A red-light district a century ago? Ipoh in Malaysia has Second Concubine Lane, Third Concubine Lane...

▲ The current look of Ipoh’s “Second Concubine Lane.” (Photo / Reporter Chen Ziying)

Reporter Chen Ziying / Report from Malaysia

"Ipoh White Coffee" is a must-buy when traveling in Malaysia, yet few visitors stay long in the city of Ipoh. With weathered walls, quiet alleys, and creatively painted murals by local artists, Ipoh turns out to be surprisingly captivating.Especially in Ipoh Old Town, there’s a lane with an evocative name—“Second Concubine Lane”—that hints at the area’s once-glorious past. But what hidden history does this forgotten lane hold?


▲ The entrance to Second Concubine Lane. (Photo / Reporter Chen Ziying)


▲ Traces of nostalgic shops can still be found inside the lane. (Photo / Reporter Chen Ziying)

According to locals, Ipoh became wealthy from tin mining in the early days and was known as the “Tin Capital,” with many affluent families.Second Concubine Lane was once a place for “romantic escapades”; another theory suggests it was a “concubine settlement area,” as so many men kept mistresses that it was decided to house them all in one place.Walking into the narrow alley, you’ll see rows of old two-story houses built during the British colonial period, where you can almost picture the “concubines” chatting and enjoying the shade under the eaves. There was even a “Third Concubine Lane,” reportedly created when Second Concubine Lane became too crowded and expanded into the next alley.

Today, Second Concubine Lane has many abandoned and vacant houses, along with some buildings under renovation, giving off a lingering sense of solitude. Occasionally, you’ll find cultural and creative shops that delight travelers who’ve come from afar, or you can simply take photos in the ten-meter-wide alley to commemorate this street once occupied by “concubines.”


▲ Some shops have been converted into cultural and creative stores. (Photo / Reporter Chen Ziying)


▲ Most of the buildings in Second Concubine Lane are over a hundred years old and date back to the British colonial period. (Photo / Reporter Chen Ziying)



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※ China Airlines operates daily direct flights to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia; and weekly direct flights to Penang on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Fridays, and Saturdays. Independent travelers can take trains or buses from Penang or Kuala Lumpur to reach Ipoh.

Updated report:
According to a report by Sin Chew Daily, Second Concubine Lane was not originally a place for keeping mistresses, but rather a row of shops given by the tin tycoon Yao Tet Shin to his second wife, hence the name “Second Concubine Lane.” The other two lanes were named “First Concubine Lane” and “Third Concubine Lane” after being given to his first and third wives, respectively.

Recently, Yao Tet Shin’s grandson, Yao Pingsi, told Sin Chew Daily reporters that the claim that the lane was for mistresses is purely a misunderstanding, and that his grandfather’s wives were all legally wed.