu, Terengganu Darul Iman, Malaysia). It is frequented daily by busloads of tourists eager to see the best batik the idyllic state of Kuala Terengganu has to offer. Our showroom and marketing office in Terengganu is located at this address.

With a strong force of more than 200 employees, Noor Arfa continues to strive for par excellence in meeting the discerning taste of every customer. This commitment pledge from the onset has been held steadfastly through their almost 2 decades in the traditional batik industry.

The company has been manufacturing Batik for the global market for more than 30 years.

Info from the website: https://www.batikpavilion.com/

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Wow, 36 years in the batik industry… such a long time to be a legend. There’s plenty of parking here, so no worries. It’s free too. Okay, time to head inside.

Eh, where am I? Always the cameraman… 😀

See how good I am, guiding you step by step. A thank you wouldn’t hurt.

Wow, it’s huge inside. That’s just the right side, not even the left yet. It’s the scale of a department store or factory. That’s someone else’s head… But usually, a guy like me would think, “This is like an airplane hangar…”

Suddenly…

Eh, Tatie and Aqif have disappeared? Women are fast when there’s a SALE…

Prices here are okay, not bad. Some are cheap, and some are pricey. Although there are other great batik makers like Wanisma, it’s worth coming here. You’d regret not buying anything because Noor Arfa is synonymous with Terengganu Batik.

On the right side of the Noor Arfa building, there’s an interesting spot. It’s like an MTV artist interview backdrop with branded logos. Look to the right, there’s Instagram.

Here’s Noor Arfa’s Instagram hehe. Perfect for photo ops.

After buying two pieces of clothing, we went downstairs to see the handicraft exhibition and the batik-making process. I’ve seen how batik is made many times, but I’m serving it up for first-timers. Meanwhile, let’s enjoy watching fish swimming under the stairs. The pond is quite big too.

In batik making, the unique element is the stamping mold. Each has its own design. Another unique aspect is the type of fabric and dyes used.

Then suddenly… without warning, my gastritis started acting up. Ugh, why now? My body began to feel chills, palpitations, and shivers. This won’t do, I need to quickly find some lunch.

To the Noor Arfa owner, I’ve done a great review of the Noor Arfa Craft Complex, so if there’s any appreciation, I’m all open to it, hehe.

Costs at Noor Arfa (current prices, excluding food/drink):

• Car fuel: Depending on your car.
• Noor Arfa: None (except for clothes bought)

Alright, that’s all from Noor Arfa. We continue in the next entry: Carpacker 2015 – East Coast – #10 Unique Style of Lunch and Floating Mosque.