Turn off Jln India (between Nos 37 and 39A) or waterfront Jln Gambier (between Nos 24 and 25A – shops selling spices with a heady aroma) onto tiny Indian Mosque Lane (Lg Sempit) and you enter another world. About halfway up, entirely surrounded by houses and shops, stands Kuching’s oldest mosque, a modest structure built of belian (ironwood) in 1863 by Muslim traders from Tamil Nadu.
Notable for its simplicity, it is an island of peace and cooling shade in the middle of Kuching’s commercial hullabaloo. There is usually someone sitting outside the mosque keeping an eye on things. If you would like to go inside, ask permission and he will probably offer to show you around. Women will be given a long cloak and headscarf to wear.
