Fascinating Moments at Sarawak Cultural Village

Today after breakfast we went to Sarawak Cultural Village. It was about 45min journey from the hotel. It is located on the foothills of legendary Mount Santubong. The entrance fee for adult is RM60 n children RM30. It sounded costly but it was worth a visit.

The Cultural Village comprises a unique collection of authentic traditional buildings. Known as the "Living Museum" the Cultural Village portrays the distinct cultures of Sarawak’s many ethnic groups. Our first visit was the Rumah Bidayuh. We experienced walking on the tiny steep bamboo bridge. Sape pakai kasut tinggi memang tak lepas ah nak naik jambatan ni.

This was an exciting experience for me n the kids. Nadira was over excited till she dropped her passport on the ground. Lucky we were nearly to the end. At the Bidayuh house we got to see the people wearing their costume making bamboo where u can put coins inside n also the process of separating padi to be rice.

Next we went to the Iban house. I like the Iban house as it is so spacious. We got to see people demonstrating cooking kuih rose/loyang n kuih karas (I forgot what do they call of this kuih in Sarawak). Tempted looking at it Nabila wanted to tried out n we bought a few pieces.

Next stop was the Penan house. This is the smallest house/hut among all the houses. We got to meet the handsome n sexy Penan guy :). Each of us except me tried out using the blowpipe. Unexpectedly Hakeem blew it so far n almost hit the target.

The weather was getting hotter n all of us sweating n we continued our visit to the Ulu house. The house is very tall n we use the special kind of stairs which is so small n high. We met the Ulu guy played the traditional musical instruments.

Next we stopped at the Melanau house. Melanau people are different from others as they eat sago in preference to rice. We went to see the place where they made sago n tabaloi.

The last two house were Rumah Melayu n Rumah Cina. The house, designs are almost the same the Melayu n Chinese in other places. When we reached there they were performing the traditional Malay dancing.

After about 2 hours walking all of us were very tired, sweaty n thirsty. I was glad that we managed to visit all the houses. The last stop is to watch the cultural show in the auditorium. We arrived a bit late n the show has started. The auditorium was packed n we didn’t get the seat but still all of us enjoying the show.

We had our lunch there n tried the local cuisine. All of us were really enjoying our day here. Nabila n Hakeem was very enthusiastic n asked lots of questions. This was really a true experience for them. We were here for a half day n it was really a fascinating moments to all of us.

I am sure all the Sarawakians are proud of their own special culture n ethnic.

In Kuching, Sarawak

I n my family are currently in Kuching, Sarawak. We got the cheap flight tickets booked since last year. We arrived here around 3.00pm. Upon arriving at the airport while handed the passport at the Immigration counter hearing the Sarawakian speaking reminded me a lot of my days when we were staying in Miri n our Sarawakian friend – Aji, Rohaya. Huh.. rindu gilak kamek!

We then non-stop talking about our good time in Miri n dah start ah semua madah Sarawak.. After checked in at the hotel n took a short rest our expedition began. The last time I was in Kuching was 16 years ago. I was still solo at that time. I was in Kuching for almost a month giving IT training to all the Sarawak BBMB (CIMB) branches.

I still remember some of the landmarks n area in Kuching town. So confident sikit lah nak jadi tourist guide to my family. Our hotel is just a walking distance to the famous Waterfront. We walked to the nearby shops n strolled along the Waterfront.

The weather was quite nice n breezy. While walking around I saw lots of shops n stall along the street selling kek lapis. Curiously I went in to one of the shop. Saja ah nak nengok2. I asked my children to test the cakes. The shops sell different flavours n prices of cakes depends on the ingredients used.

After so many testing here n there I bought one cake – kena lah beli pasal dah duk tanya banyak sangat.. Once out I asked hubby n children what do they think of the cake. The feedback was – mommy punya kek lapis lagi sedap! I tested the cake too n true it tasted bitter probably because of too much preservative. Some more it tasted so plain though the colors n types are different.

We then went to the shops selling souvenirs n crafts. Many shops were closed as today is a public holiday. After 3 hours walking around we then headed back to the hotel. The kids were complaining tired n just wanted to go back to the hotel. As everybody tired tonight we just had dinner in the room.

There goes one day of our stay in Kuching. Tomorrow we will be going to the Cultural Village for more exciting experience.

The Mouth Watering 'Ikan Pekasam'

Ikan pekasam?? This is my favorite among of all the ikan masin family. Ikan pekasam is marinated in toasted rice n salt. The fish is left to ferment for two weeks in a closed urn. The process softens the fish’s scales and bones n gives the traditional delicacy its distinct sharp tangy taste.

The types of fish made for ikan pekasam normally are talapia, sepat, puyu, haruan, keli (small-medium size). I actually don’t eat ikan sungai. I cannot stand the smell n the texture of the fish especially haruan, sembilang or keli. I only eat haruan during my confinement period. Tu pun jenuh paksa sumbat dlm mulut.

During my last visit to Kedah I went to Pekan Rabu to buy ikan pekasam (stok kat rumah dah habis). Surprisingly there were many people crowded at the stall. I even heard one makcik spoke in Kelantan dialect asking for the price. The price is RM20 per kilo. They will normally pack half kilo per container contains of 6-8 fish depends of the size. You can select the fish by yourself but I normally just let them select the mixture of small+big size of fish.

I brought Hakeem, Nabila there n they were complaining about the smell. I said.. this is your mom’s favorite n when u grow up u have to eat this too! Hehehehehe… mula2 kena train ambil bau dulu.

Ikan pekasam not only liked by orang utara but also people from Kelantan, Terengganu n Johor. Nowadays u can actually find ikan pekasam anywhere in the country. I saw once at pasar Shah Alam n even pasar tani. I still prefer to buy at Pekan Rabu as it is always taste fresh. The type of ikan pekasam that I like is sepat.

Ikan pekasam is best eaten fried dengan nasi panas2.. I would normally fried longer so it would be crispier then slice bawang merah, cili padi n perah asam limau.. Waaallaaaa… mak mertua lalu belakang pun tak nampak.

In my house I n Deaa only eat n ‘take pleasure in’ this ikan pekasam. The rest including hubby tak makan… Huh.. rugi rugi… Bila time goreng kena buka tingkap, pintu luas2.. the smell goes to all the neighbourhood. My chinese neighbour pun makan ikan pekasam tau... So rugi sape tak rasa..

In Memories With Sudirman Hj Arshad

Today, 22nd February 2007, precisely 18 years ago, our legend singer Sudirman Hj Arshad has passed away.

I knew Sudirman since I was small. I grew up listening to his songs. At his time he was the most educated celebrities in Malaysia n I adored him. He was known as the ‘Singing Lawyer’, the ‘People Singer’ n the ‘Elvis of Malaysia’.

Everybody has their own memories with Sudirman n I would like to share mine. I still remember when I was about 9 years old, Sudirman held a concert in Alor Setar, Dewan Syed Omar. I was sitting 5 rows from the stage n I could see him clearly.

I was so excited n ternganga mulut to see the famous Sudirman danced, sang on the stage which is so close to me. When it’s time for him to sing the song Anak Gembala, he announced needed two children to sing with him. He came down from the stage went around the hall looking for the ‘victim’. He got a boy n the girl – guess who?? It’s me!!

I who was so excited n eager previously now sweating n shaking when he pulled my hand to go up on the stage. Seriously I was so shaken that my voice didn’t even came out when he asked my name. What I have to do is to dance n sing Aaa..Aaa..Aaa…Aaa.. at the chorus. Those who knows this song know what I mean..

When it comes to my turn again my voice didn’t came out.. the Aaa.. Aaa.. Aaa.. Aaa… kuar mcm bunyi anak kambing.. Hahahahaha.. Sudirman was annoyed that I didn’t participated well n he pinched my back. Awww.. I was very skinny with less flesh – mmg sakit giler!! Lepas tu terus terkeluar suaraku yg merdu.. Aaa..Aaa..Aaa…Aaa..

That was the best moment I ever had as I could see him face to face. To me Sudirman was a great legend. He was invited to sing at Royal Albert Hall, London and was known worldwide. Even Datuk Siti Nurhaliza is not going to be able to compete Sudirman. Though she had done a concert in Royal Albert Hall but it was on her own budget and sponsored by well a lot of people I guess.

Every time his show appeared on TV, I will never miss it. I still remember he sang in the middle of Chow Kit Road with thousand fans around him. He was also famous with his Malaysian flag’s costume. The song that I like best is Salam Terakhir. If he still alive I am sure he will be the proud of our country.

Al- Fatihah to Allahyarham Sudirman Hj Arshad dan semoga rohnya ditempatkan dalam golongan orang2 beriman.

Not My Day

While I was replacing the air freshener bottle which I did it on my dining table, I accidently dropped the bottle. I thought I had broken the bottle or damaged my dining table but something else actually happened.

I didn’t realize it until I received a phone call. When I rushed to my phone I saw that my phone screen was blank n cracked. Damn! I’ve dropped the bottle on my precious hand phone. I can still receive calls or dial out except I will never know who’s the caller or read any sms.

Luckily there is one spare hp (my son’s) that I can temporarily use. Turun taraf ah kejap.. from Nokia E66 I am now using Nokia zaman tok kaduk. To make it worst when I transferred the card I didn’t save any contacts in my SIM card!

Arrgghhhhh.. I wish I could blame somebody n throw my anger towards the person. But the only person to be blamed is ME n ME n ME. I thought I had transferred the contacts but I forgot when I upgraded my SIM card from prepaid to postpaid. Huh.. padan muka.. careless sangat!!

After one hour rodek sana rodek sini n lucky that I still keep the Nokia CD, I managed to install the Nokia PC Suite n Alhamdullilah I could view all my contacts. But the problem is I am now finding ways how to print or copy all the contacts without me have to write down one by one. I have total of 335 contacts n I am not going to sit in front of my lappie doing this.

I love this phone so much. I’ve used Samsung, LG n even IPhone but I still prefer this Nokia. Hubby was trying to kenen2 his hp to me so that he could buy his new one! Sorry der… I tak suka lah phone u…

At this moment I am so frustrated.. Arrgghh... tensionnya!! Hmm…. Now nak kena check balik dlm purse cukup ke tak duit nak beli hp baru!!!

Have A Safe Journey

Last night we had ‘makan besar’ at home. My daughter Faizah is going back to Australia today morning. After 2 months holi holi day.. sadly she has to go back. I made stimbot dinner last night. We had everybody around including my SIL n Nazri’s family.

I felt it was just like yesterday that Faizah arrived home with a big bag full of souvenirs. How time runs so fast. Now she is going again with a big bag of course but full with new clothes!

I wish that she will have a safe journey n arrive safely in Tasmania. Take a good care my dear, study hard n we all surely will miss u lot n lots..

In Alor Setar

I was in Alor Setar since last Saturday. We departed from Shah Alam at 9am. The traffic was quite bad at certain area. The weather in North was extremely hot.. One of the reasons I went back to Alor Setar besides visiting my parents was to see my youngest bro future wife.

Huh.. finally he let us see his precious one. Macam Bung Mokhtar ah pulak nak berahsia2.. :). We had lunch at my auntie’s house n his girl friend came over. After a few interrogations the girl passed with the flying colors! I am very happy for my brother.

On the following day my bro’s gf came to see my dad.. My dad was very happy. Ye lah… dah lama duk suruh kahwin adik I ni… duk berahsia sangat.. At last he found his life partner. The engagement ceremony will be in March n follow by wedding in December, Insyaalah..

As usual during our stay in Alor Setar is eating marathon.. As usual nasi royale is in the list. This time around my bro brought us to taste the kuetiaw kerang cooked using dapur arang. The kuetiaw was not so bad n I could taste the aroma of the charcoal. Nevertheless I still prefer kuetiaw kat PKNK tu..

Today we are going back to Shah Alam n hopefully the traffic is good. We will be back soon next month for my bro ceremony.

The Sun Still Shines

For the last past week I’ve back to my normal routine. Nothing interesting lately. Mood swing.. sometimes up n sometimes down that made me have no desire to touch my lappy. Anyway.. life goes on..

This week my children’s school is busy with the CNY concert n preparation. I didn’t volunteer any help coz dah ramai sangat mak2 yg rajin membantu. Otherwise I just stay at home do the norm thing.

Yesterday I attended the CNY concert at the school. It was quite grand this year. Probably sponsored by toke toke at the school. Nabila n Hakeem took part in recital the Chinese poem.

Today the lion dance group came to the school to perform the dance. Hakeem who at first was scared enjoyed the loud n energetic show.

There will be a long holiday next week n we all going back to Kedah..