Kellie's Castle

Located on the outskirt of Ipoh and before the town of Batu Gajah, this is another structure which reminds us of our colonial past. Built by a Scotsman, William Kellie Smith, a multi-millionaire who made his fortune in the late 19th century Malaya from rubber. However, there's little evidence of a rubber plantation around the castle as most of it had already been converted into palm oil plantation. Legend has it that this castle was unfinished because of the death of William's wife who were said to have plunged to her death from the top of this castle. Distraught, William decided to abandon the castle and return home to Scotland.

After being abandoned itself by the Perak government for many years, it has been turned into a tourist attraction. The castle used to be full of graffiti and was believed to be a junkies haunt. After a recent refurbishment, the authority see it fit to charge an admission fee for this place. Gone are the graffiti on the walls but the roof remain tarnished. Much of the structure of the castle remains in good condition and it's kind of the authority to built safety bars to avoid unsuspecting visitor from plunging down of the gaps in the castle.


Don't really look like a traditional castle, more like a huge bungalow


The tower


Moorish design reminiscent of the Sultan Abdul Samah building in KL


The corridor


One of many "secret" passage in the castle.


It's almost a 50 foot drop if it weren't for these bars built by the current management


View from the roof


The "decor" on the rooftop


Another section of the unfinished castle


Wouldn't look out of place in a cowboy movie